JPH10314677A - Device for separating and supplying front and rear of parts - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve the supply efficiency of parts to be supplied while their directions are aligned from a hopper. SOLUTION: When piercing nuts 55 housed in the holding part 21 of a lower turn table 20 in the bottom of the hopper arrive at the neighborhood of a first guide passage 40, a pin sliding relatively in the annular ring 26 of this lower turn table 20 comes diagonally into contact with the flank and is energized outward and is pressed by the inclined rear edge of the holding part, by which the pin is delivered to the first guide passage 40. When the projecting parts 57 of the piercing nuts 55 are downward, the projecting parts slide in the groove 36 and advanced in the first guide passage. When the projecting parts 57 are upward, the projecting parts are guided by a slit 46 formed by plates 50, 52 and the piercing nuts advance in a second guide passage 45. The piercing nuts 55 falling into the holding part 21 are divided to either of the first or second guide passage 40 or 45 by their direction and, therefore, one thereof is inverted thereafter, by which the successive supply of the all nuts to the assembling section is made possible.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a front / back separation / supplying device for a component such as a pierce nut having different shapes on the front and rear sides, and separating and extracting the components from a hopper.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in an automatic assembly line for parts, an automatic supply device for sequentially supplying a large number of nuts from a hopper to an assembly site or the like has been used. In the case of nuts without front and back sides, the nuts are arranged in a line on one supply passage for one assembly site by passing holes through which the nuts can pass one by one.

[0003] On the other hand, when the nut has front and back surfaces and it is necessary to supply the nut to the assembly part in a specific direction, for example, vibration is applied at an alignment portion near a passage route coming out of the hopper, or a slope is provided in the route. For example, while urging in a predetermined direction, only the object in the predetermined direction is sent out to the supply passage.

[0004]

However, among the above-mentioned conventional automatic feeding apparatuses, those which are not oriented in a predetermined direction in the alignment section are shaken off as they are and are left in the hopper. Therefore, there is a problem that the supply efficiency of the nuts arranged in a predetermined direction is low.
In addition, the nut is passed through the hole for rearranging on one supply passage including the automatic supply device, but at this time, the nut cannot pass unless it has a predetermined posture. However, since the nuts in the hopper are in an irregular state, the transfer efficiency to the supply passage is not good.

Further, there is a problem that the remaining amount of the nut in the hopper cannot be confirmed unless the operator directly recognizes the remaining amount. These problems apply not only to nuts but also to bolts and other parts to be supplied in a predetermined orientation. Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above-described conventional problems, and can improve the supply efficiency of components to be supplied in a direction aligned from a hopper, and furthermore, a front and back separation / supply device for a component capable of easily checking the remaining amount of components in a hopper. The purpose is to provide.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, the present invention is directed to an apparatus for separating and supplying a front and back surface of a component having a main body portion and a protruding portion protruding on one of the front and rear sides thereof. An alignment / separation unit is provided on the substrate. The alignment / separation unit is provided on the substrate, a rotor having a holding portion capable of rotating on the substrate and holding the above components one by one on an outer peripheral portion. A first guide passage having a start end near an outer peripheral portion of the rotor, a second guide passage diagonally branched from the first guide passage, and a component held by a holding portion of the rotor guided to the first guide passage And the first guide passage is configured such that the protruding portion passes only one of the downward component and the upward component, and the second guide passage allows only the other component to pass. What is composed It was.

The first guide passage has a groove on the substrate on which a protruding portion is slidable, and the height from the upper surface of the substrate to the upper wall of the passage is set so that only the main body of the component can pass therethrough. The guide passage 2 has a height from the upper surface of the substrate to the upper wall of the passage so that only the main body of the component can pass therethrough, and the upper wall of the passage is provided with a slit in which only the protrusion is slidable. Things.

At this time, the first guide passage and the second guide passage are defined by a guide block provided on the substrate and a plate provided on the guide block, and the plate forms each upper wall. Is preferred.

Further, the guide block surrounds the rotor along its outer periphery, and the holding portion of the rotor has a cutout shape opened outward, and the guide means holds the rotor in the circumferential direction on the lower surface side of the rotor. A ring-shaped groove formed with a radius close to the inside of the portion, and a pin that protrudes above the substrate and fits into the ring-shaped groove. , It can be biased in the direction of the first guide passage.

Further, it is desirable that the rear edge of the notch of the holding portion is inclined so that the opening of the holding portion is directed obliquely rearward with respect to the rotation direction of the rotor. A ring-shaped notch is formed along the guide block, which forms a wall surface of the first guide passage on the side facing the rotation of the rotor, and an extension is formed by extending the wall surface into the ring-shaped notch. Is preferred.

The rotor is composed of an upper rotating disk and a lower rotating disk that rotate integrally. The upper rotating disk has a plurality of receiving holes in the circumferential direction through which components can pass one by one, and a rotation center portion. Is higher than the outer periphery, passes between adjacent receiving holes, and a line connecting the rotation center and the outer peripheral edge is formed as a ridge, and between each ridge is formed in a curved concave portion, and the lower rotating disk has an upper rotating disk. Formed so as to be aligned with the receiving hole.

In the hopper, there can be provided a stirring rod whose lower end is located in the vicinity of the ridge with the lower end facing the receiving hole. The stirring rod is provided to be suspended from the limit switch, and is provided with the components. The limit switch can be configured to be activated when displaced by the contact of.

[0013]

In the present invention, when the rotor rotates in the alignment / separation unit at the bottom of the hopper, the component is held and moved by the holding portion of the rotor. When the part moves to the predetermined position, the guide means guides the component from the holding portion to the first guide passage. Then, for example, a component having a downwardly projecting portion passes through the first guide passage as it is, but a component having an upwardly projecting portion cannot pass through the first guide passage, and proceeds to a second guide passage branched from the first guide passage. Thereby, the upward projection and the downward projection are separately aligned.

In particular, by providing a groove on the substrate of the first guide passage on which the protruding portion is slidable and setting the height of the upper wall of the passage so that only the main body of the component can pass through, the first guide passage is formed. The height of the passage upper wall of the second guide passage is set so that only the main body can pass therethrough, and a slit is formed on the upper wall so that only the protrusion can slide. Thereby, the second guide passage is specified as passing only the part whose protrusion is upward.

At this time, each guide passage can be easily defined by placing a guide block on the substrate and placing a plate thereon. In addition, since the guide block surrounds the outer periphery of the rotor, the component can be moved in the rotational circumferential direction by the holding portion opened outside the rotor,
By configuring the guide means with a ring-shaped groove formed on the lower surface side of the rotor and a pin fitted therein, when the component moves to a predetermined position and hits the pin, it is guided in the first guide passage direction.

Further, when the rear edge of the notch of the holding portion is inclined, the component is efficiently pushed toward the first guide passage on the inclined surface. Further, by extending the extension of the guide block into a ring-shaped notch formed on the lower surface side of the rotor, the component is smoothly guided to the first guide passage.

The rotor is composed of an upper rotating disk and a lower rotating disk. The upper rotating disk has a curved concave portion formed between the ridges, and each curved concave portion has a receiving hole, and the lower rotating disk has a receiving hole. By forming the holding portion in such a manner that a large number of components are sequentially inserted into the holding portion via the receiving holes. Then, by providing the stirring rod extending to the vicinity of the ridge toward the receiving hole, the component is guided to a posture that is easy to enter into the receiving hole. Furthermore, by letting this stirring rod drop from the limit switch, the limit switch is activated when the displacement generated due to contact with the component is no longer present, so that the notification that the remaining amount of the component in the hopper has become small. Becomes possible.

[0018]

Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to examples. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing the overall configuration of an embodiment applied to the separation of a pierce nut from front and back. At the bottom of the hopper 1 having an opening at the upper end, an alignment separation unit 2 is provided.
Is provided. The alignment / separation unit 2 includes a rotor 4 that faces the hopper 1 and is driven to rotate by a motor 3. Around the rotor 4 at the bottom of the hopper 1, a mortar-shaped inclined surface 5 is provided toward the rotor. A limit switch 6 having a stirring rod 7 hung down is attached to the inner wall of the hopper 1.

The rotor 4 comprises an upper rotating disk 10 and a lower rotating disk 20, as shown in FIGS. The upper turntable 10 is provided with a plurality of nut receiving holes 11 in the circumferential direction. Each nut receiving hole 11 has a diameter slightly larger than the outer diameter D1 of the main body portion 56 of the pierce nut 55 shown in FIG. 4, and can be passed one by one. The rotation center of the upper turntable 10 is thicker and higher than the outer circumference,
A curved surface concave portion 13 is formed between the ridges 12 with a line passing between the adjacent nut receiving holes 11 and connecting the rotation center portion and the outer peripheral edge as a ridge 12. Each nut receiving hole 11 is located in the curved concave portion 13.

The lower end of the stirring rod 7 hanging down from the limit switch 6 extends to the vicinity of the ridge 12 of the upper turntable 10 at a diameter position connecting substantially the center of each nut receiving hole 11 without contact. Then, depending on whether the stirring rod 7 is hanging down straight or its lower end is displaced and inclined,
The output state of the limit switch signal changes.

The lower turntable 20 is a flat plate, and the upper turntable 1
0 has an outer diameter smaller than
A notch-shaped holding portion 21 aligned with each of the nut receiving holes 11 is formed. On the lower surface of the lower turntable 20,
A ring-shaped notch 25 is formed along the outer periphery, and a ring-shaped groove 26 is formed inside the notch 25. The inner ring-shaped groove 26 has a radius toward the inside of the holding portion 21, that is, a radius slightly offset from the center of the nut receiving hole 11 toward the rotation center, and the ring-shaped notch 25 is located near the center of the nut receiving hole 11. Extend to. Ring-shaped notch 2
5, the outer peripheral edge of the lower turntable 20 has a thin plate shape.

The upper turntable 10 and the lower turntable 20 are fixed to each other so as to rotate integrally on the substrate 30. The piercing nut that has entered the nut receiving hole 11 passes through the nut receiving hole 11 and is accommodated in the holding portion 21 thereunder. The height from the substrate 30 to the lower surface of the upper turntable 10, that is, the height from the upper surface of the lower turntable 20 is set to be slightly larger than the total height H of the pierce nut 55. Thus, the pierce nut 55 accommodated in the holder 21 is carried while sliding on the substrate 30 as the rotor 4 rotates, and can be sent out from the opening 27 of the holder 21.

FIG. 4 is a partial perspective view of the alignment / separation unit 2 with the upper turntable removed, and FIG. 5 is a partial plan view of the alignment / separation unit with the upper turntable removed.
Each holding portion 21 of the lower turntable 20 has a rear edge 28 of the notch formed as a straight line having an inclination and is smoothly connected to an outer peripheral edge 29 of the lower turntable.
An opening 27 is formed obliquely rearward with respect to the rotation direction of the rotor 4 indicated by. The guide block 3 is provided on the substrate 30.
1 and 32 are installed so as to surround the lower turntable 20 along the outer peripheral edge 29 thereof, and further add a guide block 33 to the first guide passage 40 obliquely opposed to the rotation direction of the rotor 4 indicated by the arrow A. And a second guide passage 45 diagonally branched from the first guide passage 40 is formed on the edge 3 of the substrate 30.
7 are formed. Guide blocks 31, 32, 3
The thickness of the pierce nut 3 is set slightly larger than the height H1 of the main body 56 of the pierce nut 55 and smaller than the total height H of the pierce nut including the protrusion 57.

The guide block 31 which forms the wall surface 41 of the first guide passage 40 on the side facing the rotation of the rotor 4 has an extension in which the wall surface 41 is extended into the ring-shaped notch 25 of the lower turntable 20. A part 42 is formed. Further, on the substrate 30, a pin 35 that fits into the ring-shaped groove 26 of the lower turntable 20 protrudes substantially further from the wall surface 41.

The substrate 30 further includes a first guide passage 4
0 along the center line from the beginning to the end of the piercing nut 55, the projection 5 is slightly wider than the diameter D2 of the projection 57.
7, a groove 36 deeper than the height dimension H2 is formed from the vicinity of the outer peripheral edge 29 of the lower turntable 20 to the end edge 37. On the guide blocks 31, 32, 33, pierce nuts 55
Plates 50, 5 slightly thicker than the height H2 of the protrusion 57 of
2 are attached and the opposite edges 5 of both plates 50, 52
A slit 46 that bends from the first guide passage 40 to the second guide passage 45 is formed by 1 and 53. The slit 46 is slightly wider than the diameter D <b> 2 of the projection 57 of the pierce nut and extends from the center line of the first guide passage 40 to the center line of the second guide passage 45. Thus, the portion of the first guide passage 40 after the branch of the second guide passage 45 is covered by the plate 50. In FIG. 5, a virtual line indicates a pierce nut.

Next, the operation of the above configuration will be described. First, the rotor 4 at the bottom of the hopper is rotationally driven by the motor 3 in a state where a predetermined number of pierce nuts are put into the hopper 1. In the hopper 1, a ridge 12 of the upper turntable 10 is provided.
Since the stirring rod 7 hangs down to the vicinity, the pierce nut standing or inclined on the upper turntable 10 is easily fallen down by the stirring rod 7 with the rotation of the rotor 4 and easily enters the nut receiving hole 11. The pierce nut 5 that has fallen into the nut receiving hole 11 of the upper turntable 10 while the rotor 4 is rotating.
5 passes through the nut receiving hole 11 and
In the holding section 21 of the printer.

The outer periphery of the lower rotating disk 20 is a guide block 3
1 and 32, the piercing nut is
It is slid and moved on the substrate 30 while staying at 1.
When the holding portion 21 holding the pierce nut reaches the vicinity of the first guide passage 40, the pin 35, which has relatively slid in the ring-shaped groove 26 of the lower turntable 20, is moved by the pierce nut 5.
5 obliquely contacts the side surface and urges the piercing nut outward. As shown in FIG. 6, the pierce nut 55 urged outward is prevented from moving in the rotation direction by the extension portion 42 of the guide block 31, while the holding portion 21 of the lower turntable 20 that continues to rotate. It is pushed by the inclined trailing edge 28 and sent out from the holding portion 21 to the first guide passage 40.

When the pierce nut 55 sent out from the holding portion 21 has the projection 57 downward, as shown in FIG.
The thickness of the pierce nut 55 on the upper surface of the substrate 30 is the height H1 of only the main body 56. Guide block 31,
Since the thickness of the pierce nut 55 is slightly larger than the height H1 of the main body portion 56 of the pierce nut 55, even if the plate 50 covers the first guide passage 40, the pierce nut 55 with the projecting portion 57 facing downward is provided. The pierce nut slides its protrusion 57 into the groove 36 and proceeds in the first guide passage 40. Since no groove is formed in the second guide passage 45, the pierce nut 55 with the protrusion 57 facing downward is not guided, and the thickness is obtained by adding the height of the protrusion 57 to the main body 56. Then, the second guide passage 4
5 will be caught by the plates 50, 52 on the upper side.

On the other hand, when the pierce nut 55 sent out from the holding portion 21 has the projecting portion 57 facing upward, the projecting portion 57 projects from the upper surfaces of the guide blocks 31 and 32. As shown in FIG. 8, the protrusion 57
The pierce nut 55 is guided to the second guide passage 45 by being guided by the slit 46 formed by 0 and 52.

In this manner, the pierce which has fallen from the nut receiving hole 11 of the rotor upper rotating disk 10 into the holding portion 21 of the lower rotating disk 20 and has been sent to the starting end of the first guide passage 40 from the opening 27 of the holding portion. The nut 55 has a protrusion 57
When the protruding portion 57 faces downward, it proceeds to the second guide passage 45. When supplying the pierce nut 55 with the projection portion facing downward to an assembly portion (not shown), the pierce nut 55 of the first guide passage 40 may be guided to the assembly portion with the posture as it is, and the second guide passage 45 may be supplied. After that, the pierce nut 55 is guided to the assembling site after turning the protruding portion 57 downward similarly via a well-known reversing mechanism, for example. Therefore, the rotor 4
All of the piercing nuts 55 that have entered the nut receiving holes 11 can be sequentially supplied to the assembling site effectively.

In the hopper 1, a limit switch 6 is provided.
Since the stirring rod 7 is provided, the tip of the stirring rod 7 always contacts the pierce nut 55 while the rotor 4 is rotating, and the tip is displaced and inclined. However, when the remaining amount of the pierce nut in the hopper 1 becomes small, the stirring rod 7 is prevented from being displaced by the pierce nut 55. Therefore, a signal is output from the limit switch 6 and the pierce nut must be replenished to the hopper 1. Will be notified. Although the embodiment has been described with respect to an example in which the pierce nut 55 is applied to the front and back separation, the present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention can be applied to the front and back separation of a bolt, a washer and other parts, or the upper and lower identification separation.

[0032]

As described above, the present invention relates to an apparatus for separating and supplying a front and back surface of a component having a main body and a protruding portion, wherein an alignment / separation unit is provided at the bottom of a hopper.
A rotor having a holding portion rotatable on a substrate and capable of holding the above components one by one on an outer peripheral portion; a first guide passage having a start end near the outer peripheral portion of the rotor; and a second guide passage obliquely branched therefrom And a guide means for guiding the component from the holding portion to the first guide passage. The first guide passage allows only one of the protruding portions to pass downward or upward, and the second guide passage Since the passage is configured to allow only the parts facing in the opposite direction to pass therethrough, there is the effect that the upward and downward projections can be separately aligned and supplied from each guide passage.

In particular, the first guide passage is provided on the substrate with a groove in which the projecting portion of the component is slidable, and by allowing only the main body to pass the height of the passage, only the component having the projecting portion facing downward is provided. In the second guide passage, the height of the passage is set so that only the main body portion can pass therethrough, and a slit in which only the protrusion is slidable is provided on the upper wall of the second guide passage, so that only the part whose protrusion is upward is provided. Therefore, if the components that have passed through one guide passage are made to have the same orientation as the components in the other passage by, for example, passing through a reversing mechanism, they can be efficiently aligned and supplied to an assembly site or the like.

At this time, each guide passage can be easily defined by placing a guide block on the substrate and placing a plate thereon. In addition, a guide block surrounds the outer periphery of the rotor, and the parts are moved in the circumferential direction of rotation by the holding portions opened to the outside of the rotor, while the ring-shaped grooves formed on the lower surface side of the rotor are brought into contact with sliding pins. The components can be guided from the holding portion of the rotor toward the guide passage with a simple configuration. Further, by inclining the trailing edge of the notch of the holding portion, the component can be efficiently pushed out toward the first guide passage on the inclined surface, and the ring-shaped notch formed on the lower surface side of the rotor can guide the component. By extending the extension of the block, the component can be smoothly guided into the guide passage.

The rotor is composed of an upper rotating disk and a lower rotating disk. The upper rotating disk is provided with a plurality of receiving holes in a curved concave portion formed between ridges, and the lower rotating disk is aligned with the receiving holes. By forming the holding portion, a large number of components can easily enter the holding portion sequentially through the receiving holes. And, by providing the stirring rod extending to the vicinity of the ridge toward the receiving hole, the component is guided to the posture that is easy to enter by the receiving hole, so that the components can be more efficiently aligned and supplied to the assembling portion and the like. Furthermore, by letting this stirring rod drop from the limit switch, it is possible to notify that the remaining amount of components in the hopper has become small.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing the overall configuration of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing a configuration of a rotor.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing an upper rotating disk of the rotor.

FIG. 4 is a partial perspective view of the alignment / separation unit shown with the upper turntable removed.

FIG. 5 is a partial plan view of the alignment and separation unit with the upper turntable removed;

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which a piercing nut is sent out from a holding portion to a first guide passage.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along the line BB in FIG. 5;

8 is a sectional view taken along the line CC in FIG.

[Description of Signs] 1 Hopper 2 Alignment / separation unit 3 Motor 4 Rotor 5 Inclined surface 6 Limit switch 7 Stirring rod 10 Upper turntable 11 Nut receiving hole 12 Ridge 13 Curved recess 20 Lower turntable 21 Holder 25 Ring cutout 26 ring-shaped groove 27 opening 28 trailing edge 29 outer peripheral edge 30 substrate 31, 32, 33 guide block 35 pin 36 groove 37 end edge 40 first guide passage 41 wall surface 42 extension 45 second guide passage 46 slit 50, 52 Plate 51, 53 Opposing edge 55 Pierce nut 56 Main body 57 Projection

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. A front / back separation / supply device for a component having a main body and a protruding portion protruding on one of the front and rear sides thereof, comprising: a hopper for storing the component; and an alignment / separation unit disposed on a bottom of the hopper. The alignment / separation unit comprises a substrate, a rotor provided on the substrate and provided with a holding part capable of holding the components one by one on the outer periphery thereof, and a rotor provided on the substrate and having a starting end near the outer periphery of the rotor. A first guide passage, a second guide passage obliquely branched from the first guide passage, and guide means for guiding the component held by the holding portion of the rotor to the first guide passage. One guide passage is
The front / back separation supply of a component, wherein the protrusion is configured to pass only one of the downward component and the upward component, and the second guide passage is configured to pass only the other component. apparatus. 2. The first guide passage has a groove on the substrate on which the projecting portion is slidable, and a height from an upper surface of the substrate to an upper wall of the passage is set so that only the main body of the component can pass through. The second guide passage has a height from the upper surface of the substrate to the upper wall of the passage so that only the main body of the component can pass through the slit, and only the protrusion is slidable in the upper wall of the passage. The front and back separation and supply device for parts according to claim 1, further comprising: 3. The first guide passage and the second guide passage are defined by a guide block provided on a substrate and a plate provided on the guide block, and the plate forms each of the upper walls. 3. The apparatus for separating and feeding front and back parts of a component according to claim 2, wherein: 4. The guide block surrounds the rotor along an outer periphery thereof, and a holding portion of the rotor has a cutout shape opened outward, and the guide means is provided on a lower surface side of the rotor. A ring-shaped groove formed to have a radius toward the inside of the holding portion in the direction, and a pin projecting above the substrate and fitting into the ring-shaped groove, and is held and moved by the holding portion as the rotor rotates. 4. The front and back separation and supply device for parts according to claim 1, wherein the parts are urged toward the first guide passage by hitting the pins. 5. The front and back of the component according to claim 4, wherein the rear edge of the notch of the holding portion is inclined so that the opening of the holding portion faces obliquely rearward with respect to the rotation direction of the rotor. Separation feeding device. 6. A guide block forming a ring-shaped notch along the outer periphery on the lower surface side of the rotor and forming a wall surface of the first guide passage on the side facing the rotation of the rotor. The front and back separation and supply device for parts according to claim 4 or 5, wherein an extension portion is formed by extending the inside of the ring-shaped notch. 7. The rotor comprises an upper rotating disk and a lower rotating disk which rotate integrally, and the upper rotating disk has one part.
A plurality of receiving holes that can pass individually are provided in the circumferential direction, and the rotation center portion is higher than the outer periphery, passes between adjacent receiving holes, and a line connecting the rotation center portion and the outer peripheral edge as a ridge,
The space between the ridges is formed in a curved concave portion, and the holding portion is formed on the lower rotating disk in alignment with the receiving hole of the upper rotating disk. 5 or 6
Front and back separation supply device for the described parts. 8. The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein a stirring rod having a lower end located near the ridge with the lower end facing the receiving hole is provided in the hopper. . 9. The component according to claim 8, wherein the stirring rod is provided so as to hang down from the limit switch, and the limit switch is operated when displaced by contact with the component. Front and back separation supply device.