JPH11252432A - Arm sliding mechanism - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To position an arm without backlashes, with high positioning accuracy without being affected by the dispersion of the dimension of an arm supporting member. SOLUTION: This arm sliding mechanism for supporting slidably a linear arm 33 in a longitudinal direction is provided with an arm supporting member 59 which is in slidable contact with the sliding outer peripheral surface of the arm 33 and a frame 64 for holding the arm 33 via the arm supporting member 59. On the sliding outer peripheral surface of the arm 33, an orthogonal reference surface extending in the sliding direction of the arm 33 is formed. At the arm supporting member 59, an orthogonal wall part facing the orthogonal reference surface is formed. The orthogonal reference surface of the arm 33 is brought into slidable contact with the orthogonal wall part of the arm supporting member 59, and movements in a direction orthogonal to the sliding direction of the arm 33 are controlled.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an arm slide mechanism for supporting a linear arm so as to be slidable in the longitudinal direction of the arm, and more particularly to an apparatus for manually changing an optical magnification of an end of an arm such as a presentation stand. It is suitable to be used for such purposes.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as an arm slide mechanism for slidably supporting an arm connecting two units,
For example, the outer periphery of an arm having a rectangular cross section is surrounded by a rectangular cylindrical arm support member made of a resin material, the outside of the arm support member is held by a frame, and the arm is slidably supported via the arm support member. What is known is.

That is, in the conventional arm slide mechanism, as shown in FIG. 7, the arm support member 1 has an arm sliding space 3 inside. On the inner surface of the peripheral wall surrounding the sliding space 3, elastic springs 7, 9, which are in sliding contact with the outer peripheral surface of the arm 5,
The sliding contact protrusion 11 for reducing the contact surface with the arm 5 and the rail 13 extending in the sliding direction of the arm 5 are formed.

As shown in FIG. 8, the arm supporting member 1 has a pair of first members 15 having an elastic spring 7 and a sliding contact protrusion 11, and a thin hinge portion on both sides having an elastic spring 9 and a rail 13. The first member 15 and the second member 19 connecting the first member 15 to each other via 17 are integrally formed to form a flat deployment component 21. And, this developed part 21
Is bent at the thin hinge portion 17 to assemble it as the prismatic arm support member 1 shown in FIG.

The arm slide mechanism using the arm supporting member 1 is configured such that the arm supporting member 1 is integrally formed of a resin material such as polyacetal, polypropylene, nylon or the like, and expands and contracts by using an appropriate frictional force with the arm. , And fixation in the telescopic position.

[0006]

However, in the conventional arm slide mechanism described above, since the arm supporting member is bent at the thin hinge portion and assembled, the sliding with the arm occurs due to an error in the part forming dimension and an error in the bending position. There has been a problem that the contact gap changes and the arm expansion and contraction force varies.

That is, in the conventional arm supporting member, a pair of first members 15 provided with the sliding contact projections 11 which come into contact with the arm.
However, the distance between the sliding contact projections is changed if an error occurs in the bending position of the thin hinge portion because the thin hinge portion is opposed to the thin hinge portion.

Since the other opposing walls are provided with elastic springs 7 and 9, respectively, the position of the arm cannot be regulated, and the arm cannot be positioned with high accuracy.

In addition, due to the structure in which the distance between the sliding contact projections cannot be changed or the position cannot be regulated, the arm has a problem of rattling with respect to the arm supporting member.

[0010] Further, since the stretching force of the arm depends only on the biasing force of the elastic spring, it cannot be adjusted.
In some cases, it was assumed that it would not be possible to fix in the extended position.

[0011] The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and even when parts dimensions vary, the arm can be positioned with high positional accuracy, rattling can be reduced, and the expansion and contraction force can be adjusted. It is an object of the present invention to provide an arm slide mechanism which can be used.

[0012]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an arm slide mechanism for supporting a linear arm slidably in a longitudinal direction. An arm supporting member that slides on an outer peripheral surface of the arm, and a frame that holds the arm via the arm supporting member, wherein the sliding surface of the arm slides on the outer peripheral surface of the arm. Forming an orthogonal reference surface extending in the moving direction, forming an orthogonal wall portion facing the orthogonal reference surface on the arm support member, and slidingly contacting the orthogonal reference surface of the arm with the orthogonal wall portion of the arm support member. Thus, the movement of the arm in a direction perpendicular to the sliding direction is restricted.

In the first aspect of the present invention, the orthogonal reference surface of the arm slides on the orthogonal wall of the arm support member without the intervention of an elastic member or the like, so that the arm in the direction orthogonal to the arm expansion and contraction direction is provided. Movement can be regulated, and the arm can be positioned with high precision. Also, since the outer periphery of the arm support member is held by the frame, the arm support member is reinforced,
The support strength of the arm support member increases.

An arm slide mechanism according to a second aspect of the present invention comprises:
On a first facing wall portion facing one wall portion of the orthogonal wall portion,
A gap adjusting mechanism for adjusting a gap between the arm and the first opposing wall is provided, and a second opposing wall opposing the other wall of the orthogonal wall has a sliding friction force with the arm variable. A frictional force adjusting mechanism is provided.

In the second aspect of the present invention, the gap between the arm and the arm support member can be increased or decreased by the gap adjusting mechanism, and the gap size error caused by the dimensional error can be absorbed. Further, the frictional force adjusting mechanism allows the frictional force between the arm and the arm support member to be increased or decreased, and the holding force of the arm to be adjusted optimally.

An arm slide mechanism according to a third aspect of the present invention comprises:
The gap adjusting mechanism includes a flexible wall formed on the first opposing wall, and a gap adjusting screw screwed into the frame and pressing the flexible wall toward the arm.

In the third aspect of the invention, the gap adjusting screw is rotated, and the amount of projection of the gap adjusting screw changes,
The flexible wall moves toward and away from the arm, and the gap between the flexible wall and the arm can be increased or decreased.

An arm slide mechanism according to a fourth aspect of the present invention comprises:
A spring piece provided on the second opposing wall portion for pressing against a sliding outer peripheral surface of the arm; and a friction force adjusting screw screwed to the frame to press the spring piece toward the arm. And characterized by the following.

In the fourth aspect of the invention, the frictional force adjusting screw is rotated, and the amount of protrusion of the frictional force adjusting screw changes, so that the pressing force of the spring piece against the arm is changed, and the arm and the spring piece are connected to each other. Frictional force can be increased or decreased.

An arm slide mechanism according to a fifth aspect of the present invention comprises:
The sliding outer peripheral surface of the arm in sliding contact with the frictional force adjusting mechanism is formed by an inclined surface having a gradient in a sliding direction of the arm.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the sliding surface of the arm in sliding contact with the frictional force adjusting mechanism is formed by an inclined surface having a gradient in the sliding direction of the arm. The pressure contact force between the force adjustment mechanism and the arm is variable,
Different frictional forces can be obtained depending on the position of the arm.

[0022]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of an arm slide mechanism according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a side view of an arm slide mechanism according to the present invention,
2 is a view taken in the direction of arrows AA in FIG. 1, FIG. 3 is a plan view of the arm support member of FIG. 2, and FIG. 4 is a plan view of the arm support member of FIG.

The first unit 31 has a linear arm 33
Of the first unit 31
The tip is projected from As shown in FIG. 2, the arm 33 is formed in a rectangular cylindrical shape with a resin frame 35 having a U-shaped cross section and a metal frame 37 having a U-shaped cross section facing each other. Two orthogonal outer surfaces of the metal frame 37 are orthogonal reference surfaces 39.

A second unit 43 is rotatably mounted on the metal frame 37 at the tip of the arm 33 via a rotation mechanism 41. In the arm 33, the curl cord 4
5, both ends of the curl cord 45 are connected to the circuit board 51 of the first unit 31 and the circuit board 53 of the second unit 43 via connectors 47 and 49, respectively.

The rotating mechanism 41 includes a rotating shaft 55 fixed to the second unit 43, and a bearing 57 fixed to the metal frame 37 and rotatably supporting the rotating shaft 55. The rotating shaft 55 is hollow, and the straight portion of the curl cord 45 is inserted into the hollow portion to enable electrical connection between the rotating second unit 43 and the metal frame 37.

Inside the first unit 31, there is provided a rectangular cylindrical arm support member 59 surrounding the outer periphery of the arm 33. The arm support member 59 is fixed to the main frame 61 of the first unit 31 by fixing screws 63. Have been. The arm support member 59 is surrounded and held by a fall prevention frame 64 fixed to the main frame 61. Therefore, the arm 33 is slidably supported by the first unit 31 via the arm support member 59.

At the lower end of the arm 33, a stopper piece 65
The stopper piece 65 is attached to the main frame 6
It comes into contact with regulating plates 67a, 67b provided at predetermined intervals above and below 1. That is, the lower limit of the moving range of the arm 33 is regulated by contacting the stopper piece 65 with the lower regulating plate 67a, and the upper limit of the moving range is regulated by contacting the stopper piece 65 with the upper regulating plate 67b. It has become. The upper and lower limits of the movement range are the expansion and contraction range (stroke) of the arm 33. The above-described curl cord 45 expands and contracts within the range of expansion and contraction of the arm 33.

The arm support member 59 is made of a resin material.
As shown in FIG. 3, the first member 69 and the second member 71 are connected via thin hinge portions 75 formed on both sides of the third member 73. As shown in FIG. 4, the arm support member 59 is integrally formed in a state where the arm support member 59 is developed in a flat plate shape. The first member 69 and the second member 71 are formed in an L shape, and the third member 73 is formed in a flat plate shape.

The first member 69 includes two orthogonal L-shaped walls as orthogonal walls 77. On the inner surface of one wall 79 of the orthogonal wall 77, a pair of linear ridges 81 long in a direction orthogonal to the arm sliding direction is formed. Also,
On the inner surface of the other wall portion 83 of the orthogonal wall portion 77, hemispherical protrusions 85 are provided at four corners. The ridges 81 and the projections 8
5 is an orthogonal reference plane 39 of the arm 33 as shown in FIG.
In sliding contact with

A pair of fixing holes 87 for fixing the arm support member 59 to the main frame 61 with screws are formed in the wall portion 83 of the orthogonal wall portion 77. Also, on the wall 83,
A positioning boss 89 as positioning means for fixing the arm support member 59 and a cable fixing hole 91 are provided. Further, the wall portion 83 is provided with a falling reinforcing rib 93 for increasing the holding strength of the arm 33.

A pair of slits 96 are formed in the first opposing wall 95 which faces one wall 79 of the orthogonal wall 77.
And a flexible wall 97 is formed between the slit 96 and the end of the first opposing wall 95. This flexible wall 97
A sliding contact protrusion 99 is protruded from the inner surface of.

On the inner surface of the second facing wall portion 101 facing the other wall portion 83 of the orthogonal wall portion 77, hemispherical protrusions 103 are provided at four corners. The projection 103 can slide on the resin frame 35 of the arm 33. In the center of the second opposing wall 101, a spring piece 1 having a free end is provided.
05 is formed, and the spring piece 105 is
To be pressed against.

The arm support member 59 having such a developed shape is formed by bending the first member 69 and the second member 71 in the same direction via the thin hinge portion 75 to form the rectangular tube shape shown in FIG. Assembled. And, as shown in FIG.
The fixing screw 63 inserted into the fixing hole 87 is attached to the main frame 6.
It is fixed by screwing into 1.

As described above, the outer periphery of the arm support member 59 fixed to the main frame 61 is further surrounded and fixed by the fall prevention frame 64 fixed to the main frame 61.

A gap adjusting screw 107 is screwed onto the outer plate of the fall prevention frame 64 located outside the first facing wall portion 95, and the tip of the gap adjusting screw 107 is in contact with the flexible wall 97. . Accordingly, the gap adjusting screw 107 can change the amount of protrusion by rotating, so that the amount of pressing against the flexible wall 97 can be changed. The flexible wall 97 and the gap adjusting screw 107 constitute a gap adjusting mechanism 109 for adjusting the gap between the arm 33 and the first opposing wall 95.

A friction adjusting screw 11 is provided on the outer plate of the fall prevention frame 64 located outside the second opposing wall 101.
1 is screwed, and the tip of the frictional force adjusting screw 111 is in contact with the spring piece 105. Therefore, the frictional force adjusting screw 11
1 is to change the amount of protrusion by rotating,
5 can be varied. The spring piece 105 and the frictional force adjusting screw 111 constitute a frictional force adjusting mechanism 113 that varies the sliding frictional force between the arm 33 and the arm support member 59.

Thus, the arm 33 is inserted into the arm support member 59 fixed to the main frame 61. In the arm 33, the orthogonal reference surface 39 of the metal frame 37 is in sliding contact with the ridge 81 and the projection 85 of the orthogonal wall 77. A spring piece 105 is in sliding contact with the resin frame 35 of the arm 33. Furthermore, the sliding contact protrusion 99 of the flexible wall 97 is in sliding contact with the arm 33.

Accordingly, when the gap adjusting screw 107 is rotated, the flexible wall 97 bends inward and outward, and the gap between the arm 33 and the first opposing wall portion 95 increases or decreases. Further, when the frictional force adjusting screw 111 is rotated, the pressing force of the spring piece 105 against the arm 33 changes, and the frictional force between the arm support member 59 and the arm 33 increases or decreases.

The number of the projections 85 is required to be at least three or more because it serves as a reference plane. However, it is preferable that the number is four or more in order to increase the strength against torsion. Further, in order to reduce the contact resistance, it is preferable to use a point contact as in this example.

Further, the contact portion between the arm 33 and the arm supporting member 59 is brought into a point contact as much as possible in order to reduce the contact resistance, and the contact portion is reduced as much as possible. The number of the ridges 81 is preferably two or more. The gap between the metal frame 37 and the arm support member 59 is eliminated by the ridge 81 and the sliding contact projection 99 facing the ridge 81. If a gap occurs, the gap adjusting screw 107 is adjusted to eliminate the gap. The number of the sliding contact protrusions 99 is the same as the number of the protruding ridges 81 so as to face each other.

There may be a gap between the protrusion 103 and the resin frame 35 to the extent that no rattling occurs. By setting such a state, the friction other than the spring piece 105 is reduced.

The resin frame 35 and the arm support member 59 are formed of different materials.
5 is preferably made of ABS resin, polycarbonate or the like, and the arm support member 59 is preferably made of polyacetal, polypropylene, nylon or the like.

The arm slide mechanism configured as described above can be used, for example, in the writing apparatus 121 shown in FIG. In this example, the first arm 125 is rotatably supported by the document table 123 corresponding to the first unit. Then, the arm support member 59 is built in the first arm 125, and the second arm 12 is inserted through the arm support member 59.
7 is slidably supported. Also, the second arm 127
At the end of the CCD camera 12 corresponding to the second unit
9 is provided rotatably.

In the thus configured document apparatus 121,
As the standing angle of the first arm 125 increases, it is necessary to increase the holding force (frictional force) of the arm support member 59 that holds the second arm 127. That is, assuming that the load of the second arm 127 is 0, the CCD camera 129
When the load caused by the above is F and the frictional force between the second arm 127 and the arm support member 59 is f, the CCD camera 129
In order to prevent the second arm 127 from contracting due to the load of the first arm 125, at the respective rising angles α and α ′ of the first arm 125,

## EQU1 ## F · cosβ <f or

## EQU2 ## It is necessary to satisfy the condition of F · cos β ′ <f.

Therefore, when the inclination angle of the first arm 125 is large, a large frictional force is required, and when the inclination angle of the first arm 125 is small, a small frictional force is sufficient. That is, with the change in the rising angle of the first arm 125, the frictional force of the arm support member 59, in other words,
It is necessary to vary the holding force of the arm support member 59.

As shown in FIG. 6, a variable holding force structure according to the expansion / contraction position is, for example, a resin frame 3
5 can be configured by providing an inclined surface 131 on the spring piece sliding contact surface. The inclination of the inclined surface 131 is set such that the spring piece 105 is pressed as the second arm 127 is extended. Therefore, when the second arm 127 is extended, the pressure contact force with the spring piece 105 increases, and the frictional force holding the second arm 127 increases.

Thus, the holding force can be increased in accordance with the pull-in force of the second arm 127 which increases when the first arm 125 stands up at a large angle.

Further, in this example, the inclined surface 131 is the inclined surface 131 in the direction in which the frictional force increases with the extension of the second arm 127, but a sufficient frictional force for holding the second arm 127 is ensured. In the case where the second arm 127 extends, the inclined surface 131 may be directed in a direction in which the frictional force is reduced as the second arm 127 extends.

If the inclined surface 131 has a direction in which the frictional force is reduced in accordance with the extension of the second arm 127, the second arm 127 is in direct proportion to the rotating force which decreases when the first arm 125 is extended, and The expansion and contraction force of the arm 127 can be reduced, and the operability can be improved by balancing the rotation and the expansion and contraction force of the arm.

[0050]

As described above in detail, according to the arm slide mechanism of the first aspect, the orthogonal wall portion is formed on the arm support member, and the orthogonal wall portion is used as a reference plane. The arm can be positioned with high precision because the orthogonal reference surface of the arm is slid in contact with the arm without using an elastic member or the like. Further, since the outer periphery of the arm supporting member is held by the frame, the strength of the arm supporting member against falling down, twisting, and the like can be increased.

According to the arm slide mechanism of the second invention, since the gap adjusting mechanism is provided, the gap between the arm and the arm supporting member can be freely adjusted, and the friction adjusting mechanism is provided. The frictional force between the arm and the arm supporting member can be freely adjusted.

According to the arm slide mechanism of the third invention, the gap adjusting mechanism for adjusting the gap between the arm and the arm support member can be configured with a simple structure.

According to the arm slide mechanism of the fourth aspect, the frictional force adjusting mechanism for adjusting the frictional force between the arm and the arm support member can be configured with a simple structure.

According to the arm slide mechanism according to the fifth aspect of the present invention, if the inclined surface is provided on the arm surface of the frictional force adjusting mechanism that slides, the holding force of the arm can be varied in accordance with the position of the arm. it can.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view of an arm slide mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a view as viewed in the direction of arrows AA in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the arm support member of FIG. 2;

FIGS. 4A and 4B are explanatory views showing a state in which the arm support member of FIG. 3 is expanded in a plan view and a side view, respectively.

FIG. 5 is a side view of a document apparatus using the arm slide mechanism of the present invention.

6 is a cross-sectional view of an arm of the writing apparatus of FIG.

FIG. 7 is a plan view of an arm support member in a conventional arm slide mechanism.

FIGS. 8A and 8B are explanatory views showing a deployed state and a side view of the arm support member of FIG. 7 in (a) and (b).

[Explanation of symbols]

 33 Arm 39 Orthogonal reference plane 59 Arm support member 64 Fall prevention frame (frame) 77 Orthogonal wall part 79 One wall part 83 The other wall part 95 First opposing wall part 97 Flexible wall 101 Second opposing wall part 105 Spring piece 107 Gap adjusting screw 109 Gap adjusting mechanism 111 Friction force adjusting screw 113 Friction force adjusting mechanism 131 Inclined surface

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. An arm slide mechanism for supporting a linear arm so as to be slidable in a longitudinal direction, an arm support member slidably contacting a sliding outer peripheral surface of the arm.
A frame for holding the arm via the arm support member, wherein an orthogonal reference plane extending in the sliding direction of the arm is formed on a sliding outer peripheral surface of the arm; Forming an orthogonal wall portion facing the reference surface, and sliding the orthogonal reference surface of the arm on the orthogonal wall portion of the arm support member to regulate movement of the arm in a direction orthogonal to the sliding direction. Characteristic arm slide mechanism. 2. A gap adjusting mechanism for adjusting a gap between the arm and the first opposing wall is provided on a first opposing wall facing one wall of the orthogonal reference plane; 2. The arm slide mechanism according to claim 1, wherein a frictional force adjusting mechanism for varying a sliding frictional force with the arm is provided on a second facing wall portion facing the other wall portion. 3. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the gap adjusting mechanism comprises a flexible wall formed on the first opposing wall, and a gap adjusting screw screwed into the frame and pressing the flexible wall toward the arm. The arm slide mechanism according to claim 2, wherein: 4. A frictional force adjusting mechanism provided on the second facing wall portion, the spring piece being pressed against a sliding outer peripheral surface of the arm, and the spring piece being screwed to the frame and pressing the spring piece toward the arm. 3. The arm slide mechanism according to claim 2, comprising a frictional force adjusting screw. 5. The sliding outer peripheral surface of the arm in sliding contact with the frictional force adjusting mechanism is formed by a slope having a gradient in a sliding direction of the arm. Item 2. The arm slide mechanism according to item 1.