JPH11344030A - Linear guide device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a linear guide device which can satisfactorily perform rust prevention of a guide rail and lubrication of its groove surfaces. SOLUTION: A slider 2 is provided straddling on the oversurface of a guide rail 1 and making relative linear motion thereon, and a member 20 straddling on this guide rail 1 in the same manner and having a space 21 inside is installed on the slider 2 surface facing in its moving direction, wherein the space 21 accommodates a member including a lubricant for supplying the lubricant to the outer surface of the guide rail 1.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an improvement of a linear guide device used for a machine tool, an industrial machine, a measuring instrument, and the like, and more particularly to a linear guide device capable of lubricating a guide rail and preventing rust for a long period of time.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, for example, a linear guide as shown in FIG. 5 has been known. It comprises a guide rail 1 extending long in the axial direction, and a slider 2 movably straddled thereon and having a substantially U-shaped cross section. Two ball rolling grooves 3 extending in the axial direction are formed on both side surfaces of the guide rail 1. In the slider body 2A of the slider 2, ball rolling grooves (not shown) facing the ball rolling grooves 3 are formed on the inner side surfaces of both sleeve portions, respectively. A large number of balls as rolling elements are rotatably mounted between the facing ball rolling grooves, and the slider 2 is axially moved on the guide rail 1 through the rolling of the balls. It is designed to move.

A ball return passage (not shown) penetrating in the axial direction is formed within the thickness of the sleeve of the slider body 2A, and an end cap 2B having a substantially U-shaped cross section attached to the front and rear ends of the slider body 2A. In addition, a U-shaped curved path that connects the ball return path and the ball rolling groove 3 is formed to form an endless ball circulation path.

The ball rolling between the guide rail 1 and the slider 2 advances in the ball rolling groove as the slider 2 advances and moves to one end of the slider body 2A, where it is guided to a curved path. The U-turn makes a U-turn and moves to the other end of the slider body 2A via the ball return path, where it is guided to the other curved path, makes a reverse U-turn, and returns to the ball rolling groove.

[0005] Note that g in FIG. 5 is a grease nipple for supplying a lubricant to a ball rolling portion or the like inside the slider 2. By the way, when foreign matter such as dust, dirt and chips enters the gap interposed between the above-mentioned guide rail 1 and the slider 2 which is laid on the guide rail 1 and moves relatively, it adheres to the ball rolling groove surface or the like. The smooth rolling of the ball is hindered. Therefore, a side seal 10 is attached to the outer end surface of the end cap 2B as a sealing device for preventing foreign matter from entering through gaps at both front and rear ends in the moving direction of the slider 2.

[0006] The conventional side seal 10 generally includes:
For example, a seal member made of nitrile rubber or urethane-based rubber is welded to a reinforcing steel plate having a U-shaped cross section. Rail 1
The slider 2 is in sliding contact with the outer surface of the slider 2 to prevent foreign matter from entering from both front and rear ends of the slider 2.

[0007] When the linear guide is installed particularly in a place where there is a lot of dust, the sealing performance and the wiping performance of adhering foreign substances are improved by stacking and assembling two standard type side seals which are usually used alone. I have.

[0008]

However, even in such a sealing device in which two side seals are stacked and assembled, the rust prevention of the guide rails 1 and the lubrication of the groove surfaces of the guide rails 1 cannot be achieved by the grease. Because of the dependence on the grease supplied from the nipple g, smooth operation could not be obtained over a long period of time.

The present invention has been made in view of such problems of the conventional linear guide device, and can perform rust prevention of the guide rail and lubrication of the groove surface of the guide rail for a long period of time. It is intended to provide a linear guide device.

[0010]

A linear guide device according to the present invention which achieves the above object is provided on a surface in the moving direction of a slider which is straddled over an upper surface of a guide rail and relatively linearly moves on the guide rail. A member having a space inside is attached, and a member containing a lubricant for supplying a lubricant to the outer surface of the guide rail is accommodated in the space of the member having the space.

In the linear guide device of the present invention, when the slider moves, the lubricant containing the lubricant is supplied to the outer surface of the guide rail, so that the rust of the guide rail is prevented and the groove surface of the guide rail is lubricated. Can be performed over a long period of time.

[0012]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The same or corresponding parts as those in the related art are denoted by the same reference numerals. FIG. 1 shows a standard type side seal plate mounted on the end surface of the linear guide in the moving direction of the slider 2. The side seal plate 10 is formed by bonding or baking a seal plate 11 made of rubber or synthetic resin to an outer surface of a side seal reinforcing plate (not shown) made of a thin steel plate having a substantially U-shape and adapted to the outer shape of the end cap 2B. Is formed by being fixed.

The seal plate 11 has a U-shape projecting inward from the side seal reinforcing plate, and has a seal lip in which the inner peripheral edge of the central recess 12 for receiving the guide rail is in close contact with the outer surface of the guide rail 1. L. That is, the lower semicircular ball rolling groove 3 formed on the side surface of the guide rail 1 one side at a time on both opposing inner edges of the central concave portion 12 of the seal plate 11 and the cage escape at the bottom of the groove. A groove sliding contact projection 1 having a shape conforming to the shape of the ball rolling groove 3 and the retainer escape groove 3a so as to be in close contact with the groove 3a.
3 are projected from each other.

The corner of the central recess 12 has a quadrant-shaped ball rolling groove 3 formed in a ridge portion where the upper surface and the side surface of the guide rail 1 intersect. A circular groove sliding contact protrusion 14 is provided to protrude. Of the inner peripheral edge of the seal lip L, portions other than the groove sliding contact projection 13 and the groove sliding contact projection 14 are formed in dimensions and shapes capable of slidingly contacting the upper surface of the guide rail 1 and flat portions on both side surfaces.

On the surface of the side seal plate 10, there are formed a through hole 15 with a counterbore for inserting the mounting bolt B1 into the end cap 2B and a grease nipple through hole 16 also with a counterbore. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the spacing member 20 interposed between the two side seal plates 10. The spacing member 20 of this embodiment is formed using, for example, a thin steel plate, and has dimensions and dimensions of a front surface 20a and a back surface 20b.
The shape is a U-shape having substantially the same size as that obtained by removing the seal lip L protruding from the inner peripheral edge of the central concave portion from the side seal plate 10 in FIG. The thickness T is arbitrary, but is desirably about twice the thickness of the side seal plate.

Thus, the front surface 20a, the back surface 20b, and the side surface 2
A U-shaped space 21 surrounded by Oc is formed inside the spacing member 20. In order to attach the spacing member 20 to the slider, a bolt hole 22 penetrating the front surface 20a and the back surface 20b is provided, and a through hole 23 for a connector screw for attaching a grease nipple is provided.

FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of the linear guide device of the present invention. Here, the side seal plate 10
The spacing member 20 is usually used by being attached to both front and rear ends in the moving direction of the slider 2. In the following description, an example illustrated on one end side will be described according to an assembling order.
First, the side seal plate 10a is applied to the end face of the end cap 2B of the slider of the linear guide. A ring-shaped collar 25 is inserted into the through hole 15 with a counterbore of the side seal plate 10a.
To fill the spot. Further, a ring-shaped collar 26 is fitted into the grease nipple through-hole 16 to fill the counterbore.

Next, the spacing member 20 is overlapped with the surface of the side seal plate 10a, and the guide rail 1 is inserted into the slider 2 and protrudes from the central recess 12 of the side seal plate 10a. After that, another side seal plate 1
0b is applied to the surface 20a of the spacing member 20, the mounting bolt B1 is passed through the counterbore through hole 15 of the side seal plate 10b, and the bolt hole 22 of the spacing member 20 and the through hole 15 of the other side seal plate 10a are After passing through each hole, it is screwed into a screw hole (not shown) provided on the end face of the end cap 2B and tightened. Thus, the side seal plate 10a, the spacing member 20, and the side seal plate 10b are integrally laminated and fixed to the end surface of the slider 2.

Finally, the connector bolt B2 is passed through the grease nipple through hole 16 of the outer side seal plate 10b, and the through hole 23 of the connector screw of the spacing member 20 and the through hole 16 of the other side seal plate 10a are respectively inserted. After the passage, the screw is screwed into a screw hole provided in the end face of the end cap 2B, and the grease nipple g is screwed into the female screw 26 of the connector bolt B2.

Thus, the side seal plates 10a, 10b
Seal lip L abuts against the side surface of the guide rail 1, the groove surface of the ball rolling groove 3, the groove surface of the cage escape groove 3a, and the upper surface of the guide rail, respectively.
Seal the opening before and after the gap on the opposing surface of the
Prevents dust from entering before and after. In this case, since the space 21 formed by the spacing member 20 is provided between the two side seal plates 10a and 10b, the sealing performance and the sealing performance are improved as compared with the case where the two side seal plates 10 are simply adhered to each other. Excellent sealing performance such as foreign matter wiping performance.

In the above embodiment, the spacing member 20 includes
A plurality of porous members 30 made of felt or open-cell sponge having a shape as shown in FIG. 4 are arranged one on another to further improve the sealing performance. The porous member 30 has a substantially U-shape. The central concave portion 31 has a shape and dimensions that closely surround the outer surface of the guide rail 1 and a side seal mounting bolt B1.
Through hole 32 and through hole 33 for connector bolt B2.
Is provided.

By accommodating and attaching the porous member 30 in the spacing member 20, there is an advantage that the dustproof performance and the wiping performance of the outer surface of the guide rail are further increased. Further, an oil supply hole 24 is provided in the interval member 20 so that the porous member 30 contains a lubricant. Therefore, the lubricant contained in the porous member 30 gradually oozes out and is automatically supplied to the sliding contact surface of the guide rail 1. As a result, a lubricating effect on the groove surface of the ball rolling groove 3 of the guide rail 1 and a rust preventing effect on the outer surface of the guide rail are obtained, and smooth operation can be obtained for a long period of time.

The front and rear side seals 10a, 10b
The sealing pressure can be changed. By making the front-side sealing pressure slightly higher than the rear-side sealing pressure, effective sealing can be achieved. That is, since the front and rear side seals are fixed via the U-shaped spacing member and the lip portion is elastically supported, even if the sealing pressure is increased, excessive sealing lip due to run-out of the guide rail surface can be obtained. Damage is prevented.

The linear guide device to which the present invention is applied may be of any type as long as the slider 2 is mounted across the guide rail 1. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the ball rolling groove 3 has one side. Although two rows are described, one side or two rows or more may be used. In that case, the groove sliding projections 13 and 14 of the side seal 10 are of course formed in accordance with the ball rolling grooves 3.

Although the case where a ball is used as a rolling element has been described, the present invention can be applied to a case using a roller.

[0026]

As described above, in the linear guide device of the present invention, the lubricant is supplied from the member containing the lubricant to the outer surface of the guide rail by the movement of the slider.
There is an effect that rust prevention of the guide rail and lubrication of the groove surface of the guide rail can be performed for a long period of time.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a side seal plate used in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a spacing member used in one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a porous member used in one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a conventional linear guide device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Guide rail 2 Slider 10 Side seal plate 11 Seal plate made of rubber or synthetic resin 20 Interval member 21 Space 30 Porous member

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A member having a space inside is attached to a surface in the moving direction of a slider which is straddled on a guide rail and relatively linearly moves on the guide rail, and a guide rail is provided in the space of the member having the space. A linear guide device containing a member containing a lubricant for supplying the lubricant to an outer surface of the linear guide device.