JPS59143781A - Method of automatically installing vehicle part and device therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To aim at automating the installation of vehicle parts with the use of only one robot, by using a gripping hand to grip and transfer a fastener fastening device after the gripping hand has been released from a vehicle part. CONSTITUTION:After a clamp member 63 in a gripping hand H opens to release the gripping condition of a strut P, a robot retracts the gripping hand H to prevent the interference thereof with the strut P which is temporarily installed, and then, shifts into the next step of fastening a nut. When the clamp member 63 reaches a position in the vicinity of the position where it grips a gripped member 110 in a supporting device S in a nut fastening device N, the clamp member 63 is actuated to open, and then initiates to close after is approaches to the side of the gripped member 110. Upon completion of the gripping the robot carries the nut fastening device N which is gripped by the gripping hand H, to a nut supply device to take up a nut, and thereafter, transfers the nut fastening device N to a position above the strut P which is temporarily installed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for automatically assembling vehicle parts, and particularly to a vehicle in which vehicle parts are assembled to predetermined parts of a vehicle body via fasteners such as bolts and nuts. This article relates to an automatic parts assembly method and improvement of its device.

BACKGROUND ART Conventionally, on an automobile assembly line, for example, a strut assembly (hereinafter referred to as a strut) of a strut-type front suspension as a vehicle component has generally been assembled by a worker. That is, one worker positions and holds the strut by fitting the upper part of the strut into the positioning hole of the vehicle body, and in this state, another worker places the fastener tightening device such as a nut in a predetermined position. ,
The task involved tightening nuts onto the strut assembly bolts that passed through bolt insertion holes in the vehicle body. However, the work of assembling the struts is extremely troublesome for workers, in addition to the fact that the struts are relatively heavy, and there is an increasing demand for automating the work of assembling the struts.

Therefore, one possible method for automating such strut assembly work is to use an industrial robot.

This method involves, for example, positioning the strut at a predetermined position with the car body on the line, gripping and transporting the strut with a gripping hand attached to one robot, and positioning it on the car body. Device'! The strut is transported and positioned on the vehicle body, and the strut is automatically assembled to the vehicle body.

However, with this method, the strut assembly work is only possible when two robots work together, which inevitably complicates the automatic strut assembly equipment. In the strut assembly process, the two robots work one after the other, so while one robot is working, the other robot is idle, which reduces the robot's work efficiency. It had the problem of being put away.

The present invention has been made based on the above-mentioned viewpoints, and its purpose is to automate the assembly work of vehicle parts using a single gobot, thereby simplifying the device itself. The object of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus for automatically assembling vehicle parts, both of which improve the working efficiency of a robot.

The basic structure of the automatic assembly method of vehicle parts according to the present invention is that a gripping hand attached to a robot grips and transports a vehicle part with an engaging portion provided in advance, and brings the vehicle part to a vehicle body. After determining the positional relationship with the vehicle body, temporarily assembling the vehicle component by locking it to the vehicle body via the engaging portion, and removing the grip hand from the vehicle component, tighten the fastener with the grip hand. The fastener tightening device is grasped and transported, and the fastener tightening device is brought back to determine its positional relationship with the vehicle body.

Furthermore, the basic configuration of the automatic assembly device used to carry out the method for automatically assembling vehicle parts according to the present invention is as follows:
It has an engaging member that is removably attached to a vehicle component, and a gripping hand that selectively grasps the vehicle component and fastener tightening device, and the vehicle component is brought to the vehicle body and the engaging member is attached to the positioning portion of the vehicle body. The device is equipped with a tightening device and a robot that brings the device to the vehicle body and positions it.

Hereinafter, based on the automatic assembly apparatus for vehicle parts shown in the accompanying drawings, a method for automatically assembling vehicle parts and its installation W according to the present invention will be described.
will be explained in detail.

FIG. 1 is a perspective explanatory view schematically showing an automatic assembly process of a strut as a vehicle component.

In the figure, a vehicle body B is placed on a conveyor 1 and moved, and is positioned when it reaches the strut assembly position, and a work stage near the conveyor 1 is equipped with a stock (P) to be assembled. A temporary storage stand 2 is installed to temporarily hold the. The automatic assembly device for the strut P is installed on an engagement member that is removably attached to the upper case 3 of the strut P, and is installed on a work stage close to the conveyor 1, and the strut P and fastener tightening device. This automatic assembling device consists of a device N for attaching lttJ and a robot device equipped with a selectively grasping gripping hand ■ at the tip of a multi-jointed arm 8. As shown, based on the teaching information of the robot (H), the stock (P) on the temporary storage stand 2 is gripped by the gripping hand H and transported to a predetermined position on the vehicle body B. Stock) P engaging member K
temporarily assemble the strut P to the IL body B by engaging the
The assembly bolt 6 installed upright on the upper case 3 of the strut P is inserted through the bolt insertion hole 7 on the upper surface of the strut tower 4, and then the temporarily assembled strut P is inserted as shown by the solid line in FIG. After removing the gripping hand H from the holder, the gripping hand H grips the NAND tightening device 100N on a temporary stand (not shown) and forges it to a predetermined position on the vehicle body B, and then attaches it to the engaging member K. By positioning the nut tightening device N, the nut 10 is tightened on the assembly bolt 6 and the strut P is tightened.
It is designed to be assembled. In FIG. 1, the plate is an air supply device 11 that supplies air to the nut tightening device N.
Nut 10f on nut tightening device N! : Nut feeding device.

In this embodiment, the piston shaft 2° of the cylinder constituting the shaft portion PS of the stock P has a stepped portion 20a at its tip, which has a smaller diameter than other portions, as shown in FIG.
This function f! A threaded portion 21 is formed at the tip of the ff 520a, and an upper spring holding plate 22 is fitted into the stepped portion 20a, and this upper spring holding plate 22 is connected to the threaded portion 21 via a thrust bearing 23 and a batch 24. It is attached by tightening the bolt (25). The upper case 3 of the strut P has a hat-shaped cross section, and is assembled to the batch 24 via an insulator 26, and the piston shaft 20, ! : Both can be rotated with respect to the shaft part ps of the strut P, and a working hole I is provided in the center of the upper case 3 to enable tightening of the nut 3 to the threaded part 21. ing. In FIG. 2, reference numeral 28 denotes a bolt mount plate which is fixed in advance to the lower surface of the upper case 3 and has a 29-piece strut P to which the assembly bolt 6 of the stock P is fixed in advance.
30 is a spring that is interposed between the upper and lower spring press plates 22 and 29 and buffers the vertical vibration of the strut P, and 31 is a pan bar.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the engaging member attached to the upper case 3 of the strut P has a substantially cylindrical main body 34 having a slightly smaller diameter than the deeper hole 5 on the vehicle body side.
A four part 35 into which the upper case 3 fits is formed on the lower surface thereof, and a mounting part 36 that protrudes into the upper case 3 from the working hole 27 is formed in the center of the four part 35.
is formed, and the tip of this mounting portion 36 has an M screw portion 37 into which the tip screw portion 21 of the piston shaft 20 is screwed.
is formed. The upper part of the main body 34 has a truncated conical guide tapered surface 3 whose diameter gradually decreases toward the upper end.
A guide portion 38 having a diameter of 8a is formed, and on the peripheral wall from this guide portion 38 to the main body 34, for example, three new four stripes 39 extending in the vertical direction are formed at predetermined angular intervals, and one corresponding to each four strip 39 is formed. A locking piece 40 shaped like a leaf spring is attached. Note that only one locking piece 40 is shown in FIGS. 2 and 17 and subsequent figures. This locking piece 40 is
Its upper part is housed and fixed in the four strips 39 and has a locking claw part 41 at its lower end, and this locking claw part 41 is connected to the main body 3.
4 protrudes sequentially from the peripheral wall of the main body 34 from above to below, and is provided with a bent portion 41a toward the main body 34 at its tip. The main body 3 corresponds to the bent portion 41a.
A hole 42 is formed in the 4th peripheral wall, and the locking claw 4
1 is pushed from the outside, the bent portion 41a closes to the hole 42.
The locking claw portion 41 is inserted into the groove 3cJ so that the locking claw portion 41 is completely housed within the groove 3cJ. In addition, a recess 43 is formed in the center of the upper part of the guide portion 3g, and a bolt 4 is provided at the bottom of the recess 43 for attaching and detaching the engaging member K using a tool.
4 is screwed and fixed in a non-rotating state.

Further, in this embodiment, the gripping hand (2) that selectively grips the strut P and the nut tightening device N is the fourth
As shown in FIGS. 8 to 8, a hand body 50, a clamp member B provided on the hand body 50 for gripping the shaft portion Ps of the strut P, etc., and a robot arm 8 that allows the hand body 50 to float. a floating mechanism 69 supported by the
The floating mechanism 69 is configured with a locking member 81 that restricts movement of the floating mechanism 69.

As shown in FIGS. 4 to 6, the hand main body 50 is provided on a plate-shaped base plate 51, and a strut P is provided in the central hole 51a of the base plate 51 coaxially with the arm 8 of the robot. A support shaft 52 supporting one end is slidably provided, and a stopper washer 53 is screwed to the lower end of this support shaft 52.
A spring 54 is interposed between the upper end 7 langes 52a of the support shaft 52 and the base plate 51, so that the support shaft 52 is always urged upward. A column 55 is provided on the base plate 51 in parallel with the support shaft 52.
A rotation prevention plate 56 is provided protruding from the support shaft 52 side of the strut P, and a fixing platen (Pb) protruding from the shaft portion Ps of the strut P is inserted thereinto. Furthermore, a pair of cylindrical portions 51 are formed on both sides of the upper part of the support column 55 in the front-rear direction, and a support rod 59 is attached to each cylindrical portion 57 via a pole bush 58 so as to be slidable in the axial direction. A stopper washer 6o is screwed to the lower end of the support rod 59, and a mounting plate 61 of the clamp member B is mounted to the upper part of the support rod 59, and the mounting plate 61 and the cylindrical portion 67 are connected to each other. A spring 62 is interposed between them so that the support jid 59 is constantly urged upward.

Further, the clamp member 63 has a pair of clamp arms 64, as shown in FIGS. It is pivoted and closed in a plane parallel to the base plate 51. Further, widened U-shaped gripping surfaces 64a are formed at opposing tip portions of the clamp arms 64, and these gripping surfaces 64a come into contact with the shaft portion ps of the strut P, etc. There is. A pair of air cylinders 66 for driving the clamp arms 64 are attached to the mounting bracket 61, and the piston rods 66a of the respective air cylinders 66 are attached to the clamp arms.
The clamp arm 64 is connected to the proximal end portion of the piston rod 64, and the clamp arm 64 opens and closes in accordance with the forward and backward movement of the piston rod 66a.

Incidentally, a bolt stopper 61 is protruded from a portion of the clamp arm 64 near the pivot shaft 65 and facing each other, and this bolt stopper 67 comes into contact with a stopper piece 68 provided on the mounting bracket 61 to stop the clamp arm 64. The closed position of the door is regulated.

Furthermore, as shown in FIGS. 4 to 6 and 8, the floating mechanism 69 is interposed between the arm 8 of the robot R and the base plate 51 of the hand body 50, and its specific details are as follows. The configuration includes a fixed bed 70 and a fixed bed 7.
A sliding member 71 is mounted to be slidable in a predetermined direction (X direction in FIG. 8) on 0, and a sliding member 71 is mounted on the sliding member 71 in a direction orthogonal to the X direction (Y direction in FIG. 8). It consists of a movable bed 72 that is slidably mounted.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8, the fixed bed 70 is a rectangular member having four stripes 70a extending in the X direction on its upper surface, and the sliding member 71 is provided on its lower surface extending in the X direction. It is a rectangular member having a convex shape 71a, and the convex strip 71a is slidably fitted into the four strips 70a via bearings 73 on both sides thereof. In this case, the bearing T3 includes, for example, an outer case 74 fixed along the vertical wall of the four strips 70a, and a protruding strip 71a.
The inner case 75 is fixed along the vertical wall of the inner case 75, and the V-shaped grooves 74a, 752 formed on the facing surfaces of the outer case 74 and the inner case 750 are arranged in alternating directions, and the grooves 74a, 75a are arranged alternately. It is a rectangular member equipped with a plurality of cylindrical rollers 76 that slide in contact with the rollers 76 and 72a that rotatably hold these rollers 76 at predetermined intervals. A protruding strip 71b is formed, and the protruding strip 71b is slidably fitted into the four strips 72a via bearings 73 on both sides thereof. Therefore, the movable bed 72
Since it can move in the X direction and the Y direction with respect to the fixed bed 70, it can move in any direction on the XY plane determined by the X direction and the Y direction, in other words, on a plane parallel to the general surface of the fixed bed 70. It is set so that it can be done. Furthermore, a plate-shaped mounting plate 78 is fixed to the lower surface of the fixed bed 70 with screws or the like, and this mounting plate 78 is connected and fixed to the arm 8 of the p-bot via a tubular connecting bracket 79. The movable bed 72 is connected and fixed to the base plate 51 of the hand main body 50 via a tubular connecting bracket 80.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 8, the locking member 81 includes a lock pin 82 provided in the center of the fixed bed 70 so as to be movable back and forth, and a lock hole provided in the center of the movable bed 72. It is made up of rice fields. In this embodiment, the lock bin 82 includes a large-diameter portion 82a and a reduced-diameter portion 82b formed at the tip of the large-diameter portion 82a.
and a small diameter portion 82C formed at the tip of this reduced diameter portion 82b.
It is attached to a piston rod 84a of an air cylinder 84 fixed to the lower surface of the mounting plate 78, and inserted into a bottle insertion hole 85 of the mounting plate 78. Then, the pin insertion hole 8 of the mounting plate 78 is
A guide cylinder 86 is integrally formed upward around the lock bin 820 so that the large diameter part 82a is inscribed therein.
is mated to.

Furthermore, an insertion hole 88 having a diameter larger than the outer diameter of the guide tube 86 is provided in the substantially central portion of the sliding member 71, passing through it in the vertical direction and facing both sides of the protrusions 71a and 71b. . On the other hand, the lock hole 83 is formed by protruding downwardly a protrusion 72b having a smaller diameter than the insertion hole 88 on the lower surface of the center of the movable bed 72, and penetrating the protrusion 72b in the vertical direction. . And the lock pin 82
When retracting, the small diameter portion 82C fits loosely into the lock hole 83, and when the lock pin 82 advances, the reduced diameter portion 82b and the lock hole 83 fit together due to self-centripetal action, and the large diameter portion 82a tightly fits into the lock hole 83.

Further, in this embodiment, the nut tightening device N includes a first
As shown in the figure, a support device S is held by a gripping hand H.
As shown in FIGS. 9 to 12, this support device S has a base member 90 to which a nut tightening device N is attached, and a gripping hand H that is erected on this base member 90. a gripped member 110 gripped by the clamp member 63; and a guide member 12 provided on the base member 90 and guiding the nut tightening device N to a predetermined position on the vehicle body B.
It consists of 0.

The base member 90 is composed of a flat lower base 91 that supports the nut dispensing device N, and a F-shaped upper base 52 that is provided on the lower base 91 so as to straddle the nut tightening device N. . In this embodiment, the nut tightening device Nld, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 10, is provided corresponding to the assembly bolt 6 of the stock P shown in FIG. It is composed of a nut runner 93 and a pair of movable nut runners 94, 94, fixed nut runners 93&-i, and a holding bracket 95f! : The movable nut runners 94 are directly fixed to the lower base 91 through a sliding plate 96 that is arranged symmetrically in the front-rear direction with respect to the fixed nut runner 93 and slides in the left-right direction of the lower base 91. It is fixed onto the top via a holding bracket 97. In this case, the sliding mechanism 98 of the sliding plate 96
and an inner case 98a fixed on the lower base,
It consists of an outer case 98b that is slidably fitted into the inner case 98a and fixed to the sliding plate 96.

The sliding buff;
The stopper plate 101 is connected to the piston rod 100a and is configured to slide in the left-right direction as the piston rod 100a moves forward and backward. By contacting the bolts 102, the stopping position of the sliding plate 96 is regulated. Therefore, the arrangement position of the movable nut runner 94 changes depending on the stop position of the sliding plate 96, and the tightening of the nut, which differs depending on the vehicle type, can correspond to the change in position. For example, for vehicle models in which the assembly bolts 6 of the strut P are installed in three places, the movable nut runners 94, 9
4 may be arranged as shown in FIG. 12. Also, for vehicle models in which the stock P has two mounting bolts 6, move the movable nut runners 94 and 94 to the left in FIG. 12. The movable nut runner 94
It is sufficient to tighten the nut using only the ゜94.

In addition, the above-mentioned fixed type and movable nut runners 93, 9
As shown in FIG. 10, a husband coupling 103 is fixed to the rotating shaft of 4.
A joint 104 is fixed to the lower end of the coupling 103 and the joint 104, and a connecting shaft 7) is attached to the hole between the coupling 103 and the joint 104 so as to be able to slide vertically and not rotate. And the connecting shaft 1
A nut holding socket 106 is fitted in the lower part of the nut 05, and a leaf spring 107 is provided in the socket 106 to press against the bitten nut. and again,
A spring 108 is interposed between the lower surface of the joint 104 and a 7-lunge 105a provided on the connecting shaft 105, and the connecting shaft 7) 105 is always urged downward.

Further, the gripped member 110 is attached to the upper base 92.
As shown in FIG. 13, the clamp arm constituting the clamp member 63 is erected at approximately the center of the clamp member 63 when the above-mentioned gripping hand H is placed upside down. Main body portion 11 serving as the gripped portion of 64
1, this main body portion 111 is formed into a substantially hexagonal column shape with a gripped surface 111a facing the gripping surface 64a of the clamp arm 64, and this main body portion 11
The height dimension of 1 is set corresponding to the vertical dimension of the clamp arm 64. And this main body part 11
At the top and bottom of the main body 111, a flange 112 that protrudes radially outward from the peripheral wall of the main body 111 has a diameter that gradually decreases from its upper and lower ends to the main body 111.
The end surface on the main body 111 side is configured as a stopper wall 113, and the peripheral wall of this collar 112 is configured as the clamp arm 6.
4 is configured as a guide surface 114 that guides the main body portion 111.

Further, the guide member 120 is attached to the guide mounting bracket 1 on the lower base 91, as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10.
a shaft 12 attached via 21 and extending downwardly;
2 and a guide 123 attached to the lower end of this shaft 7) 122. On the lower surface of this guide 123, there is a guide part 38 as a positioning part for the retaining member shown in FIG. Four guide parts 12 that fit together
4 is formed. The guide member 120 is positioned to the nut tightening device N and the vehicle body B when it engages with the retaining member K temporarily assembled to the stock P and the vehicle body B.

Further, in this embodiment, the air supply device arm is an air supply unit that connects between the air supply source and one clamp arm 64 of the clamp member 63, as shown in FIGS. 4, 7, and 13. Supply piping 130 and this air supply piping 13
0 and formed on the clamp member 63.

The air supply piping 130 is composed of a single tube that guides air from an air supply source, and has a two-pronged connector 13 in the middle.
Two tubes through 1'130;l.

130b. The two branched tubes 130a and 130b are attached to the robot R4+7-8 by a fixture 133. In addition, in FIG. 4, 134 of the above two tubes 130a', 130
This is a holder that holds the hand b at an appropriate location on the hand body 50.

Further, the air joint portion 140 is particularly illustrated in FIG.

As shown in FIGS. 14 and 15, it is composed of communication holes 140a and 140b that pass through the inside of the clamp arm 64 from the connecting portion of the two tubes 130a and 130b to the gripping surface 64a of the clamp arm 64, and each Gripping surfaces 64a of communication holes 140a and 140b
Particularly, as shown in FIG. 16, a tapered portion 141 that widens outward is formed on the periphery of the side end portion.

On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 13, 14, and 15, the gripped member 110 includes the air joint portion 14.
An air joint connection portion 150 is formed to be connected to the air joint 150. This air joint connection part 150 is connected to the communication holes 140a and 140b in the grasped surface 111a of the main body part 111.
The upper base 9 of the gripped member 110 is
The gripped surface 1 is composed of communication holes 150a and 150b that penetrate through the inside of the gripped member 110 toward the second side end surface.
The surface portion of 11a is made of an elastically deformable packing material 151, as shown in Figures 15 and 16. An opening 109 is formed in the upper base 92 corresponding to the opening position of the communication holes 150a and 150b, and a pair of connecting pipes 15 are connected through this opening 109.
One end of 2a, 152b is the communication hole 150a,
150b using a fixture not shown,
The connection pipes 152a and 152b are arranged along the lower surface of the upper base 92, as shown in FIG. 11, and one of the connection pipes 152a branches into three parts in the middle, as shown in FIG. After that, it is connected to the fixed nut runner 93 and the movable nut runners 94, 94, and the other connecting pipe 152b is connected to an air cylinder 100 that operates the sliding plate 96. In addition, 1 in Figure 15
15 is an air supply distribution W (
(not shown) is a notch that is designed not to interfere with the flange 112 of the gripped member 110.

Therefore, to explain the case where the automatic strut assembly apparatus according to this embodiment is used to assemble the strut P to the vehicle body, as shown in FIG. After gripping the strut P to be placed with the gripping hand (2), the strut P is placed on standby in a position where it does not interfere with the vehicle body B being transferred to the work stage by the conveyor 1. In this process, as shown in FIG. 2, the stock l-P placed on the temporary storage stand 2 has an engaging member K in advance that connects the female screw portion 37 of the stock l-P to the tip screw of the piston shaft 20 of the strut P. It is attached by screwing into the portion 21. Further, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 7, in response to a command signal from a control device not shown, the piston rod 6a of the air cylinder 66 of the gripping hand H is operated to protrude, and the clamp arm 64 is set to the open state. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 8, the piston rod 84a of the air cylinder 84 is operated to project, and the locking member 81 is set in the locked state. That is,
The lock pin 82 moves in the advancing direction and the lock pin 8
Since the large diameter portion 82a of No. 2 fits tightly into the lock hole 83,
The movable bed 72 that constitutes the floating mechanism 69 is a fixed bed T.
0, the movement of the floating mechanism 69 is restricted, and the hand body 50 is fixed to the arm 8 of the 10-bottom R.
It will be fixed at Next, robot B.

After moving the gripping hand H above the stock P of the temporary holding table 2 and arranging the hand body 50 facing downward, the gripping hand H is lowered so that the bottom of the strut P is in contact with the support shaft 52. -゛-゛Then, the spring 54 stops at a position where it balances the weight of the strut P. Thereafter, in response to a command signal from a control device (not shown), the piston rotor 6a of the air cylinder 66 moves backward, and the clamp arm 64 closes, and the gripping surface 64a of the clamp arm 64 is moved to the shaft part ps of the stock P. The stock) P is the clamp member 63.
It is securely gripped by the In this state, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 17, when the arm 8 of the robot rotates at a predetermined angle, for example, 300 degrees, the fixing platen (P) is inserted into the rotation stopper plate 56 of the gripping hand (H).
Pb is inserted and the rotational force of arm 8 is stocked)P
However, since the assembly bolt 6 installed upright on the upper case 3 of the strut P is fitted into the positioning slit 160 formed in the temporary mounting base 2, the assembly bolt 6 is positioned. While moving within the slit 160, the entire stock P rotates, and after the assembly bolt 6 comes into contact with the end of the positioning slit 160, only the shaft part ps of the stock P rotates, causing the upper Case 3 results in idle rotation. Therefore, the relative positional relationship between the assembly bolt 6 and the robot box is completely determined, and in this state, the robot robot R is pulled out from the stock P& temporary stand 2 and stands by at a predetermined position. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 17, the stock) P has its upper case 3 portion fitted into the fitting hole 161 provided in the temporary storage stand 2, and its shaft portion Ps is fitted with a clip (not shown). It is held on the temporary stand 2 by being held between the two.

Next, when the vehicle body B stops at a predetermined position, a vehicle body stop completion signal is issued from a control device (not shown), and the robot R moves the assembly bolt 6 to the lower position of the strut tower 4, as shown in FIG. The strut P is conveyed so as to face upward and stopped. At this time, the gripping hand ■ is fixed to the robot R, and the strut P is attached to the clamp member 6.
3, the stock P does not shake when the strut P is transported. The strut P transported in this manner can be placed at a position approximately corresponding to the positioning hole 5 of the vehicle body B, but since the accuracy of the stopping position of the vehicle body is lower than the operating accuracy of the robot, It is generally shifted in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle with respect to the position No. 5.

Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 19, the locking state of the locking member 81 of the gripping hand H is released by a control signal issued from a control device (not shown).

That is, the piston rod 84a of the air cylinder 84 moves backward, and the thick pin 82 moves backward from the locked position shown by the solid line to the unlocked position shown by the imaginary line.
Since the small diameter portion 82C of the lock pin 82 is loosely fitted into the lock hole 83, the movable bed 82 of the floating mechanism 69
is capable of floating in the plane direction with respect to the fixed bed 70 in the gap range between the lock pin 82 and the lock hole, and the hand main body 50 is floatingly supported in the plane direction with respect to the robot R.

In this state, the robot R raises the strut P. At this time, the guide portion 38 of the engaging member comes into contact with the edge of the positioning hole 5 of the vehicle body B from below, as shown by the imaginary line in the additional figure. The guide tapered surface 38a is fitted into the positioning hole 5 in a self-centripetal manner while slidingly contacting the edge of the positioning hole 5, as shown by the solid line in the drawing. In this case, the movement of the engaging member is transmitted from the upper case 3 to the floating mechanism 69 through the clamp member 63 and the hand body 50, but the movable bed 72 of the floating mechanism 69 is Since it is possible to float in the plane direction by a corresponding amount (indicated by δ in the figure), the entire hand body 50 moves in the plane direction, and accordingly, the strut P maintains its normal upright posture without tilting. ? It moves while following the movement of the engaging member.

Further, the robot R raises the strut P to the vehicle body assembly position. At this time, as shown in FIG. 21, a locking claw portion 41 of a locking piece 40 protrudes in the radial direction from the peripheral wall of the main body 34 of the engaging member, and this locking claw portion 41 is inserted into the positioning hole. Since the main body 34 is stored in the four strips 39 of the main body 34 while being in elastic contact with the inner wall of the 7 flange 5a of the 5 edges, the main body 34
fits smoothly into the positioning hole 5. Furthermore, if each assembly bolt 6 of the stock P is set to be shifted in phase by an angle of 2 degrees from each bolt insertion hole 7 of the vehicle body B, as shown in FIG. 21, The assembly bolt 6 comes into contact with the lower surface of the upper part of the strut tower 4. In this state, since the upward movement of the strut P is restrained by the vehicle body B, the strut P itself does not rise, and the support shaft 52 and the support rod provided on the hand body 50 of the gripping hand H 59 toward the axial direction of the strut P and the springs 54 and 6, respectively.
It will move against the urging force of 2. As a result, the assembly bolt 6 of the strut P is pressed against the upper and lower surfaces of the strut tower 4 by the urging forces of the springs 54 and 62.

After this, the arm 8 of the robot is rotated at a predetermined angle, for example, 4°.
When the strut P rotates, the strut P rotates around the support shaft 52 as a fulcrum. At this time, as shown in FIG. 22, the assembly bolt 6 of the stock P rotates in the direction A in the figure while slidingly contacting the upper and lower surfaces of the strut tower 4, and matches the position of the bolt insertion hole 7 of the vehicle body B. At this time, as shown in FIG.
The bolt passes through the bolt insertion hole 7 due to the urging force.

In this case, the strut P will rotate more than the phase difference between the assembly bolt 6 and the bolt insertion hole 7 (2o in this embodiment), but after the assembly bolt 6 has penetrated the bolt insertion hole 7, Since 30 rotations of the upper case of the stock P are restricted, only the shaft portion ps of the stock P is free to rotate. In this state, since the above-mentioned strut P maintains its normal upright posture, the protrusion amount m of each assembly bolt 6 from the bolt insertion hole 7 is approximately equal, and the strut P is assembled into the vehicle body. accurately positioned. Furthermore, when the engagement member K moves upward as the assembly bolt 6 passes through the bolt insertion hole 7, the locking claw portion 41 of the locking piece 40 reaches the position where it passes through the positioning hole 5. At this time, the locking claw portion 41 elastically returns to the position protruding from the peripheral wall of the main body portion in the radial direction, so that the bent portion 41a of the locking claw portion 41 is inserted into the positioning hole 5.
At this stage, the stock P is connected to the vehicle body B via the engagement member K.
It will be temporarily assembled.

In this state, as shown in FIG. 24, the clamp member 63 of the gripping hand H is opened and the shaft portion p
After the gripping state of is released, the robot R moves the gripping hand H back so that it is not even close to the temporarily assembled strut P, and moves on to the next nut tightening process.

In this process, first, the robot R goes to grasp the nut dispensing device N placed on a predetermined temporary stand (not shown) based on the teaching information. At this time,
The gripping hand (■) moves while being suspended from the robot (R), but as shown in FIG. The position of the member 63 is kept constant, and the locking member 81 shown in FIG. Fixed.

Thereafter, when the clamp member 63 reaches the vicinity of the position where it grips the member to be gripped 110 of the support device S of the nut tightening device N, the clamp member B is opened by a signal from a control device (not shown), and the clamp member B is opened by a signal from a control device (not shown). As shown in FIG. 13, the member 63 begins to close after approaching the gripped member 110 side. At this time, if the teaching accuracy of the robot R is high, the clamping member 63 can be held by the grasped member 1.
10, but if the teaching accuracy of the robot H is not so high, the clamp arm 64 should be gripped immediately, as shown by the imaginary line in FIG.
For example, the gripping surface 64a of the main body portion 111 is deviated upward from the gripping surface 111a of the main body portion 111. In such a case, the 15th
As shown in the figure, first, when the clamp arm 64 closes, the upper edge of its gripping surface 64a comes into contact with the upper guide surface 114 of the gripped member 110, and after that,
As the clamp arm 64 further closes, the above-mentioned clamp/
The arm 64 and the guide surface 114 move relatively due to self-centripetal action, and as a result, the gripped member 110 is lifted from the imaginary line position shown in FIG. 14 to the solid line position, and the clamp Grip surface 64 of arm 64
a comes into contact with the gripped surface 111a of the main body 111, and the clamp arm 64 ? Grip the ffK main body part 111. Such an effect similarly occurs when the gripping surface 64a of the clamp arm 64 is deviated downward from the gripping surface 111a of the main body portion 111. In addition, both grips i? r76
4a and 1lla are displaced in the longitudinal and lateral directions, the main body 111 is held by the clamp arm 64 while being restrained by the gripping surface 64a of the clamp arm 64, and the clamp arm 64 is held in the main body 111. grip it. In this state, the communication hole 1 of the air joint part 140
40a and 140b are connected to the communication holes 150a and t50b of the air joint connecting portion 150, respectively, and are set to be able to supply air to the air cylinder 100 for driving the nut runners 93 and 94 and the sliding plate 96. In this case, as shown in No. 1611, the clamp arm 64
Since the gripping surface 64a is in pressure contact with the gripped surface 111a of the main body portion 111, the packing material 151 that constitutes a part of the gripping surface 111 is elastically compressed, and the packing material 15
A part of 1 is the tapered portion 1 of the communication holes 140a and 140b.
41, and airtightness of 1lfi between the air joint portion 140 and the air joint connection portion 150 is ensured.

Further, the gripped member 110 is prevented from rotating relative to the clamp team 64, and the movement of the gripped member 110 in the axial direction is restrained by the stopper wall 113. The gripped member 110 is securely gripped by the clamp member 63 without being displaced relative to the clamp member 63. Therefore, there is no risk that the relative positions of the air joint portion 140 and the air joint connection portion 150 will shift, and a good communication state between the two is always maintained.

After that, when the gripping operation of the clamp member 63 is completed, the robot R moves the nut tightening device N gripped by the gripping hand H.
After transporting the nut 10 to the nut supply bag shown in Fig. 1 and attaching it to the nut tightening device JtN, the temporarily assembled stock P The NAND tightening device N is conveyed to a position above J2 and stopped. During this time, a vehicle type selection command signal is issued from a control device not shown, and the solenoid valve 132 shown in FIG.
is activated, and as shown in FIGS. 11 and 13, air is supplied from the air supply source to the air joint portion 14 through the air supply piping 130b.
Air is sent to the communication hole 140b of the air joint connection part 150 and the connection pipe 152.
1) is supplied to an air cylinder 100 (not shown in FIG. 9) for driving the sliding plate 96, and the movable nut runner 91! / , 94 are moved appropriately and placed in positions according to the vehicle type. 9. When the robot R is stopped Lh, the stopping position accuracy of the car body B is lower than the movement accuracy of the robot R, so the nut tightening device N is generally installed at the front and back of the car body with respect to the position of the temporarily assembled stock) P. direction.

Thereafter, the locking state of the locking member 81 shown in FIG. 5 is released by a signal from a control device not shown, and the floating machine 6
'R69 will work. After this, as shown in FIG. 26, when the robot R lowers the nut tightening device N,
Along with this, the guide member 120 also descends. At this time, the circumferential wall of the guide recess 124 of the guide 123 of the guide member 120 comes into contact with the guide portion 38 of the engagement member. As the guide member 120 further descends from this state, as shown in FIG. The spring 6 on the gripping hand H side is fitted into the guide part 38 in a self-centripetal manner.
Due to the action of 2, the guide portion 3B is maintained in a moderate state,
In this state, the robot R stops. In this case, the movement of the guide member 120 is transmitted from the base member 90 to the floating mechanism 69 through the gripped member 110, the clamp member 63, and the hand body 50.
Since the pivoting bed 72 can float in the plane direction by an amount corresponding to the movement of the guide member 120, the entire hand body 50 moves in the plane direction, and accordingly, the nut tightening device N moves following the movement of the guide member 120 in the plane direction while maintaining a constant posture without tilting. In this state, the socket 106 of the nut tightening device N is inserted into the temporarily assembled stock P as shown in FIG.
The mounting bolt 6 is set at a position corresponding to the mounting bolt 6.

At this time, each assembly bolt 6 comes into contact with the lower surface of the nut 10 that is bitten into each socket 106, and this socket 1
06 against the biasing force of the spring 108. Then, when each socket 106 is pushed upward by a predetermined amount of ft, a limit switch or the like not shown is activated, and a nut tightening preparation completion signal indicating that preparations for tightening the nut on the assembly bolt 6 are completed is sent to the control device. .

After this, the solenoid pulp 132 shown in FIG. 2 is activated by a command signal from the control device, and the solenoid pulp 132 shown in FIG.
As shown in Figure 3, air supply piping 130 is connected from the air supply source to
Air is sent to the communication hole 140b of the air joint part 110 through the communication hole 15 of the air joint connection part 150.
It is supplied to each nut runner 93, 94 shown in FIG. 9 via the connecting pipe 152a and the nut runner 93,94 shown in FIG. As a result, the rotation shafts of each nut runner 93, 94 rotate, and the second
As shown in FIG. 8, when the nut 10 in the socket 106 is tightened to the assembly bolt 6 and the tightening torque of the nut 10 exceeds the specified torque, a nut tightening determination device (not shown) determines whether the nut runners 93 and 94 are tightened. Rotation; oil rotation 10
As the nut 10 is tightened, it is pulled upward, so that when the tightening of the nut 10 reaches the specified torque, the stock (P) is reliably assembled at a predetermined position on the vehicle body. In such nut tightening work, a surface load is applied to the nut dispensing device N, but since the member to be grasped 110 is firmly connected to the clamp member 63, the part to be grasped is
10 does not move relative to the clamp member 63,
The nut tightening device N is always held at the nut tightening position, so that the nut is reliably tightened.

Then, when a nut tightening completion signal is issued from the control device, the robot TL raises the nut dispensing device N and transports it to the temporary storage stand, as shown in FIG.
After releasing the grip on the nut tightening device N at step 3 and placing the nut dispensing device #N on the temporary stand, he returns to the original position and prepares for the next process.

When the robot carries out such a series of operations, the air supply pipe 130 can move following the movement of the arm 8 of the robot, so the air supply pipe W130 is not entangled with the arm 8 and pulled There is no risk that the air supply piping 130 will be damaged or the air supply piping 1
The above-mentioned situation in which the nut tightening device N is inaccurately positioned on the vehicle body due to the tension of 30 is eliminated.

After this, at an appropriate point in time, as shown in Figure 29,
If a tool (not shown) is engaged with the bolt 44 and the engaging member is removed from the upper case 3 of the strut P, the assembly work of the stock P is completed at this stage. In addition, the head shape of the bolt 44 and the nut tightening device N
If the setting is made in accordance with the shape of the nut 10 to be tightened, it is also possible to use the nut tightening device N described above for attaching and detaching the engaging member.

In addition, in the above embodiment, the guide portion 38 on the engagement member
is a guide function to the positioning hole 5 of the vehicle body and a nut tightening device N.
Although the positioning function is not limited to this, for example, as shown in FIG. 30,
The guide portion 38 may have only a guiding function to the positioning hole 5 of the vehicle body, and a positioning portion 45 etc. may be separately formed as a positioning portion of the nut tightening device bevel N. In this case, the nut tightening device Guide 12 on the guide section side 120 on the device N side
3 may be formed with a guide convex portion 125 or the like that is self-centripetally aligned with the positioning portion 45.

Furthermore, it goes without saying that the specific structure of the above-mentioned engaging member can be guided to the positioning hole 5. Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the hand main body 50 of the gripping hand H is configured to support the lower end of the stock P by the support shaft 52, but the support shaft 52 is not necessary, and the clamp member Strut P using only 63? It may also be gripped. Furthermore, the clamp member 63
Although the clamp arm 64 is composed of a pair of clamp arms 64, the design may be changed as appropriate as long as it can grip the strut P. Further, the floating mechanism 69 is not limited to the one shown in the above embodiment, and for example, the floating mechanism 69 is placed between the clamp IS material 63 and the hand body 50.
may be provided. Also, hold the floating mechanism 69. End H
For example, if the robot R is a SCARA type, when guiding the engaging member or nut tightening device provided on the stock P to the vehicle body, it is possible to move and free the robot axis in a predetermined manner. If such control 2 is performed, it is possible to provide the same function as the floating mechanism 89.

Further, the locking member 81 is not limited to that shown in the above embodiment, and may be of any type as long as it can restrain the movement of the floating mechanism 69. On the other hand, in the support device S of the nut tightening device N, the specific configurations of the gripped member 110 and the guide member 120 can be changed as appropriate. Further, in the above embodiment, the guide portion 38 is formed on the engaging member K attached to the stock P, and the guide member 120 is formed on the support device S of the nut tightening device N. By providing this, the stock P and nut tightening device N are positioned on the vehicle body, but it is of course possible to position both by directly controlling the robot R.

Further, in the above embodiment, the strut P is temporarily assembled to the vehicle body B via the strut P and the engaging member K, but in the assembly method according to the present invention, the strut P is pre-assembled to the strut P itself. It is also possible to form a joint part and temporarily assemble the strut Pft directly to the vehicle body B. Furthermore, in the above embodiment,
The nut tightening device N is positioned by letting the engaging member K guide the guide member 120, but in the assembly method according to the present invention, a positioning portion is formed on the vehicle body B, and this positioning portion There is no problem even if the guide member 120 is guided. In addition, in the above embodiment, the stock P is used as an example of a vehicle component, but it goes without saying that the present invention can be applied to the assembly of other vehicle components. In this case, if a welt nut or the like is provided on the vehicle component side, a bolt may be used as the fastener.

As described above, according to the method and device for automatically assembling vehicle parts according to the present invention, a robot is used to temporarily assemble the vehicle parts provided with the engaging portions in advance to the vehicle body, and then, Since the same robot performs the work of dispensing fasteners, it is possible to automate the assembly work of vehicle parts and achieve it with a single robot, thereby simplifying the equipment itself. , robots in one stage) 1
It becomes possible to have the robot work all the time without letting it play, and the work efficiency of the robot can be improved accordingly. In particular, in the present invention, in an automobile production line,
In cases where the line takt time becomes long (
This is particularly useful, for example, when some of the other steps in the automatic vehicle assembly process are extremely time consuming.

Furthermore, according to the automatic assembly device for vehicle parts according to the present invention,
Since the engaging member is removably attached to the vehicle component and the vehicle component is temporarily assembled to the vehicle body via this engaging member, there is no need to make any design changes to the vehicle component itself, and existing Vehicle parts? It can be assembled directly into the vehicle body.

Furthermore, as in the above embodiment, when the engaging member is provided with a guide portion that is self-centripetally guided to the positioning portion of the vehicle body, the teaching error of the robot can be absorbed by the guide portion. Is it possible to teach robots with high precision? The effect is that it is not necessary.

Furthermore, as in the above embodiment, when a floating mechanism is attached to the gripping hand to floatingly support vehicle parts and fastener tightening devices to the robot, a special robot that brings the vehicle parts to a predetermined part of the vehicle body can be used. Even if the positional accuracy is somewhat low, the position is corrected by the floating mechanism, which has the effect of making robot teaching much rougher. In addition, since the floating mechanism can be restrained in its movement by a locking member, there is no risk that the vehicle parts or fastener tightening device will wobble when transporting the vehicle parts or fastener tightening device. It will be resolved.

Furthermore, as in the above embodiment, when the support device of the fastener tightening device is provided with a guide member that is guided self-centripetally to a predetermined part of the vehicle body, the teaching of the robot does not need to be performed with high precision. It becomes possible to absorb teaching errors of the robot by this guide member.

Moreover, if the guide member is guided by an engaging member of a vehicle component temporarily assembled to the vehicle body, the positioning portion of the guide member can be fixed. There is no need to provide it separately on the vehicle body, and there is also the effect that there is no need to make any particular design changes to the existing vehicle body.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing an example of the strut assembly process to which the present invention is applied, Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional explanatory view showing the state of attachment of the engaging member to the strut to which the present invention is applied, and Fig. 3 is 81 is an exploded perspective view of the same, FIG. 4 is an overall perspective view showing an embodiment of the gripping hand to which the present invention is applied, FIG. 5 is a partially broken pressure surface view thereof, and FIG. 6 is a partially broken right side view thereof. Figure 7 is a partially broken pressure surface diagram, Figure 8 is an exploded perspective view showing the specific structure of the floating mechanism and locking member, and Figure 9 is a fastener (nut).
A first perspective view showing an example of a support device that supports a tightening device.
Fig. 0 i is a partially cutaway pressure surface view thereof, Fig. 11 is a partially cutaway right side view thereof, Fig. 121ffl is a plan view thereof, and Fig. 13 is a perspective explanation showing the positional relationship when a member to be gripped is gripped by a clamp member. Figure 14 is a view taken from the direction of XIV in Figure 13, Figure 15 is a sectional view taken along the line xv-xv in Figure 13, Figure 16 is an enlarged view of part XV1 in Figure 15, and Figure 17. 18 is a sectional explanatory view showing the positional relationship between the strut and the vehicle body before assembly, and FIGS. 19 to 21 are
23 and 23 are main part sectional views showing each step of strut positioning and temporary assembly, and FIG. 22 is XX[ in FIG. 21]
25 is a cross-sectional explanatory view showing the state after temporary assembly of the strut; FIG. 25 is a cross-sectional explanatory view showing the positional relationship between the nut tightening device and the vehicle body before positioning; Figures 26 and n are sectional views of essential parts showing the positioning process of the fastener tightening device, Figure 4 is a sectional view of essential parts showing the state of strut assembly, and Figure 4 is with the engaging member removed. No. 301ffl is a sectional view of the main part showing the state, and 301ffl is a sectional view of the main part showing a modification in the positioning of the fastener tightening device. B...Vehicle body H...Grip)/end (vehicle parts) 6...Assembling bolt 7...Bolt insertion hole 38
... Guide part 41 ... Locking claw part (engaging part) 50 ... Hand body 63 ... Clamp member 69 ... Floating mechanism 81 ... Lock member 90
...Base member 110...Gripped member 120
...Guide member Fig. 26 Fig. 2γ Fig. 28 Fig. 536 Fig. 29

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1) A gripping node attached to a robot grips and transports a vehicle part with an engaging portion provided in advance, and brings the vehicle part to the vehicle body to determine its positional relationship with the vehicle body, The above-mentioned vehicle parts are temporarily assembled by being locked to the vehicle body through the engaging portions, and then, after removing the gripping nodes from the temporarily assembled vehicle parts, the fasteners are tightened with the above-mentioned gripping nodes. 1. A method for automatically assembling vehicle parts, characterized in that the fastener tightening device is grasped and transported, and is brought to the entire vehicle body to determine its positional relationship with the vehicle body. 2) It has an engaging member that is removably attached to the vehicle part and a gripping hand that selectively grips the vehicle part and the fastener tightening device, and the vehicle part is brought to the vehicle body and the engaging member is attached to the positioning part of the vehicle body. An automatic assembling device for vehicle parts comprising a robot that locks mating members and brings and positions a fastener tightening device to a vehicle body. 3) The automatic assembly device for vehicle parts according to claim 2, wherein the engaging member includes a guide portion that is self-centeringly guided to the first positioning portion of the vehicle body. 4) A patent claim characterized in that the gripping hand is equipped with a floating mechanism that floats and supports a vehicle component or a fastener tightening device with respect to the 74 pot, and a locking member that restrains the movement of the floating mechanism. An automatic assembly device for vehicle parts according to item 2 or 3. 5) Is the fastener tightening device a support device held by a gripping hand? The vehicle component according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein the support device includes a guide member that is guided self-centripetally to a positioning portion on the vehicle body side. automatic assembly equipment. 6) The automatic assembly device for vehicle parts according to claim 5, wherein the guide member is guided by a positioning portion provided on the engagement member.