JPS6144775B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an apparatus for distributing elongated objects, which are fed serially at one location, in parallel to a plurality of locations.

A machine that distributes rod-shaped, short-tubular parts, or long-shaped objects such as processed materials, which are supplied serially to one position through a guide rail, etc., to multiple positions in the horizontal direction at regular intervals in parallel. It is often used as a feeding device for processing machines such as machines and automatic assembly machines.

One type of this distribution device has a plurality of inlets that sequentially send out the longitudinal objects fed at the one position in the lateral direction by a transverse feed mechanism such as a pusher, and have a plurality of inlets arranged at intervals equal to the lateral spacing between the longitudinal objects. A predetermined number of elongated objects are slid into the inlet of the retained chute, thereby distributing the elongated objects in parallel to a plurality of positions determined by respective predetermined exit positions of the chute. There is also a device that has a structure in which the elongated object is reversed back and forth using a reversing mechanism.

However, in such a conventional dispensing device, especially when the transverse feed mechanism arranges longitudinal objects having protrusions such as rings on the outer periphery in the horizontal direction, the protrusions of adjacent elongate objects come into contact with each other. In some cases, the protrusions touch the side surfaces of the elongated objects adjacent to the protrusions, and the distance between the elongated objects arranged in the horizontal direction is not constant. The problem was that the elongated object could not be inserted properly, resulting in poor reliability. Moreover, the lateral feed mechanism is inclined together with the chute, and requires a holding mechanism that presses from above to prevent the elongated objects from falling naturally into the chute before reaching a certain number. The device becomes complicated and requires a lot of maintenance effort, and the tilted chute requires a certain length, which increases the overall size of the device, and the position of the parts feeder for arranging long objects in series. Since the height exceeds the height that an operator can lift with a bucket, a device such as an elevator is required to transport the elongated object to the parts feeder, resulting in an expensive device.

On the other hand, for example, as described in Utility Model Publication No. 45-17377, a holder having a plurality of receiving holes facing a guide rail through which a plurality of longitudinal objects pass is periodically reciprocated with respect to the guide rail. A dispensing device configured to supply and then distribute the elongated object within the guide rail to each of the plurality of receiving holes by movement has been considered.

According to such a device, since there is no cross-feeding mechanism for bringing the side surfaces of the long objects into contact with each other and arranging them in the horizontal direction, the decrease in the reliability of the dispensing device caused by rings etc. of the long objects is eliminated. Moreover, since there is no need for an inclined chute of a certain length to distribute the long objects at predetermined intervals, the equipment can be made smaller, and at the same time, the height of the parts feeder can be lowered, eliminating the need for equipment such as elevators. It becomes.

However, in such a device, if the elongated object has a protrusion such as a ring, the protrusion such as the ring may get caught in the guide rail and prevent smooth feeding of the elongated object. In such a case, the distribution work is performed without the elongated object being supplied to part or all of the plurality of receiving holes, resulting in inconveniences such as the occurrence of defective products in post-processes such as assembly. occurs.

The present invention has been made against the background of the above circumstances, and its purpose is to provide a simple, highly reliable, compact and inexpensive dispensing device for elongated objects.

In order to achieve such an object, the present invention provides a device for distributing a longitudinal object fed in series to a plurality of positions by being guided by a guide rail, the device comprising: (a) rotatable around a single axis; A holder that is movable in a direction parallel to the axis of the holder and has a plurality of elongated object receiving holes formed at arbitrary intervals on a straight line parallel to the axis of the outer surface and generally in a direction toward the axis. and (b) an axial drive mechanism that reciprocates the holder in a direction parallel to the axis to position the holder in the axial direction so that each of the elongated object receiving holes coincides with an exit of the guide rail. (c) a rotational drive mechanism that determines the rotational position of the holder by rotating the holder around an axis so that the elongated object receiving hole coincides with at least the guiding direction of the guide rail; (d) the aforementioned (e) a pair of light emitters and receivers fixedly installed near the guide rail exit and facing each other with the holder in between; A plurality of through holes through which light emitted and received by the light emitting/receiving device passes through when one of the receiving holes is positioned so as to match the guiding direction of the guide rail at the guide rail exit. do.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below based on the drawings.

In FIGS. 1 and 2, a base 2 is provided with a guide rod 4 whose both ends are fixed to the base 2. As shown in FIGS. The guide rod 4 is slidably fitted into a hole provided in the boss portion 8 of the movable frame 6 via a bush 10, and the movable frame 6 is fitted with a base 2.
The tip of the output rod 14 of the index actuator 12 fixed to the index actuator 1 is screwed, so that the movable frame 6
2, the guide rod 4 is reciprocated in the axial direction. Therefore, the guide rod 4, movable frame 6, and index actuator 12 form an axial drive mechanism for the holder 16, which will be described later. This index actuator 12 includes, for example, a hydraulic cylinder,
A linear solenoid, electric cylinder, etc. are used.

The cylindrical holder 16 has shafts provided at both ends rotatably supported by the movable frame 6 via bearings 18, and a cylindrical component 19, which is a longitudinal object, is inserted into the outer peripheral surface of the holder 16. Four bottomed holes 20 each having a tapered portion 21 around the opening thereof are provided parallel to the rotation axis of the holder 16. Further, the shaft at one end of the holder 16 is connected to the output shaft of a rotary actuator 22, which is a rotary drive mechanism fixed to the movable frame 6, so that the holder 16 is driven by the rotary actuator 22 and rotated back and forth. The bottom hole 20 and the outlet 38 of the guide rail 24, which will be described later, are positioned in a rotational position where they coincide and face each other, and the bottom hole 20 and a chuck 26, which will be described later, are positioned in a rotational position where they face each other. For example, a rotary cylinder, a hydraulic motor, a brake motor, a crank connected to a cylinder, etc. are used as the rotary actuator 22.

Further, the holder 16 is provided with a hole 28 that passes through the bottom of the bottom hole 20, and a light projector 30 that sends light passing through the hole 28 and a light receiver 32 that receives the light are connected to the exit 38 of the guide rail 24. Both of them are provided on a fixed frame (not shown) in the vicinity and constitute a photoelectric switch, and when the bottom hole 20 is positioned toward the guide rail 24 side, the presence or absence of the cylindrical part 19 in the bottom hole 20 is detected. It is becoming more and more like this.

The guide rail 24 is formed with a groove and a U-shaped cross section, and extends obliquely from the outlet of the parts feeder 34 to a position facing the bottom hole 20 of the holder 16. Therefore, Bucket 36
Cylindrical parts 1 fed into parts feeder 34 from
The parts 9 are fed out from the outlet of the parts feeder 34 in series in the axial direction and with the ring-shaped protrusions 40 aligned rearward with respect to the traveling direction, and are slid down in the groove of the guide rail 24 to be placed in one place. The guide rail 24 is sequentially supplied to the outlet 38 of the guide rail 24.

In addition, 26 holds four parallel cylindrical parts 19 which are arranged in parallel at predetermined intervals and inverted by the holder 16, and which form a plurality of dispensing positions that can be moved close to and away from the holder 16. It is a target chuck, and is provided on the opposite side of the holder 16 from the guide rail 24, at the same height as the axis of the holder 16, and facing the outer peripheral surface of the holder 16.

The operation of this embodiment will be explained below.

When the holder 16 with no cylindrical component 19 inserted into the bottom hole 20 is rotated and positioned to a position where the bottom hole 20 and the outlet 38 of the guide rail 24 match, the outer peripheral surface of the holder 16 The cylindrical part 19 of the outlet 38 was stopped by contacting the
slides down into the bottomed hole 20 which has come to the opposite position, and comes into contact with the bottom of the bottomed hole 20 and stops. FIGS. 1 and 2 show this state, and the cylindrical part 19 in the bottomed hole 20 is confirmed by the fact that the light receiver 32 receives no light. The succeeding cylindrical part 19 moves by its own weight to a position where it comes into contact with the cylindrical part 19 inserted into the bottomed hole 20. When it is confirmed that the cylindrical part 19 has been inserted into the bottom hole 20, the index actuator 12 causes the holder 16 to align the outlet 38 of the guide rail 24 with the adjacent bottom hole 20. It is driven and positioned in the direction of its rotation axis (rightward in FIG. 1). As a result, the cylindrical part 19 of the outlet 38, which had been stopped by contacting the outer peripheral surface of the holder 16, is inserted into the bottomed hole 20 by its own weight. Furthermore, the holder 16
When a similar operation is performed by the index actuator 12 and the cylindrical parts 19 are inserted into all the bottom holes 20, the holder 16 is connected to the bottom holes 20 by the rotary actuator 22. 26 are rotated (clockwise rotation direction in FIG. 2) and positioned. Furthermore, holder 1
6, the outlet 3 of the guide rail 24
The cylindrical part 19 that has arrived at the holder 8 does not fall because it comes into contact with the outer peripheral surface of the holder 16. Next, the four cylindrical parts 19 (shown by imaginary lines in FIG. 2), which are distributed and inverted by being inserted into the bottom holes 20 in a horizontal line at predetermined intervals, are placed in the holder 1.
The part protruding from 6 is chuck 26 for the next process.
It is grasped and pulled out by the . The holder 16, in which the cylindrical part 19 is not inserted into the bottom hole 20, is moved in the opposite direction (to the left in FIG. 1) by the index actuator 12, and then moved again. Its bottom hole 20 and guide rail 2
4 is rotated in the opposite direction by rotary actuator 22 to a coincident position with outlet 38, and the above-described operation is repeated.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, the light emitter 30 and the light receiver 32 that emit and receive the light passing through the through hole 28 of the holder 16 are provided near the exit 38 of the guide rail 24, and the bottom hole 20 is Since it is detected whether or not the cylindrical part 19 is present in the bottomed hole 20 when the guide rail 24 is positioned at a position facing the outlet 38, for example, the guide rail 24 and the ring-shaped protrusion 40 of the cylindrical part 19 are detected. If the smooth supply of the cylindrical part 19 from the guide rail 24 is obstructed because the cylindrical part 19 is caught in the guide rail 24, and the cylindrical part 19 is not supplied into the bottomed hole 20, the light from the projector 30 Since the light is projected onto the light receiver 32, it is detected that the cylindrical component 19 is not present in the bottomed hole 20. Therefore, according to this embodiment, as described above, the cylindrical part 1
Since it is detected that the cylindrical part 9 is not supplied, it is possible to prevent the holder 16 from being reversed and the dispensing operation by the chuck 26 to be performed without the cylindrical part 19 being supplied into the bottom hole 20. This eliminates the occurrence of defective assembly products in subsequent processes. Moreover, a plurality of cylindrical parts 19
Detection of the presence or absence of the light beam is performed by a pair of small light emitter 30 and light receiver 32, which has the advantage that the detection work is simplified and the space required for detection is saved.

Further, according to this embodiment, since there is no cross-feeding mechanism for bringing the side surfaces of the cylindrical parts 19 into contact with each other and arranging them laterally, the reliability of the dispensing device due to the ring-shaped protrusion 40 of the cylindrical part 19 is reduced. Moreover, since there is no need for an inclined chute of a certain length to distribute the cylindrical parts 19 at predetermined intervals, the device can be made smaller, and at the same time, the height of the parts feeder 34 can be lowered. Since an elevator for supplying the cylindrical part 19 to the cylindrical part 34 is not required, the cost of the apparatus is reduced. Also,
Since the outer circumferential surface of the holder 16 has a stopper function for the subsequent cylindrical part 19, a holding mechanism is required to actively press the cylindrical part 19 to a predetermined position and stop it in order to prevent the cylindrical part 19 from slipping off as in the past. This has the advantage that the device is simple.

The above-mentioned embodiment is merely one embodiment of the present invention, and various modifications may be made to the present invention without departing from its accuracy.

For example, the thing to be dispensed may be not only the cylindrical part 19 but also a rectangular bar-shaped part, and it is sufficient if it is a long-shaped part, regardless of the presence or absence of a protrusion formed on its side surface.

The holder 16 is supported by a movable frame 6 that moves along the guide rod 4 and is moved in the direction of its rotation axis, but the holder 16 itself may also be supported so as to be movable in the direction of the rotation axis. .

The number of bottom holes 19 provided in the holder 16 and the spacing thereof can be changed in various ways, and the outer circumferential surface of the holder 16 is formed by the outlet 3 of the guide rail 24.
It is sufficient that the portion that slides into contact with the cylindrical component 19 waiting at 8 is a circumferential surface.

In the operation of the holder 16 of the embodiment described above, if the holder 16 is rotated in the forward and reverse directions at each end of its axial movement, the cylindrical part 19 fed to one position (the outlet 38 of the guide rail 24) can be Can be distributed to different locations.

The direction in which the holder 16 rotates from the position where the bottom hole 20 and the chuck 26 match to the position where the bottom hole 20 and the outlet 38 of the guide rail 24 match is relative to the direction of rotation in which the cylindrical part 19 is reversed. The rotation may be in the same direction as well as in the opposite direction. In this case, a plurality of bottomed holes 20 can be provided on one circumference on the outer peripheral surface of the holder 16, and there is an advantage that the transfer cycle at this time is shortened.

In addition, the output signal of the light receiver 32 not only confirms the presence or absence of the cylindrical part 19 in the bottom hole 20 but also confirms the presence or absence of the holder 16.
The rotational position and axial stop position of the actuator can be detected and used as a stop signal for the rotary actuator and index actuator.

Furthermore, instead of the chucks 26, the same number of receiving troughs as the bottom holes 20 may be arranged below the holder 16 at the same intervals as the bottom holes 20. In this case, since the holder 16 can eject the cylindrical component 19 inserted into the bottom hole 20 by its own weight, it is not necessarily necessary to stop its rotation.

As described in detail above, according to the present invention, it is detected by the pair of light emitters and receivers whether or not a long object is fed from the guide rail into the receiving hole of the holder. For example, the occurrence of poorly assembled products can be eliminated.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a partially sectional front view illustrating a dispensing device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a partial sectional view taken along the line in FIG. 1, showing the main parts of the embodiment shown in FIG. 2... Base, 4... Guide rod (axial drive mechanism), 6... Movable frame (axial drive mechanism),
12... Index actuator (axial drive mechanism), 16... Holder, 19... Longitudinal object (cylindrical part), 20... Longitudinal object receiving hole (bottomed hole), 22... Rotation drive Mechanism (rotary actuator), 26... multiple positions (chuck), 38... one position (exit of guide rail).

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A device that distributes a longitudinal object fed in series by being guided by a guide rail to a plurality of positions, which is rotatable around one axis and in a direction parallel to the axis. A holder that is movably provided and has a plurality of longitudinal-shaped object receiving holes formed on an outer surface at arbitrary intervals on a straight line parallel to the axis and in a direction substantially toward the axis; an axial drive mechanism that determines the axial position of the holder by reciprocating the holder in a direction parallel to the axis so that each of the elongated object receiving holes coincides with an outlet of the guide rail; a rotational drive mechanism that determines the rotational position of the holder by rotating the holder so that the elongated object receiving hole coincides with at least the guiding direction of the guide rail; a pair of light emitters/receivers facing each other with the holder in between, each of which is formed in the holder to intersect with and pass through the elongated object receiving hole, and one of the elongated object receiving holes is connected to the elongated object receiving hole at the guide rail exit. A distributing device for a longitudinal object, comprising: a plurality of through holes through which light emitted and received by the light emitting/receiving device passes when positioned to match the guiding direction of a guide rail. 2. Claim 1, wherein the holder is rotatably supported by a movable frame supported by a base so as to be movable in a linear direction about an axis parallel to the moving direction of the movable frame. Apparatus for dispensing elongated objects as described in Section 1.