JPS6322030Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an automatic tool changer that automatically changes tools attached to the main shaft of a machine tool.

A conventional automatic tool changer has a change arm mechanism for changing used old tools and new tools that are chucked on the main spindle of a machine tool, a tool magazine for storing tools, and a tool magazine for storing old and new tools. It consisted of an intermediate pot mechanism for loading and unloading from the magazine, and the intermediate pot mechanism was attached to the machine body, for example, the column of the machine tool.

In such conventional automatic tool changer,
When trying to increase the number of tools, 1) increasing the number of tool holding pots in the tool magazine;
2) A tool magazine exchange method in which tool magazines are movable back and forth on both sides of the column of the machine tool, and these magazines are moved forward and backward alternately and used alternately; 3) The main tool magazine There are other methods such as adding an additional magazine for backup, but method 1) not only has a limit on the number of tools due to its structure. The tool search time becomes longer, and the mechanism becomes larger in method 2).
The method 3) requires a tool change function between the main magazine and the backup magazine, which complicates the structure and lengthens the tool change time. Another drawback was that it was difficult to add more magazines.

The inventors have also proposed an automatic tool changer in which the change arm mechanism and the intermediate pot mechanism are integrated to form a tool change mechanism, and the tool change mechanism is reciprocated between a spindle and a tool magazine to change tools. However, this was problematic in terms of time loss and space factor for the exchange operation. An example of an automatic tool changer that integrates a change arm mechanism and an intermediate pot mechanism devised by the inventors will be described with reference to FIG. A spindle head 12 is provided on the column 11 of the machine tool 10 so as to be movable up and down, and a spindle 13 to which a tool is attached is rotatably provided on this spindle head 12.
A workpiece mounting table 14 is provided in front of the workpiece mounting table 14 so as to be horizontally movable. An automatic tool changer 20 is disposed on the side of the machine tool 10, and the automatic tool changer 20 includes a guide path 21 along the side of the machine tool 10, and a tool that moves forward and backward on the guide path 21. It includes an exchange mechanism 22 and a tool magazine 23 provided at the rear end of the guide path 21.

However, in this automatic tool changer 20, the longitudinal central axis Q of the guide path 21 is arranged parallel to the central axis P of the main shaft 13 when viewed from above. Therefore, when exchanging tools between the tool exchange mechanism 22 and the tool magazine 23, the tool magazine 23 is placed backward so that the tool does not interfere with the rear end of the spindle head 12, and the rear end of the spindle head 12 is A wide distance D had to be provided between the end and the front end of the tool magazine 23. Therefore, the guide path 21 must be designed to be long, resulting in a loss of replacement time and requiring additional space.

An object of the present invention is to provide an automatic tool changer that reduces loss time when changing tools and allows for easy expansion of tool magazines.

In this invention, the guide path that guides the tool exchange mechanism that reciprocates between the spindle of the machine tool and the tool magazine is designed to move backward away from the tool exchange position on the spindle side with respect to the central axis of the spindle when viewed from above. This allows the tool magazine to be placed close to the front side of the machine tool, that is, the machining side (tool exchange side) of the spindle, thereby shortening the guide path. This objective is achieved by reducing loss time and by arranging a plurality of tool magazines along this guide path to facilitate expansion.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 2 to 5.

In FIG. 2, a spindle head 32 supported vertically movably on a column 31 of a machine tool 30 has a spindle 33.
is rotatably supported. This machine tool 30
An automatic tool changer 40 according to the present invention is arranged on the side of the tool.

The automatic tool changer 40 includes a guide path 41, along which a tool change mechanism 42 can advance and retreat, and a plurality of, for example, two 1 and second tool magazines 43 and 44 are arranged. The tool exchange mechanism 42 and the tool pots (not shown) in the tool magazines 43 and 44 are designed to determine their exchange positions in response to commands from the NC device 45. The guide path 41 also includes a first stopper 46 that can be protruded onto the guide path 41 and is located slightly behind the first tool magazine 43, and a second tool magazine 44 that is fixed on the guide path 41. A second stopper 46A located slightly rearward is provided, and the tool removal reaction force when exchanging tools with the first tool magazine 43 or with the second tool magazine 44 of the tool exchange mechanism 42 is provided. It is now possible to receive each.

The guide path 41 has a central axis Q that is inclined at an angle θ with respect to the central axis P of the main shaft 33 when viewed from above.
For example, they are arranged at an angle of about 10 degrees. The direction of inclination of the central axis Q of this guide path 41 is determined by the main axis 33.
In other words, the direction away from the main spindle center axis P as it moves away from the tool exchange position, that is, from the bottom in the figure.

In FIGS. 3 and 4, the guide path 41 is located at the base 4.
7, two guideways 48 provided in parallel on this base 47, a rack 49 fixed to one side of the base 47, and a supporter 51 that supports the cable protection cover 50 of the tool exchange mechanism 42. Furthermore, first, second, third, and fourth dogs 52, 53, 54, 55 are provided on the side surface of the base 47.
Also provided are first, second, third, and fourth limit switches 56, 57, 58, and 59, so that the movement of the tool changing mechanism 42 can be controlled. At this time, the first and second dogs 52, 53 and limit switches 56, 57 are placed on the front end side of the base 47.
The third and fourth dogs 54, 55 and limit switches 58, 59 are provided at an intermediate position of the base 47, that is, a position corresponding to the first tool magazine 43, and further, although not shown, a second tool magazine 44 is provided. Fifth and sixth dog and limit switches are provided at the same positions as the third and fourth ones. In addition, the first to fourth dogs 52 to 55
act as decelerations at the forward limit position of the tool exchange mechanism 42, decelerations at the standby position during forward movement, decelerations at the tool extraction position during forward movement, decelerations at the extraction position during backward movement, and decelerations at the first magazine backward limit position, respectively. and the first to fourth limit switches 56 to
Reference numerals 59 are used to detect the tool exchange position with respect to the main shaft 33, to detect the standby position, to detect the extraction position, and to detect the backward limit position, respectively.

The tool changing mechanism 42 includes a change arm 61 rotatably and retractably supported by a main body 60, and a hydraulic motor 62 having a pinion (not shown) meshed with the rack 49.
Furthermore, the tool change mechanism is provided with a forward deceleration valve 63 and a backward deceleration valve 64 which are operated by the respective dogs 52-55, and a fifth dog 65 which operates the respective switches 56-59.

Change arm 61 of the tool change mechanism 42
has chuck portions at both ends, and is supported by the main body 60 via a shaft 66, as shown in FIG. It is becoming more and more common. At this time, the connecting member 68 is guided by a guide bar 69 supported by the main body 60 so as to smoothly advance and retreat. Further, a pinion 70 provided in the middle of the shaft 66
It moves forward and backward as the arm moves forward and backward, and when it moves back (at the solid line position), it moves to the first rack 71 for arm 90 degree rotation.
When advancing (in the chain line position), the arms are engaged with the second racks 72 for 180 degree rotation, and each rack 7
1, 72 movements, respectively 90 degrees or
It is designed to rotate 180 degrees. These racks 71 and 72 are driven by first and second cylinders 73 and 74, respectively.
Furthermore, a dog 75 provided at the rear end of the shaft 66 operates limit switches 76 and 77 for detecting the backward and forward positions of the arm 61.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be explained.

In the initial state, the tool change mechanism 42 is stopped at a position where the fourth limit switch 59 for detecting the backward limit position located at the position of the first tool magazine 43 is activated, and The cylinders 67, 73, and 74 are all in the retracted position, and the change arm 61 grips nothing, and
As shown in the solid line in FIG. 5, the shaft 66 is retracted and the arm 61 is in an upright state.

In this state, the tool to be used first or next by the NC device 45 (hereinafter simply referred to as a new tool)
When the selection command is issued, the initial conditions are confirmed, and a pot drive chain (not shown) in a predetermined magazine, for example, the first magazine 43, is driven to index the pot, and this index is performed. When the unloading is completed, the first cylinder 73 for turning 90 degrees is activated, and the arm 61 is turned 90 degrees counterclockwise when viewed from the left in FIG. Then, the shaft 66 of the arm 61 is advanced to the left by the advancing/retracting cylinder 67, and the new tool is extracted. Thereafter, the tool exchange mechanism 42 is moved to the extraction position defined by the third limit switch 53, and the tool and magazine 4 are moved to the extraction position defined by the third limit switch 53.
Interference with tools stored in pots 3 is prevented from occurring.

Then, after the shaft 66 of the arm 61 is retracted, the 90-degree turning cylinder 73 is operated in the retracting direction, and the arm 61 is turned clockwise to the upright state. In this state, the tool change mechanism 42 is advanced and moved to the standby position defined by the second limit switch 57.
The chain of the magazine 43 is driven again, and an empty return pot for storing the old tool that has already been processed is identified.

When a tool change command is issued by the NC device 45 while the tool change mechanism 42 is stopped at the standby position, the change mechanism is checked to see if it is in an appropriate standby state, that is, the standby position, arm position, etc. 42 is moved to the spindle side tool exchange position defined by the first limit switch 56 and stopped.
The arm 61 is then rotated 90 degrees counterclockwise by the cylinder 73, whereby the used old tool is gripped by the free chuck. After this, the chuck of the tool by the spindle 33 is released,
Next, the arm 61 is advanced by the cylinder 67 and the old tool is extracted, and in this state, the cylinder 74 for turning 180 degrees is advanced and the arm 61 is turned 180 degrees.
The positions of the new and old tools are swapped. Then, the arm 61 is moved back and a new tool is inserted into the main shaft 33.
After being checked, the arm 61 is returned 90 degrees clockwise by the backward movement of the cylinder 73 which is in the advanced state, and is placed in an upright state with the old tool positioned below. At this time, the rack 72, which is not engaged with the pinion 70 provided on the shaft 66 of the arm 61, is retreated by the cylinder 74 without being engaged, and is prepared for the next advance.

Then, after passing through the standby position, the tool change mechanism 42 is retreated to the third limit switch 58 extraction position. At this position, it is checked whether the indexing of the return pot in the first tool magazine 43 has been completed, and if it has been completed, the arm 61 is rotated 90 degrees counterclockwise and the old tool is opposed to the return pot. After this, the arm 61 is advanced, and then the tool exchange mechanism 42 is retracted to the retraction limit position, and then the arm 61 is retracted and the old tool is inserted into the return pot, and then the arm 61 is rotated 90 degrees clockwise. to return to the state before selecting the next tool.

After this, the next new tool is selected by the next new tool selection command, the above-mentioned operation is repeated, the tool is stopped in a standby state, and the next tool change command is waited for. An action is taken.

During the moving operation of the tool changing mechanism 42, when stopping at each stop position, the changing mechanism 42 is stopped after its moving speed is reduced by the action of each decelerating dog 52 to 55 and both decelerating valves 63 and 64. , stopping at a fixed position is performed accurately, and on the other hand, the dogs 52 to 55 are moved at high speed at positions not involved, thereby shortening the working time.

Further, when the tool selected by the tool selection command is stored in the second magazine 44, the stopper 46 is recessed into the base 47 of the guide path 41 so that it does not interfere with the movement of the tool change mechanism 42. and the third and fourth limit switches 58 and 59 corresponding to the first tool magazine 43 are made inoperative, and the exchange mechanism 42 is moved to the position of the second tool magazine 44 and A tool selection operation is performed in the same manner as the operation in the tool magazine 43.

Thereafter, the above-described operations are repeated according to commands from the NC device 45, and tools are automatically replaced in sequence.

According to this embodiment as described above, there are the following effects.

The change arm 61 that exchanges tools with the main shaft 33 is separated from the main body of the machine tool 30 and installed in the tool exchange mechanism 42, and the tool exchange mechanism 42 is moved along the guide path 41. A plurality of units, for example, two units, are provided along the guide path 41.
By providing the basic tool magazines 43 and 44, it is possible to easily increase the storage capacity of tools without changing the basic tool exchange method, reduce loss time, and in some cases, it is possible to increase the storage capacity of tools. Expansion is also possible after installation. Moreover, since the central axis Q of the guide path 41 is inclined in the direction away from the central axis P of the main spindle 33 as it moves away from the main spindle side tool exchange position when viewed from above, the tool magazines 43, 4
4 can be brought closer to the front side of the machine tool 30, the travel distance of the tool change mechanism 42 can be shortened, loss time can be shortened, and furthermore, the space factor can be improved.

Furthermore, by providing multiple magazines 43 and 44, 4 magazines can be used for each type of work.
3 and 44 can be made different, and it is also possible to shorten the setup time, such as by being able to change tools for the remaining magazines while using other magazines.

In the above embodiment, an example in which two magazines 43 and 44 are provided has been described, but by extending the guide path 41, it is also possible to provide three or more magazines. In addition, although the initial position of the tool exchange mechanism 42 is set to be a position corresponding to the first magazine 43, this may be placed on the second magazine 44 side.Furthermore, the drive mechanism of the change arm 61 of the tool exchange mechanism 42 is The present invention is not limited to the embodiments, and a rotary actuator or the like may be used.

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to add a tool magazine without causing a loss of time, and the overall time required for tool replacement can be shortened.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a plan view explaining the idea before devising the present invention, Fig. 2 is a plan view showing a schematic configuration of an embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 3 is an enlarged right side of the main part of Fig. 2. The top view, Figure 4 is the plan view of Figure 3, Figure 5 is the top view of Figure 4.
It is an enlarged sectional view along the - line of a figure. 30...Machine tool, 32...Spindle head, 33...
Spindle, 40...Automatic tool changer, 41...Guideway, 42...Tool change mechanism, 43, 44...First and second tool magazines, 61...Change arm, P...Spindle center axis, Q...Guideway center axis, θ...Inclination angle.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] This device is used in an automatic tool changer equipped with a tool magazine having a plurality of tool pots and a tool change mechanism movable on a guideway installed on the floor between the tool magazine and the machine tool spindle. When viewed from above, the spindle center axis and the guide path are brought close to each other at the tool change position of the spindle, and the guide path is extended toward the rear of the spindle head so as to gradually move away from the spindle center axis, and the guide path An automatic tool changer characterized in that a plurality of tool magazines are arranged on the floor along the