JPWO2017094109A1 - Work transfer device and work transfer system - Google Patents

Abstract

  In the workpiece transfer device, the attracting unit 23 of the sampling unit first performs a first operation of attracting and lifting the workpiece 37 placed on the sampling placement unit 63 to the distal end surface 23a with the first attracting force F1. (Figures (a) to (c)). After the first operation, the attracting unit 23 is in a state in which the workpiece 37 is attracted by the second attracting force F2 that is weaker than the first attracting force F1 and the workpiece 37 is separated from the collection mounting unit 63. Two operations are performed (FIGS. (D) and (e)). After the second operation, the collection unit performs a third operation for moving and placing the work 37 to the work placement unit. The tip surface 23 a is inclined and recessed from the outer edge toward the center, and is larger than the predetermined position 38 of the workpiece 37.

Description

  The present invention relates to a workpiece transfer apparatus and a workpiece transfer system.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a workpiece transfer device, for example, a device that takes out a billet material from a container and supplies the billet material onto a transport conveyor. There has been proposed an electromagnet moving means that mounts a billet material on a transport conveyor by releasing the suction of each electromagnet along the transport direction (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In this apparatus, the generation of noise can be suppressed. In addition, as a workpiece transfer device, when chip components picked up by a magnet are transported through a transport path in an aligned state, a positioning electromagnet is disposed at the end of the transport path, and a chip component is collected by a pickup device. Has been proposed to turn off the electromagnet (see, for example, Patent Document 2). In this apparatus, for example, it is possible to suppress a pickup defect that may occur when a permanent magnet is used.

JP 2002-68472 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-266098

  By the way, in the case of attracting a workpiece such as the above-described billet material or component, the position of the workpiece collected in a collection unit such as an electromagnet or a pickup device may vary. For example, there are cases where the collected workpiece is located at the end (edge) of the distal end surface of the collection portion and where it is located near the center of the distal end surface. If the position of the workpiece thus collected varies, for example, the subsequent placement position of the workpiece may deviate from a desired position.

  This invention is made | formed in view of such a subject, and it aims at reducing the dispersion | variation in the position of the workpiece | work collected by the collection part.

  The present invention adopts the following means in order to achieve the main object described above.

The workpiece transfer apparatus of the present invention is
A workpiece transfer device for moving and placing the workpiece from the collection placement portion on which one or more workpieces are placed to the work placement portion,
A sampling portion that has a tip surface that is inclined and recessed from the outer edge toward the center, and that attracts and collects a predetermined position that is a portion smaller than the tip surface of the workpiece,
A first operation for attracting and lifting the work placed on the collection placement portion with a first attraction force, and a second attraction force weaker than the first attraction force after the first operation. A second operation for attracting the workpiece and separating the workpiece from the collection placement portion; and a third operation for moving and placing the workpiece on the work placement portion after the second operation; A transfer control unit for controlling the sampling unit to perform,
It is equipped with.

  In this workpiece transfer device, the sampling unit performs a first operation of attracting and lifting the workpiece placed on the sampling mounting unit with the first attractive force, and then the first weaker than the first attractive force. 2nd operation | movement which makes the state which attracted | sucked the workpiece | work with 2 attraction | suction force, and the state isolate | separated from the mounting part for extraction is performed. By doing so, the apparatus can swing the work attracted to the tip surface by the second operation. In this apparatus, the front end surface of the sampling part is inclined and recessed from the outer edge toward the center, and is larger (wider) than a predetermined position of the workpiece. Therefore, even if the work attracted to the front end surface in the first operation is located near the outer edge of the front end surface, for example, the work is shaken by the second operation, so that the work is moved to the center side of the front end surface, i.e. Move towards the center. Therefore, after the second operation, the workpiece is likely to be positioned near the center of the dent on the tip surface, and variations in the position of the workpiece collected by the collection unit can be reduced. Here, examples of the work include one or more fastening members among bolts, nuts, washers, screws, nails, rivets, and the like.

The workpiece transfer system of the present invention is
The workpiece transfer device of the present invention according to any one of the aspects described above;
A workpiece supply device for supplying a plurality of workpieces to the collection placement unit;
It is equipped with.

  Since this workpiece transfer system includes any of the workpiece transfer devices described above, it is possible to obtain an effect according to the adopted workpiece transfer device. Moreover, since this system can supply a workpiece | work with a workpiece | work supply apparatus, the operation | work of movement mounting can be performed more continuously.

1 is a schematic explanatory diagram of a workpiece transfer system 10. FIG. FIG. 2 is a schematic explanatory diagram of a workpiece transfer device 20. FIG. 2 is a schematic explanatory diagram of a workpiece supply device 40. The perspective view of the workpiece | work accommodating member 60. FIG. The flowchart which shows an example of a workpiece processing routine. The top view of the workpiece | work accommodating member 60 which mounted and stored the workpiece | work 37. FIG. Explanatory drawing of the workpiece | work process which the workpiece transfer apparatus 20 performs. Explanatory drawing of the 1st operation | movement-3rd operation | movement in a workpiece | work movement mounting process. Explanatory drawing of the front end surface 23a of a modification. Explanatory drawing of the front end surface 23a of a modification.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic explanatory diagram of a workpiece transfer system 10 which is an example of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic explanatory diagram of the workpiece transfer device 20. FIG. 3 is a schematic explanatory diagram of the workpiece supply device 40. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the workpiece housing member 60. The workpiece transfer system 10 includes a system control unit 12, a workpiece transfer device 20, a workpiece supply device 40, a transport device 52, a moving device 54, and a workpiece storage member 60. The system control unit 12 controls the entire system and is configured as a microprocessor centered on a CPU. The system control unit 12 is electrically connected to the workpiece transfer device 20, the workpiece supply device 40, the transfer device 52, and the moving device 54, and outputs signals to these devices and inputs signals from these devices. To do. In the workpiece transfer system 10, the left-right direction (X-axis), the front-rear direction (Y-axis), and the up-down direction (Z-axis) will be described below as shown in FIGS.

  The workpiece transfer system 10 is configured as a device for moving and placing a work target workpiece 37 accommodated in the workpiece accommodating member 60 to a work placement portion 36 used for subsequent work (see FIG. 1). . For example, the workpiece transfer system 10 aligns the workpiece 37 placed on the sampling placement portion 63 of the workpiece housing member 60 in an undefined posture in a predetermined posture so that the worker can easily work in a later process. It is good also as what is mounted in the mounting part 36 for work in the state. Here, the “undefined posture” refers to a state in which the position and direction of the workpiece 37 are not unified. The workpiece 37 is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include mechanical parts, electrical parts, electronic parts, chemical parts, and the like. For example, one or more fastening members among bolts, nuts, washers, screws, nails, rivets, etc. Good. The workpiece 37 may be at least partially (predetermined position 38) formed of a magnetic material. The workpiece 37 moves by being attracted by an electromagnet included in the workpiece transfer device 20 and the workpiece supply device 40 at a predetermined position 38 formed of a magnetic material. The work placement unit 36 is a member on which the workpieces 37 are placed. The work placement unit 36 has a magnetic force, and is configured as a pallet that fixes the magnetic work piece 37 with a magnetic force. The work placement unit 36 has the work 37 disposed and fixed at a position determined according to the type of the work 37. The worker uses the work placement unit 36 on which the work 37 is disposed and fixed by the work transfer system 10, and assembles the work 37 while identifying the work 37 based on the position where the work is fixed. . The workpiece transfer system 10 may execute, for example, a step of arranging bolts as the workpiece 37 on the work placement unit 36, a step of attaching a washer as the workpiece 37 to the arranged bolts, and the like. Here, the workpiece 37 is a bolt having a magnetic body as a whole, the predetermined position 38 is the tip of the screw shaft, and the bolt head is directed downward, and is arranged on the work mounting portion 36 at a predetermined interval. A specific example will be described.

  The workpiece transfer device 20 is a device that moves and places the workpiece 37 from the workpiece housing member 60 on which one or more workpieces 37 are placed to the collection placement portion 63. As shown in FIG. 2, the workpiece transfer device 20 includes a moving mechanism 21, a sampling unit 22, an imaging unit 25, and a transfer control unit 31. The moving mechanism 21 is a mechanism that moves the collection unit 22 and the imaging unit 25 back and forth, right and left, and up and down, and is configured as a multi-axis robot arm including a plurality of arms 28 and a plurality of driving units 29. The drive unit 29 includes a gear mechanism and a motor (not shown) inside. The moving mechanism 21 can turn and move up and down in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 2 as each drive shaft of the plurality of drive units 29 rotates.

  The collection unit 22 is a member that attracts and collects a predetermined position 38 of the work 37, and is attached to the distal end of the moving mechanism 21 so as to be rotatable by a drive unit 29. The collection unit 22 includes a pulling unit 23, a clamping unit 24, two plates 70, a fixing member 71, and a clamping pin 72. The attracting part 23, the sandwiching part 24, and the fixing member 71 are disposed between the two plates 70. The plate 70 is a plate-like member disposed at the tip of the moving mechanism 21. The plate 70 is formed with a groove 73 as a guide for guiding the pin 72. The attracting part 23 has an electromagnet and a shaft member connected to the electromagnet, and attracts and collects a magnetic work 37 to the tip of the shaft member. The attracting portion 23 is fixed below the plate 70. The attracting unit 23 is configured to generate a plurality of steps (for example, three steps) of magnetic force (attracting force) according to the supplied power. The sandwiching part 24 is a member that sandwiches and supports the work 37 in the posture after the attracting part 23 attracts it. In the sampling unit 22, the workpiece 37 is clamped by the two clamping units 24, but the workpiece 37 may be clamped by three or more clamping units. The clamping part 24 is pivotally supported at both ends of the fixing member 71 so as to be rotatable. Further, a clamping pin 72 is fixed to the surface of the clamping unit 24 on the plate 70 side. The clamping pin 72 is inserted into a groove 73 formed in the plate 70. The fixing member 71 is disposed on the plate 70 so as to be movable up and down, and is moved up and down by an air cylinder. The initial position of the fixing member 71 is above the plate 70 and moves downward when the work 37 is sandwiched. When the fixing member 71 is in the initial position (the left figure of the blowout in FIG. 2), the clamping unit 24 is accommodated in the plate 70. Further, when the fixing member 71 moves downward, the holding portion 24 is exposed from the plate 70 while the holding pin 72 is guided to a predetermined track by the groove portion 73. When the fixing member 71 is positioned at the lowermost position (clamping position), the clamping unit 24 comes into contact with the tip of the clamping unit 24 to clamp the work 37 (right view of the blowout in FIG. 2).

  2, the tip end surface (lower end surface) 23a of the shaft member of the attracting portion 23 is inclined and recessed from the outer edge toward the center side. The front end surface 23a has a conical surface (conical side surface) shape, and the space at the lower end of the shaft member of the attracting portion 23 formed by the recess of the front end surface 23a has a conical shape. The center 23 b of the recess of the tip surface 23 a that is the apex of the cone is located on the central axis of the attracting portion 23. At least a part of the front end surface 23 a attracts a predetermined position 38 (the front end portion of the screw shaft of the bolt) that is an end portion in the longitudinal direction of the work 37, so that the attracting unit 23 collects the work 37. The distal end surface 23a passes through the center 23b and crosses the outer edge of the attracting portion 23 and the center 23b in a cross-sectional view along the axial direction (vertical direction) of the attracting portion 23 (lower sectional view in FIG. 2). It has the shape of two straight lines. The angle θ formed by the two straight lines may be appropriately determined according to the type, shape, and size of the work 37 that may be collected, and may be, for example, 90 ° to 150 °. The formed angle may be 110 ° or more, or 130 ° or less. In the present embodiment, the angle θ formed is 120 °. Further, the dimension of the tip surface 23 a (for example, the diameter of the outer edge of the tip surface 23 a) is determined in advance so that the tip surface 23 a is larger (wider) than the predetermined position 38 of the workpiece 37. In other words, the predetermined position 38 is a portion smaller than the tip surface 23a of the work 37, and the predetermined position 38 does not protrude outward from the outer edge of the tip surface 23a when viewed along the axial direction of the attracting portion 23. The attracting unit 23 can extract the workpiece 37 in such a positional relationship. For example, when the predetermined position 38 is circular, the diameter of the distal end surface 23a may be larger than the diameter of the predetermined position 38. As an example, in the cross-sectional view on the right side of the lower stage of FIG. 2, a state in which the attracting portion 23 takes a relatively large bolt (for example, the diameter of the screw shaft is 8 mm), 3 mm) is shown by the drawing part 23 (dotted line). The workpiece 37 collected by the attracting part 23 may have a length of around 50% (for example, 30% to 60%) of the diameter of the distal end surface 23a.

  The imaging unit 25 is a unit that captures an image, and is fixed to the tip side of the plate 70. The imaging unit 25 includes an illumination unit 26 and an imaging element 27. The illumination unit 26 is illumination arranged in a circular shape on the outer peripheral side of the imaging element 27, and irradiates light on an imaging target below. The illumination unit 26 is disposed in the imaging unit 25 so as to irradiate light to the entire collection mounting unit 63 that is an imaging target. The imaging element 27 is an element that generates charges by receiving light and outputs the generated charges. The image sensor 27 may be a CMOS image sensor. The imaging unit 25 generates image data based on the electric charges output from the imaging element 27 and outputs the generated image data to the transfer control unit 31.

  The transfer control unit 31 controls the entire workpiece transfer device 20, and is configured as a microprocessor centered on a CPU. The transfer control unit 31 outputs signals to the moving mechanism 21, the sampling unit 22, and the imaging unit 25. In addition, the transfer control unit 31 receives a signal from the imaging unit 25. Each drive unit 29 of the moving mechanism 21 is equipped with a position sensor (not shown), and the transfer control unit 31 controls the motor of each drive unit 29 while inputting position information from these position sensors. Then, the collection unit 22 and the imaging unit 25 are moved.

  The workpiece supply device 40 is a device that supplies a plurality of workpieces 37 to the collection placement unit 63 of the workpiece storage member 60 so that the workpiece transfer device 20 can collect the workpieces 37. As shown in FIG. 3, the workpiece supply device 40 includes a moving mechanism 41, a sampling unit 42, and a supply control unit 51. The moving mechanism 41 is a mechanism that moves the collection unit 42 back and forth, right and left, and up and down, and is configured as a multi-axis robot arm including a plurality of arms 48 and a plurality of driving units 49, similar to the moving mechanism 21. The moving mechanism 41 can turn and move up and down in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 3 as each drive shaft of the plurality of drive units 49 rotates.

  The collection unit 42 is a member that attracts and collects a large number of workpieces 37, and is attached to the distal end of the moving mechanism 41 so as to be rotatable by a drive unit 49. The collection unit 42 includes a pulling unit 43 and a support shaft 44. The attracting part 43 is a relatively strong electromagnet fixed to the lower end of the support shaft 44 and attracts and collects a plurality of workpieces 37 as much as possible. The support shaft 44 is supported at the tip of the moving mechanism 41 in a state in which the support shaft 44 can freely move in the up-down direction (a blow-out view in FIG. 3).

  The supply control unit 51 controls the entire work supply device 40. The supply control unit 51 outputs a signal to the moving mechanism 41 and the sampling unit 42. The supply control unit 51 controls the motor of each drive unit 49 while inputting position information from a position sensor (not shown) installed in each drive unit 49 of the moving mechanism 41, similarly to the transfer control unit 31. Then, the collection unit 42 is moved.

  The conveyance device 52 is a device that carries in and carries the work placement unit 36, fixes the work 37 at the transfer position, and carries it out. The conveying device 52 has a pair of conveyor belts provided at intervals in the front and rear directions of FIG. 1 and spanned in the left-right direction. The work placement unit 36 is conveyed by the conveyor belt.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the moving device 54 includes a storage table 56 on which one or more workpiece storage members 60 are placed, a retracted position (see the dotted line in FIG. 1), and a processing position (see the solid line in FIG. 1). And a drive unit (not shown) that moves the storage table 56. The operator moves the storage table 56 to the retracted position, and then adds a new work 37 to the work storage member 60.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the work accommodating member 60 is a box body whose upper side is opened, and a part of the bottom surface is inclined. Between the bottom surface of the workpiece housing member 60 and the opening, the collection mounting portion 63 is supported horizontally. The collection mounting portion 63 is a rectangular plate-like body and covers an inclined portion of the bottom surface of the workpiece housing member 60. A space below the collection mounting portion 63 in the workpiece housing member 60 is a storage portion 62 that can store a large number of workpieces 37. A plurality (six in this case) of work storage boxes 60 are placed on one storage base 56.

  Next, the operation of the workpiece transfer system 10 of the present embodiment configured as described above, in particular, the process of arranging and fixing the workpieces 37 on the work placement unit 36 will be described. FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a work processing routine executed by the system control unit 12, the transfer control unit 31, and the supply control unit 51 of the work transfer system 10. FIG. 6 is a plan view of the work accommodating member 60 on which the work 37 is placed and stored. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of a workpiece process executed by the workpiece transfer device 20, in which FIG. 7A is an image of the sampling placement unit 63 and FIG. 7B is a diagram of sampling the workpiece 37. FIG. 7C is a diagram in which the work 37 is fixed by the clamping unit 24. 7D is a diagram in which the workpiece 37 is attracted to the attracting portion 23, FIG. 7E is a diagram in which the clamping portion 24 is moved, and FIG. 7F is a diagram in which the workpiece 37 is fixed by the clamping portion 24. FIG. 7G is a diagram in which the workpieces 37 are arranged and placed on the work placement unit 36. FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram of the first operation to the third operation in the workpiece movement placing process. FIG. 8A is a diagram before the workpiece 37 is attracted (before sampling) in the first operation, and FIG. FIG. 8 is a diagram in which the attracting unit 23 attracts the workpiece 37 in the first operation, and FIG. 8C is a diagram after the workpiece 37 is lifted in the first operation. FIG. 8D is a view of shaking the workpiece 37 by the second operation, FIG. 8E is a view after shaking the workpiece 37 by the second operation, and FIG. 8F is the clamping portion 24 in the third operation. It is the figure which clamped the workpiece | work 37 by. In FIG. 8, for convenience of explanation, illustration of the workpieces 37 other than the workpiece 37 to be collected is omitted, and the attracting portion 23 is shown in a cross-sectional view. Moreover, the inside of the broken line frame of FIG.8 (e) is AA sectional drawing of the figure outside a broken line frame. Here, although details are omitted for convenience of explanation, when there are a plurality of workpiece accommodating members 60 and a plurality of types of workpieces 37 are arranged and placed on the work placement portion 36, the steps described below are performed. What is necessary is just to perform the process of S100-200 for every workpiece | work accommodation member 60. FIG.

  The work processing routine is stored in the system control unit 12 and is executed in response to a start instruction from the worker. When this routine is started, the system control unit 12 loads and transports the work placement unit 36 by the transport device 52, and fixes the work placement unit 36 at the transfer position (step S100). Next, the system control unit 12 causes the work supply device 40 to execute a work supply process (step S110). In the workpiece supply process, the supply control unit 51 of the workpiece supply apparatus 40 moves, for example, the attracting unit 43 of the sampling unit 42 to the storage unit 62 and causes the attracting unit 43 to sample a large number of workpieces 37. Next, the supply control unit 51 moves the attracting unit 43 to the upper center of the sampling placement unit 63, demagnetizes the electromagnet, and executes a process of spreading the workpiece 37 on the sampling mounting unit 63. In the workpiece supply process, the workpiece supply device 40 moves the sampling unit 42 along a predetermined trajectory, for example.

  After step S110, the system control unit 12 causes the image pickup unit 25 to pick up an image of the collection mounting unit 63 (step S120), recognizes a sample that can be collected from the mounted workpieces 37, and The predetermined position 38 is recognized (step S130). The transfer control unit 31 of the workpiece transfer apparatus 20 moves the imaging unit 25 to the upper center of the collection mounting unit 63 and performs an imaging process (see FIG. 7A). The captured image is sent to the system control unit 12 and the workpiece 37 is recognized. The recognition process of the workpiece 37 is prepared in advance by distinguishing the region of the collection placement unit 63 in the captured image from the other region (region of the workpiece 37) by, for example, binarization processing or pattern matching processing. This is performed by identifying a work area that matches the reference shape data of the work 37 that has been made. The reference shape data may include, for example, a shape when the work 37 is viewed from a plurality of angles. From the viewpoint of collecting the workpiece 37 more reliably, the workpiece 37 that can be collected can be, for example, one that is not complicatedly overlapped or one that is not placed on the edge of the collection placement portion 63. . The recognition process of the predetermined position 38 is performed by recognizing the work 37 that can be collected and then recognizing the tip of the work 37 that can be collected (see FIG. 6).

  Next, the system control unit 12 determines whether there is a work that can be collected based on the result of Step S130 (Step S150). When there is a work 37 that can be collected, the system control unit 12 sets the work 37 to be collected (step S160). The work 37 to be collected can be set in any order such as the order from the left to the right of the image, the order from the top to the bottom of the image, and the like. Next, the system control unit 12 causes the workpiece transfer apparatus 20 to execute a workpiece movement placement process in which the workpiece 37 is collected and moved and placed on the work placement unit 36. A program for executing the workpiece movement placement process is stored in the transfer control unit 31.

  When the workpiece movement placement process is executed, the transfer control unit 31 first attracts and raises the workpiece 37 to be collected placed on the collection placement unit 63 with the first attractive force F1. The collection unit 22 is controlled to perform the operation (step S171). The first attractive force F1 is determined in advance as a value for attracting only one workpiece 37, for example, according to the type of the workpiece 37. Thereby, the workpiece transfer apparatus 20 can attract and collect one workpiece 37 even from the workpieces 37 that overlap each other. In the first operation, the transfer control unit 31 first moves the attracting unit 23 to the position of the predetermined position 38 of the workpiece 37 to be collected recognized in step S130 (forward and backward, right and left movement and lowering) (FIG. 8). (A)). Subsequently, the transfer control unit 31 causes the workpiece 37 to be collected to be attracted to the distal end surface 23a of the attracting unit 23 (FIGS. 7B and 8B). Next, the transfer control part 31 raises the attracting part 23 to 1st height H1 (FIG.8 (c)). The first height H1 is determined in advance according to the type of the work 37, for example, as a height at which the work 37 is not separated from the collection placement unit 63. The first height H1 may be determined as a height less than the length L of the workpiece 37, for example, and may be a value obtained by subtracting a predetermined margin from the length L. In the present embodiment, the first height H1 is the height from the sampling placement portion 63 to the lower end (outer edge portion) of the distal end surface 23a, but the first height H1 is the center from the sampling placement portion 63. The height may be up to 23b. In this embodiment, the length L of the work 37 is the axial length of the bolt. However, the length of the work 37 in the vertical direction when the work 37 is attracted to the attracting portion 23 in a desired posture is increased. It is good also as L. By performing the first operation described above, the workpiece 37 to be collected is in a state in which the longitudinal direction of the workpiece 37 is inclined from the vertical direction with the predetermined position 38 on the upper side, and at least a part of the workpiece 37 comes into contact with the collection mounting portion 63. (FIG. 8C).

  Subsequently, the transfer control unit 31 is in a state in which the workpiece 37 is attracted by the second attraction force F2 that is weaker than the first attraction force F1 and the workpiece 37 is separated from the sampling placement unit 63. The collection unit 22 is controlled to perform the operation (step S172). In the second operation, the transfer control unit 31 sets, for example, the pulling force of the pulling unit 23 to the second pulling force F2, and then moves the pulling unit 23 to the second height exceeding the length L of the work 37. Raise to H2. By this second operation, the workpiece 37 attracted to the distal end surface 23a can be shaken (FIG. 8D). Here, as described above, the tip end surface 23 a of the attracting portion 23 is inclined and recessed from the outer edge toward the center, and is larger (wider) than the predetermined position 38 of the work 37. Therefore, even if the workpiece 37 attracted to the tip surface 23a in the first operation is located near the outer edge of the tip surface 23a, for example, the workpiece 37 is shaken by the second operation so that the workpiece 37 follows the inclination of the tip surface 23a. And move toward the center 23b of the dent. Thereby, after the second operation (after the shaking of the workpiece 37 is settled), the center of the predetermined position 38 of the workpiece 37 is located in the vicinity of the center 23b of the recess of the front end surface 23a (FIG. 8E, FIG. 7 (d)). In other words, the center 23b of the tip surface 23a is likely to be located on or near the central axis in the longitudinal direction of the work 37, that is, the work 37 and the attracting portion 23 are likely to be coaxial. Therefore, when the plurality of workpieces 37 are collected one by one, the variation in the positions of the workpieces 37 collected by the collection unit 22 is reduced. That is, when the predetermined position 38 is attracted to the front end surface 23a in the first operation, the positional relationship between the front end surface 23a and the work 37 is from a desired state (for example, the state where the work 37 and the attracting portion 23 are coaxial). Although there is a case of deviation, the positional relationship can be brought as close to a desired state as possible by shaking the workpiece 37 in the second operation.

  Note that the second attractive force F2 is weaker than the first attractive force F1, and is strong enough to prevent the workpiece 37 from dropping from the tip surface 23a even if the workpiece 37 is shaken. It is predetermined according to the type. The second attractive force F2 may be a value of 70% to 90% of the first attractive force F1, for example. The degree of shaking of the work 37 is determined by the speed at which the attracting part 23 is raised in the second operation, the distance by which the attracting part 23 is raised before the work 37 is separated (for example, the length L and the first height H1). Difference) and the second attractive force F2. Therefore, the workpiece 37 can be shaken appropriately by setting these empirically. For example, the first height H1 may be 70% or more and 90% or less of the length L of the workpiece 37. When the length of the workpiece 37, that is, the screw shaft of the bolt is L1, and the length of the head of the bolt is L2 (see FIG. 8C), the first height H1 is about L1 + 0.5L2 (for example, L1 + 0). .5L2 90% to 110%). Further, the second height H2 can be determined empirically as a height that does not collide with another workpiece 37 on the collection mounting portion 63 when the workpiece 37 shakes.

  Next, the transfer control unit 31 controls the sampling unit 22 to perform a third operation of holding the work 37 by the holding unit 24 and moving and placing it on the work placement unit 63 (step S173). The moving placement process is terminated. In the third operation, the transfer control unit 31 first moves the fixing member 71 downward from the state in which the work 37 is suspended from the tip surface 23a (FIGS. 8E and 7D) (FIG. 7). (E)) The workpiece 37 is clamped by the clamping unit 24 (FIGS. 8F, 7C, and 7F). In addition, until the clamping part 24 clamps the workpiece | work 37 in 3rd operation | movement, the transfer control part 31 once stops the attracting part 23 in the state to which the attracting part 23 rose to 2nd height H2. deep. When the workpiece 37 is clamped by the clamping unit 24, the transfer control unit 31 moves the sampling unit 22 onto the work mounting unit 36, demagnetizes the electromagnet, opens the clamping unit 24, and mounts the workpiece 37. The array is placed at the position to be performed (FIG. 7 (g)). In addition, the transfer control part 31 sets the attractive force of the attractive part 23 in 3rd operation | movement to the 3rd attractive force F3 stronger than the 1st attractive force F1 and the 2nd attractive force F2. In this way, the posture of the workpiece 37 can be further stabilized and the workpiece 37 can be held more reliably. The timing at which the attractive force is changed from the second attractive force F2 to the third attractive force F3 may be before, at the same time as, or after the timing at which the clamping unit 24 clamps the workpiece 37. However, by making the attractive force stronger than the second attractive force F2 before the clamping unit 24 clamps the workpiece 37, the workpiece 37 is bounced by the clamping unit 24 and falls during clamping. Can be suppressed.

  As described above, in the workpiece movement placement process, after one workpiece 37 is attracted to the distal end surface 23a in the first operation, the workpiece 37 is moved and placed on the collection placement unit 63 in the third operation. The workpiece 37 is adjusted so as to approach the desired position of the distal end surface 23a by shaking the workpiece 37 in two operations.

  As described above, when the transfer control unit 31 performs the workpiece movement mounting process including steps S171 to S173, the system control unit 12 has completed the transfer of the workpiece 37 to the current work mounting unit 36. Is determined based on the progress of the work (step S180), and when the transfer to the work placement unit 36 has not been completed, the processes after step S150 are executed. On the other hand, when there is no work that can be picked up on the picking-up placement unit 63 in step S150, the system control unit 12 causes the work supply device 40 to execute the work collecting process (step S190), and the processes after step S110 are performed. Let it run. In the workpiece collection process, the supply control unit 51 of the workpiece supply device 40 moves, for example, the attracting unit 43 of the sampling unit 42 and collects the workpiece 37 remaining on the sampling mounting unit 63 in the attracting unit 43. Let Next, the supply control unit 51 moves the attracting unit 43 above the storage unit 62, demagnetizes the electromagnet, and drops the work 37 to the storage unit 62. When the transfer is completed, the system control unit 12 causes the transport device 52 to eject the work placement unit 36, transport and fix the new work placement unit 36 (step S200), and the processing after step S150. Is executed. Thus, in the workpiece transfer system 10, the workpieces 37 can be arranged and placed on the work placement unit 36 by the workpiece transfer device 20 and the workpiece supply device 40. There may be a work transfer system in which a washer is assembled to a bolt arranged on the work placement unit 36 downstream of the work transfer system 10. An operator shall produce a product using the work 37 arranged and placed on the work placement unit 36.

  Here, the correspondence between the components of the present embodiment and the components of the present invention will be clarified. In the present embodiment, the collection placement unit 63 corresponds to the collection placement unit, the work placement unit 36 corresponds to the work placement unit, the collection unit 22 corresponds to the collection unit, and the transfer control unit. Reference numeral 31 corresponds to a transfer control unit. The imaging unit 25 corresponds to the imaging unit, the attracting unit 23 corresponds to the attracting unit, the clamping unit 24 corresponds to the clamping unit, and the workpiece supply device 40 corresponds to the workpiece supply device.

  In the workpiece transfer apparatus 20 according to the present embodiment described above, the collection unit 22 performs the first operation of attracting and lifting the workpiece 37 placed on the collection placement unit 63 with the first attractive force F1. After that, a second operation is performed in which the workpiece 37 is attracted by the second attractive force F2 that is weaker than the first attractive force F1 and the workpiece 37 is separated from the collection mounting portion 63. By doing so, the workpiece transfer device 20 can swing the workpiece 37 attracted to the distal end surface 23a by the second operation. Thereby, after the second operation, the workpiece 37 is likely to be positioned near the center 23b of the distal end surface 23a, and variations in the position of the workpiece 37 collected by the sampling unit 22 can be reduced. Here, if the position of the workpiece 37 collected by the attracting unit 23, that is, the positional relationship between the tip surface 23a and the workpiece 37 is deviated from a desired state, for example, on the work placement unit 36 in the third operation. There is a case where the work 37 is placed at a position shifted from the position where it is to be placed. For example, when the predetermined position 38 is attracted to a position biased toward the outer edge side of the front end surface 23 a, when the work 37 is held by the holding part 24, one of the two holding parts 24 first hits the work 37 and the work 37. May fall. By reducing the variation in the position of the work 37 collected by the collection unit 22, the positional relationship between the tip surface 23a and the work 37 is likely to be in a desired state, and the occurrence of these problems can be reduced.

  In addition, the transfer control unit 31 controls the sampling unit 22 to move the workpiece 37 in a state where the workpiece 37 is attracted by the third attractive force F3 that is stronger than the second attractive force F2 in the third operation. Therefore, after adjusting the position of the work 37 in the second operation, the work 37 can be moved while the posture of the work 37 is stabilized at the position. Furthermore, by setting the third attractive force F3 to a value stronger than the first attractive force F1, the posture of the work 37 can be further stabilized after the second operation.

  The predetermined position 38 is the tip of the screw shaft of the bolt, that is, the end of the work 37 in the longitudinal direction. Therefore, the workpiece 37 is easily shaken in the second operation, and the workpiece 37 is easily moved toward the center 23b of the recess of the distal end surface 23a.

  Further, at least a predetermined position 38 of the work 37 is formed of a magnetic material, and the sampling unit 22 collects the predetermined position 38 of the work 37 by magnetic force. Therefore, the workpiece transfer device 20 can collect the workpiece more easily using the magnetic force. Further, since the work placement unit 36 is a pallet having a magnetic force, the work transfer device 20 can simply and securely place the work 37 using the magnetic force of the work placement unit 36.

  Further, since the first attracting force F1 is an attracting force that attracts one workpiece 37, even when a plurality of workpieces 37 are present on the sampling placement unit 63, the one workpiece 37 is more reliably attracted. Can do. Therefore, it becomes easy to adjust the work 37 to an appropriate position in the second operation.

  In addition, the workpiece transfer device 20 includes an imaging unit 25 that captures an image. Then, in the first operation, the transfer control unit 31 moves the sampling unit 22 to the predetermined position 38 of the workpiece 37 recognized based on the captured image of the sampling mounting unit 63 captured by the imaging unit 25. In the workpiece transfer device 20, since the workpiece 37 that can be collected and the predetermined position 38 of the workpiece 37 are recognized based on the captured image of the collection placement unit 63, each of the workpieces 37 is more reliably moved. Can be placed.

  The sampling unit 22 includes a pulling unit 23 that has a distal end surface 23a and attracts the work 37, and a clamping unit 24 that sandwiches and supports the work 37 in a posture after the pulling unit 23 attracts the work 37. Have. Then, the transfer control unit 31 controls the sampling unit 22 so that the clamping unit 24 sandwiches and supports the work 37 after the second operation. Thereby, after adjusting the position of the workpiece | work 37 by 2nd operation | movement, a workpiece | work can be moved, hold | maintaining the workpiece | work 37 reliably at the position by the clamping part 24. FIG.

  In addition, the workpiece transfer system 10 includes a workpiece transfer device 20 and a workpiece supply device 40 that supplies a plurality of workpieces 37 to the sampling placement unit 63. Therefore, since the workpiece transfer system 10 can supply the workpiece 37 by the workpiece supply device 40, the workpiece transfer operation can be performed more continuously. Further, the workpiece supply device 40 can easily supply the plurality of workpieces 37 by using the magnetic force by the attracting unit 43.

  It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and it goes without saying that the present invention can be implemented in various modes as long as it belongs to the technical scope of the present invention.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, the tip surface 23a has a conical shape, but the tip surface may have a shape that is inclined and recessed from the outer edge toward the center. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the inclination of the tip surface 23a is linear, but the tip surface 23a may be curved as shown in FIG. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 10, there may be a plane (non-inclined surface) perpendicular to the axial direction at the central portion of the tip surface 23a. 10 has the shape of the surface (side surface and upper surface) of the truncated cone, and the lower part of FIG. 10 is a bottom view of the tip surface 23a. In addition, it is preferable that the front end surface 23a is a rotation surface obtained by rotating a line composed of a straight line, a curve, or a combination thereof with the central axis of the attracting portion 23 as a rotation axis. In other words, it is preferable that the front end surface 23a is circular when viewed in any cross section perpendicular to the axial direction (vertical direction) of the attracting portion 23. 2, 9 and 10 are all in such a shape.

  In the embodiment described above, the transfer control unit 31 sets the pulling force of the pulling unit 23 to the second pulling force F2 in the second operation, and then raises the pulling unit 23 to the second height H2. However, it is not particularly limited to this. The transfer control unit 31 may control the attracting unit 23 so that the workpiece 37 is attracted by the second attracting force F2 in the second operation and the workpiece 37 is separated from the collection placing unit 63. . For example, the timing at which the attracting force of the attracting unit 23 becomes the second attracting force F2 may be the same as or after the timing at which the work 37 is separated from the collection mounting unit 63. Even in this case, the workpiece 37 can be shaken in the second operation. In the second operation, when the attracting force of the attracting part 23 is set to the second attracting force F2 before the workpiece 37 is separated from the sampling placement part 63, the attracting force of the attracting part 23 is The height of the attracting portion 23 at the timing when the first attracting force F1 changes to the second attracting force F2 is defined as a first height H1. Further, when the timing at which the attracting force of the attracting portion 23 becomes the second attracting force F2 is the same as or after the timing at which the work 37 is separated from the collection placing portion 63, the first height is set. H1 is set to a height just before the workpiece 37 is separated from the collection mounting portion 63 (for example, a value slightly smaller than the length L). In addition, the transfer control part 31 may stop the attracting part 23 once in a state where the attracting part 23 has been raised to the first height H1 in the first operation, or without stopping the attracting part 23. The second operation may be performed as it is. Further, the transfer control unit 31 may accelerate or decelerate the ascending speed of the attracting unit 23 in the second operation after the attracting unit 23 has been raised to the first height H1 in the first operation. It is also possible to keep the same speed.

In the above-described embodiment, the transfer control unit 31 stops the attracting unit 23 in a state where the attracting unit 23 is raised to the second height H2 until the clamping unit 24 clamps the workpiece 37. However, it is not limited to this. For example, the transfer control unit 31 may cause the clamping unit 24 to clamp the workpiece 37 while the attracting unit 23 is moving (for example, while being lifted). In this case, the raising of the attracting part 23 during the second action and the raising of the attracting part 23 during the third action may be continuous. In such a case, the second height H2 is clear. It does not have to be determined. In addition, when performing at least one of the holding | grip of the workpiece | work 37 by the clamping part 24 and the change to the 3rd attraction | suction force F3 of the attraction | suction part 23 in 3rd operation | movement, it performed first among both. This timing is regarded as the start timing of the third operation, and the height of the attracting portion 23 at this time is defined as the second height H2. Further, the transfer control unit 31 waits until a standby time determined as a time until the shaking of the work 37 is settled in a state in which the attracting unit 23 is raised to the second height H2 in the second operation, The sampling unit 22 may be controlled to perform the third operation after the standby time has elapsed. The waiting time may be determined in advance according to the type of the work 37, for example.
In the embodiment described above, the transfer control unit 31 uses the third pulling force F3, which is stronger than the first pulling force F1 and the second pulling force F2, as the pulling force of the pulling unit 23 during the third operation. However, the present invention is not limited to this. The third attraction force F3, which is the attraction force of the attraction portion 23 during the third operation, may be the same as the first attraction force F1, and is weaker than the first attraction force F1 and the second attraction force. It may be stronger than F2, or may be the same as the second attractive force F2 (not changed from the second attractive force F2 set in the second operation).

  In the above-described embodiment, the predetermined position 38 is the tip of the screw shaft of the bolt. However, the predetermined position 38 may be the end of the workpiece 37 in the longitudinal direction. It is good. Further, the predetermined position 38 may not be the end portion in the longitudinal direction of the work 37 as long as the position can be adjusted by shaking the work 37 in the second operation.

  In the embodiment described above, the first attraction force F1 is an attraction force that attracts one workpiece 37, but is not particularly limited thereto. For example, if the workpiece 37 placed alone on the collection placement unit 63 is identified as a workpiece 37 that can be collected, the first pulling force F1 attracts two or more workpieces 37. Even so, only one workpiece 37 can be collected.

  In the above-described embodiment, the work 37 is formed of a magnetic material, and the collection units 22 and 42 are attracted by magnetic force to collect the work 37. However, the collection units 22 and 42 attract and collect the work. If it is a thing, it will not specifically limit to this. For example, the collection unit may attract the workpiece 37 using an ER (Electro-rheological) gel whose electric adhesion can be controlled by electricity. The ER gel may be, for example, a silicone gel containing ER particles. Also in this apparatus, it is possible to reduce the variation in the position of the work 37 collected by the collection unit. The work placement unit 36 may also fix the work 37 using ER gel.

  In the above-described embodiment, the movement mechanism 21 of the workpiece transfer device 20 has been described as a multi-axis arm robot device including a plurality of arms 28, but is not particularly limited thereto. For example, the moving mechanism may be an XY robot that moves the collection head provided with the collection unit 22 in the front-rear and left-right directions.

  In the above-described embodiment, the sampling unit 22 includes the attracting unit 23 and the clamping unit 24. However, the sampling unit 22 is not particularly limited as long as the workpiece 37 is sampled by attracting, and the clamping unit 24 is not limited thereto. May be omitted.

  In the above-described embodiment, the workpiece 37 is placed on the collection placement portion 63 disposed on the workpiece accommodation member 60. However, the workpiece 37 may be placed on the collection placement portion, and the workpiece accommodation is possible. It may be placed on something other than the member 60.

  In the above-described embodiment, the system control unit 12, the transfer control unit 31, and the supply control unit 51 cooperate to execute the work processing routine. However, the present invention is not particularly limited thereto. For example, the system control unit 12 may execute all of the work processing routine, or the transfer control unit 31 and the supply control unit 51 may share the work processing routine.

  In the embodiment described above, the workpiece transfer system 10 includes one workpiece transfer device 20 and one workpiece supply device 40. However, the embodiment is not particularly limited thereto, and includes one or more devices. It is good.

  In the above-described embodiment, the workpiece transfer system 10 including the workpiece transfer device 20 and the workpiece supply device 40 has been described. However, only the workpiece transfer device 20 may be used.

  The present invention can be used in the technical field of an apparatus that performs processing such as workpiece collection and placement.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Work transfer system, 12 System control part, 20 Work transfer apparatus, 21 Movement mechanism, 22 Sampling part, 23 Attraction part, 23a Tip surface, 23b Center, 24 Nipping part, 25 Imaging part, 26 Illumination part, 27 Image sensor, 28 arm, 29 drive unit, 31 transfer control unit, 36 work placement unit, 37 workpiece, 38 predetermined position, 40 workpiece supply device, 41 moving mechanism, 42 sampling unit, 43 attracting unit, 44 support Shaft, 48 arm, 49 drive unit, 51 supply control unit, 52 transport device, 54 moving device, 56 storage base, 57 rail, 60 workpiece storage member, 62 storage unit, 63 collection mounting unit, 70 plate, 71 fixed Member, 72 clamping pin, 73 groove part.

Claims (9)

A workpiece transfer device for moving and placing the workpiece from the collection placement portion on which one or more workpieces are placed to the work placement portion,
A sampling portion that has a tip surface that is inclined and recessed from the outer edge toward the center, and that attracts and collects a predetermined position that is a portion smaller than the tip surface of the workpiece,
A first operation for attracting and lifting the work placed on the collection placement portion with a first attraction force, and a second attraction force weaker than the first attraction force after the first operation. A second operation for attracting the workpiece and separating the workpiece from the collection placement portion; and a third operation for moving and placing the workpiece on the work placement portion after the second operation; A transfer control unit for controlling the sampling unit to perform,
Workpiece transfer device with The transfer control unit controls the sampling unit to move the workpiece in a state where the workpiece is attracted with a third attraction force stronger than the second attraction force in the third operation.
The workpiece transfer apparatus according to claim 1. The third attractive force is stronger than the first attractive force;
The workpiece transfer apparatus according to claim 2. The predetermined position is an end of the workpiece in the longitudinal direction.
The workpiece transfer apparatus according to claim 1. The workpiece has at least the predetermined position formed of a magnetic material,
The sampling part is sampled by attracting a predetermined position of the workpiece by magnetic force,
The workpiece transfer apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4. The first attractive force is an attractive force that attracts one workpiece.
The workpiece transfer apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5. The workpiece transfer apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
An imaging unit for capturing an image;
With
The transfer control unit moves the sampling unit to the predetermined position of the workpiece recognized based on the captured image of the sampling mounting unit captured by the imaging unit in the first operation.
Workpiece transfer device. The sampling part has a pulling part that has the tip surface and attracts the work, and a clamping part that sandwiches and supports the work in a posture after the attracting part attracts the work. ,
The transfer control unit controls the sampling unit so that the clamping unit sandwiches and supports the workpiece after the second operation.
The workpiece transfer apparatus according to claim 1. The workpiece transfer device according to any one of claims 1 to 8,
A workpiece supply device for supplying a plurality of workpieces to the collection placement unit;
Work transfer system equipped with.

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