In Fig. 1, reference numeral 10 denotes a linear actuator according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
1 to 10, the linear actuator 10 includes a cylinder body 12, a slide table 12 disposed on the upper portion of the cylinder body 12 and reciprocating in a straight line along the longitudinal direction (the direction of arrows A and B) A guide mechanism 16 arranged to interpose between the cylinder main body 12 and the slide table 14 to guide the slide table 14 in the longitudinal direction (directions of arrows A and B), and a slide table 14 And a stopper mechanism 18 capable of adjusting a displacement amount of the stopper mechanism.
The cylinder body 12 has a rectangular cross section and has a predetermined length along the longitudinal direction (directions of arrows A and B). A concave portion 20 having a concave arch-shaped cross section is formed at the substantially central portion of the upper surface of the cylinder body 12 and extends along the longitudinal direction (directions of arrows A and B). The concave portion 20 is provided with a pair of through bolt holes 24a and 24b into which connecting bolts 22a and 22b for connecting the cylinder body 12 and the guide mechanism 16 are inserted.
5, first and second ports (fluid inlet / outlet ports) 26 and 28 for supplying and discharging the pressure fluid are formed in one side surface of the cylinder body 12 in the longitudinal direction of the cylinder body 12 (Cylinder chambers) 30a and 30b, which will be described later. Two sensor attaching grooves 32 are formed on the other side surface of the cylinder body 12 at positions along the longitudinal direction (directions of arrows A and B), respectively, and sensors (not shown) are mounted thereon.
On the bottom surface of the cylinder body 12, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, a pair of bolt holes 24a and 24b are formed at the center in the axial direction width direction (arrow C direction). The connecting bolts 22a and 22b are inserted from below through the bolt holes 24a and 24b penetrating the cylinder body 12 toward the upper side.
The head 33 of the connecting bolts 22a and 22b is composed of a tapered flush bolt whose diameter gradually increases in a direction away from the thread portion (downward as shown in Fig. 4). The expanded diameter portion 35 of the bolt holes 24a and 24b is also formed in a tapered shape in which the diameter gradually increases toward the lower surface side of the cylinder body 12 so as to be in contact with the tapered head 33. [
The threaded portions of the connecting bolts 22a and 22b project from the upper surface of the cylinder body 12 and are threadedly coupled to the guide block 92 of the guide mechanism 16 to be connected to each other. 4, since the head 33 on the connection bolts 22a and 22b and the extended diameter portion 35 of the bolt holes 24a and 24b are in contact through the tapered surface, the guide block 92 The connection bolts 22a and 22b are not displaced in the direction perpendicular to the axis (i.e., in the directions of the arrows A and B) due to the coupling between the tapered surfaces, even when a load is applied in the horizontal direction .
Therefore, the guide block 92 is firmly fixed to the cylinder body 12 in a properly positioned state at all times. In other words, since the sliding (displacement) of the connecting bolts 22a and 22b is restricted in the direction orthogonal to the axial line, the guide block 92 is held in a highly precisely positioned state, The amount of displacement of the slide table 14 can be controlled with high accuracy.
A pair of first positioning holes 29a and 29b are formed on the lower surface of the cylinder body 12 on the center line in the width direction (the direction of the arrow C). For example, Its relative positioning is accomplished by inserting the pin into the first positioning holes 29a, 29b and other devices when the second positioning hole 12 is fixed to another device or the like (not shown).
3 and 4, the first positioning holes 29a and 29b are formed adjacent to the bolt holes 24a and 24b, respectively, so that the piston rod 38, which will be described later, One of the first positioning holes 29a formed in the side of the cylinder body 12 in the direction of the arrow A and the other of the first positioning holes 29b formed in the other end of the cylinder body 12 The hole 29b is formed in an elliptical or rectangular shape extending in the axial direction (the direction of the arrows A and B).
In this way, by providing the first positioning holes 29a and 29b on the axis of the cylinder body 12, the linear actuator 10 including the cylinder body 12 is attached to another apparatus or the like, The work can be easily performed.
5, two through holes 30a and 30b are formed in the cylinder body 12 so as to penetrate along the longitudinal direction (the directions of arrows A and B), and one through hole 30a and one through- And the other through hole 30b is spaced apart by a predetermined distance and arranged substantially parallel to each other. A cylinder mechanism 40 including a piston 37 and a piston rod 38 connected to the piston 37 is provided in each of the through holes 30a and 30b .
The cylinder mechanism 40 is constituted by a pair of pistons 37 and a piston rod 38 which are respectively provided in the pair of through holes 30a and 30b. A magnet 36 is provided on the outer circumferential surface of one of the pistons 37 adjacent to the sealing ring 34. The magnet 36 is provided only to one piston 37 on the sensor mounting groove 32 side of the cylinder body 12. [ The displacement of the piston 37 along the axial direction is detected by detecting the magnetism of the magnet 36 by the detection sensor (not shown) provided in the sensor attachment groove 32. [
An annular piston damper 41 is provided at the end of the piston 37 on the rod holder 46 side (in the direction of arrow A), which will be described later. For example, even when the stopper mechanism 18 is not provided, when the piston 37 is displaced toward the rod holder 46 (in the direction of the arrow A), the piston 37 is moved through the piston damper 41 to the rod holder 46 so that the impact is appropriately absorbed by the piston damper 41.
The other end of the through holes 30a and 30b is sealed to the rod holder 46 held by the locking ring 44 while the through holes 30a and 30b are sealed by the cap 42 at one end thereof And then sealed. The O-ring 48 is mounted on the outer periphery of the rod holder 46 through the annular groove to prevent the pressure fluid from leaking through the gap between the through holes 30a and 30b and the rod holder 46. [
The one through hole 30a communicates with the first and second ports 26 and 28 and the other through hole 30b communicates with one through hole 30a and the other through hole 30a, 30b through a pair of connection passages 50 formed between the through-holes 30a. More specifically, the pressure fluid is supplied to the first and second ports 26, 28 and introduced into one through hole 30a. Thereafter, the pressure fluid is introduced into the other through hole 30b through the connection passage 50. [ The connection passage 50 is formed orthogonally to the direction of extension of the through holes 30a and 30b (the directions of the arrows A and B).
The slide table 14 includes a table main body 52, a stopper mechanism 18 connected to one end of the table main body 52 and an end plate 54 connected to the other end of the table main body 52. The end plate 54 is connected perpendicularly to the table body 52.
The table body 52 includes a base member 56 extending along the longitudinal direction to a predetermined thickness and a pair of guide walls 58a and 58b extending downward from both sides of the base member 56 ). On the inner surfaces of the guide walls 58a and 58b, a first ball guide groove 62 for guiding a ball (rolling member) 60 of a guide mechanism 16 described later is formed. The first ball guide groove 62 is concave in a substantially semicircular cross section. In addition, the base member 56 and guide walls 58a and 58b are formed to have substantially the same thickness dimension (see Fig. 7).
One end of the table main body 52 is provided with a pair of first bolt holes 66a into which bolts (fastening members) 66a for fastening a holder portion (retaining member) 64 of a stopper mechanism 18 (68) are formed. A pair of second bolt holes 70 into which bolts 66b for fixing the end plate 54 are inserted are formed at the other end of the table body 52. [ The first and second bolt holes (68, 70) penetrate in a direction perpendicular to the extending direction of the table body (52).
Four workpiece holding holes 72 are formed in the base member 56 between one end and the other end. The workpiece holding holes 72 are spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance. For example, a workpiece (not shown) is mounted on the upper portion of the slide table 14 and is provided for fixing the workpiece in place do.
In addition, the workpiece holding hole 72 is formed in the cylinder body 12 with respect to the second ball guiding groove 74 provided on both sides of the guide block 92 when the slide table 14 is disposed on the upper portion of the cylinder body 12, (See Fig. 7) along the width direction of the guide block 12 and the guide block 92 (see Fig. 7). In other words, the workpiece holding hole 72 is arranged at an inner position from the second ball guide groove 74 of the guide block 92 in the slide table 14.
1 to 4, the base member 56 is provided with a pin (not shown) for positioning a workpiece (not shown) on the axis line at the center of the width dimension of the base member 56 A pair of second positioning holes 75a and 75b are formed. The second positioning holes 75a and 75b are spaced apart from each other along the longitudinal direction of the base member 56 (the direction of arrows A and B). One of the second positioning holes 75a disposed on the side of the end plate 54 (in the direction of arrow A) is formed to penetrate in a circular shape and the other of the second positioning holes 75a disposed on the side of the stopper mechanism 18 The second positioning hole 75b is formed in an elliptical or rectangular shape extending in its axial direction along its axial dimension.
When the workpiece is mounted on the slide table 14 and the positioning is performed by providing the second positioning holes 75a and 75b on the axis line of the base member 56 in the slide table 14 The work can be easily performed.
The end plate 54 is fixed by two bolts 66b inserted through a second bolt hole 70 formed at the other end of the table main body 52 and is arranged to face the end face of the cylinder body 12 do. The end plate 54 is fixed to the end of the piston rod 38 inserted through the pair of rod holes 76a and 76b formed in the end plate 54. [ The slide table 14 including the end plate 54 can be displaced together with the piston rod 38 along the longitudinal direction of the cylinder body 12 (the directions of arrows A and B).
The end plate 54 is formed with a damper mounting hole 80 in which a damper 78 is mounted at a position between one rod hole 76a and the other rod hole 76b. When a damper 78 made of an elastic material such as rubber is fitted (inserted) into the damper mounting hole 80 from the other side of the end plate 54 on the cylinder body 12 side, the end portion is expanded in diameter And protrudes outward from the other side.
Since the damper mounting hole 80 is formed at the center of the end plate 54 in the width direction (the direction of the arrow C), the damper 78 is also provided at the center in the width direction of the end plate 54.
More specifically, when the end plate 54 is displaced together with the slide table 14, the damper 78 protruded from the other side surface of the end plate 54 is brought into contact with the end surface of the cylinder body 12, The occurrence of a shock and an impact sound which are likely to occur when the piston 54 directly contacts the cylinder body 12 is avoided.
Since the damper 78 is disposed substantially at the center of the end plate 54 in the width direction (the direction of the arrow C), the slide table 14 is displaced and the end plate 54 is moved to the cylinder body 12 via the damper 78. [ The generation of moments in the lateral (left and right) directions is suppressed when the linear actuator 10 is viewed from above.
The stopper mechanism 18 includes a holder portion 64 disposed on the lower surface of one end of the table main body 52, a stopper bolt 82 threadedly engaged with the holder portion 64, and a stopper bolt 82 And a lock nut 84 regulating the rotation of the lock nut 84. The stopper mechanism 18 is disposed to face the end face of the guide mechanism 16 disposed in the cylinder body 12. [
The holder 64 is formed in a block shape and includes two bolts 66a inserted from above through the first bolt hole 68 to the base member 56 of the table body 52 of the slide table 14, As shown in Fig. The holder portion 64 includes a first convex portion 86 which is convex downward in an arcuate shape toward the downward direction. A screw hole 88 into which the stopper bolt 82 is screwed is formed at the center of the holder portion 64 including the first convex portion 86. The threaded hole 88 extends substantially parallel to the extending direction of the table body 52 through the holder portion 64.
More specifically, since the screw hole 88 is disposed at the center of the holder portion 64 having the first convex portion 86, compared with the case where the first convex portion 86 is not provided, May be formed at a weak acid lower position.
The first convex portion 86 of the holder portion 64 extends along the axial direction so that when the slide table 14 is displaced along the longitudinal direction, Is inserted through the concave portion (20).
The stopper bolt 82 is made of, for example, a shank-shaped stud bolt threaded on the outer circumferential surface. The stopper bolt 82 has a length such that the stopper bolt 82 protrudes from the screw hole 88 in a state where the stopper bolt 82 is screwed into the screw hole 88 of the holder portion 64. In addition, the lock nut 84 is screwed to the stopper bolt 82 at a portion protruding from the end surface of the holder portion 64.
The stopper bolt 82 is displaced along the axial direction (the direction of the arrows A and B) to approach and separate from the guide mechanism 16 by threading the stopper bolt 82 with respect to the holder portion 64. [ For example, after the stopper bolt 82 is rotated and protruded by a predetermined length toward the guide mechanism 16 side (direction of arrow A), the lock nut 84 is thread-rotated and moved, Thereby restricting the forward and backward movement of the stopper bolt 82.
A buffer member 90 made of an elastic material is protruded by a predetermined length toward the guide mechanism 16 at the end of the stopper bolt 82. The buffer member 90 is provided for the purpose of mitigating the impact when the stopper bolt 82 comes into contact with the end face of the guide mechanism 16 under the displacement action of the slide table 14.
8 and 9, the guide mechanism 16 includes a wide flat guide block 92, a pair of ball circulating members 94a, 94b arranged on the guide block 92 for circulating the ball 60, A pair of covers 96 mounted at both ends of the guide block 92 along the longitudinal direction of the guide block 92 and a pair of cover plates 98 covering the surfaces of the cover 96 respectively.
On both sides of the guide block 92, a second ball guide groove 74 is formed along the longitudinal direction. A pair of mounting grooves 100a and 100b through which the ball circulation members 94a and 94b are inserted are passed through the second ball guide groove 74 in the longitudinal direction. The second ball guide groove 74 has a semicircular cross section and the second ball guide groove 74 is formed in the first ball guide groove 62 when the slide table 14 is disposed on the upper portion of the guide mechanism 16. [ As shown in Fig.
The mounting grooves 100a and 100b are formed on the lower surface of the guide block 92 and have a rectangular cross section and are opened downward at both ends in the longitudinal direction.
The ball circulation members 94a and 94b are formed in a substantially rectangular cross section corresponding to the mounting grooves 100a and 100b and have a ball circulation hole 102 through which the balls 60 are circulated. Roll reversing portions 104a and 104b for reversing the circulation direction of the balls 60 are disposed at both ends thereof. The roll inversions 104a and 104b are formed in a semicircular cross section, and a ball groove is formed on the outer circumferential surface of the roll inversions 104a and 104b, in which the ball 60 rolls. Such a ball groove is continuously connected to the ball circulation hole 102.
More specifically, the balls 60 are rolled from the ball circulation holes 102 in the ball circulation members 94a and 94b through the ball grooves of the roll reversing portions 104a and 104b to form ball circulation members 94a and 94b, (Circulation passages) 62 and 74 disposed on the outside of the first and second ball guide grooves (circulation passages).
The ball circulation members 94a and 94b are disposed so that the ball circulation hole 102 in the guide block 92 is positioned downward with respect to the first and second ball guide grooves 62 and 74. [ More specifically, the ball circulation hole 102 and the first and second ball guide grooves 62 and 74 are offset by a predetermined height in the vertical direction (direction of arrow C in Fig. 7).
When the ball circulating members 94a and 94b are inserted into the mounting grooves 100a and 100b of the guide block 92, the flat portions 108 of the roll inverting portions 104a and 104b are respectively inserted into the guide blocks 92 The ball circulation hole 102 of the ball circulation members 94a and 94b and the second ball guide groove 74 are connected to each other.
More specifically, as shown in Fig. 7, in the guide mechanism 16, the ball circulation hole 102 and the first and second ball guide grooves 62 and 74 are rotated by the roll reversing portions 104a and 104b And are connected in an oblique direction.
The ball circulation hole 102 of the ball circulation members 94a and 94b, the ball groove, the first ball guide groove 62 of the slide table 14, and the second ball guide groove 74 form an annular ball circulation passage 110 which is continuous. The plurality of balls 60 are rolled along the ball circulation passage 110 so that the slide table 14 can smoothly reciprocate along the guide mechanism 16. [
The cover 96 is mounted so as to cover both end faces of the guide block 92. A hole 111 is formed in the center of the cover 96 in the axial direction and a second convex portion 112 convex outwardly in the shape of an arc in cross section in the vertical direction with respect to the hole 111 is provided. The second convex portion 112 is disposed such that the second convex portion 112 can be inserted into the concave portion 20 of the cylinder body 12 when the guide mechanism 16 is mounted on the upper portion of the cylinder body 12 do.
A space 114 in which the roll inverting portions 104a and 104b are accommodated is formed in the cover 96 and a ball 60 rolling in the roll inverting portions 104a and 104b is formed in the space 114 A holding groove 116 is formed. The holding groove 116 is formed in an arc shape on the outer side of the radius of the roll inverting portions 104a and 104b and the ball 60 is formed between the holding grooves 116 and the ball grooves of the roll inverting portions 104a and 104b Can be rolled.
A hole 118 is formed in the substantially center of the cover plate 98 and is formed to have the same diameter and coaxiality as the hole 111 of the cover 96. The end face of the guide block 92 is exposed outwardly through the holes 111 and 118. The cover plate 98 has a third bulged portion 120 (corresponding to the cover 96) ). The third expanding portion 120 is formed to have substantially the same cross sectional shape as the second convex portion 112 of the cover 96 and is arranged to be inserted into the concave portion 20 of the cylinder body 12. [ The cover 96 and the cover plate 98 described above are fixed to the end faces of the guide block 92 by the cover fixing bolts 122, respectively.
The stopper bolt 82 of the stopper mechanism 18 contacts the end face of the guide block 92 through the holes 118 and 111 when the slide table 14 reciprocates.
The linear actuator 10 according to the first embodiment of the present invention is basically constructed as described above. Next, the operation and effects of the linear actuator 10 will be described. A state in which the end plate 54 of the slide table 14 shown in Fig. 4 is in contact with the end face of the cylinder body 12 will be described as an initial position.
First, pressure fluid is introduced into the first port 26 from a pressure fluid source, not shown. In this case, the second port 28 is left open to the atmosphere under the operation of a switching valve (not shown).
The pressure fluid supplied to the first port 26 is supplied to the one through hole 30a and also supplied to the other through hole 30b through the connection passage 50 so that the piston 37 is connected to the rod holder 46, (Arrow A direction). Thus, the slide table 14 is displaced in the direction away from the cylinder body 12 together with the piston rod 38 connected to the piston 37.
At this time, the ball 60 of the guide mechanism 16 is rolled along the ball circulation passage 110 in accordance with the displacement of the slide table 14, so that the slide table 14 is guided in the axial direction by the guide mechanism 16 .
10, the end of the stopper bolt 82 provided at one end of the slide table 14 is brought into contact with the end face of the guide block 92 of the guide mechanism 16, The displacement is stopped and the slide table 14 reaches the displacement end position.
The amount of the stopper mechanism 18 projecting from the end face of the holder portion 64 is reduced by the thread rotation of the stopper bolt 82 after the lock nut 84 is loosened to enable the operation of the stopper bolt 82 The amount of displacement of the slide table 14 can also be adjusted.
On the other hand, when the slide table 14 is displaced in a direction opposite to the above direction, that is, in a direction away from the displacement end position shown in Fig. 10, the pressure fluid supplied to the first port 26 is supplied to the second port 28 While the first port 26 is left open to the atmosphere. As a result, the piston 37 is displaced in the direction (arrow B direction) away from the rod holder 46 by the pressure fluid supplied from the second port 28 to the pair of through holes 30a, 30b, The slide table 14 is displaced in the direction of approaching the cylinder body 12 via the piston rod 38 together with the piston 37. The damper 78 disposed on the end plate 54 of the slide table 14 is brought into contact with the end face of the cylinder body 12 to restore the initial position of the linear actuator 10. [
In this manner, according to the first embodiment, in the linear actuator 10 having the cylinder mechanism 40 composed of the pair of pistons 37 and the piston rod 38 disposed in the cylinder body 12, A stopper mechanism 18 for stopping the displacement of the slide table 14 is disposed substantially at the center of one end of the slide table 14 disposed on the upper portion of the slide table 14. Since the stopper mechanism 18 is disposed substantially at the center in the width direction at one end of the slide table 14, the slide table 14 is displaced so that the stopper bolt 82 of the stopper mechanism 18 is engaged with the guide block 92, The occurrence of a moment in the transverse direction can be suppressed when the linear actuator 10 is viewed from above. As a result, the inclination of the slide table 14, which may occur when the slide table 14 is engaged with the guide block 92, can be avoided, and the operation of the slide table 14 can be stopped securely and stably .
The ball circulation members 94a and 94b having the ball circulation hole 102 are disposed in the guide block 92 of the guide mechanism 16 and the guide block 92 is provided in the upper portion of the cylinder body 12 in two And are fixed by connection bolts 22a and 22b. Accordingly, the length of the ball circulation passage 110 can be shortened as compared with a case where the linear actuator is displaced along the rails arranged in the body, so that the length in the longitudinal direction of the linear actuator 10 can be shortened have. In other words, the linear actuator 10 can be downsized in its longitudinal direction.
In a conventional non-recirculation linear actuator as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2008-057679, shifting accompanied by inclination (tilting) of the slide table is likely to occur in balls arranged on the right and left sides of the linear actuator. To solve this problem, in the linear actuator 10 according to the present invention including the guide mechanism 16 in which the ball 60 can circulate, there is no shifting of the balls 60 on the right and left sides, A great effect is achieved in suppressing the inclination (tilting).
A concave portion 20 having an arc shape is formed on the upper surface of the cylinder body 12 and the cover 96 of the guide mechanism 16 disposed on the cylinder body 12 faces the cylinder body 12 A second convex portion 112 which is convex outward is provided. The second convex portion 112 corresponds to the cover 96 inserted into the concave portion 20 and the stopper bolt 82 of the stopper mechanism 18 contacts with the position of the stopper bolt 82, (12). ≪ / RTI >
The guide mechanism 16 and the stopper mechanism 18 can be positioned closer to the cylinder body 12 as compared with the case where the recess 20 is not provided in the cylinder body 12, The height dimension of the linear actuator 10 including the linear actuator 10, 16, and the like can be suppressed.
The distance L between the center of the cylinder body 12 and the center of the stopper bolt 82 of the stopper mechanism 18 in the height direction of the linear actuator 10 The moment generated in the vertical direction of the linear actuator 10 can be reduced when the slide table 14 is brought into contact with and engaged with the guide mechanism 16 through the stopper mechanism 18 . As a result, the inclination generated when the slide table 14 is engaged can be suppressed, and the slide table 14 can be stopped reliably and stably.
The guide mechanism 16 is provided on the slide table 14 by providing the first ball guide groove 62 in which the ball 60 rolls inside the pair of guide walls 58a and 58b of the slide table 14, The thickness of the slide table 14 can be thinned. As a result, the height dimension of the linear actuator 10 including the slide table 14 can be suppressed, and the linear actuator 10 can be downsized in the height direction.
Since the holder 64 of the stopper mechanism 18 is fixed from above by the bolt 66a inserted from above into the one end of the base member 56 of the slide table 14 The thickness of the fixed base member 56 can be thinned as compared with the case where the base member 56 is fixed to the base member 56 of the slide table 14 from the front side. As a result, the slide table 14 including the base member 56 can be thinned, and therefore the slide table 14 can be lightened.
Since the damper 78 is disposed at the substantially central portion of the end plate 54 in the width direction (the direction of the arrow C), the slide table 14 is displaced and contacts the end face of the cylinder body 12 through the damper 78 Generation of a moment in the lateral (left and right) direction can be suppressed when the linear actuator 10 is viewed from above. As a result, the slanting (tilting) of the slide table 14 when the slide table 14 is stopped can be suppressed, and can be stopped reliably and stably.
In addition, the first positioning holes 29a and 29b are provided on the lower surface of the cylinder body 12 on the axis in the width direction (the direction of arrow C), and on the axis of the width dimension of the slide table 14, The cylinder body 12 of the linear actuator 10 is fixed to another device or the like (not shown) by providing the second positioning holes 75a and 75b for positioning the linear actuator 10 (not shown) It is possible to easily and reliably achieve its relative positioning by inserting the pin into the first positioning holes 29a and 29b and other devices when the workpiece is mounted on the slide table 14, The crystal can be easily performed with high accuracy.
More specifically, in the linear actuator 10, the stopper bolt 82 constituting the stopper mechanism 18, the damper 78 disposed on the end plate 54, the first damper 78 formed on the lower surface of the cylinder body 12, Both of the positioning holes 29a and 29b and the second positioning holes 75a and 75b formed in the slide table 14 are located at the center of the width direction of the linear actuator 10 In the actuator 10, the cylinder body 12, the slide table 14, the guide block 92, and the stopper mechanism 18 are symmetrically formed in the transverse direction. As a result, the design of the linear actuator 10 including the cylinder main body 12 and the slide table 14 is simplified without increasing the difference in the lateral direction.
When the slide table 14 is manufactured, the guide walls 58a and 58b are bent by press molding using the second positioning holes 75a and 75b as a reference, and the second positioning holes 75a and 75b are bent The second positioning holes 75a and 75b can be disposed at the center in the width direction of the slide table 14 with high precision by processing (for example, cutting) the first ball guide groove 62 used as a reference.
Next, the linear actuator 150 according to the second embodiment is shown in Figs. 11 to 16. The same components as those of the linear actuator 10 according to the first embodiment described above are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description of their features is omitted.
11 to 16, the linear actuator 150 according to the second embodiment has the first and second ports 26 and 28 formed on one side surface of the cylinder body 152, (Fluid inlet / outlet ports) 154 and 156 (see Fig. 14) for supplying and discharging the pressure fluid are formed on the other side of the cylinder body 152, and one side surface and the other side surface And the sensor attachment grooves 158a and 158b (refer to FIG. 15) are formed in the first and second linear actuators 10 and 20, respectively.
The linear actuator 150 is provided with a stopper mechanism 164 having a pair of stopper bolts 160a and 160b and locknuts 162a and 162b and is provided with a linear actuator 10 according to the first embodiment, different.
A third port 154 is formed on the other side surface of the cylinder body 152 at a position aligned with the first port 26 and a fourth port 156 is formed at a position in alignment with the second port 28 . The third and fourth ports 154 and 156 communicate with the other through holes 30b in the cylinder body 152 so that the pressure fluid supplied to the third and fourth ports 154 and 156 is supplied to the other After being introduced into the through hole 30b, the pressure fluid passes through the connection passages 50a and 50b and is introduced into one through hole 30a.
The first and second ports 26 and 28 and the third and fourth ports 154 and 156 are connected to a pair of ports which are most suitable for use in the installation environment of the linear actuator 150, And is used by being connected. For example, when the piping is connected to the third and fourth ports 154 and 156 for supplying and discharging the pressurized fluid, a sealing plug 166 is installed in the first and second ports 26 and 28 to seal it. do. In contrast, when the piping is connected to the first and second ports 26 and 28 for supplying and discharging the pressurized fluid, a seal plug 166 sealing the third and fourth ports 154 and 156 is provided.
Sensor attachment grooves 158a and 158b are formed on one side surface and the other side surface of the cylinder body 152 at positions above the first to fourth ports 26, 28, 154 and 156, A and B directions), respectively. Each of the sensor attachment grooves 158a and 158b is provided with an unillustrated detection sensor for detecting the displacement position of the piston 37 by detecting magnetism from the magnets 37 provided in the pair of pistons 37, respectively.
One stopper bolt 160a to which the lock nut 162a is screwed to the stopper mechanism 164 is threaded by the holder 64 fixed to the slide table 14 and the other stopper bolt 160b Is threaded into a bolt hole 168 passing through a substantially central portion of the end plate 54 in the width direction (direction of arrow C). The lock nut 162b is threaded on the stopper bolt 160b at a portion protruding outside the end plate 54. [
The bolt hole 168 is spaced upward from the damper mounting hole 80 in the end plate 54 by a predetermined distance and formed coaxially with the screw hole 88 of the holder portion 64. More specifically, similar to the damper 78, the stopper bolt 160b is disposed in the center of the end plate 54 in the width direction (the direction of the arrow C), and the one stopper bolt 160a and the other stopper bolt 160b, The bolts 160b are arranged so as to face coaxially.
Next, the operation of the above-mentioned linear actuator 150 will be briefly described.
First, the piston 37 is pushed and displaced toward the rod holder 46 side (direction of arrow A) by the pressure fluid supplied from the third port 154 from the initial position shown in Figs. 13 and 14, The displacement in the direction away from the cylinder body 152 of the slide table 14 is achieved. In this case, the first and second ports 26, 28 are closed and sealed by a sealing plug 166.
The stopper bolt 160a constituting the stopper mechanism 164 is brought into contact with the end face of the guide block 92 constituting the guide mechanism 16 to stop the displacement of the slide table 14, The slide table 14 reaches its end position (see Fig. 16).
On the other hand, when the slide table 14 is displaced in the opposite direction from the end position shown in Fig. 16, by supplying the pressure fluid previously supplied to the third port 154 to the fourth port 156, Is displaced in the direction away from the rod holder 46 (in the direction of the arrow B) and is moved together with the piston 37 in the direction of approaching the cylinder body 152 of the slide table 14 via the piston rod 38 Displacement is achieved. The stopper bolt 160b constituting the stopper mechanism 164 is brought into contact with the end face of the guide block 92 constituting the guide mechanism 16 to stop the displacement of the slide table 14, The slide table 14 is returned to its initial position (see Figs. 13 and 14).
More specifically, in the linear actuator 150 according to the second embodiment, the first and second ports 26 and 28 and the third and fourth ports 154 and 156 And the supply and discharge of the pressure fluid is selectively enabled through the first and second ports 26 and 28 and the third and fourth ports 154 and 156. Therefore, the installation environment of the linear actuator 150 And a pair of ports corresponding to the arrangement of the pipes and the like used for supplying the pressure fluid may be selectively used.
Since the sensor attachment grooves 158a and 158b are formed on one side surface and the other side surface of the cylinder body 152 in the similar manner, the sensor attachment grooves 158a and 158b, which are optimal according to the installation environment of the linear actuator 150, By selection, the detection sensor can be attached. Further, by providing the respective detection sensors with respect to all of the sensor attachment grooves 158a and 158b, the displacement position of the piston 37 can be detected with higher accuracy.
The stopper mechanism 164 for stopping the displacement of the slide table 14 is constituted by a pair of stopper bolts 160a and 160b and one stopper bolt 160a is provided at one end of the slide table 14 The stopper bolt 160b is disposed at an approximate center portion in the width direction (direction of arrow C) of the end plate 54 connected to the other end of the slide table 14 do.
Therefore, when the linear actuator 150 is viewed from above at the initial position and the displacement end position where the slide table 14 is displaced and the stopper bolts 160a and 160b are brought into contact with the guide block 92, ) Direction can be suppressed. More specifically, the linear actuator 150 including the stopper mechanism 164 is formed in a symmetrical shape in the lateral (left-right) direction of the linear actuator 150.
As a result, the inclination (tilting) of the slide table 14 at the time of stopping can be suppressed and the generation of moment can be suppressed more reliably than the case where the stopper bolt 160a is provided only at one end side of the slide table 14 The slide table 14 can be stopped more reliably and reliably.
The sensor attachment grooves 158a and 158b are not limited to the case where one sensor is provided on one side and the other side of the cylinder body 152 as described above. The sensor attachment grooves 204a and 204b arranged at a predetermined distance in the height direction of the cylinder body 202 and arranged in two rows as in the linear actuator 200 shown in Figs. And extend along the longitudinal direction (the directions of the arrows A and B), respectively.
In this case, for example, a detection sensor for detecting the initial position of the piston 37 may be provided in one of the sensor attachment grooves 204a and the piston 37 may be provided in the other sensor attachment groove 204b. Another detection sensor for detecting the displacement end position of the piston 37 can be provided, whereby the initial position and the displacement end position of the piston 37 can be detected with higher accuracy.
Next, the linear actuator 250 according to the third embodiment is shown in Figs. 20 and 21. Fig. The same components as those of the linear actuators 10 and 150 according to the first and second embodiments described above are denoted by the same reference numerals and the detailed description of their features is omitted.
The linear actuator 250 according to the third embodiment is different from the linear actuator 250 according to the third embodiment in that an end connected to the end of the cylinder body 252 is provided instead of providing the first and second ports 26 and 28 on one side surface and the other side surface of the cylinder body 12 And is different from the linear actuator 10, 150 according to the first and second embodiments in that the block 254 is provided with the first and second ports 256, 258.
An end block 254 is connected to one end of the cylinder body 252 to close and seal the through holes 30a and 30b. First and second ports 256 and 258 extending toward the cylinder body 252 side (direction of arrow A) are formed at the end surface of the end block 254 at a predetermined distance in the width direction.
The first port 256 communicates with the end of one of the through holes 30a through the first communication path 260. The second port 258 is connected to the second communication path 262 extending in the width direction (the direction of the arrow C) inside the end block 254 and has a pair of through holes 30a and 30b To the connection passage 50a arranged on the end plate 54 side through the third communication passage 264 formed between the first communication passage 261 and the second communication passage 264. More specifically, the pressure fluid supplied from the second port 258 passes through the second and third communication passages 262 and 264 and the connection passage 50a, and flows through the through-holes 30a and 30b, And the rod holders 46, respectively. The third communication passage 264 is formed so as not to communicate with the connection passage 50b on the side of the end block 254 (in the direction of the arrow B).
The end block 254 having the first and second ports 256 and 258 is connected to one end in the longitudinal direction (the direction of arrow A and B) of the cylinder body 252, For example, such an arrangement can be applied to an installation environment in which a space for connecting pipes to one side surface and the other side surface of the cylinder body 252 can not be ensured.
The linear actuator according to the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various alternative or additional features and configurations can be adopted without departing from the essence and scope of the present invention as set forth in the appended claims.
