KR20230021320A - Multi-cell pallet stage apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

Disclosed is a multi-cell pallet stage apparatus which allows work to be performed even in a narrow space. According to one embodiment of the present invention, the multi-cell pallet stage apparatus comprises: a plurality of pallets allowing transport and work performance while an object is placed on the upper surface thereof; a frame supporting the plurality of pallets to be transported by mounting the plurality of pallets thereon, and having an outer wall edge to be transported between a plurality of stations which are positions at which the plurality of pallets are fixed while the plurality of pallets are stopped while forming a caterpillar track; and a pallet transport part installed on a lower portion of the plurality of pallets between the plurality of stations, and repeating work of transporting the plurality of pallets straight in a set direction.

Description

Multi-cell pallet stage apparatus {Multi-cell pallet stage apparatus}

The present invention relates to a pallet stage device for transporting objects for various process operations, and more particularly, to a multi-cell pallet stage device capable of operating in a narrow space.

Generally, when assembling or inspecting a product, it is necessary to move the product to an inspection or assembly position.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] Devices called conveying devices, conveying devices and the like are used to move objects between different working locations in a factory, but conveying devices usually have conveying tracks in the form of belts or chains. Objects to be conveyed can be placed in slides relative to the conveying tracks, either directly or via conveying means known as pallets.

Pallets are conveyed according to a conveying device having a plurality of other workstations. In the workstation, the pallet is stopped by the stopper member, so that a predetermined operation can be performed on the object to be transported. In some cases, the object passes through a specific workstation without any manipulation being performed on the object. Because of this, the stopper member can be arranged to stop the pallet or allow the pallet to pass through the workstation.

In the case where all workstations of the conveying device are arranged in succession and operations on objects are executed synchronously, all pallets stop at each workstation. When an operation on an object is not performed with a particular workstation, the object needs to wait until that workstation can prepare for the operation on the previous object, until the object can be continued. In this case, all of the pallets are simultaneously unstopped and moved simultaneously. One advantage of such a system is that predicting the performance of the system is straightforward. One drawback of such systems is their lack of flexibility. When the operation time at the workstation is long, even if the operation is not executed for all objects, all objects must wait for that time. Therefore, such a system is mainly used for a single product or when the product difference is small.

In other systems, manipulations on objects are performed asynchronously, i.e., the pallet is stopped by the workstation where the manipulations are performed, and is released when the manipulations are ready. In such systems, it is often necessary to have equipment with multiple pallets with at least a few workstations to compensate for the different transit times of products and different manipulation times at workstations.

Conventional object transport devices use a conveyor system or chain equipment to form a straight section or a curved section to transport an object, so a space of a certain length or more or a space of more than a certain area is required, and the equipment cannot be installed in a narrow space. there was.

International Publication No. WO2018/236283

According to the present invention, it is intended to provide a multi-cell pallet stage device that is provided so that a pallet accommodating an object can be transported in an endless track manner and can be transported even in a narrow space.

A multi-cell pallet stage device according to an aspect of the present invention includes a plurality of pallets in which work progresses and transfers are made in a state in which an object is placed on an upper surface; A frame provided with an outer wall rim to be transported between a plurality of stations where the plurality of pallets are mounted and supported so as to be transportable, and a plurality of pallets are fixed in a stationary state while forming an infinite orbit; and a pallet transfer unit installed below the plurality of pallets between the plurality of stations and repeating an operation of linearly transferring the plurality of pallets in a predetermined direction.

At this time, the frame includes an outer wall rim preventing the pallet from moving away from the frame so that the pallet can stop at the station; It may include; a base panel supporting the pallet and having a guide hole through which a lower part of the pallet is inserted and guiding in a transport direction.

In this case, the frame may further include a central guide member for guiding the pallet to be moved to the next station only after it is seated in the station.

At this time, the central guide member and the outer wall rim may be formed with a hooking protrusion that is caught at an end so that a portion of the pallet does not fall in an upward direction.

At this time, the pallet transfer unit, the pushing panel seated on the rail so that the upper end is in contact with the pallet and the lower end can be linearly driven; and a linear drive means for reciprocating and reciprocating the pushing panel in a straight line along the rail.

At this time, the linear driving unit may be a linear actuator.

In this case, a damping unit fixed to one side of the frame and mitigating shock when the pallet arrives at the next station may be further included.

In this case, the damping unit may include a gas spring.

In this case, a pallet sensor for detecting whether pallets have arrived at the plurality of stations may be further included.

In this case, an RFID sensor fixed to the frame may be further included to recognize the type of pallet arriving at each of the plurality of station locations.

According to the above configuration, the multi-cell pallet stage device according to the present invention is not designed to be long in the longitudinal direction like a conveyor facility, and can be installed and operated in a narrow space in a crawler type.

1 is a perspective view of a multi-cell pallet stage device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 2 is a perspective view from the bottom of the multi-cell pallet stage device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a perspective view of a linear driving means, which is a part of a multi-cell pallet stage device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
4 and 5 are operational diagrams of linear driving means, which are some components of a multi-cell pallet stage apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
6 is a perspective view of a damper unit, which is a part of a multi-cell pallet stage device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Words and terms used in this specification and claims are not construed as limited in their ordinary or dictionary meanings, but in accordance with the principle that the inventors can define terms and concepts in order to best describe their inventions. It should be interpreted as a meaning and concept that corresponds to the technical idea.

Therefore, the embodiments described in this specification and the configurations shown in the drawings correspond to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, and do not represent all the technical ideas of the present invention, so that the corresponding configurations are various to replace them at the time of filing of the present invention. There may be equivalents and variations.

In this specification, terms such as "include" or "have" are intended to describe the presence of features, numbers, steps, operations, components, parts, or combinations thereof described in the specification, but one or more other features It should be understood that the presence or addition of numbers, steps, operations, components, parts, or combinations thereof is not precluded.

A component being in the "front", "rear", "above" or "below" of another component means that it is in direct contact with another component, unless there are special circumstances, and is "in front", "rear", "above" or "below". It includes not only those disposed at the lower part, but also cases in which another component is disposed in the middle. In addition, the fact that certain components are “connected” to other components includes cases where they are not only directly connected to each other but also indirectly connected to each other unless there are special circumstances.

Hereinafter, the multi-cell pallet stage device 1 according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

A multi-cell pallet stage device 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a plurality of pallets 20 and a frame 10. It includes a pallet transfer unit 30, a central guide member 13, a damper unit 40, and an RFID sensor 70.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 5 , the plurality of pallets 20 are mobile work tables in which work progresses and transfers are made in a state in which an object is placed on an upper surface.

At this time, referring to FIG. 1, the plurality of pallets 20 are formed in a rectangular shape on a plane. In addition, although four are installed in the frame 10 here, three are actually installed to secure a space in which the pallets 20 can move sequentially.

At this time, the pallet 20 is arranged so that four positions form each station, station 1 loads the work object, stations 2 and 3 each work progresses, and finally station 4 unloads the finished work object. The work will be done in this way.

At this time, the pallet 20 includes a work table on which an upper work object is supported and work is performed, and a support plate for supporting the work table is assembled at the lower part of the work table. Here, the support plate may be guided so that the rim does not deviate upward by the rim of the frame 10 and the intermediate guide member 13. The sliding jaw structure of this structure allows the pallet 20 to slide smoothly during transport. and can be done stably.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 5, the frame 10 is supported so that the plurality of pallets 20 are mounted and transportable, and the plurality of pallets 20 form an infinite orbit and are fixed in a stopped state. An outer wall rim may be provided so as to be transferred between a plurality of stations.

At this time, the frame 10 supports the outer wall rim 11 and the pallet 20 to prevent the pallet 20 from escaping from the frame 10 so that the pallet 20 can stop at the station, and the pallet 20 ) It may include a base panel 14 in which a lower portion of the guide hole 14a is formed to guide it in the transport direction.

At this time, the frame 10 may further include a central guide member 13 for guiding the pallet 20 to be moved to the next station only after it is seated in the station.

At this time, the central guide member 13 and the outer wall rim 11 may be formed with a hooking jaw that ends to prevent a portion of the pallet 20 from falling upward.

At this time, the frame 10 is installed to be supported at a certain height from the ground by a plurality of posts 12. Therefore, all the components supported by the frame 10 can be firmly installed while transferring loads to the ground via the plurality of posts 12 via the frame 10.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 5 , the pallet transfer unit 30 is installed under the plurality of pallets 20 between the plurality of stations, and linearly transfers the plurality of pallets 20 in a predetermined direction. can be repeated.

At this time, the pallet transfer unit 30 includes a pushing panel 34 seated on a rail 33 so that the upper end contacts the pallet 20 and the lower end can be linearly driven, and the pushing panel 34 is connected to the rail ( 33) may include linear driving means (32, 32a) for driving reciprocally in a straight line.

At this time, the linear driving means (32, 32a) may be a device that can be reciprocally driven in a straight line including a linear actuator, for example, pneumatic, hydraulic cylinder, linear motor, etc. may be used.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 2, and 6 , the damper unit 40 is fixed to one side of the frame 10 to mitigate impact when the pallet 20 arrives at the next station.

At this time, the damper unit 40 may apply various air damping devices including gas springs, physical spring devices, and the like.

The multi-cell pallet stage apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention may further include a pallet sensor 60 that detects whether pallets 20 have arrived at the plurality of stations.

At this time, the arrival and departure information of the pallet 20 sensed by the pallet sensor 60 may be used to control the device.

In the multi-cell pallet stage device 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention, the RFID sensor 70 fixed to the frame 10 can recognize the type of pallet 20 arriving at each of the plurality of station locations. ) may be further included.

At this time, the RFID sensor 70 can recognize the type or number of the pallet 20 that has arrived at each station to find out the work history, and provide information so that the work can be started next. Of course, RFID is installed on each pallet 20 so that it can be distinguished from other pallets.

On the other hand, referring to Figure 7, another embodiment of the multi-cell pallet stage device according to the present invention is shown. This is an embodiment that includes a technical configuration of the emergency stop device 130 for implementing an emergency stop. The central guide panel 13 guides the slide movement while preventing each pallet 20 from escaping upward, and at this time, a function of stopping the movement of all pallets 20 in case of an emergency can be exerted.

At this time, the multi-cell pallet stage device according to the present invention has a rotating shaft 132, one end of which is coupled and fixed to the lower center of the central guide panel 13, and an emergency rotation shaft 132 installed below the rotating shaft to rotate the rotating shaft 132. A driving motor 134 and a guide part 13a protruding downward are formed at the lower part of the central guide panel 13, and a stop rubber 13b installed on the outer side surface of the guide part 13a is further included. can do.

At this time, a sleeve 133 may be installed between the emergency drive motor 134 and the guide part 13a via a bearing 1321.

At this time, in an emergency, when the emergency button is turned on, the emergency drive motor 134 is driven, and the rotation shaft 132 rotates in one direction. Of course, when rotated at a very small angle due to the pallet 20, the stop rubber 13b made of rubber will be in close contact with the side of the pallet 20. Accordingly, the movement of the pallet 20 is completely stopped and an emergency stop can be implemented.

1 and 2, the pallet 20, the base panel 14 of the frame 10, and the outer wall rim 11 all have a rectangular shape on a plane. Of course, the central guide member 13 also has a rectangular shape on a plane, and has a total of four stations. That is, a station exists at every corner of the base panel 14 . The plurality of pallets 20 are moved to the next station in a straight line by the pallet transfer unit 30 installed at the bottom according to a necessary control signal. These movements may be simultaneous or sequential. At this time, the pallet 20 is transported directly under the guidance of the lower portion of the pallet 20 in a state where it is inserted into the guide hole 14a of the base panel 14, and at the next station, the shock is mitigated by colliding with the damper unit 40, and the next settle into the station. At this time, under the base panel 14, four pallet transfer units 30 are installed so as to be supported by the frame 10 so that each station can be transferred. Of course, whenever each station arrives, the presence or absence of the pallet 50 can be detected by the pallet sensor 60, and the type and history of the pallet 20 can be detected by the RFID sensor 70. Referring to FIG. 2 , when viewed from the bottom, a position unit 50 is installed in the base panel 14 in addition to the sensors.

Referring to Figures 3 to 5, the pallet transfer unit 30 is shown. In the pallet transfer unit 30 , the pushing panel 34 directly contacts the side surface of the pallet 20 to push the pallet 20 from the current station to the next station. At this time, the pushing panel 34 is formed to stand on top of the slider 34a, and the slider 34a slides in a straight line while being restrained so as not to fall into the rail 33. At this time, a part of the slider 34a is fixed to the conveying body of the linear actuator, which is the linear driving means 32, 32a, and therefore the conveying member 32a and the slider 34a are driven and slid in the same way to reciprocate in a straight line. there is. The conveying member 32a is installed on the outer surface of the driving cylinder 32 and can be linearly driven along the driving cylinder 32 . In addition, an end switch 35 is installed at one end to detect that the pallet 20 has arrived at the end of the station. Therefore, when the end switch 35 is physically turned on, the operation of the drive cylinder 32 is stopped. The linear driving means (32, 32a) and the rail 33 are supported by the support plate 31, and the support plate 31 is fixed to the frame 10, so that its position can be firmly maintained.

Referring to FIG. 6 , the damper unit 40 is shown. The damper unit 40 is designed so that the cylinder 41 of the gas spring comes into contact with the pallet 20 to mitigate the shock, and the fixing member 43 is attached to the frame 10 at the end of the working end 42 of the gas spring. It is a fixed structure. Therefore, when the pallet 20 is moved by the pallet transfer unit 30, the side of the pallet 20 collides with the cylinder 41 of the gas spring serving as a damper, so that the impact can be alleviated.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described, the spirit of the present invention is not limited by the embodiments presented herein, and those skilled in the art who understand the spirit of the present invention may add or change components within the scope of the same spirit. Other embodiments can be easily proposed by adding, deleting, adding, etc., but this will also be said to be within the scope of the present invention.

1: Multi-cell pallet stage device
10: frame 11: outer wall border
12: post 13: central guide member
14: base panel 20: pallet
30: pallet transfer unit 31: support plate
32: driving cylinder 32a: conveying body
33: rail 34: pushing panel
34a: slider 35: end switch
40: damper unit 50: position unit
60: pallet sensor 70: RFID sensor

Claims (10)

A plurality of pallets in which work progresses and transfers are made in a state in which an object is placed on the upper surface;
A frame provided with an outer wall rim to be transported between a plurality of stations where the plurality of pallets are mounted and supported so as to be transportable, and a plurality of pallets are fixed in a stationary state while forming an infinite orbit;
a pallet transfer unit installed under the plurality of pallets between the plurality of stations and repeating an operation of linearly transferring the plurality of pallets in a predetermined direction;
Including, multi-cell pallet stage device. According to claim 1,
the frame,
outer wall rims to prevent the pallet from moving out of the frame so that it can stop at the station;
A multi-cell pallet stage device comprising a; base panel supporting the pallet and having a guide hole through which a lower portion of the pallet is inserted and guided in a transport direction. According to claim 2,
The frame further comprises a central guide member for guiding the pallet to be moved to the next station only after it is seated in the station, multi-cell pallet stage device. According to claim 3,
The central guide member and the outer wall rim are formed with a hooking jaw for which an end is caught so that a part of the pallet does not fall out in an upward direction. According to claim 1,
The pallet transfer unit,
a pushing panel seated on a rail so that an upper end is in contact with the pallet and a lower end is linearly driven;
A multi-cell pallet stage device comprising a; linear driving means for reciprocating and reciprocating the pushing panel in a straight line along the rail. According to claim 5,
The linear drive means is a linear actuator, multi-cell pallet stage device. According to claim 1,
A multi-cell pallet stage device further comprising a damping unit fixed to one side of the frame to mitigate impact when the pallet arrives at the next station. According to claim 7,
The damping unit comprises a gas spring, multi-cell pallet stage device. According to claim 1,
A multi-cell pallet stage device further comprising a pallet sensor for detecting whether pallets have arrived at the plurality of stations. According to claim 1,
Further comprising an RFID sensor fixed to the frame to recognize the type of pallet arriving at each of the plurality of station locations.

Images