WO1981002130A1

WO1981002130A1 - Adjustable machine tool guard

Info

Publication number: WO1981002130A1
Application number: PCT/FI1981/000008
Authority: WO
Inventors: J Huhtinen
Original assignee: J Huhtinen
Priority date: 1980-01-30
Filing date: 1981-01-30
Publication date: 1981-08-06
Also published as: NO813277L; DE3134455C2; DE3134455A1; FI65934C; SE435345B; FI65934B; SE8105688L; DK147196C; DK147196B; FI800277A; GB2081834B; GB2081834A; DK423981A; NO152777C; NO152777B

Abstract

An adjustable guard for splintering machine tools, preferably for lathes and circular grinders, the said guard comprising a transparent shield (6) and moving along guide bars (1) parallel to the lathe spindle. The object of the invention is to achieve a machine tool guard which, compared with previous art guards, is easily adjusted, modified and suited for various purposes. The guard according to the invention comprises at least one guide bar (1) formed of a girder or equivalent, preferably located over the machine tool, on which bar rests a carriage moving along the guide bar (1), the said carriage (4) being attached to the guide bar (1) with rolling bearings, preferably rollers (9), so that owing to the form of the guide bar (1) and the weight of the carriage (4) the guard device is not derailed from the guide bar. The carriage (4) is provided with guides or equivalent, and the shield (6) as well as the body (5) rest on the carriage and can be moved along it roughly horizontally, in a transversal direction with respect to the guide bar (1) and the spindle. Moreover, the distance of the guide bars (1) from the piece to be machined can be adjusted by employing the rails (2) and the support bases (3). The shield (6) is attached to the body (5) with hinges located at the top edge of the shield. The body (5) can be provided with a working light and aspirator connection (8).

Description

ADJUSTABLE MACHINE TOOL GUARD

The object of the present invention is an adjustable machine tool guard, provided with a transparent protecting shield, for splintering machine tools, preferably for lathes and circular grinders.

When operating_.a splintering machine tool such as a lathe, the hot chips flying from the piece to be machined may cause serious damage to the operator. Eye damages are particular¬ ly common in machine workshops. In order to avoid the said damages it is necessary either to use personal protecting means such as protecting goggles, head masks or equivalent, or to provide the machine tool with protecting casing or cover.

Personal protecting devices are often inconvenient and easi¬ ly scratched, and obstruct the working process.. Consequent¬ ly the protecting devices are often removed when it is ne¬ cessary to observe closely the piece to be machined during the operation process, in which case the danger of accident becomes evident.

For example circular cutter machines are generally provided with sideways movable, vertical protecting boards, normally made of steel. Such boards are relatively well applicable in a machine process of long duration (for example in manu¬ facturing cog-wheels) , but are impractical and inconvenient in shorter processes. The boards prevent the unobstructed observation of the working process and render it troublesome and slow to change either the piece to be machined or the working parts of the machine tool.

In some machines, for instance lathes and circular grinders, the above described protecting boards are out of question, and usually in such machines are used. protecting glass or screen devices, which are supported by shaft members and

OMPI attached to the bed of the tool machine by means of screws or magnets. Such arrangements are introduced for example in the Finnish Patent Publication no. 28 678 and in the German Patent Application no. 2 451 560. However, the said arrangements have several drawbacks: the shaft members dis¬ turb perception, the assemblage is unsteady, the guards are not adequately adjustable and the area governed by the guards is too small.

The present invention has not_. got the drawbacks of the above described arrangements, but provides for remarkable advan¬ tages. The guard is best suited in machine tools where the piece to be machined itself carries out the chipping move¬ ment, in other words rotates, as in lathes and circular grin¬ ders. The guard according to the invention has a solid structure and steady assemblage, it is easily adjustable and movable to every direction, and it can be transported along the whole splintering area. Without difficulty the guard can be automatically connected to move for instance alongside the tool carrier. Furthermore, the guard can easi¬ ly be provided with illumination devices and/or an aspira¬ tor for removing dust and smoke. In addition to this, the guard is simple to install in various machine tools of vari¬ able sizes, even in older types.

Owing to its bearing, the guard is easily movable to various positions, in which case the employing of the guard is more probable than that of troublesome, separate protecting boards. The guard can simply be pulled aside, wherefore the changing of the piece to be machined or of the working parts of the machine tool does not cause any inconvenience.

The principal characteristics and novel features of the pre¬ sent invention are pointed out in the Patent Claim 1.

Figures 1 and 2 illustrate one preferred embodiment of the invention, wherein the guard is attached to a centering lathe. This embodiment comprises the guide bars 1, parallel to the lathe spindle and attached to the vertical support rails 2, which rails are secured to the support bases 3. The said support bases 3 can be fixed either to the lathe bed in the rear side of the machine or to some other solid base. Furthermore, the invention comprises the carriage 4, which is attached to the guide bars 1 by rolling bearings or rollers 9, and to which carriage is fixed the body 5 of the guard, in a fashion that the said body can be moved in transversal direction with respect to the guide bars 1. The transparent shield 6 is attached to the body 5 with hinges located at the top edge of the shield 6. The body 5 can be provided with a lamp 7 and an aspirator hose connec¬ tion 8. The height of the guide bars 1 with respect to the piece to be machined is readily adjustable during the instal¬ lation of the guard by shifting the position of the rails 2 in relation to the support bases 3. The guide bars 1 and the rails 2 are preferably manufactured of aluminium compound, so as to achieve a sensitive bearing and a structure which is both light and firm.

According to the diameter of the piece to be machined and the lathe chuck, the shield 6 is adjusted in its ideal po¬ sition by moving the body 5 with respect to the carriage 4. Their reciprocal position can be secured for example by using.tightening-up screws. Moreover, the shield 6 can be swung up and down by employing the hinges. The whole carri¬ age 4, including the shield 6, is easily moved aside along the guide bars 1 , for example when the piece to be machined is changed or measured.

The scope of the present invention is by no means limited • to the above described arrangements, but for example the structure of the rails and their mutual positions can be modified so as to be suited for various different types of machine tools.

Claims

PATENT CLAIMS

1. An adjustable guard for splintering machine tools, preferably for lathes and circular grinders, the said guard including a transparent shield (6) and moving along guide bars CD parallel to the lathe spindle, c h a r a c t e r i ¬ zed in that the guard comprises at least one guide bar CD formed of a girder or equivalent and placed preferably over the machine tool, to which guide bar is attached with rol¬ ling bearings, preferably rollers C9) , a carriage C4) to be moved along the guide bar CD, the bearing of the said carri¬ age C4) to the guide bar CD being carried out so that owing to the form of the guide bar CD and the weight of the car¬ riage C4) the guard is not derailed, the said carriage being provided with guides or equivalent, so that the shield C6) together with the body C5) , both resting on the carriage C4) , can be transported roughly in horizontal position and trans- versally to the guide bar CD and the lathe spindle.

2. An apparatus according to claim 1, c h a r a c t e r i¬ z e d in that the distance of the guide bars CD from the piece to be machined is adjustable by moving the support rails C2) along the guides in the support bases C3) .

3. An apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, c h a r a c t e ¬ r i z e d in that the shield (6) is attached to the body (5} with hinges located at the top edge of the shield.

4. An apparatus according to any of the previous claims, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that the body (5) is provided with a working light C7) and a dust-removing aspirator hose connection C8) .