Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B21—MECHANICAL METAL-WORKING WITHOUT ESSENTIALLY REMOVING MATERIAL; PUNCHING METAL
  • B21J—FORGING; HAMMERING; PRESSING METAL; RIVETING; FORGE FURNACES
  • B21J15/00—Riveting
  • B21J15/02—Riveting procedures
  • B21J15/025—Setting self-piercing rivets
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B21—MECHANICAL METAL-WORKING WITHOUT ESSENTIALLY REMOVING MATERIAL; PUNCHING METAL
  • B21J—FORGING; HAMMERING; PRESSING METAL; RIVETING; FORGE FURNACES
  • B21J15/00—Riveting
  • B21J15/10—Riveting machines
  • B21J15/30—Particular elements, e.g. supports; Suspension equipment specially adapted for portable riveters
  • B21J15/32—Devices for inserting or holding rivets in position with or without feeding arrangements

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a self-piercing rivet setting machine. More specifically, the present invention relates to a self-piercing rivet setting machine for connecting two or more sheet members (or a sheet member and a component) by using a self-piercing rivet in a sheet-metal assembling work such as automobile assembling (particularly, an aluminum body assembly operation).
• a self-piercing rivet setting machine is described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 8-505087.
• Fig. 1 therein shows one example of a self-piercing rivet.
• the self-piercing rivet comprises a flange-shaped head and a leg extending downward from the head.
• workpieces such as two car body panels
• the leg is deformed to expand the edge of the leg while piercing (boring) the panels.
• the both panels are connected with each other through the expandedly deformed leg and the head.
• the self-piercing rivet is suitable for assembling an aluminum body to which welding is not applicable. Since aluminum bodies are increasingly employed to facilitate weight reduction in automobile bodies, the demand for the self-piercing rivet would increase in the future. While not shown in the aforementioned publication, Japanese Patent Laid-
• Open No. 11 -90575 shows one example of a self-piercing rivet setting machine in Fig. 2 thereof.
• the self-piercing rivet setting machine comprises a C-shaped frame including an upper horizontal arm, a vertical arm, and a lower horizontal arm.
• the self-piercing rivet setting machine further includes a punch provided at one end of the C-shaped frame, a die. provided at the other end of the C- shaped frame, and a punch driving means, such as a motor and a spindle, for pressing the punch against the die to press a self-piercing rivet supported by the punch against the die.
• a plurality of members are placed between the punch and the die to be connected with each other by driving the self-piercing rivet into the members while piercing the members by the self-piercing rivet.
• a conventional rivet setting machine typically includes a feeding device and receiver means for automatically feeding rivets to a punch. These components can be attached to a self- piercing rivet setting machine. Actually, there is a self-piercing rivet setting machine equipped with these components. In that machine, the punch is attached to the edge of a receiver unit for receiving the self-piercing rivet fed from the feeding device to hold the self-piercing rivet therein The punch is moved toward the die by the punch driving means provided on one end of the C-shaped frame.
• the self-piercing rivet setting machine essentially comprises the C-shaped frame including the upper horizontal arm, the vertical arm and the lower horizontal arm.
• the C- shaped frame is typically formed in an integral structure.
• the punch disposed at one end of the C-shaped frame (the end of the upper horizontal arm) and the die disposed at the other end of the C-shaped frame (the end of the lower horizontal arm) depending upon the size of the C-shaped frame.
• the workpieces are simple flat plates, they are relatively easy to locate them between the punch and the die.
• the workpiece when the workpiece partially includes a standing wall extending therefrom at a right angle, there is sometime the case that the workpiece cannot be positioned between the punch and the die. In that case, it is require to replace the C-shaped frame with a lager C-shaped frame so as to increase the distance between the punch and the die.
• the overall size of the setting machine is increased due to the larger C-shaped frame having rigidity for resisting the high riveting load.
• the driving means has a specific stroke for moving the punch of the setting machine.
• the punch driving means includes a spindle fixedly connected with the receiver unit to which the punch was attached. This also constrains a settable region of workpieces to be connected.
• a self-piercing rivet setting machine capable of handling even a particular workpiece which has a standing wall requiring an widened distance between a punch and a die, without any need for providing a larger C-shaped frame.
• the punch is adapted to be pressed against the die by punch-driving means.
• a plurality of workpieces are placed between the die and the punch with the self- piercing rivet held thereby to be connected with each other by driving the self- piercing rivet in the workpieces to cause the self-piercing rivet to pierce the workpieces.
• the receiver unit includes a hollow shaft having one end connected with a feeding tube extending from the feeding device.
• the hollow shaft is supported by support means provided on one end of the C-shaped frame.
• the receiver unit further includes a receiver head having an edge to which the punch is attached.
• the receiver head is adapted to receive the self-piercing rivet fed from the other end of the hollow shaft and allow the received self-piercing rivet to be held by the punch one by one.
• the hollow shaft is supported to the support means of the C-shaped frame slidably in the axial direction and rotatably in the circumferential direction of the hollow shaft, and the receiver head is connected to the hollow shaft so as to be selectively moved to either a first position where the punch is faced with the die or a second position where the punch is spaced apart from the die in both the axial and circumferential directions to provide enlarged distance between the die and the punch, according to the sliding and rotating of the hollow shaft.
• the operation is carried out at the first position where the punch is faced with the die.
• the receiver head is moved to the second position to provide the enlarged distance between the die and the punch, and therefore, the workpieces can be placed between the die and the punch.
• the receiver head is moved to the first position to carry out the riveting operation.
• the support means may be a support tube formed as a part of the C-shaped frame.
• the support tube supports the outer peripheral surface of the hollow shaft of the receiver unit to allow the hollow shaft to be slid in the axial direction and rotated in the circumferential direction thereof.
• the punch driving means may include a spindle having an axis in parallel with the axis of the support tube of the C-shaped frame.
• the other end of the hollow shaft and a receiving port of the receiver head may be coupled with each other through a rigid and hollow coupling tube.
• the hollow shaft may have a continuous biasing force acting thereon in a direction allowing the punch coupled with the receiver head to be moved away from the die.
• the biasing force also allows the punch to be pressed onto the edge of the punch driving means.
• the punch driving means may be formed with a tapered guide protruding from the edge thereof, and the receiver head holding the punch may be formed with a tapered guide hole having a shape in conformity with that of the tapered guide. This allows the axis of the punch to be readily aligned with the axis of the spindle.
• Fig. 1 is a block diagram of an entire self -piercing rivet setting machine according to the present invention, which shows the state when a receiver head of a receiver unit is located at a first position.
• Fig. 2 is a block diagram of the entire self-piercing rivet setting machine, which shows the state when the receiver head of the receiver unit self-piercing rivet setting machine of Fig. 1 is located at a second position.
• Fig. 3 is a view showing the relationship between the receiver unit and the punch-driving unit, wherein the self-piercing rivet setting machine of Fig. 1 is viewed from the direction of the arrow III.
• Fig. 4 is a partially enlarged view of a part of the receiver unit and the punch- driving unit, which shows the state when the receiver head of the receiver unit of the self-piercing rivet setting machine of Fig. 1 is being moved from the first position to the second position or vice versa.
• Figs. 1 and 2 generally show a self-piercing rivet setting machine 1 according an embodiment of the present invention.
• a punch is located at a normal operation position where the punch is faced with a die.
• the punch is located at a position where the punch is spaced apart from the die.
• Figs. 3 and 4 show the state that the punch held by a receiver unit is moved from the position where the punch is faced with the die.
• the self-piercing rivet setting machine 1 includes a C-shaped frame 3 having a coupling portion 2 to be coupled with an articulated robot arm (not shown).
• the C-shaped frame 3 is a rigid body integrally formed of an upper horizontal arm 5, a vertical arm 6 having the coupling portion 2, and a lower horizontal arm 7.
• One end of the C-shaped frame 3 or the end of the upper horizontal arm 5 is fixed to a cylindrical punch-driving unit 11 as punch driving means for driving a punch 9 toward a die 10 located below the punch during a riveting operation.
• the punch is adapted to hold a self-piercing rivet (not shown but make reference to the self-piercing rivet shown in Figs. 1 and 2 in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 8- 505087).
• the punch-driving unit 11 comprises an electric motor, a spindle which is rotated and moved vertically by the motor, and a rod extending from the spindle to the punch. According to the rotation of the electric motor shaft, the spindle is moved downward to push the self-piercing rivet held by the punch 9, strongly toward the die 10. The punch 9 can be returned backward by the reverse rotation of the electric motor shaft.
• the die 10 is disposed at the other end of the C- shaped frame 3 or the end of the lower horizontal arm 7 to receive legs of the self- piercing rivet held by the punch 9.
• the punch 9 is attached to the edge of a receiver unit 14 for receiving the self-piercing rivet fed from a feeding device (not shown) through a flexible feeding tube 13, so as to hold the self-piercing rivet.
• the receiver unit 14 is adapted to allow the self-piercing rivet automatically fed from the feeding device to be held by the punch 9 one by one with an adequate posture and timing.
• the receiver unit 14 of the present invention is adapted to be selectively moved to either a first position where the punch 9 held by the receiver unit is faced with the die 10 or a second position where the punch is spaced apart from the die to provide a certain enlarged distance between the die and the punch.
• a plurality of workpieces for example, two workpieces are placed on the die 10 and then the punch with the self-piercing rivet held thereby is pressed downward onto the workpieces by operating the punch-driving unit 11 , the leg of the self-piercing rivet is driven in the workpieces to cause the rivet to pierce both of them resulting in connection of the workpieces each other.
• the receiver unit 14 includes a rigid hollow shaft 17 having one end coupled with the feeding tube 13 extending from the feeding device.
• the hollow shaft 17 is supported by a support tube 15 as support means provided at one end of the upper horizontal arm 5 of the C-shaped frame 3.
• the receiver unit 14 further includes a receiver head 18 having an edge to which the punch 9 is attached.
• the receiver head 18 is adapted to receive the self-piercing rivet fed from the other end (the lower end) of the hollow shaft 17 and allow the received self-piercing rivet to be held by the punch 9 one by one.
• the receiver unit 14 includes a hollow coupling tube 19 coupled between an outlet of the hollow shaft 17 and an inlet of a receiver head 18.
• the self-piercing rivet fed from the feeding tube 13 to the hollow shaft 17 is further fed to the receiver head 18 through the hollow coupling tube 19.
• the coupling tube 19 is formed in a hollow tubular body having rigidity. All of the hollow coupling tube 19, the hollow shaft 17 and the receiver head 18 are formed in rigid bodies and coupled integrally to define the receiver unit 14 having a fixed shape such as a J-shape as shown in the figures.
• the self-piercing rivet fed from the feeding tube 13 is fed to the receiver head 18 through each hollow portion in the hollow shaft 17 and the coupling tube 19. Then, the receiver head 18 allows the self-piercing rivet to be held by the punch 9 timely.
• the hollow shaft 17 is formed in a hollow cylindrical shape, and the support tube 15 is formed at the end of the upper horizontal arm 5 of the C-shaped frame 3.
• the support tube 15 has a hollow cylindrical shape to surround and support the outer peripheral surface of the hollow shaft 17.
• the inner diameter of the support tube 15 is slightly larger than the outer diameter of the hollow shaft 18.
• the support tube 15 is formed in the C-shaped frame 3 to arrange its axis in parallel with the axis of the spindle of the punch-driving unit 11. This allows the hollow shaft 17 to be moved vertically in parallel with the spindle of the punch-driving unit 11. Consequently, the coupling tube 19 integrally coupled with the hollow shaft 17, the receiver head 18 and the punch 9 attached to the edge of the receiver head
• Each of the upper and lower ends of the hollow shaft 17 is provided with a larger-diameter portion or a detachable larger-diameter ring 21 to prevent the hollow shaft 17 from coming off from the support tube 15.
• the hollow shaft 17 has a continuous biasing force acting thereon in a direction to (the upward direction in Fig. 1) allowing the punch 9 coupled with the receiver head 18 to be moved away from the die 10.
• this biasing force can be obtained by providing a compression coil spring (not shown) between the upper end of the support tube 15 and the upper-end ring 21 of the hollow shaft 17.
• the biasing force may be obtained by any other suitable biasing means for urging the hollow shaft 17 upward, such as a spring or an elastic member or means, or a combination of a magnet and an electromagnetic solenoid or a combination of a motor and a gear mechanism such as rack and pinion.
• the hollow shaft 17 is pulled up in the axial direction of the support tube 15 or the axial direction of the spindle of the punch-driving unit 11 , and thereby the receiver head 18 coupled with the hollow shaft 17 through the coupling tube 19 is pulled up in the axial direction of the spindle.
• the punch 9 attached to the receiver head 18 is also pulled up in the axial direction of the spindle.
• the punch 9 is normally pressed elastically onto a guide 22 provided at the edge of the punch-driving unit 11 through the receiver head 18.
• the guide 22 is formed in a hollow body to guide a rod extending from the spindle.
• the edge of the guide 22 at the edge of the punch-driving unit 11 is provided with a tapered guide bush 23 protruding downward as shown in Figs. 2 to 4.
• the receiver head 18 holding the punch 9 is formed with a tapered guide hole 25 having a shape in conformity with that of the tapered guide bush 23.
• the axis of the guide bush 23 is arranged to align with the axis of the spindle, and the axis of the guide hole 25 is arranged to align with the axis of the punch 9.
• the receiver head 18 is moved upward by the biasing force urging the hollow shaft 17 upward, and the guide hole 25 can be fitted with the guide bush 23. Then, this fit makes the axis of the spindle align with the axis of the punch 9.
• the pressing force of the punch- driving unit 11 is transmitted in a suitable direction with respect to the punch 9 to achieve desirable riveting operation.
• the tapered guide bush 23 and the tapered guide hole allow the axes of the punch 9 and the spindle to be readily aligned with each other.
• the receiver unit 14 of the present invention includes the hollow shaft 17 having one end (the upper end) coupled with the feeding tube 13 extending from the feeding device, and the hollow shaft 17 is supported by the support tube 15 provided at one end of the C-shaped frame 3 (the end of the upper horizontal arm 5).
• the receiver unit 14 includes the receiver head 18 having an edge to which the punch 9 is attached, and the receiver head 18 is adapted to receive the self-piercing rivet fed from the other end (the lower end) of the hollow shaft 17 and allow the received self- piercing rivet to be held by the punch 9 one by one.
• the hollow shaft 17 is supported by the support tube 15 slidably in the axial direction and rotatably in the circumferential direction of the hollow shaft 17.
• the receiver head 18 coupled with the hollow shaft 17 can be selectively moved to any one of the aforementioned first position shown in Fig. 1 where the punch 9 is faced with the die 10 and the second position shown in Fig. 2 where the punch 9 is spaced apart from the die 10 in both the axial and circumferential directions to provide enlarged distance (enlarged opening distance) 27 between the die and the punch.
• the operation for changing from the first position of Fig. 1 to the second position of Fig. 2 is carried out during a non-riveting operation, such as an operation of placing workpieces or the like.
• a non-riveting operation such as an operation of placing workpieces or the like.
• the receiver unit 14 composed of the receiver head 18, the coupling tube 19, and the hollow shaft 17 is pushed downward against the force urging the hollow shaft 17 upward.
• the hollow shaft 17 is moved downward along the support tube 15.
• the receiver head 18 is moved downward with the coupling tube 19.
• the guide hole 25 of the receiver head 18 is separated from the guide bush 23 at the edge of the guide 22 of the punch-driving unit 11 , and thereby the receiver head 18 and the punch 9 are separated from the guide 22.
• the receiver head 18 and the punch 9 are rotated about the axis 29 (or in the circumferential direction) of the hollow shaft 17 from the position indicated by the solid line to the position indicated by the chain line, as shown in Fig. 3.
• the punch 9 and the receiver head 18 are moved to a position far from the punch-driving unit 11 in the radial direction of the punch-driving unit 11.
• the punch 9 is spaced apart from the die 10 in both the axial and circumferential directions of the hollow shaft, and is located at the second position having the enlarged opening distance 27 between the die 9 and the punch 10. In this second position, a wider space can be assured between the punch 9 and the die 10. Thus, even if workpieces have a standing wall, the workpieces can be positioned between the punch 9 and the die 10 to carry out the riveting operation without using any larger C-shaped frame.
• the setting machine according to the present invention could provide a reliable distance of 200 mm or more.
• the receiver head 18 holding the punch 9 is swung to the second position of Fig. 2 to provide an enlarged opening distance as the distance 27.
• This allows the standing wall which had a difficulty or impossibility of inserting through the prior art or conventional opening distance 26 (Fig. 1) to be placed in the C-shaped frame.
• the receiver head 18 is pushed downward again to the position of Fig. 4.
• the receiver head 18 is then swung from the phantom line position in Fig.
• the push-downward force is released at the solid line position.
• the force urging the hollow shaft 17 upward acts to move the receiver head 18 and the punch 9 upward from the position in Fig. 4.
• the guide hole 25 receives and fits with the guide bush 23, and the axis of the spindle is aligned with the axis of the punch 9 by the tapered guide hole 25 and the tapered guide bush 23.
• the receiver head 18 is coupled with the guide 22 of the punch driving means, and the punch is now returned to the first position of Fig. 1.
• the punch 9 returned to the first position 1 is aligned with the die 10 adequately, and thereby the riveting operation can be carried out adequately.
• the riveting operation can be carried out with keeping the standing wall of the workpieces alongside without any need for enlarging the C-shaped frame.
• the operations of moving the receiver head and the punch from the first position to the second position or from the second position to the first one may be manual operations, automatic operation means utilizing a power source such as an electric motor or pneumatic piston-cylinder may be used.
• the die while the die is located to face with the punch during the riveting operation, the die can be space apart from the punch to provide the enlarged distance between the die and the punch during the non-riveting operation.
• the workpieces can be positioned between the die and the punch without using any larger C-shaped frame to carry out the riveting operation with keeping the standing wall alongside. This eliminates undesirable restrictions in regions to be connected.
• the hollow shaft coupled with the feeding tube is integrally connected with the receiver head holding the punch to allow them to be separated from the punch-driving unit altogether.
• the self-piercing rivet can be fed to the receiver unit and held by the punch 9 when the receiver head is located not only at the first position but also at the second position.

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Citations (3)

• 2001
  • 2001-04-17 JP JP2001117912A patent/JP2002316233A/ja active Pending
• 2002
  • 2002-04-09 EP EP02717783A patent/EP1379343B1/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 2002-04-09 DE DE60212359T patent/DE60212359T2/de not_active Expired - Fee Related
  • 2002-04-09 WO PCT/US2002/010964 patent/WO2002083337A1/en active IP Right Grant
  • 2002-04-09 KR KR10-2003-7013528A patent/KR20030085598A/ko not_active Application Discontinuation

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