WO2017213612A1

WO2017213612A1 - Manually advanced wiring harness grouping machine with increased safety

Info

Publication number: WO2017213612A1
Application number: PCT/TR2017/050246
Authority: WO
Inventors: Mehmet SANDAL
Original assignee: Elopar Elektrik Ve Otomotiv Parcalari Sanayi Ve Ticaret Anonim Sirketi
Priority date: 2016-06-08
Filing date: 2017-06-05
Publication date: 2017-12-14

Abstract

The wiring harness grouping machine (1) is a mechanism for use in the mass production of wiring harnesses, in which cable grouping panels (3) between the adjacent -side by side- panel boards (2) are linearly and cyclically moved in a lower movement layer (A) and an upper movement layer (B). In the upper movement layer (B), there is an upper sliding rail (4) that allows the cable grouping panels (3) to pass to the next panel board (2) by advancing manually. The lower sliding rail (5) allows the cable grouping panels (3) to pass to the next panel board (2) by advancing manually in the lower movement layer (A). There is a panel lifting and lowering, assembly (6) that allows the cable grouping panels (3) to move up and down.

Description

DESCRIPTION

MANUALLY ADVANCED WIRING HARNESS GROUPING MACHINE WITH

INCREASED SAFETY

TECHNICAL FIELD

The invention relates to a wiring harness grouping machine used in mass production of wiring harnesses having different or same options.

The invention particularly relates to a manually advancing wiring harness grouping machine which allows grouping, arranging, and assembling cable with a cyclical system by sliding cable management panels in double-layer rails mounted on the side by side arrayed panel boards by an operator from one panel board towards other adjacent panel board and comprises mechanical, electrical, pneumatic safety enhancer apparatus.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Today, automation has been widely used especially in automotive sector, commercial vehicles, railway, and all kinds of industrial facilities; thus, more electrical-electronic components are being used. In order to provide interconnection of the said electrical-electronic components, extremely complex wiring harnesses are designed. For example, hundreds of meters long cables are used in the electrical installation of the today's passenger cars. These cables should be designed and arranged according to the vehicle in particular. This has launched a new line of business independently.

In the present technique, complex wiring harnesses are made on panels designed for this purpose. There are holding apparatuses on the panels, which allow the cables to be connected with each other, grouped, bundled, corded, plugged in, and so on. The holding apparatus and other auxiliary elements are mounted on the panel. The wiring harness is arranged according to the predetermined design by the operator(s) standing at the panel. Therefore, wiring harness which consists of meters long cables, sockets, and other installation elements is formed according to a certain layout.

In the known art, in the panel systems for mounting vehicle wiring harnesses by grouping, panels are automatically or manually pushed and thereby advanced between the boards. There is no structuring for job safety in manually pushed systems. Therefore, when conveying the cable management panels manually and transferring from one board to another adjacent board, there are situations which will be risky for job safety and will block work flow. This, in turn, causes labor and time losses since it prevents operators from working in series in production.

As a consequence, there is a need for new structuring which will remove the above mentioned disadvantages about wiring harness grouping machines and deliver new solutions to the existing systems.

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a wiring harness grouping machine which meets the above-mentioned requirements, eliminates all disadvantages, and brings some additional advantages.

The main object of the invention is to advance the cable management panels in the rails on the side by side arrayed panel boards by manually sliding from the first board towards the last board, then to lower it to the lower layer by a lift mechanism and, to move up it to the upper layer by the lift mechanism at the other end by advancing it in the inclined rail herein, and to perform cable grouping, management, and mounting processes on the cable management panels by such cycle.

Another object of the invention is to provide the movement of manually advanced cable management panels between the boards by sliding it on the rails located at the lower and upper movement layers in the panel boards.

While putting the cable management panels from lower movement layer to the upper movement layer or from upper movement layer to the lower movement layer by means of a lifting and lowering assembly on the first and last panel boards, the lift button should be pressed. By this way, it is aimed to increase job security.

Another object of the invention is to detect whether the cable management panels are passed from one board to another completely and properly by a control switch.

In the wiring harness grouping machine according to the invention, the lift buttons and safety buttons are connected with the control switches. Therefore, if the cable management panel that is advanced to the next board is not passed completely and properly to that board, it will not contact with the control switch and thereby lift buttons and/or safety buttons are not activated for safety purposes.

One of the objects of the invention is to prevent work accidents during work by means of safety buttons, lift buttons and control switch, which are integrated to the panel boards, and in parallel with this, to increase job safety.

Another object of the invention is to move the cable management panels on the rails manually and thereby to be able to perform the process faster by each panel pushing one another. It is aimed to perform these manually operated processes with a simpler mechanism and less energy than fully automated systems.

Structural and characteristic features and all advantages of the invention will become apparent via the below drawings and detailed description that is written by making reference to these drawings and thus, the evaluation should also be performed by taking these drawings and detailed description into account.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For better understanding the structuring of the present invention and its advantages with additional elements, the invention should be evaluated together with the drawings described below.

Figure 1 ; The three-dimensional view of the preferred embodiment of the wiring harness grouping machine (1 ) of the invention.

Figure 2 ; The three-dimensional view of the disassembled side shell plates

(12) in the preferred embodiment of the wiring harness grouping machine (1 ) of the invention.

Figure 3 ; The three-dimensional view of the panel lifting and lowering assembly (6) in the preferred embodiment of the wiring harness grouping machine (1 ) of the invention.

Figure 4 ; The three-dimensional view of the panel boards (2) in the preferred embodiment of the wiring harness grouping machine (1 ) of the invention.

REFERENCE NUMBERS

I . Wiring harness grouping machine

2. Panel boards

2.1. First panel board

2.2. Last panel board

2.3. Side panel board

2.4. Middle panel board

3. Cable grouping panel

4. Upper sliding rail

5. Lower sliding rail

6. Panel lifting and lowering assembly

7. Stop profile

8. Safety button

9. Control switch

10. Lift button

I I . Board legs

12. Shell plates

A: Lower movement layer

B: Upper movement layer

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION In this detailed description, preferred embodiments of the wiring harness grouping machine (1 ) of the invention are described only for better understanding of the subject and will not form any limiting effect. The invention is a manually advancing wiring harness grouping machine (1 ), which is used in mass production of wiring harnesses having different or same options and has security enhancing improvements. The wiring harness grouping machine (1 ) of the invention allows grouping, arranging, and mounting processes of complex wiring harnesses especially in automotive sector, commercial vehicles, railway, and all kinds of industrial facilities according to the predetermined design. The said processes are carried out by means of a cable grouping panels (3) located on the wiring harness grouping machine (1 ). There are cable holding apparatus on the cable grouping panels (3), which allows managing, bundling, attaching, and linking of cables according to the predetermined design.

Figure 1 shows the three-dimensional view of the preferred embodiment of the wiring harness grouping machine (1 ) of the invention. The main elements that form the carrier system of the wiring harness grouping machine (1 ) are the panel boards (2) including the first panel board (2.1 ), last panel board (2.2), side panel board (2.3), and middle panel board (2.4). In the wiring harness grouping machine (1 ), the number of middle panel board (2.4) may vary depending on the preferred embodiment. The length of the wiring harness grouping machine (1 ) can be extended by the addition of the middle panel board (2.4); thus, the number of stations can be increased.

As shown better in Figure 2, each panel board (2) in the mechanism has a framed structure formed by joining metal profiles horizontally and vertically. Again on each panel board (2), there is an upper movement layer (B) and a lower movement layer (A) for advancing the cable grouping panels (3) horizontally and for its cyclic movement. There is a panel lifting and lowering assembly (6) at the first panel board (2.1 ) and last panel board (2.2) for lowering the cable grouping panels (3) from the upper movement layer (B) to the lower movement layer (A) or moving up it from the lower movement layer (A) to the upper movement layer (B). The movement of the panel lifting and lowering assembly (6) can preferably be carried out by hydraulic, pneumatic, electronic or any other suitable system. Figure 3 shows the three- dimensional view of the panel lifting and lowering assembly (6) in the wiring harness grouping machine (1 ). As shown in Figure 1 , there is a first panel board (2.1 ) at one end and a last panel board (2.2) at the other end of the wiring harness grouping machine (1 ). The side panel boards (2.3) next to the first panel board (2.1 ) and the last panel board (2.2) are mounted. There are middle panel boards (2.4) between the side panel boards (2.3). The side portions of the panel boards (2) in the wiring harness grouping machine (1 ) are covered with the shell plates (12). There are board legs (1 1 ) mounted to the bottom of each board (2), which allow the panel boards (2) to be located above the ground.

In the wiring harness grouping machine (1 ) of the invention, there are upper sliding rails (4) in the upper movement layer (B) and lower sliding rails (5) with inclined surface in the lower movement layer (A) for advancing the cable grouping panels (3) on the panel boards (2) manually by an operator to the next panel board (2). The upper sliding rails (4) and the lower sliding rails (5) are located on the side panel boards (2.3) and the middle panel boards (2.4). The lower sliding rails (5) mounted in the lower movement layers (A) of the middle (2.4) and side panel boards (2.3) are shown in Figure 4. The lower sliding rails (5) have inclination declining from the last panel board (2.2) towards the first panel board (2.1 ) for moving the cable grouping panels (3) easier by sliding manually from one panel board (2) to another panel board (2). When a middle panel board (2.4) is added to the wiring harness grouping machine (1 ), inclination of the lower sliding rails (5) is adjusted to the new length.

There are stop profiles (7), which limit the movement of the panel lifting and lowering assembly (6), in the lower movement layers (A) of the first board (2.1 ) and the last panel board (2.2). The stop profiles (7) guide the lower sliding rails (5) at the lower movement layer (A) of the panel lifting and lowering assembly (6) to stay at a suitable height. Therefore, the cable grouping panel (3) that is lowered down by the panel lifting and lowering assembly (6) can be transferred to the lower sliding rails (5) in the lower movement layer (A). In the wiring harness grouping machine (1 ) of the invention, there are various security enhancing structures among the developments put forward. Firstly, there are safety buttons (8) and control switches (9), which control the cable grouping panels (3) whether passed completely and properly to the next panel board (2). In addition to this, there are lift buttons (10), which activate the mechanism, in the panel lifting and lowering assembly (6) in the first (2.1 ) and last panel board (2.2). The said lift buttons (10) should be pressed to activate the panel lifting and lowering assembly (6). Besides, the lift buttons (10) are in contact with the control switches (9) at the first (2.1 ) and last panel board (2.2). Thus, if the cable grouping panel (3) is not in touch with the control switch (9) at the panel board (2), in other words, if the cable grouping panel (3) has not yet completed its complete pass to the first panel board (2.1 ) or the last panel board (2.2), the panel lifting and lowering assembly (6) would not become active for safety purposes even pressing the lift button (10). The working principle of the wiring harness grouping machine (1) of the invention is as follows:

The wiring harness grouping machine (1 ) of the invention has been developed for use in the mass production of complex wiring harnesses. For this, first of all, the machine switch is opened and the system is energized. Then the cable grouping panels (3) are placed on the panel boards (2) and necessary adjustments are performed. In order to pass the cable grouping panel (3) in a controlled manner to the next panel board (2) after it is finished, the safety button (8) is pressed by an operator. When pressing the safety button (8), the manually advanced cable grouping panel (3) is pushed onto the upper sliding rail (4) and shifted to the next panel board (2).

After the cable grouping panel (3) is passed to the next panel board (2) safely, another cable grouping panel (3) is taken to the upper movement layer (B) by the panel lifting and lowering assembly (6). During this process, firstly the operator presses the lift button (10). When pressing the lift button (10), the panel lifting and lowering assembly (6) is activated. If the first operated cable grouping panel (3) does not pass properly and suitably to the next panel board (2), it will not be in touch with the control switch (9) herein. Since the control switch (9) is connected to the lift button (10), the panel lifting and lowering assembly (6) is not activated in such case even if the operator presses the lift button (10). When the cable grouping panel (2), which passed from all panel boards (2) by advancing on the upper sliding rails (4) in such way, reaches to the last panel board (2.2) and completes the processes, it is lowered to the lower sliding rail (5) from the upper sliding rail (4) by means of the panel lifting and lowering assembly (6).

For this process, the operator must firstly press the elevator button (10). The panel lifting and lowering assembly (6) lowers down the related cable grouping panel (3) until contact with the stop profile (7). In this case, the cable grouping panel (3) has the equal height as the lower sliding rails (5). Then, the related cable grouping panel (3) is pushed sideways by the operator and thus, advanced towards the lower movement layer (A) of the adjacent side panel board (2.3). Since the lower sliding rail (5) has a certain inclination to downward, the sliding movement is carried out relatively easier.

As described above, grouping, management, and mounting processes are performed according to the predetermined design of the wiring harnesses on the cable grouping panels (3) by providing cyclic movement of the cable grouping panels (3) on the panel boards (2) forming the body of the machine.

Claims

A wiring harness grouping machine (1 ) for use in the mass production of wiring harnesses, in which cable grouping panels (3) between the adjacent panel boards (2) are linearly and cyclically moved in a lower movement layer (A) and an upper movement layer (B), characterized in that, the wiring harness grouping machine (1 ) comprises:

• at least one upper sliding rail (4) that allows the cable grouping panels (3) to pass to the next panel board (2) by advancing manually in the upper movement layer (B), and

• at least one lower sliding rail (5) that allows the cable grouping panels (3) to pass to the next panel board (2) by advancing manually in the lower movement layer (A).

The wiring harness grouping machine (1 ) according to claim 1 , characterized by comprising a panel lifting and lowering assembly (6) allows the cable grouping panels (3) to move up and down between the lower movement layer (A) and upper movement layer (B).

The wiring harness grouping machine (1 ) according to claim 2, characterized by comprising at least one stop profile (7) enables the cable grouping panels (3) to be lowered to the same level with the lower sliding rail (5) by limiting the downward movement of the panel lifting and lowering assembly (6).

The wiring harness grouping machine (1 ) according to claim 2, characterized in that the panel board (2) is

• a first panel board (2.1 ) on which the panel lifting and lowering assembly (6) is present,

• a last panel board (2.2) on which the panel lifting and lowering assembly (6) is present, and

• a side panel board (2.3) on which the lower sliding rail (5) is present.

The wiring harness grouping machine (1 ) according to claim 1 , characterized by comprising at least one safety button (8) on each panel board (2), which should be pressed by an operator before advancing the cable grouping panel (3) from one panel board (2) to another panel board (2).

The wiring harness grouping machine (1 ) according to claim 4, characterized by comprising at least one lift button (10) located on the body of the first panel board (2.1 ) and the last panel board (2.2), on which the panel lifting and lowering assembly (6) is present, and should be pressed by an operator before lifting or lowering the cable grouping panel (3). 7. The wiring harness grouping machine (1 ) according to claim 5 or 6, characterized by comprising at least one control switch (9);

• being present in each panel board (2) and detecting the cable grouping panel (3) whether passed completely and properly to the panel board (2),

• activating the safety buttons (8) and lift buttons (10), to which it is

connected, and

• otherwise deactivating the related safety buttons (8) and lift buttons (10).

The wiring harness grouping machine (1 ) according to claim 1 , characterized by comprising board legs (1 1 ) located at bottom of panel boards (2) and allows the panel boards (2) to be located above the ground

9. The wiring harness grouping machine (1 ) according to claim 1 , characterized by comprising shell plates (12) connected to the said panel boards (2) and covers the side portions of the panel boards (2).

10. The wiring harness grouping machine (1 ) according to claim 1 , characterized in that the lower sliding rail (5) has an inclined surface for performing manual advancing of the cable grouping panels (3) with less effort.