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JP-7844114-B6 - Pallet transport device and pallet transport method

JP7844114B6JP 7844114 B6JP7844114 B6JP 7844114B6JP-7844114-B6

Inventors

  • 前佛 宏幸
  • 内田 義隆

Assignees

  • ＮＩＴＴＯＫＵ株式会社

Dates

Publication Date
20260512
Application Date
20210726

Claims (6)

  1. A conveying device that conveys multiple pallets (11) along a conveying path, The pallet (11) is capable of mounting a workpiece to be processed by a machine tool, and the surface to be processed (14a, 14b) is formed alternately and continuously in the longitudinal direction along the transport path of the pallet (11) . A free-flow belt (21) is positioned opposite the machine tool and transports the pallet (11) on which the workpiece is mounted by circulation. A stopping means (40) that brings the retractable rod (40b) into contact with the pallet (11) and causes the pallet (11) to slide on the outer surface of the free flow belt (21) regardless of the circulation of the free flow belt (21), thereby stopping the transport of the pallet (11), A conveyor belt (26) is positioned in a location without the machine tool, continuously arranged with the free-flow belt (21), and mounted on the pallet (11). The conveyor belt (26) has interlocking protrusions (26a, 26b) that engage with the interlocking protrusions (14a, 14b) of the pallet (11), which are alternately and continuously formed in the longitudinal direction along the conveying path of the pallet (11). A driving means (30) that circulates the conveyor belt (26) and the free-flow belt (21) in the same direction, Equipped with, In the free-flow belt (21), while the transport of the pallet (11) is stopped by the stopping means (40), the workpiece placed on the pallet (11) is processed by the machine tool. The pallet conveying device is characterized in that the drive means (30) is configured to increase the circulation speed of the conveyor belt (26), which is arranged in a part without the machine tool and is continuous with the free flow belt (21), above the circulation speed of the free flow belt (21).
  2. The pallet conveying device according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the free-flow belts (21) are provided via the conveying belt (26).
  3. A pair of support plates (16, 16) are provided along the transport path to sandwich the pallet (11) from both sides in the width direction. The pallet transport device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the stopping means (40) is provided between the pair of support plates (16, 16) at both a processing location for stopping the transport of the pallet (11) and a waiting location near the processing location for temporarily stopping the pallet (11).
  4. The pallet conveying device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the driving means (30) comprises a first motor (31) for circulating the free-flow belt (21) and a second motor (36) provided separately from the first motor (31) for circulating the conveying belt (26).
  5. A retaining member (18) is provided to prevent the pallet (11) mounted on the conveyor belt (26) from lifting off the conveyor belt (26). A pallet transport device according to any one of claims 1 to 3 .
  6. A pallet transport method for transporting a pallet (11) using a pallet transport device (10) described in any one of claims 1 to 5, A pallet conveying method characterized by increasing the circulation speed of the conveyor belt (26) above the circulation speed of the free-flow belt (21) so that the conveying speed of the pallets (11) mounted on the conveyor belt (26) is faster than the conveying speed of the pallets (11) mounted on the free-flow belt (21).

Description

This invention relates to a pallet transport device and a pallet transport method for transporting pallets loaded with workpieces together with the workpieces themselves. Conventionally, in manufacturing lines, a free-flow conveyor is installed to connect multiple machine tools. Pallets loaded with workpieces are placed on this free-flow conveyor and transported, and the machine tool at the destination performs the predetermined processing on the workpieces loaded on the transported pallets. Furthermore, as a device for transporting pallets carrying such workpieces, it has been proposed to install a fixed-pitch feed conveyor with pallet feed claws alongside the free-flow conveyor carrying the pallets. This conveyor is driven by a servo mechanism and moves in the same direction as the free-flow conveyor (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In this type of pallet transport system, by adjusting the feed speed of the fixed-pitch conveyor, it is possible to eliminate impacts on pallets and parts when the free-flow conveyor is stopped, even when the free-flow conveyor speed is increased, thereby achieving a bounce-free system. Japanese Patent Publication No. 2002-80114 This is a top view showing a pallet transport device according to an embodiment of the present invention.This is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A in Figure 1.This is a cross-sectional view taken along line B-B in Figure 1.This is a cross-sectional view taken along the line C-C in Figure 1.This is a top view showing the pallet transport system with pallets loaded onto a free-flow belt and facing the first machine tool.Figure 5 is a front view corresponding to the pallet in the position facing the first machine tool.This is a top view showing the state after the pallet has been positioned facing the first machine tool, and then the pallet has been loaded onto a free-flow belt and stopped at a waiting area.This is a front view corresponding to Figure 7, which shows the pallet stopped at both the processing area and the waiting area.This is a top view showing the state in which a pallet moves from the end of a free-flow belt onto a conveyor belt.This is a front view corresponding to Figure 9, showing the state in which the pallet moves from the end of the free-flow belt onto the conveyor belt.This is a top view showing the state in which a pallet moves from the end of a conveyor belt to a free-flow belt.This is a front view corresponding to Figure 11, which shows the state in which the pallet moves from the end of the conveyor belt to the free-flow belt.This is a top view showing the pallet stopped at both the machining area and the waiting area of the next machine tool.This is a front view corresponding to Figure 13, showing the pallet stopped at both the machining area and the waiting area of the next machine tool. Next, the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Figures 1 to 4 show the pallet transport device 10 according to the present invention. In each figure, three mutually orthogonal axes, X, Y, and Z, are defined, with the X-axis extending approximately horizontally in the lateral direction, the Y-axis approximately horizontally in the front-to-back direction, and the Z-axis extending vertically. The configuration of the pallet transport device 10 will now be described. As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the pallet transport device 10 of the present invention comprises a circulating belt 20 that extends along a transport path and is circulating so as to carry pallets 11, a driving means 30 that circulates the circulating belt 20 to transport the pallets 11 loaded on the circulating belt 20, and a stopping means 40 that stops the transport of the pallets 11 regardless of the circulation of the circulating belt 20. In other words, the present invention is a pallet transport device 10 used in a case where a pallet 11 loaded with workpieces (not shown) is transported on a circulating belt 20, and the transport of the pallet 11 is stopped by a stopping means 40 in front of machine tools 1 and 2 (Figure 1) provided along the transport path, and the machine tools 1 and 2 process the workpieces (not shown) loaded on the pallet 11. Although Figure 1 shows a case where two machine tools 1 and 2 are installed on one side of the pallet transport device 10 of the present invention, this is merely an example. The number of machine tools 1 and 2 varies depending on the workpiece requiring processing, and the number of pallets 11 is appropriately increased or decreased according to the number of machine tools 1 and 2. In this embodiment, a frame 9 is provided extending to connect multiple machine tools 1 and 2. On the frame 9, a pair of support plates 16 are fixed parallel to each other and spaced at a predetermined interval in the width direction (Y-axis direction), along the transport path (X-axis direction) of the pallet 11. Furthermore, the circulation belt 20 in the pallet conveying devic