JPH0115972B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION A. Field of Industrial Application The present invention is utilized for exhausting a bulb bent into an annular shape in the manufacture of annular fluorescent lamps.

B. Prior art The manufacturing of annular fluorescent lamps generally involves a process of applying a fluorescent film to the inner peripheral surface of a straight tube bulb and firing it, a process of welding a stem with electrodes to openings at both ends of the straight tube bulb, and a process of welding a stem with electrodes to the openings at both ends of the straight tube bulb. The process of heating and softening and bending it into an annular shape using a two-part bending drum, while exhausting impurity gas inside the bulb through an exhaust pipe led out from one end of the bent annular valve, while activating the electrode. After the exhaust gas is filled with the necessary inert gas, etc., the exhaust pipe is tipped off. The above-mentioned valve bending and evacuation process is usually carried out by gripping the upper end of the straight pipe valve 1 with a chuck 3 attached to a horizontally traveling carrier 2 such as a turntable, as shown in FIGS. The straight pipe type valve 1 is vertically suspended by connecting the exhaust pipe 4 extending from the pipe to a work head 5 having an exhaust function mounted on the carrier 2, and is heated and softened in this state. When the shaped valve 1 is carried into a predetermined position, the lower end portion is gripped by a part of the outer periphery of the two-part bending drum 6 and rotated upward to bend the straight pipe shaped valve 1 into an annular bulb 1'. The bent annular valve 1' is held by the chuck 3 and sent to the subsequent position, where the valve is evacuated via the work head 5, electrodes are activated, and the valve is filled with an inert gas such as argon or mercury. is carried out, and finally the tip-off of the exhaust pipe 4 is carried out.

C. Problems to be Solved by the Invention In the conventional manufacturing method described above, when a straight pipe valve is bent into an annular shape, the length of the exhaust pipe leading out from the non-exhaust pipe side end of the annular valve is adjusted so that the exhaust pipe does not get in the way. The length of the valve is sufficiently long, and the work head is moved away from the end of the valve. However, in this manufacturing method, the straight pipe valve is suspended vertically and heated, so the valve stretches too much under its own weight and the valve wall thickness increases. There were problems such as variations easily occurring, difficulty in stably holding the valve, and a limit to high-speed processing. Recently, therefore, a horizontal manufacturing method, in which a straight tube bulb is held horizontally, heated, and bent in the same manner as in the manufacture of straight tube fluorescent lamps, has been attracting attention as a method for solving the above-mentioned problems. However, the long exhaust pipe extending from the valve made it difficult to arrange it in relation to the work head, which delayed the adoption of the horizontal method.

D. Means for Solving the Problems In view of the adoption of a horizontal manufacturing method for annular fluorescent lamps, the present invention utilizes the space at both ends of the annular bulb and arranges a working head in this space. A manufacturing method for performing exhaust work is provided. In this way, the exhaust pipe extending from the valve only needs to be short, and horizontal type manufacturing becomes easy.

E. Example A specific example of an apparatus for implementing the method of the present invention will be explained with reference to FIGS. 3 to 8. In Figures 3 to 5,
7 is a straight pipe valve with stems (not shown) sealed at both ends before bending; 8 is a short exhaust pipe led out from one end of the straight pipe valve 7; It is a straight pipe that runs along the line. Reference numeral 9 denotes a conveying body that holds the straight pipe valve 7 horizontally and conveys it continuously or intermittently in the orthogonal direction; 10, 10... denotes head support stands fixed at predetermined intervals on the conveying body 9; 11, 11; ……
12, 12, . . . are work heads that are slidable in a direction orthogonal to the transport direction, 13,13...
Each head support stand 10, 10... chuck 1 on top
This is a tip-off burner plate that can be opened and closed and installed between the operating heads 1, 11, . . . and the operating heads 12, 12, .

The straight pipe type valve 7 has a chuck 11 at the exhaust pipe side end.
The annular valve 7' is bent upward from the non-exhaust pipe side end to the bending drum 14 while being gripped by the annular valve 7'.
and is sent as it is to the exhaust positions P1 to P3. Also, when the straight pipe valve 7 is gripped by the chuck 11, the burner plate 13 of the exhaust pipe 8
The working head 12 moves forward and fits into the tip of the exhaust pipe 8.

The working head 12 is of a large size and is placed in the space between both ends of the annular valve 7', and an example of its structure is shown in FIG. 17 is a spring that constantly presses the head body 15 inward; 18 is a ring-shaped elastic sealing material fitted into the cylindrical protrusion 19 on the upper front surface of the head body 15; 20 is a cylinder A ring-shaped cap is screwed onto the outer periphery of the projection 19. Reference numeral 21 is a lever protruding from a part of the cap 20, and the cap 20 is rotated from the outside by a plate cam or the like via this lever 21. When the cap 20 is tightened, the elastic sealing material 18 is compressed and brought into pressure contact with the exhaust pipe 8, and the cap 20
When loosened, the inner diameter of the sealing material 18 becomes slightly larger than the outer diameter of the exhaust pipe 8, allowing the exhaust pipe 8 to be attached and detached. 22 is a work space provided inside the head body 15, and 23 is a work hole formed by penetrating the head support base 10 from above and below. and the working hole 23 communicate with each other, and the head body 15 retreats (the fifth
Then, the working space 22 and the working hole 23 are cut off. The work hole 23 is an external vacuum exhaust system 24
and the gas supply system 25 via, for example, the next block 26. Block 26 is head support stand 1
A fixed rail-like structure on which the lower surface of the head support 10 slides, and the head support 10 is positioned at a predetermined exhaust position P.
When reaching the next gas supply position P3, the hole 27 that communicates between the working hole 23 and the vacuum exhaust system 24 is opened, and when the next gas supply position P3 is reached, the hole 2 that communicates between the working hole 23 and the gas supply system 25 is opened.
7'.

The burner plate 13 is, for example, two plates that open and close as shown in FIG.
8 and 28 are the burner plate 13 and the head support stand 1
When the head support stand 10 comes to the tip-off position P2, the power supply hole 29 and the external power supply system 30 are connected through the hole 27'' provided in the block 26 in this position. Concatenated.

Next, the exhaust work according to the above embodiment will be explained.

When the head support stand 10 holding the annular valve 7' is carried into the exhaust position P1, the inside of the valve is evacuated and exhausted from the exhaust system 24 via 27-23-22-8. Activation of the electrodes takes place (FIG. 5). Next, when we come to the gas supply position P2, the gas supply system 25 to 27'-2
Inert gas or the like is supplied into the valve via 3-22-8 (FIG. 6). Then, when it comes to the final position P3, the power supply system 30 to 27''-2
A mixed gas of combustible gas and air (oxygen) is supplied to the burner nozzles 28, 28 via the burner flame, and the vicinity of the base of the exhaust pipe 8 is heated and softened by the burner flame. At this time, the tip-off of the exhaust pipe is completed by retreating the working head 12 that grips the tip of the exhaust pipe. After this, the chuck 11 is opened and the annular valve 7'
is taken out.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment. For example, although the work head and the burner plate are separated, it is also possible to integrate the two, and the top and bottom of the drawings in FIGS. A structure in which the valve is mounted downward can also be used. Furthermore, in terms of operation, the straight pipe valve may be held in the form of an annular valve bent into an annular shape by the chuck having the above structure, and the working head may be fitted into the exhaust pipe and sent to the exhaust process.

F. Effects of the Invention As explained above, according to the present invention, the exhaust work is performed by disposing the work head in the space between both ends of the annular valve, so the exhaust pipe of the valve may be sufficiently short. Manufacturing using the horizontal method becomes easier, and mass productivity and quality can be improved. Furthermore, material costs can be reduced by shortening the exhaust pipe.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partial schematic front view of a manufacturing apparatus for explaining a conventional method for manufacturing an annular fluorescent lamp, FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line A-A in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a method according to the present invention. A schematic plan view showing a specific example of an implementation device,
Figure 4 is an enlarged side sectional view taken along line B-B in Figure 3;
Figures 5 to 7 are for each position P1 to Figure 3.
FIG. 8 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional side view of the main part at P3, and FIG. 8 is a partial perspective view of the burner plate of FIG. 4. 7'...Annular valve, 8...Exhaust pipe, 12...
work head.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An annular valve having an exhaust pipe led out from one end, and a work head having an exhaust function attached to the tip of the exhaust pipe arranged in a space between both ends of the annular valve to perform exhaust work of the annular valve. A method of manufacturing a fluorescent lamp.