JPH0251812B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to an apparatus for automatically supplying parts to an assembly robot or the like.

[Conventional technology]

As an example of a conventional assembly robot of this type, FIG. 2 shows an overall perspective view of an example of a button sewing robot for supplying and sewing buttons (parts) onto a sewn product. This robot is a button sewing machine 2.
0, is composed of a button loader section 21 and a button feeder section 22, and the buttons of the parts are loaded in batches into the bowl 24 of the feeder section 22, and each button is moved by a vibrator 26 that electromagnetically generates vibrations using a solenoid or the like. They are sorted and lined up in a line on a spiral guideway 25 disposed around the inner wall of the bowl 24 so that all the pieces face up, and are successively continued in a line through a downwardly inclined flexible pipe-shaped shooter 27. Then, due to the vibration of the vibrator, it slides down and the loader section 21
The button individual feeding mechanism 28 in the loader section 21 synchronizes with a predetermined timing.
The rotating arm 29 is configured to feed the needle 20a of the sewing machine 20 to a button clamp 30 at the needle drop.

Since the button feeder section 22 employs a well-known vibrating feeder, a detailed explanation of its configuration will be omitted.

[Problem that the invention seeks to solve]

However, in the conventional vibrating feeder device as described above, the mass effect on vibration differs depending on the type and amount of buttons present in the bowl 24, so the conveyance capacity/performance of the buttons differs, and the initial The vibration behavior changes due to differences in batch input amounts, changes in the amount due to button consumption during work, etc., and especially when the remaining amount in the bowl decreases, the predetermined vibration amplitude of the vibrator 26 becomes excessive, causing the guide There is a possibility that the buttons sorted and arranged on the way 25 may be shaken off, or may be turned inside out after being sorted.

In order to prevent such shortcomings, the operator should always monitor the behavior of the button remaining in the bowl 24 and, if necessary, manually control the vibrator drive current using a variable resistor or the like to adjust the vibration amplitude. It was necessary to maintain it properly.

This places a burden on the operator in monitoring/operating, and if the adjustment operation is not performed properly, the number of steps required to manually eject the reversed button, and the accompanying blank stitching without a button or sewing the wrong button. On the other hand, this led to a lack of conveyance/sorting capacity, which was a problem when installed on automatic machines.

The present invention has been made in view of the problems of the prior art as described above, and an object of the present invention is to optimally control the amplitude of the vibrator in response to the remaining amount of the button in the bowl, thereby eliminating the drawbacks of the prior art.

[Means for solving problems]

For this reason, in the present invention, each optimum vibration amplitude of the vibrator is set according to the type and quantity of parts in a specific bowl, and is stored in the control device, and after a predetermined amount of batches of parts are put into the bowl, the vibration amplitude is set in the controller. The above object is achieved by counting the number of feeds and comparing the number of feeds with the input amount, and controlling the drive current of the vibrator so as to give an amplitude approximating the optimum value in response to the amount of parts remaining in the bowl. This is what we are trying to achieve.

〔Example〕

The present invention will be explained below based on examples.
FIG. 1 is a conceptual block diagram of one embodiment of a control circuit according to the principles of the present invention. This circuit consists of an input device 1, a CPU 2, which is mainly composed of a microcomputer, which was installed to control various operations of a conventional sewing machine and loader device in a button sewing robot.
These can be easily added using the ROM 3, RAM 4, output device 5, etc. 6 is for selecting the type of button to be input, 7 is for selecting the batch input amount, 8 is for setting the optimum amplitude amount, Reference numeral 9 indicates an individual feed count circuit, 10 indicates a vibrator drive circuit controlled by the output device 5, and 11 indicates a solenoid thereof.

Next, the operation will be explained. First, a specific bowl 2
4, the type of work button (shape, dimensions,
weight, material, etc.) into several stages (for example, 5 stages, etc.), and then classify the batch amount (maximum) into the bowl.
The quantity is classified into several stages (for example, 5 stages, etc.) from to the minimum remaining amount at the time of next replenishment.

Next, for each combination of button type and quantity, the optimal value of the vibration amplitude is determined experimentally and inputted in advance, and is stored in the ROM 3.

With the above preparations, when the button type and batch input amount are selected in actual work, the microcomputer selects each memorized optimum amplitude setting value as well as the individual feed mechanism 28, for example, the gate or button push-out plate, or the rotating arm. The optimum amplitude is calculated based on the count value of the number of activations such as 29, and an appropriate current is commanded to the vibrator drive circuit to drive the solenoid of the vibrator 26.

The counting means of the above-mentioned individual feeding mechanism or each structure of the above-mentioned control circuit can be easily realized by known conventional techniques, and therefore detailed explanation will be omitted.

With the above configuration, the present device can always automatically obtain an approximately optimal vibration amplitude in response to the number of buttons in the bowl, and can maintain optimal conveyance/sorting functions.

Although the above embodiment describes an example in which buttons as parts are supplied to a button attaching robot, the principles of the present invention are not limited to this example only, and can also be applied to supplying this type of parts to general assembly robots, etc. It can be applied to devices that

〔Effect of the invention〕

As explained above, according to the present invention, the optimal vibration amplitude is automatically obtained in accordance with the number of parts in the bowl of the feeder section, so that monitoring/adjustment required by conventional operators is not required. The burden was reduced and the feeder's transport/sorting capacity could be maintained at its optimum level at all times, making it possible to more rationalize loading onto automatic machines.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a conceptual block diagram of an embodiment of a control circuit according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is an overall perspective view of an example of a conventional button-attaching robot to which the present invention can be applied. 21... Button loader section, 22... Button feeder section, 24... Bowl, 25... Guideway, 26... Vibrator, 28... Button individual feeding mechanism, 29... Swivel arm, 2... CPU, 6
... Button type, 7 ... Batch input amount, 8 ... Amplitude optimum value setting, 9 ... Individual feed counting circuit, 10 ...
...Vibrator drive circuit.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. In a parts supply device equipped with a vibrating bowl using a vibrator, the optimal vibration amplitude in the bowl according to the type and quantity of parts to be supplied is set in advance and stored in the control device, and a predetermined amount of the parts is delivered to the bowl. After loading the batch, the number of times the parts are fed by the individual feeding means is counted, and the vibrator is configured to provide an amplitude approximating the optimum vibration amplitude in response to the amount of parts remaining in the bowl compared to the amount of input. An automatic parts supply device characterized in that it is configured to control a drive current of.