JPH0336712B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to a conveyor system for sewing various types of clothing in an assembly line system, and in particular to a conveyor system for transferring a carrier to the next process in a series of conveyor lines. It relates to things that are performed asynchronously and independently for each process.

[Prior art]

As a conventional example of this type of conveyor system, a typical example is JP-A-58-47653. As shown in FIG. 8, this is different from a normal conveyor system, and is based on the premise that the carrier 5 is moved to the next process while rolling on the conveyor rail 7 under its own weight. Therefore, the workpiece positions W of each process are moved toward the next process by the downwardly inclined conveyor rail 7.
has been contacted. In order to send the carrier 5 to the next process, a lift means 8 for lifting the carrier 5 is provided between the inclined lower end and the inclined upper end of the adjacent transport rails 7, 7. In the figure, symbol A is the lift position. At a standby position C on the upper side of the lift position A, a gate means 15 is provided that stops the movement of the carrier 5 and sends out only one carrier 5 in conjunction with the lifting operation of the lift means 8. . The carriers 5, which are sent out one by one from the gate means 15, stop at a lift position A set at the lower end of the slope of the conveyor rail 7, and are held in an immovable state by the lift means 8, waiting for the processing to be completed. In this state, the operator removes clothing parts from the carrier 5 or attaches and detaches blanks. Therefore, the lift position A was the working position B. These lift means 8 and gate means 15 are operated independently for each process according to instructions from the operator.

In this way, the reason why the carrier 5 is transferred independently for each process is that the difficulty of the work differs in each process, and the skill level of the workers also differs. This is because they cannot send 5.
Second, by discontinuously sending the carriers 5 to the next process, a large number of carriers 5 are placed on each transport rail 7.
This is to allow workers in the previous process to continue their work without being affected by this, even if the processing speed in the subsequent process is delayed.

[Problem that the invention seeks to solve]

In this type of conveyor system, a considerable number of carriers 5 are often stored on the conveyor rail 7 for each process.
The transport efficiency of the carrier 5 during the period from the lift means 8 to the lift means 8 becomes a problem.

However, in the conventional device as described above, even if the gate means 15 sends out the next carrier 5 simultaneously with the operation of the lift means 8, after the lift means 8 has transferred the previous carrier 5 to the conveyance rail 7 in the subsequent process, Until it returns to standby position and captures the next Carrier 5,
Workers cannot remove blanks or parts from Carrier 5. Therefore, loss time occurred in each work cycle of each process. It is possible to remove blanks or parts from the carrier 5 before the lifting means 8 pick it up.
However, in reality, the carrier 5 simply hangs on the conveyance rail 7 by its own weight, so that the rolling rollers 6 may come off the conveyance rail 7, or the carrier 5 may move, making it difficult to remove the blank or the like. For this reason, the operator feels uneasy and cannot remove the blank or the like until the carrier 5 is captured by the lift means 8.

This invention solves these conventional problems and
The transfer efficiency of the carrier 5 while passing from the gate means 15 to the lift means 8 is improved. In other words, when the carrier 5 reaches the work position B on the transport rail 7, the work is started immediately regardless of the carrier 5 that has been worked on being lifted up to the next process by the lift means 8, thereby making it possible to start the work at each process. The purpose is to eliminate the loss time that occurs during each work cycle and improve sewing work efficiency.

Another purpose is to simplify the specific mechanism for this purpose and ensure reliable operation.

[Means for solving problems]

The biggest problem with the conventional example is that the operator cannot remove parts etc. from the carrier 5 until the carrier 5 is captured by the lift means 8 to prevent it from being lifted.

In this invention, the auxiliary gate means 14 for capturing the carrier 5 is separately provided, and by providing this between the lift means 8 and the gate means 15, blanks and parts can be attached and detached independently of the operation of the lift means 8. This is how it was done. In other words, the lift position A installed at the lower end of the slope of the transport rail 7
Work position B is on the upper side in the carrier transport direction than
Further, a standby position C is set on the upper side thereof, and an auxiliary gate means 14 is disposed at the work position B, and a gate means 15 is disposed at the standby position C, respectively.

In addition, in concrete implementation, instead of the conventional lever link type gate means, each of the gate means 15 and the auxiliary gate means 14 is replaced with a rotary type, thereby simplifying the structure and providing reliable operation. This has also resulted in improved sexual performance.

〔Example〕

An embodiment of this invention will be described based on the drawings.
In Fig. 3, the conveyor system has a basic structure consisting of a longitudinal frame 1 that is long from side to side and branch frames 2 that extend forward and backward, and a conveyor line 3 is arranged along the outline of both frames 1 and 2. Ru. The conveyor line 3 is supported by support arms 4 extending from each of the frames 1 and 2, and as shown in the figure, the conveyor line 3 is constructed as a whole in the form of a continuous cross from side to side. The concave portion of the conveyor line 3 and four corners on both the left and right ends serve as work positions W in which a sewing machine, an ironing board, etc. are installed. For example, at the front work position _W1 at the left end corner, the carrier 5 with all the parts of the garment attached is fed to the conveyor line 3, and each time the carrier 5 passes each work position W, the parts are sewn in order. , a system is adopted in which the garment is completed after one round of the conveyor line 3.

In FIG. 1, the carrier 5 consists of a clothes hanger-shaped holder 5a that holds a large number of parts, and a roller 6 that supports this holder 5a via a hanger arm 5b. The roller 6 has a pair of side wheels 6 that sandwich the conveyor rail 7 from both sides as shown in FIG.
a, a rolling wheel portion 6b protruding from the center of this side wheel portion 6a in an opposing manner, and a rolling wheel portion 6b that straddles the conveyor rail 7.
It is a plastic molded product integrally formed with a boss 6c that connects the arms 5b, and is rotatably supported by a roller shaft 5c at the upper end of the arm 5b. Incidentally,
As usual, each part of the clothing is placed in a holder 5.
It is inserted and held in the chuck part of A from below, and is detachable by being pulled out upwards.

1 and 2 show the structure of the main parts of the conveyor line 3. FIG. The conveyor line 3 is connected in series through circular pipe-made transport rails 7 that connect the work positions W of each process, and lift means 8 provided between the respective transport rails 7. In order for the carrier 5 to roll under its own weight and move to the next process, the conveyor rail 7 is inclined downward at 6 to 9 degrees toward the work position W of the next process, and when viewed from the worker's position ( In Fig. 1), the front left side is the beginning of the slope, and the end of the slope is to the left of the worker's position in the next process. In other words, it slopes downward to the right.

The lift means 8 is provided in an upwardly inclined manner between the end of the slope of the transport rail 7 in the previous process and the start of the slope of the transport rail 7 in the post process, and lifts the carrier 5 at the lower end of the slope to the next transport rail 7. Lift it up, gain altitude, and move Carrier 5 to the next process. Therefore, the inclined lower end of each transport rail 7 is set at the lift position A of the carrier 5.

In FIG. 4, the lift means 8 includes a pair of frames 9 that sandwich the ends of the adjacent transport rails 7 from both sides, a lift chain 11 supported between the frames 9 via a sprocket 10, and, for example, an upper Motor 12 that rotationally drives sprocket 10
Consists of etc. Load pawls 11a are fixed to the circumferential surface of the chain 11 at appropriate intervals, and when these pawls 11a are engaged with the rollers 6, the carrier 5 moves together with the chain 11. This load claw 11a is 1
Just one piece is fine.

On the transport rail 7, a working position B and a standby position C are set in order above the lift position A in the carrier transport direction, and the auxiliary gate means 14 is set at the working position B.
A gate means 15 is disposed at the standby position C, respectively.

In FIG. 5, the auxiliary gate means 14 in the working position B consists of a disc-shaped gate plate 16 and a rotary cylinder 17 that rotates it in forward and reverse directions, and a bracket that supports both members 16 and 17 in a distributed manner. It is fixed to the transport rail 7 via 18.

The gate plate 16 is provided at a position where the rotation trajectory of the circumferential surface thereof overlaps with the moving area of the roller 6 roller portion 6b, and a pocket 19 into which the roller portion 6b fits is formed in the lower part of the plate surface. As shown in FIG. 6, this pocket 19 has a stopper surface 19 that receives the rolling wheel portion 6b.
a, an arcuate receiving surface 19b that contacts the rolling wheel portion 6b and restricts the upward movement of the roller 6, and a sending surface 19c that forcibly pushes the rolling wheel portion 6b out of the pocket 19. It is formed in a series. The rotary cylinder 17 is driven by pneumatic pressure to rotate half a rotation in both forward and reverse directions, and reciprocates the gate plate 16 between a stopped position shown in FIG. 6 and a released position shown in FIG. 7. In each process, the work position W is laid out so that the worker is located right next to the auxiliary gate means 14.

The gate means 15 in the standby position C is different from the auxiliary gate means 1 except that its installation position is different.
It is substantially the same as 4. One reason for this is to standardize parts. Therefore, the same reference numerals are given to the same members, and the explanation of the structure is omitted. However, what should be noted here is that the gate means 15 has a large number of carriers 5 stored on the conveyor rail 7.
It is necessary to send out the carriers one by one, and when the carriers 5 are sent out, the following group of carriers 5 must be received at the same time to prevent them from moving. Therefore, this receiving action is performed by an arc-shaped auxiliary stopper surface 16a on the circumferential surface of the gate plate 16. Here, the auxiliary stopper surface 16a basically only needs to be an arcuate surface, and does not need to be partially perfectly circular. Although the auxiliary stopper surface 16a exists in the gate plate 16 of the auxiliary gate means 14 in terms of shape, it has no special effect.

Next, its effect will be explained. In the gate means 15 and the auxiliary gate means 14, the roller portions 6b of the rollers 6 of each carrier 5 fit into the pockets 19 of the gate plate 16, thereby preventing the carriers 5 from moving. On the gate means 15 side, generally a considerable number of carriers 5 are stored with their rollers 6 in contact with each other. The operator removes the blank and parts from the carrier 5 captured by the auxiliary gate means 15 at the working position B. At this time, since the removal direction of the parts is generally upward, the carrier 5 tries to escape upward or to the upper side of the slope of the conveyor rail 7, but the rolling portion 6b of the roller 6 is stuck inside the pocket 19 of the gate plate 16. It fits in and is received by the receiving surface 19b. Therefore, the carrier 5 does not come off the conveyor rail 7 or move freely.

After the worker has performed the processing for which he is responsible, he returns the blank to the carrier 5. Then, in order to send the carrier 5 to the next process and to move the next carrier 5 to the hand, the auxiliary gate means 14 and the gate means 15 are activated by operating, for example, a foot switch (not shown). Both gate means 14 and 15 operate simultaneously in response to a command signal from an operator, and the rotary cylinder 17 rotates the gate plate 16 in a counterclockwise direction. As a result, the opening of the pocket 19 changes direction from the upper side to the lower side in the conveying direction of the conveying rail 7, as shown in FIG. In this state, the carrier 5 is originally movable from the work position B toward the lift position A, but in order to move the carrier 5 more reliably, the pocket 19
kick out the rolling wheel part 6b with the sending-out surface 19c,
Give initial speed to roller 6. At the same time as the carrier 5 is sent out, the gate plate 16 is moved to the rotary cylinder 1.
At step 7, it is driven clockwise and returns to its original stopped position. Auxiliary gate means 14 and gate means 15
It may be arranged to operate with a time difference.

The carrier 5 sent out from the auxiliary gate means 14 rolls under its own weight and reaches the lift position A, from where it is stopped by the load claw 11a of the chain 11 by the lift means 8 and lifted onto the next transport rail 7. . When the carrier 5 reaches the lift position A, the lift means 8 catches the carrier 5 and operates. Then, when the carrier 5 moves onto the next transport rail 7, the lift means 8 automatically stops. A detection means is provided at the beginning of the slope of the next conveyor rail 7,
When the detection means detects the presence of the carrier 5 before the lift means 8 is activated, that is, when the stock amount of the carrier 5 on the next conveyance rail 7 has reached the limit amount for some reason. prohibits the activation of the lift means 8 and, if necessary, the activation of both gate means 14 and 15.

In the gate means 15, the gate plate 16 operates at the same time as the auxiliary gate means 14, and the carrier 5 in the front row
be forcibly sent out. At this time, the following carrier 5 in the standby position C also moves at the same time, but the roller 6 of the carrier 5 in the front row moves into the pocket 1 of the gate plate 16.
Roller 6 until released from 9 and kicked out.
Since the side ring portions 6a of the rollers 6 are in contact with each other, the distance between the rollers 6 does not decrease. Before the roller 6 in the front row is released from the stopper surface 19a, the feed-out surface 19 on the circumferential surface of the gate plate 16
The auxiliary stopper surface 16a connected to c is the rolling wheel portion 6.
The next carrier 5 is stopped at the standby position C with its roller wheel portion 6b received by the auxiliary stopper surface 16a. The return operation of the gate plate 16 causes the opening of the pocket 19 to face upward in the conveyance direction, so that the rolling wheel portion 6
b gradually fits into the pocket 19, and is received by the stopper surface 19a when the gate plate 16 returns completely. In this way, gate means 15
surely sends out the carriers 5 one by one to the working position B.

The carrier 5 sent out from the standby position C is
It rolls into the pocket 19 of the auxiliary gate means 14 waiting for its movement at the work position B, and is stopped by being caught by the stopper surface 19a. At the working position B, the operator lifts the auxiliary gate means 1 independently of the lifting operation of the lift means 8.
Blanks and parts can be immediately removed from the carrier 5 captured by the carrier 4, and the lost time until the carrier 5 is captured, which was conventionally necessary, can be eliminated. Carrier 5 has both gate means 14,1
Since it is forcibly sent out at 5, compared to when it starts rolling under its own weight, the carrier 5
transfer efficiency is further increased.

Note that it is not always the case that a worker is present at all of the set work positions W and work is performed there. There are several empty, in other words, spare work positions W. There, by switching the feed of the carrier from the above-mentioned initiative to automatic, the carrier 5 on the conveyor rail 7 is automatically fed from the standby position C to the work position B and then to the lift position A, and then to the next position. It is sent to the transport rail 7.
When the next transport rail 7 cannot accept any more carriers 5, the detection means operates and the lift means 8 does not operate.

[Modified example]

In the above embodiment, the gate plate 16 is driven by the rotary cylinder 17, but this driving source may be a reciprocating type cylinder. The circular gate plate 16 may be rotated once, and in that case, the drive source may be replaced with an electric motor.

The lifting means 8 need not be of the chain type either, but may be of the reciprocating type as disclosed in the article conveyance device cited at the beginning.

Furthermore, in the second invention, which concerns the structure of the auxiliary gate means 14, the structure of the gate means 15 is not limited in any way. Similarly, the third part of the present case, which includes the structure of the gate means 15,
In the second invention, no limitations are placed on the structure of the auxiliary gate means 14.

Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the rolling portion 6b of the roller 6
is received by the gate plate 16, but in addition to the rolling wheel part 6b, the side ring part 6a, the boss 6c, or the roller shaft 5c may be received by the gate plate 16, and the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment.

Regarding the gate plate 16 of the gate means 15, the receiving surface 19b of the pocket 19 may be omitted, and in that case, the pocket 19 simply has a shape that accommodates and receives any of the constituent members of the roller 6 described above. That's fine.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As explained above, in this invention, the auxiliary gate means 14 is located between the gate means 15 and the lift means 8.
is arranged so that the carrier 5 can be captured by the auxiliary gate means 14 to remove blanks and parts, so that the carrier 5 is sent from the gate means 15 and captured by the auxiliary gate means 14, and at the same time the lift means 8. Blanks etc. can be removed without paying attention. The waiting time required until the carrier 5 is captured by the lift means 8, as seen in the conventional example, can be eliminated. Therefore, the loss time for each work cycle of each process is wiped out, and the carrier 5 between the gate means 15 and the lift means 8 is
transfer efficiency and improve overall productivity. Further, when the auxiliary gate means 14 or the gate means 15 is made rotary, the rotation of the gate plate 16 displaces the pocket 19 formed in the gate plate 16 to receive the roller of the carrier 5 or the roller 6. Since the gate means is allowed to roll, the structure is simpler than that of conventional gate means, manufacturing costs can be reduced, and operation reliability is high. Furthermore, although the load of the stocked carrier group 5 acts strongly on the gate means 15, since the rotating gate plate 16 receives the roller 6, it only needs to bear a smaller moment than when receiving the roller 6 in other parts. It is also advantageous in terms of durability.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

1 to 7 show an embodiment of the conveyor system according to the present invention, in which FIG. 1 is a side view of the main parts, FIG. 2 is a plan view, FIG. 3 is a plan view, and FIG. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along the - line in FIG. 4, FIG. 6 is a side view of the main part in FIG. 5, and FIG. 7 is an operation of the gate plate. FIG. FIG. 8 is a side view of main parts showing a conventional example. 5...Carrier, 6...Roller, 6b...Rolling portion, 7...Transportation rail, 8...Lift means, 11
... Chain, 12 ... Motor, 14 ... Auxiliary gate means, 15 ... Gate means, 16 ... Gate plate, 16a ... Auxiliary stopper surface, 17 ... Rotary cylinder, 19 ... Pocket, 19a ...
Stopper surface, 19b...Receiving surface, 19c...Feeding surface, A...Lift position, B...Working position, C
...Standby position.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. The work positions W of each process in a series of processes are connected to each other by a downwardly inclined conveyor rail 7 toward the subsequent process, and the inclined lower end and the inclined upper end of each adjacent conveyor rail 7, 7 are connected. Lift means 8 for lifting the carrier 5 onto the transport rail 7 in the subsequent process is arranged between the transport rails 7 at each work position W.
Set the lower end of the slope at lift position A, and set work position B and standby position C in order above lift position A in the carrier transport direction.
An auxiliary gate means 14 is provided at the standby position C, and a gate means 15 is provided at the standby position C to receive the carriers 5 one by one and send them out one by one to the working position B. A sewing conveyor system characterized by being able to be held on a conveyor rail 7. 2. The work positions W of each process in a series of processes are connected to each other by a downwardly inclined conveyance rail 7 toward the subsequent process, and a carrier 5 is installed between the inclined lower end and the inclined upper end of each adjacent conveyor rail 7, 7. Lifting means 8 is arranged on the transport rail 7 in the subsequent process, and the transport rail 7 at each work position W is
Set the lower end of the slope at lift position A, and set work position B and standby position C in order above lift position A in the carrier transport direction.
An auxiliary gate means 14 is disposed at the standby position C, and a gate means 15 is disposed at the standby position C for receiving the carriers 5 one by one and sending them out one by one to the working position B. The gate plate 16 is provided with a facing gate plate 16 and a drive source for driving the gate plate 16, and a pocket 19 is formed in the gate plate 16 into which at least a part of the roller 6 is fitted by rolling. Roller 6 of carrier 5 sent out from gate means 15
is received in the pocket 19,
In a state in which the pocket 19 is rotationally driven by the drive source between the release position and the release position allowing the roller 6 to roll, and the carrier 5 is captured by the auxiliary gate means 14,
A sewing conveyor system characterized in that a receiving surface 19b for regulating at least the upward movement of the carrier 5 is formed in the pocket 19. 3 The work positions W of each process in a series of processes are connected to each other by a downwardly inclined conveyance rail 7 toward the subsequent process, and a carrier 5 is installed between the inclined lower end and the inclined upper end of each adjacent conveyor rail 7, 7. Lifting means 8 is arranged on the transport rail 7 in the subsequent process, and the transport rail 7 at each work position W is
Set the lower end of the slope at lift position A, and set work position B and standby position C in order above lift position A in the carrier transport direction.
An auxiliary gate means 14 is provided at the standby position C, and a gate means 15 for feeding out the carriers 5 one by one is provided at the standby position C. The gate plate 16 has a pocket 19 in which at least a portion of the roller 6 is fitted by rolling, and the gate plate 16 has a pocket 19 in which the roller 6 of the carrier 5 fits into the pocket 19.
The pocket 19 is rotated by a drive source between a stopped position in which the roller 6 is received and a released position in which the pocket 19 allows the roller 6 to roll.
An arc-shaped auxiliary stopper surface 16a that receives the roller 6 of the following carrier 5 when the carrier moves to the release position.
A sewing conveyor system characterized by having: