JPH0362615B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a device that positions supplied fabric at a predetermined position and always positions the fabric at an accurate position. By performing this movement, it is possible to accurately feed the material to the sewing position or press position.

Conventionally, fabrics are soft, and the means for feeding the fabric into an accurate position, for example when using a sewing machine, is often done manually. Even with automatic sewing machines, this method relies on manual labor until the fabric is brought into a predetermined position, and then sewing begins automatically after the fabric is placed in the correct position. Therefore, human labor is always required, and the efficiency of automatic machines is also influenced by human ability, with an operating rate of 30 to 40% being the limit.
The drawbacks are that the position is not always correct, resulting in variations in the product, and that it is difficult to automate the entire sewing system.

The present invention eliminates these drawbacks and makes it possible to dramatically improve the efficiency and accuracy of the entire sewing system.The present invention is capable of dramatically improving the efficiency and accuracy of the entire sewing system.
The material is transported to a position with an extremely wide range of tolerance by the method of hoisting it up or carrying it on a sling.
A drive unit that moves the fabric placed at the primary supply position by a predetermined amount in the X and Y directions using predetermined movement axes to ensure accurate delivery to the target position, and minimizes friction between the fabric and the table. Consists of an air blower that lifts the fabric above the table surface. Once the fabric has been placed in the correct position, it can be fed to the next process by a sewing machine or press at the correct position by sucking air again, gluing it with adhesive, or sliding it on the table to move it a predetermined amount.It has a simple structure and is highly accurate. It has characteristics that enable high locomotion.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a plan view showing the configuration of the present invention.
As a pretreatment work before the device of the present invention operates, the fabric 1 is transferred to a conveyor with a simple structure that does not require precision, such as a conveyor, or the fabric is hooked up using suction, an adhesive part, or something like a claw. A conveyor moves the fabric to unload it, and the fabric is fed in at appropriate intervals. For example, if a large number of cut pieces of fabric are piled up,
The sheets are stored in a stocker and taken out one by one using the above-mentioned carrier and transported. When sending the fabric directly from the stocker to the sewing machine using a conveyor, the fabric on the stocker must always be stacked accurately and without any deviations, but in practice it is impossible to stack the fabrics without any deviations, so Even if the error is allowed, it would be an extremely inefficient operation and would be impossible in terms of cost. In this case, the pre-processing work, which is the work of roughly feeding, and the work of accurately moving are performed separately. In FIG. 1, the position indicated by the dotted line indicates the primary supply position 8, In the above example, the fabric is fed from the stocker by means of a conveyor to the primary supply position 8, which has a very wide positional tolerance. Therefore, the position at which the fabric is placed at the primary supply position varies considerably, including front, back, left, right, and diagonally. The fabric 1 fed into the primary supply position 8 is fed through a large number of narrow air ports 5 built into the table 7.
The air blown out from the table causes it to float slightly above the table surface. In the X direction of the primary supply position 8, there is a drive unit such as an air cylinder, a pulse motor, or a DC motor drive shaft, and a connecting rod 10 that connects a pressing surface 9 that presses the fabric from the side. Sender 2
A Y-direction fabric feeder 3 having a similar configuration and driven in the Y-direction is installed near the positioning guide 4.

FIG. 2 shows an explanatory cross-sectional view taken along line A-A. The narrow air port 5 is connected to the back surface of the table by a pipe 6, and compressed air is supplied from an air blowing or suction device (not shown) such as an air compressor.

The fabric 1 sent to the primary supply position 8 is pushed by the pressing surface 9 from the side by the connecting rod 10 of the X-direction fabric feeder 2 extending a preset distance. Make a move. That is, in FIG. 1, the distance from the position of the guide side of the key-shaped positioning guide 4 in the Y direction to the position where the right side of the fabric 1 is brought into close contact with the position of the guide side of the key-shaped positioning guide 4 in the Y direction, that is, the position of the guide side of the positioning guide in the Y direction and the X The width of the fabric 1 in the X direction is determined from the distance between the fabric feeder 2 and the pressing surface 9 before the movement starts.
By moving the fabric by the distance removed by the X-direction fabric feeder 2, the fabric can be accurately brought into close contact with the position of the guide side of the positioning guide in the Y-direction. FIG. 3 shows that due to the above-mentioned operation,
FIG. 6 shows a top view of the completed fabric being moved in the X direction.
Although the fabric is placed with a large tolerance at the primary supply position 8, the above-described operation ensures that it is placed in the correct position only in the X direction. The fabric is not necessarily fed in a position parallel to the pressing surface 9 of the X-direction fabric feeder 2, but may be fed obliquely as shown in FIG. In this case, the pressing surface 9 extends in the X direction, and the inclined portion of the fabric 1 comes into contact with the fabric feeder 9, and rotates while moving in the X direction, thereby correcting the oblique inclination. The fabric is slightly floating above the table due to the air, and there is almost no friction on the contact surface, so the pressing surface 9
The first point of contact with the center of gravity of the fabric starts a rotational movement, and the inclination is corrected.

FIG. 4 shows a situation in which the position in the X direction is determined and then moved in the Y direction, and the movement is completed to the correct position in both the X and Y directions. The Y-direction fabric feeder 3 is the
It performs the same operation as the directional fabric feeder 2, and moves a predetermined distance to a position where it comes into close contact with the guide side of the positioning guide 4 in the X direction. The movement of both the X and Y moving parts can be done by the method described above, in which they are operated at a preset distance, or by installing a sensor to confirm the position of the fabric, and then feeding back the position information to a computer to move it to a predetermined position. It can be carried out.

In the embodiment, the movements in the X and Y directions are performed separately, but if the fabric is stiffer and thicker, or if the distance traveled by the fabric is short, the X and Y movements can be performed in parallel. Further, the same effect can be obtained by moving in the direction of 45 degrees, which is the composite direction of the XY directions. The X direction fabric feeder 9 stretches the pressing surface 9 in the X direction while moving in the Y direction, and the Y direction fabric feeder 3 stretches the pressing surface 9 in the Y direction while moving in the X direction. Therefore, the respective pressing surfaces 9 can simultaneously move in the X and Y directions without colliding with each other. Time constraints for fabric supply;
Alternatively, depending on the number of sewing machines to be supplied, it is possible to connect a plurality of the positioning devices of the present invention and drive the two or more positioning devices in a connected manner using the two XY drive sections. After the movement of the fabric to the predetermined correct position shown in FIG. 4 is completed, the fabric is sucked by switching the air in the air hole 5 from blowing to sucking using the blowing and suction switching means (not shown). , the fabric can be fixed correctly in that position until it is moved to the next process.
The fabric is suctioned so that it remains in the same position against wind and other sudden movements, allowing for more precise transport.

The positioning device is not necessarily limited to being placed on a flat surface; for example, the table surface is sloped, like a so-called slide, the fabric is floated with air, and it slides into the guide, so that it can be placed only in the X direction.
Methods such as adjusting movement can also be used.

The present invention has the above-described configuration and can have the following features. In other words, the fabric can be moved to a fixed position extremely accurately and quickly, and it can be incorporated into an entire automation system that handles fabrics to significantly improve the efficiency of the entire system.It has a simple structure, and troubles can be identified at a glance. It is extremely easy to handle, does not use anything other than fabric such as pellets to fix the fabric, and since it handles fabric, running costs are low. The series of operations can be completed in 2 to 3 seconds. In the case of difficult-to-handle fabrics, using the same positioning device twice can increase speed by 10 to 15 times compared to manual work, and significantly improve accuracy.
% can be moved to the correct position.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a plan view, Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A, Fig. 3 is an illustration of movement in the X direction, Fig. 4 is an illustration of movement in the Y direction, Fig. 5 is an illustration of fabric angle correction,
A Situation diagram placed in an oblique position, B Situation diagram with corrected rotation. 1...Fabric, 2...X direction fabric feeder, 3...
Y-direction fabric feeder, 4...Positioning guide, 5...
...Pore, 6...Pipe, 7...Table, 8...
Primary supply position, 9...pressing surface, 10...connecting rod.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1 A large number of pores are provided in the table on which the fabric is placed, each open end of a pipe placed on the underside of the table is connected to each of these pores from the underside of the table, and a key-shaped frame is placed on the top of this table. A positioning guide that stops the fabric consisting of the body at a predetermined position is fixed, and has a parallel pressing surface facing each guide side of this positioning guide, and linear movement that approaches and moves away from each guide side of the positioning guide. an air blower for blowing out air or sucking air from each of the pores through the pipe;
An air blowing and suction device is provided with a suction device, and air is blown out through the pores while the fabric is being moved, and air is sucked through the pores when the fabric is positioned by the positioning guide. A fabric positioning device characterized by being provided with a switching means.