JPH0437023Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] Industrial application field This invention is a transfer device that suspends and transfers articles on an overhead carrier, processes and assembles the articles on the transfer path, or stores the carrier. The present invention relates to a telescoping bumper that can change the permissible approach distance for avoiding mutual collision of carriers to an appropriate value according to the total length of the transported article, the content of processing, etc.

Conventional technology Conventionally, as a collision prevention device for a self-propelled carrier running on a ceiling rail, when a proximity detection switch installed at the front of the following carrier comes into contact with an operating rod installed at the rear of the preceding carrier and is activated, the following carrier The position at which to stop is known. In this case, the allowable approach distance for the carrier is determined by the length of the object to be transported and the minimum safe distance between the carrier or the object to be transported.
If the object to be transported is long, increasing the length of the operating rod will make approach detection at curves uncertain, so in such cases, it is recommended to use a separate main carrier that suspends the object with a shorter operating rod. The overall length of the carrier is increased by connecting the bumper carrier.
However, when storing an empty carrier with no transferred items, it is advantageous to have a short overall length of the carrier in terms of space. Therefore, the connecting part between the main carrier and the bumper carrier can be switched into two stages, long and short. As such, a connection structure that is longer during transport and shorter during storage has also been proposed (Utility Model Opening in 1983-
15854).

However, as shown in Fig. 3, a workpiece W is loaded at point A onto an empty carrier K waiting at pitch a in storage section S, then transferred to machining point B at pitch h, and then processed. At machining point C, workpiece W ₁ is attached while being transferred at pitch C, and at machining point D, workpiece W ₂ is attached while being transferred at pitch d.
In the transfer line that transfers the finished workpiece to the unloading point E, it is necessary to switch the carrier stop pitch into four stages.Therefore, the conventional two-stage switching structure has the disadvantage that the transfer line becomes too long.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention This invention proposes a telescopic bumper for an overhead carrier that can continuously change the carrier's minimum stop pitch and transfer pitch to any desired value depending on the presence or absence of an object to be transferred and its length. The purpose is to

Means for Solving the Problems This proposal is based on a self-propelled carrier for transporting articles and a bumper carrier following the carrier, in which the main body and rod of an electric cylinder that extends and contracts in the traveling direction are horizontally rotatably pivoted. The gist of the present invention is a structure of a telescopic bumper for an overhead traveling carrier, which connects the two carriers and is provided with an actuating piece at the rear of the bumper carrier to operate an approach detection switch provided at the front of the self-propelled carrier.

Operation The electric cylinder is controlled using the same power source and control signal line as the self-propelled carrier for transporting articles, and is adjusted to suit the length of the object to be transferred, any desired carrier running pitch, and carrier stop pitch. Adjust the distance to the bumper carrier. This allows the carrier running pitch and stop pitch at various locations on the transfer line to be switched to the minimum allowable value or the optimum value.

Embodiment In FIGS. 1 and 2, a self-propelled carrier 1 is constructed by connecting a front trolley 3 and a rear trolley 4 running on rails 2 with a load bar 5, and is self-propelled in the direction of the arrow by a motor (not shown). do. Reference numeral 6 denotes running rollers 7 and 8 which are guide rollers, and a hanger 9 suspended from the load bar 5 transports the object M. The bumper carrier 10 is equipped with a running roller 11 and guide rollers 12 and 13 and can run on the rail 2, and the rear end of the main body 15 of the electric cylinder 14 that extends and contracts in the running direction is attached to the rear trolley 4.
Further, the tips of the rods 16 are pivotally connected to the bumper carrier 10 so as to be horizontally rotatable, thereby connecting the bumper carrier 10 to the rear trolley 4. An approach detection switch 17 projecting forward is attached to the front trolley 3, and an operating piece 18 for operating the approach detection switch 17 is attached to the rear of the bumper carrier 10.
When the approach detection switch 17 is activated, the traveling motor of the carrier 1 is opened and the carrier 1 coasts for a while and then stops. Further, the actuating piece 18 has an appropriate width so that the switch 17 can be actuated even on a curve.

When the switch 17 of the succeeding carrier comes into contact with the operating piece 18 of the leading carrier 1 and is activated, the succeeding carrier moves forward a little and then stops. If the amount of extension of the electric cylinder 14 is determined so that
For the length of the object to be transported M, the carriers 1 can be run simultaneously or stopped with a safe minimum transport pitch. In the case of an empty carrier with no transferred object M,
By setting the electric cylinder 14 to the shortest possible position, empty carriers can be kept waiting in the storage section as closely as possible.

Effects of the invention In this invention, the distance between the article transfer carrier and the bumper carrier can be expanded and contracted steplessly, so the transfer pitch of the article can be set to a safe minimum or optimum value depending on the presence or absence of the article or the length. It is possible to make the carrier move or stop by holding it in place, which has the effect that the transfer equipment can be used effectively.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is an elevational view of an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a right side view, and FIG. 3 is a layout diagram of an example of a transfer line. 1...Self-propelled carrier for transporting articles, 10...Bumper carrier, 14...Electric cylinder, 15...
Main body, 16...rod, 17...contact detection switch, 18...operating piece.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] A self-propelled carrier for transporting goods and a bumper carrier following the carrier are each connected with a main body and a rod of an electric cylinder that expands and contracts in the traveling direction so as to be freely horizontally rotatable, and the two carriers are connected. A retractable bumper for an overhead traveling carrier, which is provided with an actuating piece at the rear of the vehicle for activating an approach detection switch provided at the front of the self-propelled carrier.