JPH0940143A - Ball feeding device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) An object of the present invention is to enable the steel ball 2 to be discriminated in a short time with a small number of sensors, and to supply the steel ball 2 or the resin ball 4 to the valve body 8 in a state where there are few malfunctions. SOLUTION: A steel ball 2 carried into a steel ball carrying section 11 is distinguished by a contact switch 28 and carried to a steel ball introducing pipe 49, and at the same time, a resin ball 4 carried into a resin ball carrying section 12 is introduced into a resin ball introducing pipe. Transfer to 50, steel ball introduction pipe 4
9 is supplied with the steel balls 2 and the resin balls 4 are supplied to the resin ball introduction pipes 50, and the moving slide plate 5
By moving 2, the steel ball 2 or the resin ball 4 is held by the holding portion 54 and conveyed to the position of the supply port 7, and the steel ball 2 or the resin ball 4 is supplied to a predetermined portion of the oil passage of the valve body 8. Then, the steel balls 2 can be discriminated in a short time with a small number of sensors, and the steel balls 2 or the resin balls 4 are supplied to the valve body 8 in a state where there are few malfunctions.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a ball feeder, which discriminates between steel balls and resin balls and selectively feeds them to the same position. It is suitable for use in supplying balls to oil passages.

[0002]

As the valve body of the automatic transmission, a cast aluminum product has been used from the viewpoint of weight reduction. A complicated oil passage is formed in the valve body, and a ball is fitted to an appropriate portion of the oil passage to form a desired passage. There are parts where high pressure is constantly applied and parts where there is not much pressure in the oil passage, and resin balls (resin balls) are used in the parts where high pressure is applied to prevent deformation of the valve body. Steel balls (steel balls) are used for the parts that do not hang up. The assembly of the valve body, that is, the supply of the resin balls and the steel balls has come to be automatically performed by using a ball supply device. Therefore, it is necessary to distinguish between resin balls and steel balls and to selectively supply resin balls and steel balls to the valve body automatically and with a device having a simple structure.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and provides a ball supply device which can reliably perform the selective supply of resin balls and steel balls from the discrimination between resin balls and steel balls by a small detection means. With the goal.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION To achieve the above object, the structure of the present invention is a ball supply device for supplying conductive balls and non-conductive balls to the same supply position, in which the conductive balls are carried in. A conductor ball conveying unit that conveys the carried-in conductor balls to a conductor-ball supplying unit, and a non-conveyor unit that conveys the non-conductor balls into the non-conductor-ball supplying unit. A conductor ball transfer unit, a conductor ball detection device provided in the conductor ball transfer unit for energizing the conductor ball being transferred to detect the presence or absence of the conductor ball, and the conductor ball supply unit. A ball moving part that selectively conveys the supplied conductive balls and the non-conductive ball supplied to the non-conductive ball supplying part to the same supply position; and a ball moving part provided on the ball moving part. Characterized by comprising the ball detector for detecting whether the conductor balls or the non-conductive balls in Lumpur mobile unit is present.

Further, the conductor-made ball carrying section is provided with an introduction section into which the conductor-made balls are introduced, a discharge section for discharging the conductor-made balls to the conductor-made ball supply section, the introduction section and the discharge section. A moving part that reciprocates while holding one of the conductor balls, and a transport driving means that drives the moving part. The conductor ball detecting device is held by the moving part. It is a contact switch that determines the presence or absence of the conductor ball when the conductor ball is in contact with the conductor ball and energized to determine the conductor ball. Further, the ball moving portion of the present invention includes a position of the conductor ball supplied to the conductor ball supply portion, a position of the non-conductor ball supplied to the non-conductor ball supply portion, and the same position. The present invention is characterized by comprising a slide moving unit that reciprocates while holding one of the conductor balls or the non-conductor balls between the supply positions and a slide driving unit that drives the slide moving unit.
Further, the conductor ball and the non-conductor ball of the present invention are fitted in an oil passage formed in a valve body of an automatic transmission, and the conductor ball is fitted in the oil passage of a low pressure portion. The non-conductor ball is a resin ball fitted into the oil passage of the high-pressure portion.

The conductive balls carried into the conductive ball carrying section from the introducing section are carried from the discharging section to the conductive ball supplying section, and the non-conductive balls carried into the non-conductive ball carrying section are collected. It is conveyed to the non-conductor ball supply unit. In the conductor ball transport unit, the conductor ball is energized by the contact switch during transport by the moving unit, and when the conductor ball is in the energized state, it is determined to be a conductor ball and only the conductor ball is transported to the conductor ball supply unit. When a conductor ball and a non-conductor ball are supplied to the conductor ball supply unit and a non-conductor ball supply unit, one conductor ball or a non-conductor ball is held by the slide moving unit and conveyed to the supply position. It Whether a conductive ball or a non-conductive ball is held by the slide moving unit, it is conveyed to the same supply position. At this time, the ball detection device detects whether or not the ball is present in the ball moving portion.

[0007]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing the whole of a ball supply device according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG.
-II line arrow, FIG. 3 shows III-III line arrow in FIG. 2, and FIG. 4 shows IV-IV arrow in FIG. The illustrated embodiment is provided in an assembly facility for assembling a valve body of an automatic transmission, in which the conductive balls are steel balls fitted in the oil passages of the low pressure part, and the non-conductive balls are high pressure parts. It is a resin ball fitted in the oil passage. The valve body member is conveyed to the ball supply unit.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the ball supply device 1 has a carrying section 6 in which a steel ball 2 is carried into a hopper 3 as an introduction section and a resin ball 4 is carried into a hopper 5, and a carrying section 6. The steel ball 2 and the resin ball 4 are conveyed from the portion 6 and are configured by a supply portion 9 that supplies the steel ball 2 or the resin ball 4 to the valve body 8 from the same supply port 7. The transport unit 6 is a frame 1
It is fixed to 0, and is provided with a steel ball transfer section 11 as a conductive ball transfer section and a resin ball transfer section 12 as a non-conductive ball transfer section.

The transport section 6 will be described with reference to FIGS. The transport unit 6 includes a steel ball transport unit 11 and a resin ball transport unit 12, and the steel ball transport unit 11
The steel balls 2 carried to the feeding section 9 are sent to the supply section 9 through the passage 13, and the resin balls 4 carried to the resin ball carrying section 12 are sent to the supply section 9 through the passage 14. A shutter 15 is provided at the tip of the passages 13 and 14.
The shutter 15 is opened and closed by driving the cylinder 16.

The steel ball transfer unit 11 will be described. As shown in FIG. 3, a main body 17 is fixed to the frame 10 side, and the main body 17 is composed of parallel plate members 18 and 19. The plate member 19 on the lower surface side of the main body 17 has a discharge portion connected to the base end of the passage 13. The discharge port 20 is formed.
In addition, an inlet 21 as an inlet is formed in the plate member 18 on the upper surface side of the main body 17, and the inlet 21 is vertically different in position from the outlet 20 and communicates with the hopper 3 via the pipe 22. There is. A slide plate 23 as a moving unit is provided between the plate members 18 and 19, and the slide plate 23 is reciprocally driven by a cylinder 24 as a conveyance drive unit. A holding portion 25 for holding one steel ball 2 is formed on the slide plate 23, and the holding portion 25 moves between the introduction port 21 and the discharge port 20 by the reciprocating movement of the slide plate 23. That is, the steel balls 2 are introduced into the holding portion 25 when the slide plate 23 in which the holding portion 25 coincides with the position of the introduction port 21 is moved, and the steel balls 2 are moved in the steel plate when the slide plate 23 in which the holding portion 25 coincides with the position of the discharge port 20 moves. The ball 2 is discharged from the discharge port 20 into the passage 13.

A contact switch 28 as a conductor ball detecting device is attached to an end portion of the plate member 19 on the lower surface side of the main body 17 through an insulating plate 26 and a mounting plate 27, and the contact switch 28 directly attaches to the steel ball 2. A detection wire 29 that comes into contact is provided. The position where the detection wire 29 comes into contact with the steel ball 2 is while the steel ball 2 is held by the holding portion 25 and moves between the introduction port 21 and the discharge port 20. When the detection wire 29 comes into contact with the steel ball 2, the power is turned on and the contact switch 28 is turned on to determine the presence of the steel ball 2. If the resin ball 4 is erroneously held by the holding portion 25, even if the detection wire 29 comes into contact with the holding portion 25, it does not become conductive, and even if the steel ball 2 is not introduced into the holding portion 25, it does not become conductive. The contact switch 28 remains off. Therefore, when the resin ball 4 is mistakenly mixed into the steel ball 2 or when the steel ball 2 is not introduced into the holding portion 25, the presence or absence of the steel ball 2 can be determined by the contact switch 28.
Since the contact switch 28 detects the correct state in which the steel ball 2 exists when it is turned on, even if the contact switch 28 itself is damaged, it does not detect the correct state in which the steel ball 2 exists.

The operation of the steel ball transfer section 11 will be described. A large number of steel balls 2 are supplied to the hopper 3,
The steel balls 2 are sent through the pipe 22 to the introduction port 21 in a single column. The slide plate 23 is moved by the drive of the cylinder 24 so that the position of the holding portion 25 is the inlet 21.
When it coincides with the position of, the lowermost steel ball 2 is held by the holding portion 25. The holding of the object in the holding unit 25 is detected by a sensor (not shown). When the cylinder 24 is driven, the slide plate 23 moves and the holding portion 2
The steel ball 2 held by the nozzle 5 is on the discharge port 20 side (see FIG.
It is sent to the center left side). During this process, the detection wire 29 of the contact switch 28 comes into contact with the steel ball 2 to be in the energized state, and it is determined that the steel ball 2 is the steel ball 2.
When the position of the holding part 25 of the slide plate 23 coincides with the position of the discharge port 20, the steel ball 2 held by the holding part 25 is discharged from the discharge port 20 to the passage 13. By returning the slide plate 23 to the original position so that the position of the holding portion 25 coincides with the position of the introduction port 21, the lowermost steel ball 2
Are held by the holding unit 25. By repeating the above, the steel balls 2 can be continuously conveyed to the passage 13. When the resin balls 4 get mixed in the middle,
When the steel ball 2 is not held in the holding portion 25, the contact switch 28 does not enter the energized state even if the detection wire 29 comes into contact, the slide plate 23 stops moving, and is not conveyed to the passage 13.

Next, the resin ball transfer section 12 will be described.
As shown in FIG. 4, a main body 31 is fixed to the frame 10 side, and the main body 31 is composed of parallel plate members 32 and 33. The plate member 33 on the lower surface side of the main body 31 has a discharge port connected to the base end of the passage 14. 34 is formed. Also, the main body 31
An inlet port 35 is formed in the plate member 32 on the upper surface side of the pipe 3, and the inlet port 35 is vertically different in position from the outlet port 34.
It communicates with the hopper 5 via 6. A slide plate 37 is provided between the plate members 32 and 33, and the slide plate 37 is reciprocally driven by a dual cylinder 38. A holding portion 39 that holds one resin ball 4 is formed on the slide plate 37, and the holding portion 39 moves between the introduction port 35 and the discharge port 34 by the reciprocating movement of the slide plate 37. That is, the resin balls 4 are introduced into the holding portion 39 when the slide plate 37 is moved such that the holding portion 39 matches the position of the introduction port 35, and the holding portion 3
The resin balls 4 are discharged from the discharge port 34 to the passage 14 when the slide plate 37 in which 9 corresponds to the position of the discharge port 34 is moved. A proximity switch 40 is attached to the plate member 33 on the upper surface side, and the proximity switch 40 is arranged between the introduction port 35 and the discharge port 34. Slide plate 3 by proximity switch 40
The resin balls 4 held by the holder 39 of No. 7 are detected.

The operation of the resin ball transfer section 12 will be described.
A large number of resin balls 4 are supplied to the hopper 5, and the resin balls 4 are sent through the pipe 36 to the inlet port 35 in a single vertical line. When the slide plate 37 moves due to the driving of the dual cylinder 38 and the position of the holding portion 39 coincides with the position of the introduction port 35, the lowermost resin ball 4 is held by the holding portion 39. The holding of the object in the holding unit 39 is detected by a sensor (not shown). The slide plate 37 is moved by the driving of the dual cylinder 38, and the holding portion 3 is moved.
The resin ball 4 held by 9 is sent to the discharge port 34 side (left side in FIG. 4). During this process, the slide plate 37 stops at the position where the resin ball 4 coincides with the proximity switch 40, and the resin ball 4 is detected by the proximity switch 40. When it is determined that the resin ball 4 is present, the slide plate 37 is further moved, and when the position of the holding portion 39 coincides with the position of the discharge port 34, the resin ball 4 held by the holding portion 39 is discharged. Is paid out to the passage 14. Slide plate 3
7 is returned to the original position so that the position of the holding portion 39 coincides with the position of the introduction port 35, so that the lowermost resin ball 4 is held by the holding portion 39 again. By repeating the above, the resin balls 4 can be continuously conveyed to the passage 14.

The supply unit 9 will be described with reference to FIGS. The supply unit 9 supplies the steel balls 2 carried in through the passage 13 or the resin balls 4 carried in through the passage 14 to the valve body 8 from one and the same supply port 7. The supply unit 9 has a portion (reception position) held by the robot 41 to receive the steel balls 2 and the resin balls 4, and a position (supply position) for supplying the steel balls 2 or the resin balls 4 from the supply port 7 to the valve body 8. It is designed to move between. The illustrated state is a state in which the supply unit 9 is arranged at a receiving position for receiving the steel balls 2 and the resin balls 4.

A main body 44 is movably supported on a base 42 held by the robot 41 via a cylinder 43, and the main body 44 is composed of parallel plate members 45 and 46. The steel ball 2 is attached to the plate member 45 on the upper surface side of the main body 44.
An introduction port 47 for resin and an introduction port 48 for the resin ball 4 are formed, a lower end of a steel ball introduction pipe 49 is provided at the introduction port 47, and a lower end of a resin ball introduction pipe 50 is provided at the introduction port 48. There is. In the state where the supply unit 9 is arranged at the receiving position (state shown in the drawing), the upper end of the steel ball introducing pipe 49 is positioned at the lower end of the passage 13,
The upper end of the resin ball introducing pipe 50 is positioned at the lower end of the passage 14. That is, by opening the shutter 15 described above when the supply unit 9 is placed in the receiving position, the passage 13
The steel ball 2 is loaded into the steel ball introducing pipe 49, and the resin ball 4 in the passage 14 is loaded into the resin ball introducing pipe 50.

The plate member 46 on the lower surface side of the main body 44 is provided with a supply port 7 which is the same supply port, and the position of the supply port 7 is an intermediate position between the introduction ports 47 and 48. Plate material 45,
A moving slide plate 5 serving as a slide moving unit is provided between 46.
2 is provided, and the movable slide plate 52 is reciprocally driven by a cylinder 53 as a slide drive means. A holding portion 54 that holds one steel ball 2 or one resin ball 4 is formed on the slide plate 52.
Move between. That is, the steel ball 2 is introduced into the holding portion 54 when the holding portion 54 moves in the same position as the introduction port 47, and the resin ball moves when the holding portion 54 moves in the sliding plate 52 that matches the introduction port 47 position. Ball 4
Is introduced into the holding portion 54, and the holding portion 54 is further connected to the supply port 7
The steel ball 2 or the resin ball 4 is supplied from the supply port 51 to the valve body 8 when the slide plate 52 corresponding to the position of is moved. In addition, the illustrated state shows a state in which the holding portion 54 is aligned with the position of the introduction port 47.

A groove 55 extending along the moving direction (left and right direction in FIG. 1) is formed in the slide plate 52, and a pair of sensors 56 as a ball detecting device for transmitting and receiving a signal through the groove 55 are provided in the main body 44. Has been. When a signal is transmitted and received between the pair of sensors 56, it is detected that the steel ball 2 or the resin ball 4 does not exist in the holding portion 54 of the slide plate 52, and only the signal is transmitted by the pair of sensors 56. In this case, it is detected that the steel balls 2 or the resin balls 4 are present in the holding portion 54 of the slide plate 52.

The operation of the supply unit 9 will be described. The robot 41 moves the supply unit 9 to the receiving position with the holding unit 54 in the moving position of the slide plate 52 that matches the position of the supply port 7, and the upper end of the steel ball introducing pipe 49 is positioned at the lower end of the passage 13. The upper end of the resin ball introducing pipe 50 is positioned at the lower end of the passage 14. When the shutter 15 is opened by driving the cylinder 16 in this state, the steel balls 2 in the passage 13 are carried into the steel ball introducing pipe 49 in a vertical row, and the resin balls 4 in the passage 14 are inserted in the resin ball introducing pipe. It is carried in in 50 in a single column. At this time, the number of balls carried in is counted by a sensor (not shown). When a predetermined number of balls are carried into the steel ball introduction pipe 49 and the resin ball introduction pipe 50, the robot 41 causes the supply unit 9 to move.
Are moved to the feeding position.

At the supply position, the main body 44 is lowered to the position of the valve body 8 via the cylinder 43, and the main body 44 is moved relative to the valve body 8 by a positioning member (not shown).
Are positioned at predetermined positions. That is, the supply port 7 of the main body 44 is positioned so as to face a predetermined portion of the oil passage of the valve body 8.

When supplying the steel balls 2 to the oil passage,
By moving the slide plate 52 by the cylinder 53 such that the position of the holding portion 54 coincides with the introduction port 47, the steel ball 2 at the lowermost stage of the steel ball introducing pipe 49 is held by the holding portion 54. When it is confirmed by the pair of sensors 56 that the steel ball 2 is held by the holding portion 54, the slide plate 52 is moved by driving the cylinder 53 so that the position of the holding portion 54 coincides with the supply port 7. When the position of the holding portion 54 coincides with the supply port 7, the steel ball 2 held by the holding portion 54 moves the valve body 8
Is supplied to a predetermined portion of the oil passage. By returning the slide plate 52 to match the position of the holding portion 54 with the position of the supply port 7, the lowermost steel ball 2 is held by the holding portion 54 again. By repeating the above, the steel balls 2 can be continuously supplied to a predetermined portion of the oil passage of the valve body 8.

When the resin ball 4 is supplied to the oil passage, the slide plate 52 is moved by the cylinder 53 so that the position of the holding portion 54 is aligned with the introduction port 48, so that the resin ball introduction pipe 50 is at the lowermost stage. The resin ball 4 is held by the holding portion 54. The holding portion 5 by the pair of sensors 56
When it is confirmed that the resin balls 4 are held by the slider 4, the slide plate 52 is moved by driving the cylinder 53 so that the position of the holder 54 is aligned with the supply port 7. Holding part 5
When the position of 4 coincides with the supply port 7, the resin ball 4 held by the holding portion 54 is supplied to a predetermined portion of the oil passage of the valve body 8. By returning the slide plate 52 to match the position of the holding portion 54 with the position of the supply port 7, the resin ball 4 in the lowermost stage is held by the holding portion 54 again. By repeating the above, the resin balls 4 are continuously connected to the valve body 8
Can be supplied to a predetermined portion of the oil passage.

By moving the slide plate 52 so that the positions of the holding portions 54 are alternately aligned with the introduction ports 47 and 48, the steel ball 2 at the bottom of the steel ball introduction pipe 49 and the resin ball introduction pipe 50. It is possible to alternately feed the resin balls 4 at the lowermost stage to the supply port 7 and alternately feed the steel balls 2 and the resin balls 4 to a predetermined portion of the oil passage of the valve body 8.

Therefore, in the above-mentioned ball supply device, the steel balls 2 carried into the steel ball carrying section 11 are loaded.
Is detected by the contact switch 28 and is conveyed to the steel ball introducing pipe 49, and at the same time, the resin balls 4 carried into the resin ball carrying section 12 are carried to the resin ball introducing pipe 50. Then, when the steel balls 2 are supplied to the steel ball introducing pipe 49 and the resin balls 4 are supplied to the resin ball introducing pipe 50, the steel balls 2 or the resin balls 4 are moved by the movement of the moving slide plate 52 so that the holding portions 54 are formed. One of the steel balls 2 or the resin balls 4 is supplied to a predetermined portion of the oil passage of the valve body 8 after being held by the steel ball 2 or the resin ball 4. As a result, the steel balls 2 can be discriminated in a short time with a small number of sensors, and the steel balls 2 or the resin balls 4 can be supplied to the valve body 8 in a state in which malfunctions are small.

Therefore, discrimination between the resin balls 4 and the steel balls 2 and the selective supply of the resin balls 4 and the steel balls 2 to the valve body 8 can be performed automatically and with a device having a simple structure. The resin balls 4 and the steel balls 2 can be mounted securely and easily when the valve body 8 is assembled.

[0026]

According to the ball supply device of the present invention, the conductive balls carried into the conductive ball transfer section are discriminated by the contact switch to be transferred to the conductive ball supply section and to the non-conductive ball transfer section. The carried non-conductor ball is conveyed to the non-conductor ball supply section, and one of the conductor balls or the non-conductor ball is held by the movement of the slide moving section and conveyed to the supply position to be the conductor ball or the non-conductor ball. Since the conductive balls are selectively supplied, it is possible to determine the conductive balls in a short time with a small number of sensors, and it is possible to supply the conductive balls or the non-conductive balls with few malfunctions. As a result, it is possible to distinguish between non-conductor balls and conductor balls and to selectively supply non-conductor balls and conductor balls automatically and with a simple device.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall view of a ball supply device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a view taken along the line II-II in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a view taken along line III-III in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a view taken along line IV-IV in FIG. 2;

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Ball Supply Device 2 Steel Ball 4 Resin Ball 6 Transfer Port 7 Supply Port 8 Valve Body 9 Supply Port 11 Steel Ball Transfer Port 12 Resin Ball Transfer Port 13,14 Passage 20,34 Discharge Port 21,35 Inlet Port 22,36 Pipe 23, 37 Slide plate 24 Cylinder 25, 39 Holding part 28 Contact switch 29 Detection wire 47, 48 Inlet port 49 Steel ball introducing pipe 50 Resin ball introducing pipe 52 Moving slide plate 53 Cylinder 54 Holding part 56 Sensor

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A ball supply device for supplying a conductive ball and a non-conductive ball to the same supply position, wherein a conductor ball is carried in and the carried conductor ball is carried to a conductor ball supply section. A non-conductive ball transfer section for transferring the non-conductive ball into the non-conductive ball transfer section for transferring the non-conductive ball into the non-conductive ball supply section. Conductor ball detector for energizing the conductor balls therein to detect the presence or absence of the conductor balls, and supplying to the conductor balls and the non-conductor ball supply section supplied to the conductor ball supply section And a non-conductive ball which is provided in the ball moving section and which moves the selected non-conductive ball selectively to the same supply position. And a ball detecting device for detecting whether or not the ball is present. 2. The conductor-made ball carrying section, an introduction section into which the conductor-made ball is introduced, a discharge section for discharging the conductor-made ball to the conductor-made ball supply section, the introduction section and the discharge section. A moving part that reciprocates while holding one of the conductor balls, and a transport driving means that drives the moving part. The conductor ball detecting device is held by the moving part. The ball supply device according to claim 1, wherein the contact switch is a contact switch that determines the presence or absence of the conductor ball when the conductor ball is in contact with the conductor ball and is energized. apparatus. 3. The ball moving section includes a position of the conductive ball supplied to the conductive ball supplying section, a position of the non-conductive ball supplied to the non-conductive ball supplying section, and the same position. 2. A slide moving unit that reciprocates while holding one conductor ball or one non-conductor ball between supply positions and a slide driving unit that drives the slide moving unit. The ball supply device according to. 4. The conductor ball and the non-conductor ball are fitted in an oil passage formed in a valve body of an automatic transmission, and the conductor ball is fitted in the oil passage of a low pressure portion. 4. The steel ball according to claim 1, wherein the non-conductor ball is a resin ball fitted in the oil passage of the high-pressure portion. The ball supply device described.