Circulating cross roller guide

Abstract

This invention discloses a circulating cross roller slide rail, comprising a slider body, two circulators, a plurality of rollers, and a roller retainer. The slider body has roller guide grooves on its inner surface and roller guide holes inside. Circulators are assembled at both ends, each having a rotational channel that engages with the roller guide grooves and roller guide holes. The rollers are arranged in a cross-shaped configuration with adjacent axes perpendicular to each other, forming a circulating rolling path along the roller guide grooves, roller guide holes, and rotational channels. The roller retainer is located on the inner surface of the slider body and has an opening groove, causing the outer circumferential surface of the rollers to protrude. This allows the slider body to slide on a linear slide rail during use, achieving effects such as extending the slide rail travel, improving sliding smoothness, and preventing rollers from falling off.

Description

Circulating cross roller guide Technical Field

[0001] This work relates to the technical field of roller guides, specifically a circulating cross roller guide that can be used in equipment in various industries such as machinery, optoelectronics, and semiconductors, enabling rollers to circulate continuously. Prior Technology

[0002] A conventional cross-roller slide rail structure, such as TWM575483U, has two tracks. Each track has two opposing grooves on one side and a V-shaped raceway between these grooves. A retainer with multiple retaining grooves accommodates a roller, the outer circumferential surface of which abuts against the V-shaped raceway of the two tracks. Furthermore, each retaining groove has a protrusion on its two opposing end walls, which abuts against the two opposing end faces of a roller and aligns one-to-one with the grooves of the two tracks. This allows one track to slide relative to the other via the rollers.

[0003] However, the conventional cross-roller slide rails mentioned above lack a design for cyclic rolling of the rollers. These rollers are only confined to the retainer's groove, rolling a limited distance. When the sliding stroke reaches a certain distance, the rollers cannot continue to advance, thus limiting the effective stroke of the slide rail and failing to meet the requirements of long-stroke movement. Furthermore, because the rollers cannot form a cyclic return path, repeated reciprocating motion easily leads to localized stress concentration, causing uneven wear between the rollers and raceways, which in turn affects sliding smoothness, load-bearing stability, and overall service life. Moreover, the retainer only functions to position the rollers and cannot effectively cooperate with the cyclic structure to improve motion efficiency. Therefore, in high-precision, high-load, and long-stroke applications, there are still significant limitations, and further improvements are necessary. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The main purpose of this invention is to provide a circulating cross roller slide rail. Through structural improvements to the slider body, and the design of having circulators at both ends and roller retainers on the inner side, most rollers can form a circulating rolling path along the roller guide grooves, roller guide holes and the rotation grooves of the circulators of the slider body. This achieves the purpose of extending the effective stroke of the slide rail, improving the smoothness of sliding and the stability of movement, and can prevent the rollers from losing their positioning during movement.

[0005] The primary objective of this invention is to provide a circulating cross roller guide rail, which, through a combination of a circulator, a roller retainer, and a retainer limiting plate, achieves the goals of easy assembly and prevention of roller detachment.

[0006] To achieve the above objectives, this invention proposes a circulating cross roller guide rail. A preferred embodiment includes a slider body, two circulators, a plurality of rollers, and a roller retainer. Specifically: a roller guide groove is recessed on an inner side of the slider body, extending to both ends of the slider body; a roller guide hole is provided in the slider body, extending to both ends of the slider body. The two circulators are assembled at both ends of the slider body, each circulator having a rotation channel engaging with the roller guide groove and the roller guide hole. The rollers are arranged in a cross configuration with their axes perpendicular to each other, and are inserted into the roller guide groove and roller guide hole of the slider body and the rotation channel in the two circulators, forming a circulating rolling path through the roller guide groove, the roller guide hole, and the rotation channel. The roller retainer is assembled on the inner side of the slider body and has an opening groove corresponding to the roller guide groove; wherein, the outer peripheral surface of each roller in the roller guide groove protrudes from the inner surface of the roller retainer through the opening groove.

[0007] One of the preferred technical solutions is that, in the aforementioned circulating cross roller slide rail, the slider body is a rectangular metal block, the roller guide groove is a V-shaped groove, and the roller guide hole is a diamond-shaped hole.

[0008] One of the preferred technical solutions is that, in the aforementioned circulating cross roller slide rail, the circulator's rotation channel is a diamond-shaped channel.

[0009] One preferred technical solution is that, in the aforementioned circulating cross roller slide rail, the circulator includes an upper circulator and a lower circulator stacked together, and a circulating column fitted into the inner ends of the upper and lower circulators; the inner ends of the upper and lower circulators are respectively provided with a recessed groove, and the inner ends of the upper and lower circulators are respectively provided with a semi-circular inclined groove, so that the semi-circular inclined grooves of the upper and lower circulators merge into a first V-shaped groove; the outer circumferential surface of the circulating column is provided with a semi-circular second V-shaped groove, and each end of the circulating column has a fitting column; during assembly, the fitting columns are respectively fitted into the recesses of the upper and lower circulators, and the second V-shaped groove and the first V-shaped groove merge into the rotary channel.

[0010] One of the preferred technical solutions is that, in the above-mentioned circulating cross roller slide rail, the upper circulator, the lower circulator, and the fitting column are each provided with a screw through hole, and a screw is passed through the screw through hole of the upper circulator, the lower circulator, and the screw through hole of the circulating column, and then screwed into a screw hole at both ends of the slider body.

[0011] One of the preferred technical solutions is that, in the aforementioned circulating cross roller guide rail, the rollers are cylindrical rollers.

[0012] One of the preferred technical solutions is that, in the aforementioned circulating cross roller slide rail, the roller retainer consists of two separate retaining plates, which are respectively assembled on the inner side of the slider body, and the opening groove is formed between the two retaining plates.

[0013] One of the preferred technical solutions is that the aforementioned circulating cross roller slide rail further includes several retainer limiting pieces, with one end of each retainer limiting piece fitted into the retainer and the other end fitted into the circulator.

[0014] One of the preferred technical solutions is that, in the above-mentioned circulating cross roller slide rail, the retaining plate and the inner surface of the circulator are respectively provided with a limiting plate groove, and the retaining plate limiting plate is respectively fitted into the limiting plate groove.

[0015] One of the preferred technical solutions is that, in the aforementioned circulating cross roller slide rail, the top, bottom, or outer surface of the slider body is provided with several fixing holes.

[0016] This invention relates to a circulating cross roller guide rail. The slider body incorporates roller guide grooves and roller guide holes, with circulators at both ends forming a complete rotation channel. This allows multiple cross-arranged cylindrical rollers to circulate along a predetermined path, overcoming the limitation of limited travel in conventional guide rails, extending the effective travel distance, and improving smoothness, stability, and load-bearing capacity during sliding. Combined with roller retainers and retainer limiters, this invention effectively maintains roller positioning, preventing rollers from falling off during movement, and improves assembly convenience, structural reliability, and overall service life. It is particularly suitable for high-precision, high-load, and long-stroke guide rail applications. Simple Explanation of the Diagram

[0017] [Figure 1] is an exploded view of the circulating cross roller guide and linear guide of this invention. [Figure 2] is an exploded view of the circulating cross roller guide rail of this invention. [Figure 3] is a top view of the circulating cross roller guide rail of this invention. [Figure 4] is a side view of the circulating cross roller slide rail of this invention. [Figure 5] is a schematic diagram of the longitudinal cross section combination of the circulating cross roller guide and the linear guide in this invention. [Figure 6] is a schematic diagram of the transverse cross section combination of the circulating cross roller guide and the linear guide of this invention. Implementation

[0018] Referring to Figure 1, this invention provides a reciprocating cross roller slide rail, which is used in conjunction with a linear slide rail 100, allowing the reciprocating cross roller slide rail to move back and forth along the linear slide rail 100. A preferred embodiment includes a slider body 10, two circulators 20, a plurality of rollers 30, and a roller retainer 40, wherein:

[0019] Referring to Figure 2, a roller guide groove 11 is recessed on one inner side of the slider body 10, extending to both ends of the slider body 10; a roller guide hole 12 is provided inside the slider body 10, also extending to both ends of the slider body 10. Preferably, the slider body 10 is a rectangular metal block, the roller guide groove 11 is preferably a V-shaped groove, and the roller guide hole 12 is preferably a diamond-shaped hole. Additionally, the top, bottom, or outer surface of the slider body 10 is provided with several fixing holes 13 for fixing other objects to the slider body 10, facilitating the assembly and use of the support platform, mechanism body, or other moving devices and equipment.

[0020] Referring to Figures 1 to 3, the two circulators 20 are respectively assembled at both ends of the slider body 10. Each circulator 20 has a rotary channel 21 that aligns with the roller guide groove 11 and the roller guide hole 12, allowing the roller 30 to form a closed circulation path within the slider body 10. Preferably, the rotary channel 21 is a semi-circular channel with a rhomboid cross-section, which facilitates the smooth turning and continuous circulation of the roller 30 between the roller guide groove 11 and the roller guide hole 12, preventing jamming.

[0021] Referring to Figure 2, the rollers 30 are preferably cylindrical rollers. Each roller 30 is arranged in a cross-shaped manner with the axes of adjacent rollers 30 perpendicular to each other, and is respectively placed in the roller guide groove 11, roller guide hole 12 and the rotation channel 21 of the two circulators 20 (as shown in Figure 6) to form a circulating rolling path formed by the roller guide groove 11, the roller guide hole 12 and the rotation channel 21.

[0022] Referring to Figures 2 and 4, the roller retainer 40 is assembled on the inner side of the slider body 10 and has an opening slot 41 corresponding to the roller guide groove 11, so that the outer peripheral surface of each roller 30 rolling into the roller guide groove 11 protrudes from the inner surface of the roller retainer 40 through the opening slot 41 (as shown in Figure 3), and its protruding outer peripheral surface can be used to roll on the track of the linear slide rail 100 (as shown in Figures 5 and 6).

[0023] Referring to Figures 5 and 6, in use, the slider body 10 is positioned on the linear slide rail 100, allowing it to move along the linear slide rail 100. Because the slider body 10 contains roller guide grooves 11 and roller guide holes 12, and circulators 20 are positioned at both ends to form a complete rotary channel 21, the cross-arranged rollers 30 can circulate along a predetermined circulation path. Therefore, this invention overcomes the limitation of conventional slide rail travel and significantly extends the travel of the cross-roller slide rail.

[0024] Referring again to Figure 2, a preferred embodiment of each circulator 20 includes: an upper circulator 22 and a lower circulator 23 stacked together, and a circulation post 24 fitted between the inner ends of the upper circulator 22 and the lower circulator 23. The inner ends of the upper circulator 22 and the lower circulator 23 are respectively provided with recessed grooves 221 and 231. These grooves 221 and 231 can be semi-circular grooves or other shapes, and their overlapping inner ends respectively form symmetrical semi-circular inclined grooves 222 and 232, so that after the upper circulator 22 and the lower circulator 23 are stacked, their semi-circular inclined grooves 222 and 232 together form a first V-shaped groove 25. The outer circumferential surface of the circulation post 24 is provided with a semi-circular second V-shaped groove 26, and its two ends respectively form a fitting post 241, which can be a semi-cylindrical shape or other shapes. During assembly, the fitting posts 241 of the circulation post 24 are respectively fitted into the grooves 221 and 231 of the upper circulator 22 and the lower circulator 23, so that the second V-groove 26 and the first V-groove 25 together form the rotary channel 21 (diamond channel). Therefore, a circulator 20 can be formed to allow the rollers 30 to circulate between the roller guide groove 11 and the roller guide hole 12, so that the rollers 30 can smoothly turn and circulate at the end. It should also be noted that the upper circulator 22 and the lower circulator 23 can also be implemented as an integral structure, without being divided into two separate components, and can still be fitted with the circulation post 24 to form the circulator 20.

[0025] Referring again to Figures 1 and 2, the upper circulator 22, the lower circulator 23, and the circulation column 24 are respectively provided with screw holes 223, 233, and 242. During assembly, a screw 50 is sequentially passed through the screw holes 223 and 233 of the upper circulator 22 and the lower circulator 23, and the screw hole 242 of the circulation column 24, and then screwed into the screw holes 14 provided at both ends of the slider body 10, so that the two circulators 20 are firmly fixed to both ends of the slider body 10, thereby improving the overall structural strength and assembly stability.

[0026] Referring again to Figures 2 and 4, the roller retainer 40 of this invention can be two separately arranged retaining plates 42. The two retaining plates 42 are respectively assembled on the inner side of the slider body 10, and the aforementioned opening groove 41 is formed between the two retaining plates 42. However, it should be noted that the two retaining plates 42 can also be combined into one retaining plate with the opening groove 41 in the middle. Therefore, there is no limitation on the number of plates in the roller retainer 40.

[0027] Furthermore, in order to secure the two retaining pieces 42, one preferred embodiment of this invention further includes a plurality of retainer limiting pieces 60, one end of each retainer limiting piece 60 being fitted into the retaining piece 42 and the other end being fitted into the circulator 20. More specifically, the inner surfaces of the retaining piece 42 and the circulator 20 are respectively provided with limiting piece grooves 43 and 27, and both ends of the retainer limiting piece 60 are respectively fitted into the limiting piece grooves 43 and 27 to further restrict the position of the retaining piece 42, prevent the retaining piece 42 from loosening or shifting during use, and improve the reliability of the overall structure.

[0028] This invention has been disclosed above with reference to preferred embodiments. However, those skilled in the art should understand that these embodiments are merely illustrative and should not be construed as limiting the scope of this invention. It should be noted that all variations and substitutions equivalent to these embodiments should be considered within the scope of this invention. Therefore, the scope of protection of this invention shall be determined by the claims.

[0029] 100: Linear guide rail 10: Slider body 11: Roller guide groove 12: Roller guide hole 13: Fixing hole 14: Screw hole 20: Circulator 21: Rotary Aisle 22: Upper Circulator 221: Groove 222: Semicircular inclined groove 223: Screw through hole 23: Lower Circulator 231: Groove 232: Semicircular inclined groove 233: Screw through hole 24: Circulation column 241:Chimeric column 242: Screw through hole 25: First V-groove 26: Second V-groove 27: Limiting plate groove 30: Roller 40: Roller retainer 41: Opening groove 42: Hold tablets 43: Limiting plate groove 50: Screws 60: Retainer limit plate

Claims

1. A circulating cross roller guide rail, comprising a slider body, two circulators, a plurality of rollers, and a roller retainer, wherein: The slider body has a roller guide groove recessed on one inner side, which extends to both ends of the slider body; the slider body has a roller guide hole extending to both ends of the slider body; two circulators are assembled at both ends of the slider body, each circulator having a rotation channel that engages with the roller guide groove and the roller guide hole; the rollers are arranged in a cross-shaped manner with their axes perpendicular to each other, and are placed in the roller guide groove and roller guide hole of the slider body and the rotation channel in the two circulators, forming a circulating rolling path through the roller guide groove, the roller guide hole and the rotation channel; a roller retainer is assembled on the inner side of the slider body and has an opening slot corresponding to the roller guide groove; wherein, the outer peripheral surface of each roller in the roller guide groove protrudes from the inner surface of the roller retainer through the opening slot.

2. The circulating cross roller slide rail as described in claim 1, wherein the slider body is a rectangular metal block, the roller guide groove is a V-shaped groove, and the roller guide hole is a diamond-shaped hole.

3. The circulating cross roller guide rail as described in claim 1, wherein the circulator's rotation channel is a diamond-shaped channel.

4. The circulating cross roller slide rail as described in claim 1 or 3, wherein the circulator includes an upper circulator and a lower circulator stacked together, and a circulating column fitted into the inner ends of the upper circulator and the lower circulator; the inner ends of the upper circulator and the lower circulator are respectively provided with a recessed groove, and the inner ends of the upper circulator and the lower circulator are respectively provided with a semi-circular inclined groove, so that the semi-circular inclined grooves of the upper circulator and the lower circulator merge into a first V-shaped groove; the outer circumferential surface of the circulating column is provided with a semi-circular second V-shaped groove, and the two ends of the circulating column are respectively provided with a fitting column; during assembly, the fitting column is respectively fitted into the recessed grooves of the upper circulator and the lower circulator, and the second V-shaped groove and the first V-shaped groove merge into the rotary channel.

5. The circulating cross roller slide rail as described in claim 4, wherein the upper circulator, the lower circulator and the fitting post are each provided with a screw through hole, and a screw passes through the screw through hole of the upper circulator and the lower circulator and the screw through hole of the fitting post, and is then screwed into a screw hole at both ends of the slider body.

6. The circulating cross roller guide rail as described in claim 1, wherein the rollers are cylindrical rollers.

7. The circulating cross roller slide rail as claimed in claim 1, wherein the roller retainer consists of two separate retaining plates, which are respectively assembled on the inner side of the slide body, and the opening groove is formed between the two retaining plates.

8. The circulating cross roller guide rail as claimed in claim 7 further includes a plurality of retainer limiting pieces, one end of each retainer limiting piece being fitted into the retainer and the other end being fitted into the circulator.

9. The circulating cross roller slide rail as claimed in claim 8, wherein the retainer plate and the inner surface of the circulator are respectively provided with a limiting plate groove, and the retainer limiting plate is respectively fitted into the limiting plate groove.

10. The circulating cross roller slide rail as claimed in claim 1, wherein the top, bottom, or outer surface of the slider body is provided with a plurality of fixing holes.

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