Handling robot

Abstract

A new type of handling robot, comprising a workbench and a conveying mechanism located below the workbench. The workbench has at least one handling channel extending in the front-rear direction, and a plurality of station slots for placing articles are evenly distributed on the upper part of the handling channel. The conveying mechanism includes a handling rack located below the workbench and a handling rack driving device for controlling the lifting, rearward movement, lowering, and forward movement and reset of the handling rack. A plurality of material handling suction cups are evenly fixed upward along the corresponding handling channel direction on the handling rack. When the handling rack rises, the material handling suction cups extend out of the corresponding station slots and then move rearward. After reaching the next station slot, they descend and then move forward and reset. The overall body is small and compact, similar to a conveyor belt, but compared with the conveyor belt, it can accurately control the position of the articles, facilitating the processing of the articles. Moreover, multiple handling robots can form a handling line, and the handling strokes between the handling robots do not affect each other.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a handling robot. Background Art

[0002] Automated handling robots are commonly used in machining and mechanical production processes for item transportation or transfer. For example, in the automatic assembly device for cylindrical lithium-ion battery caps disclosed in Patent Publication No. CN110253142A, the automated handling robot uses a circular conveyor belt to achieve the transfer and assembly of cap components. Multiple workstations are evenly distributed on the circular conveyor belt, and a servo motor and indexing plate are used to drive the entire circular conveyor belt to index and move. Therefore, the spacing between each adjacent two workstations meets the working space required by the largest volume functional mechanism, resulting in a relatively large space occupied by the entire automated handling robot. Summary of the Invention

[0003] The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a handling robot.

[0004] To solve the above technical problem, the technical solution adopted by the present invention is: a handling robot, including a workbench and a conveying mechanism located below the workbench. The workbench has at least one handling channel extending in the front-rear direction, and a plurality of workstations for placing items are evenly distributed on the upper part of the handling channel. The conveying mechanism includes a handling rack located below the workbench and a handling rack driving device for controlling the lifting, rearward movement, lowering, and forward movement and reset of the handling rack. A plurality of material handling suction cups are evenly fixed upward along the corresponding handling channel direction on the handling rack. When the handling rack rises, the material handling suction cups extend out of the corresponding workstations and then move rearward. After reaching the next workstation, they descend and then move forward to reset.

[0005] In some embodiments, the handling rack driving device includes a conveying base frame fixed to the base frame, an intermediate frame slidably disposed on the conveying base frame in the vertical direction, and the handling rack slidably disposed on the intermediate frame in the front-rear horizontal direction. An up-down driving mechanism is provided between the intermediate frame and the conveying base frame, and a front-rear driving mechanism is provided between the handling rack and the intermediate frame.

[0006] In some embodiments, the up-down driving mechanism includes a cam pivotally connected to the conveying base frame under the control of an up-down driving motor and a roller pivotally connected to the intermediate frame. The outer contour of the roller is always in contact with the outer contour of the cam. The front-rear driving mechanism includes a lead screw disposed on the intermediate frame and a front-rear driving motor for driving the lead screw, and the handling rack is connected to the lead screw.

[0007] In some embodiments, a conveying pressing plate is slidably arranged on the workbench in the front-back direction. The conveying pressing plate is connected to the handling rack through an up-down telescopic mechanism. A plurality of pressing covers are fixedly arranged downward on the conveying pressing plate corresponding to the station slots, and each pressing cover corresponds downward to a corresponding material handling suction cup.

[0008] In some embodiments, the left-right widths of the material handling suction cup and the handling channel are respectively smaller than the left-right width of the station slot.

[0009] In some embodiments, there are four handling channels.

[0010] In some embodiments, an article detection device for detecting the presence or absence of an article is provided on the workbench.

[0011] Due to the application of the above technical solutions, the present invention has the following advantages compared with the prior art: The present invention provides another handling robot. The workbench, its handling channel, and the position of the station slot are fixed. Each station slot can correspond to a processing procedure. By driving the handling rack and its material handling suction cup below the workbench to rise, move backward, descend, and move forward and reset, the articles in each station slot are synchronously moved backward by one station respectively, realizing the handling function. The overall shape is small and compact, similar to a conveyor belt, but compared with the conveyor belt, it can accurately control the position of the article, facilitating the processing of the article. Moreover, for multiple handling robots, they can form a handling line, and the handling strokes between the handling robots do not affect each other. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0012] The present invention will be further described below in conjunction with the drawings and embodiments:

[0013] Figure 1 It is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of a fully automatic integrated assembly device for lithium battery caps;

[0014] Figure 2 It is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of a handling robot with a conveying pressing plate;

[0015] Figure 3 It is an external shape schematic diagram of the conveying mechanism in the handling robot;

[0016] Figure 4 It is an internal structure schematic diagram of the conveying mechanism in the handling robot;

[0017] Figure 5 It is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of a handling robot without a conveying pressing plate;

[0018] Figure 6 It is an exploded schematic diagram of a handling robot with the workbench removed;

[0019] Figure 7 It is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of a handling manipulator;

[0020] Figure 8 It is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of a conveying device;

[0021] Figure 9 It is a top view schematic diagram of a fully automatic integrated assembly device for lithium battery caps;

[0022] Among them: 1. Base frame; 2. Handling robot; 21. Workbench; 211. Handling channel; 212. Station slot; 22. Conveying bottom frame; 221. Cam; 23. Intermediate frame; 231. Roller; 232. Lead screw; 24. Handling frame; 241. Material handling suction cup; 25. Conveying pressure plate; 3. Handling manipulator; 31. Flipping seat; 32. Flipping arm; 321. Tooth claw; 322. Material grasping suction cup; 4. Work auxiliary frame; U2. Second conveying device; U3. Third conveying device; U4. Fourth conveying device; U5. Fifth conveying device; U6. First welding mechanism; U7. Second welding mechanism; U9. Resistance inspection mechanism; U10. High NG conveying device; U11. Electrical NG conveying device; U12. Pressing device; 51. Conveying seat; 52. Rotating arm; 53. Material taking frame; 54. Material taking suction cup; 55. Lifting mechanism. Specific implementation method

[0023] A handling robot, as in this embodiment, is applied to a fully automatic integrated assembly device for lithium battery caps. Hereinafter, in combination with the functions and operations of the fully automatic integrated assembly device for lithium battery caps, the handling robot will be described in detail.

[0024] The fully automatic integrated assembly device for lithium battery caps, that is, for assembling and producing lithium battery caps, is composed of five components: an explosion-proof film, a top cover, a hole plate (aluminum sheet), a hole plate gasket, and a sealing ring. The assembly relationship of these five components is as follows: First, the hole plate gasket is placed on the bottom surface of the explosion-proof film, and the hole plate (aluminum sheet) is placed on the hole plate gasket and welded to the bottom surface of the explosion-proof film; Second, the top cover is welded and fixed on the top surface of the explosion-proof film; Third, the sealing ring is sleeved around the other four components and pressed and fixed together with these four components. It includes a base frame 1, a workbench arranged on the base frame 1, and also includes, arranged in sequence beside the workbench according to the assembly process: the third conveying device U3 for feeding the hole plate aluminum sheet assembly, the fourth conveying device U4 for feeding the hole plate gasket assembly, the first welding mechanism U6, the handling manipulator 3 for flipping the semi-finished product by 180°, the second conveying device U2 for feeding the top cover assembly, the second welding mechanism U7, the height inspection mechanism, the resistance inspection mechanism U9, the high NG conveying device U10 for transferring the semi-finished product with unqualified height, the electrical NG conveying device U11 for transferring the semi-finished product with unqualified resistance, the handling manipulator 3 for flipping the semi-finished product by 180° again, the fifth conveying device U5 for feeding the sealing ring assembly, and the pressing device U12 for buckling the semi-finished product and the components together. It also includes a program controller for controlling the sequential execution of each mechanism.

[0025] As shown in the appendix Figures 1-6 、 Figure 9, the working rack is composed of 5 handling robots 2, and the 5 handling robots 2 are linearly distributed along the front and back corresponding to each other end to end. As shown in the appendix Figure 1 、 9 、 Figure 10, between the first handling robot and the second handling robot, they are transitionally connected through a handling manipulator 3 and a working auxiliary rack 4. Between the second handling robot and the third handling robot, and between the third handling robot and the fourth handling robot, they are respectively transitionally connected through the working auxiliary rack 4. The working auxiliary rack 4 serves as an extension rack of the workbench, and has an auxiliary rack channel corresponding to the handling channels 211 on the front and back sides of the workbench 21, and a working position slot 212 provided above each auxiliary rack channel.

[0026] As shown in the appendix Figure 2 、 5 、 Figure 11, each handling robot 2 includes a workbench 21 fixed on the base frame 1 and a conveying mechanism located below the workbench 21. Each workbench 21 has 4 handling channels 211 extending in the front and back directions, and 3 working position slots 212 for placing items evenly distributed above the handling channels 211. The conveying mechanism includes a handling rack 24 located below the workbench 21, a handling rack driving device for controlling the lifting, backward movement, lowering, and forward movement and reset of the handling rack 24. The handling rack 24 has a total of four groups of material handling suction cups 241 corresponding to the handling channels 211. Each group has 4 material handling suction cups 241 evenly fixed upward along the corresponding handling channel 211 direction. The handling rack 24 includes a handling flat rack and four handling rack straight rods fixed on the handling flat rack in the direction corresponding to the handling channels 211. The four groups of material handling suction cups 241 are respectively fixed on the four handling rack straight rods.

[0027] The handling rack driving device includes a conveying bottom rack 22 fixed on the base frame 1 and an intermediate rack 23 slidably arranged on the conveying bottom rack 22 along the vertical up and down direction. The handling rack 24 is slidably arranged on the intermediate rack 23 along the horizontal front and back direction. An up and down driving mechanism is arranged between the intermediate rack 23 and the conveying bottom rack 22, and a front and back driving mechanism is arranged between the handling rack 24 and the intermediate rack 23.

[0028] The up and down driving mechanism and the front and back driving mechanism can respectively adopt air cylinders, or as in this embodiment, as shown in the appendix Figure 4As shown in the figure, the up-and-down driving mechanism includes a cam 221 pivotally connected to the conveying chassis 22 under the control of an up-and-down driving motor, and a roller 231 pivotally connected to the intermediate frame 23. The outer contour of the roller 231 is always in contact with the outer contour of the cam 221. The front-and-back driving mechanism includes a lead screw 232 disposed on the intermediate frame 23 and a front-and-back driving motor for driving the lead screw 232. The handling frame 24 is connected to the lead screw 232. The up-and-down driving motor rotates to drive the cam 221 to rotate through a belt. Through the transmission of the roller 231, the intermediate frame 23 moves up and down. The front-and-back driving motor drives the lead screw 232 to move through a belt, causing the handling frame 24 to move back and forth. When the handling frame 24 rises, the material handling suction cup 241 extends out of the corresponding station slot 212 and then moves backward. After reaching the next station slot 212, it descends and then moves forward to reset.

[0029] The left and right widths of both the straight rod of the handling frame and the material handling suction cup 241 are smaller than the left and right width of the handling passage 211, and the left and right widths of all three are smaller than the width of the station slot 212 in the left and right directions. Therefore, when the handling frame under the workbench rises to lift the component and move it backward to the position of the next station slot and then drops, the component will be retained in the station slot.

[0030] As shown in the attached Figure 7 As shown in the figure, the handling manipulator 3 disposed between two handling robots 2 includes a flipping seat 31 disposed on the base frame 1, a flipping power device disposed on the flipping seat 31, and a flipping arm 32 fixed to the output shaft of the flipping power device. The flipping arm 32 has 4 claws 321 that radially protrude outward and have grasping suction cups 322. Each claw 321 corresponds to the handling passage 211 of the adjacent two sides of the workbench 21. The center line of the flipping arm 32 is horizontally arranged left and right and coincides with the axis line of the output shaft of the flipping power device. The claws 321 of the flipping arm 32 rotate into the last four station slots of the previous workbench 21 to suck up the semi-finished products, and then rotate to the next auxiliary frame passage to drop, and the semi-finished products are retained on the station slot. The corresponding next handling robot operates, and the handling frame under the workbench rises to lift the component in the station slot and then transport it to the next station slot.

[0031] Among multiple workbenches 21, for example, the station slot of the first workbench involves multiple components such as explosion-proof sheets, orifice plates (aluminum sheets), and orifice plate gaskets. During the handling process, the material handling suction cup can hold the lowermost component, but there is a risk of the upper components falling. Therefore, a conveying pressing plate 25 is slidably arranged on the workbench 21 in the front-and-back direction. The conveying pressing plate 25 is connected to the handling frame 24 through an up-and-down telescopic cylinder. A plurality of pressing covers are fixedly arranged downward on the conveying pressing plate 25 corresponding to the station slot 212, and each pressing cover corresponds downward to the corresponding material handling suction cup 241. When the handling frame 24 rises, the corresponding component is clamped between the material handling suction cup 241 and the pressing cover. The conveying pressing plate 25 moves back and forth together with the handling frame 24.

[0032] The structures of the third conveyor U3, the fourth conveyor U4, the second conveyor U2, the high NG conveyor U10, the electrical NG conveyor U11, and the fifth conveyor U5 are the same. They all include a conveyor seat 51 fixed on the base frame 1, a rotating arm 52 rotatably connected to the conveyor seat 51 on one side through a conveyor shaft extending in the vertical direction. On the other side of the rotating arm 52, a material taking frame 53 is connected downward through a lifting mechanism 55. Four material taking suction cups 54 are fixed downward on the material taking frame 53, and each material taking suction cup 54 corresponds to a handling channel 211. Each type of component is supplied by a corresponding feeding rack, and the specific structure of the feeding rack is not the inventive point and will not be elaborated. The material taking frame 53 descends to pick up 4 components on the feeding rack, lifts upward, and the rotating arm 52 rotates 90°. The suction cups 54 are exactly aligned downward with 4 station slots 212. The material taking frame 53 moves downward, and the suction cups 54 place the components into the station slots 212.

[0033] The principle of the assembly process of the lithium battery cap realized by the handling robot is as follows:

[0034] 1. The explosion-proof sheet is placed in the first row of station slots 212 of the first handling robot through the first conveyor or the handling mechanism of the previous equipment or manually. There is an article detection device for detecting whether there is an article on the workbench. After the handling rack lifts the component and moves it to the next station slot, the third conveyor U3 feeds the orifice plate aluminum sheet component, and the fourth conveyor U4 feeds the orifice plate washer component. The three components are welded together by the first welding mechanism U6;

[0035] 2. The handling manipulator 3 flips the semi-finished product by 180° and then sends it to the second handling robot;

[0036] 3. The second conveyor U2 feeds the top cover component, and the top cover component is welded by the second welding mechanism U7;

[0037] 4. On the third handling robot, the semi-finished product in which four components are welded together is detected in turn by the height inspection mechanism and the resistance inspection mechanism U9, and on the fourth handling robot, the semi-finished products with unqualified height are transferred through the high NG conveyor U10, and the semi-finished products with unqualified resistance are transferred through the electrical NG conveyor U11;

[0038] 5. The remaining qualified semi-finished products are flipped by 180° again by the handling manipulator 3 and sent to the fifth handling robot. The fifth conveyor U5 feeds the sealing ring component, and the pressing device U12 buckles the semi-finished product and the sealing ring component together.

[0039] The above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical concept and features of the present invention. The purpose is to enable those skilled in the art to understand the content of the present invention and implement it accordingly, and it should not be used to limit the protection scope of the present invention. Any equivalent changes or modifications made according to the spirit and essence of the present invention should be covered within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A handling robot, characterized in that: it includes a workbench (21) fixed on a base frame (1) and a conveying mechanism located below the workbench (21). The workbench (21) has at least one handling channel (211) extending in the front-back direction, and a plurality of station slots (212) for placing articles are evenly distributed on the upper part of the handling channel (211). The conveying mechanism includes a handling rack (24) located below the workbench (21), a handling rack driving device for controlling the lifting, backward movement, lowering, and forward movement and reset of the handling rack (24). A plurality of material handling suction cups (241) are evenly fixed upward along the corresponding handling channel (211) direction on the handling rack (24). When the handling rack (24) rises, the material handling suction cups (241) extend out of the corresponding station slots (212) and then move backward. After reaching the next station slot (212), they descend and then move forward and reset. The handling rack driving device includes a conveying bottom frame (22) fixed on the base frame (1), an intermediate frame (23) slidably arranged on the conveying bottom frame (22) in the vertical up-down direction, and the handling rack (24) is slidably arranged on the intermediate frame (23) in the horizontal front-back direction. An up-down driving mechanism is arranged between the intermediate frame (23) and the conveying bottom frame (22), and a front-back driving mechanism is arranged between the handling rack (24) and the intermediate frame (23). A conveying pressure plate (25) is slidably arranged on the workbench (21) in the front-back direction, and the conveying pressure plate (25) is connected to the handling rack (24) through an up-down telescopic mechanism. A plurality of pressure covers are fixed downward on the conveying pressure plate (25) corresponding to the station slots (212), and each pressure cover corresponds downward to the corresponding material handling suction cup (241). The left and right widths of the material handling suction cups (241) and the handling channel (211) are respectively smaller than the width of the station slot (212) in the left-right direction.

2. The handling robot according to claim 1, characterized in that: the up-down driving mechanism includes a cam (221) pivotally connected to the conveying bottom frame (22) under the control of an up-down driving motor, and a roller (231) pivotally connected to the intermediate frame (23). The outer contour part of the roller (231) is always in contact with the outer contour part of the cam (221); the front-back driving mechanism includes a lead screw (232) arranged on the intermediate frame (23) and a front-back driving motor for driving the lead screw (232), and the handling rack (24) is connected to the lead screw (232).

3. The handling robot according to claim 1, characterized in that: the handling channel (211) has four.

4. The handling robot according to claim 1, characterized in that: an article detection device for detecting the presence or absence of articles is provided on the workbench.

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