An automated welding device for steel cabinets

Abstract

The present invention relates to automated welding equipment for steel cabinets, the steel cabinet comprising a bottom plate, two side plates, and a front plate and a rear plate. The equipment comprises a conveyor roller, an in-position sensing unit disposed at the front end of the conveyor roller, movable clamps disposed on both sides of the conveyor roller for clamping the steel cabinet, and a welding torch unit for welding. The equipment also comprises a controller connected to the in-position sensing unit for controlling the movement of the conveyor roller, the clamps, and the welding torch unit. Compared with the prior art, the present invention uses a conveyor roller to move the steel cabinet, and then uses a controller to control the movement position, clamping, and welding of the steel cabinet. This has a high degree of automation and low labor intensity. Furthermore, the provision of contact switches and position sensors allows for more precise positioning of the steel cabinet, ensuring welding quality.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of furniture production, and in particular to automated welding equipment for steel cabinets. Background Art

[0002] Steel cabinets are made from sheet metal through cutting, bending, and welding. Due to their lightweight and high-strength properties, they offer excellent advantages for storing documents and other items. In the steel cabinet manufacturing process, welding and assembling the panels is the final step. Existing welding methods are typically manual, which is labor-intensive and produces inconsistent weld quality. Summary of the Invention

[0003] The purpose of the present invention is to overcome the defects of the above-mentioned prior art and provide an automated welding equipment for steel cabinets with high efficiency and low labor intensity.

[0004] The objectives of the present invention can be achieved through the following technical solution: an automated welding device for a steel cabinet, the steel cabinet comprising a bottom plate, two side plates, and a front plate and a rear plate; the device comprising a conveyor roller, an in-position sensing unit disposed at the front end of the conveyor roller, movable clamps disposed on both sides of the conveyor roller for clamping the steel cabinet, and a welding torch unit for welding; the device also comprising a controller connected to the in-position sensing unit for controlling the movement of the conveyor roller, the clamps, and the welding torch unit. The present invention uses the conveyor roller to move the steel cabinet, and then uses the controller to control the movement position, clamping, and welding of the steel cabinet, resulting in a high degree of automation and low labor intensity.

[0005] The conveyor roller conveyor comprises multiple parallel rollers and supports at both ends. One end of each roller is connected to the support via a bearing, while the other end is equipped with a gear. A chain connects all the roller gears to the main shaft of a first motor, which is connected to a controller. The first motor drives the chain, which in turn rotates the rollers, ultimately moving the steel cabinet placed on top of the rollers.

[0006] The in-position sensing unit is a vertically arranged, retractable block. A contact switch is provided on the rear end of the block, which is connected to a controller. A first retractable motor is provided below the block, which is also connected to the controller. When the conveyor roller drives the steel cabinet forward, the controller controls the extension of the first retractable motor so that it is above the horizontal plane of the conveyor roller. When the steel cabinet collides with the block, the contact switch is squeezed, sending a signal to the controller, which controls the conveyor roller to stop moving. Furthermore, the steel cabinet stops advancing under the action of the block, ensuring that the front end of the steel cabinet remains fixed. When welding is completed, the controller controls the contraction of the first retractable motor, causing the block to descend, and the steel cabinet continues to move forward driven by the conveyor roller.

[0007] There are two pairs of clamps, one for clamping the front and one for clamping the steel cabinet. Each pair consists of two vertical clamping plates, located outside the two side panels, and a second telescopic motor for moving the clamping plates perpendicular to the conveyor rollers. When the conveyor rollers stop moving, a controller controls the four clamping plates to move toward the two side panels of the steel cabinet, thereby clamping the cabinet and keeping it secure.

[0008] The clamping plate is provided with a position sensor connected to the controller. Since the position of the steel cabinet side panel is already determined when the clamping plate is clamped, the position sensor provided on the clamping plate can transmit the specific position of the steel cabinet side panel to the controller, allowing the controller to control the welding gun unit to quickly position and start welding. This configuration allows the device to be applied to steel cabinets of different sizes.

[0009] The welding gun unit includes two welding guns arranged opposite to each other, a welding gun arm fixed to the two welding guns, and a robotic arm for driving the welding gun arm to move in three-axis directions, where the three-axis directions are mutually perpendicular X-axis, Y-axis and Z-axis. The robotic arm and the welding guns are both connected to a controller.

[0010] The welding gun arm comprises two connecting arms that intersect at their tops and can rotate about their intersection, and a second motor that drives the connecting arms to rotate about their intersection. The bottom ends of the connecting arms are fixed to the welding guns, and the second motor is connected to a controller. When the robotic arm moves the welding wall and two welding guns above the steel cabinet panel to be welded, the controller controls the second motor to rotate, causing the lower part of the connecting arm to rotate outward, that is, the welding gun arm to open. The robotic arm then descends, positioning the steel cabinet panel to be welded between the two welding guns. The second motor then rotates in the opposite direction, closing the welding gun arm until the two welding guns abut against both sides of the steel cabinet panel to be welded, and welding begins.

[0011] Preferably, the controller is a PLC controller.

[0012] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the present invention are embodied in the following aspects:

[0013] (1) The steel cabinet is moved by a conveyor roller, and then the moving position, clamping and welding of the steel cabinet are controlled by a controller, which has a high degree of automation and low labor intensity;

[0014] (2) By setting up contact switches and position sensors, the positioning of the steel cabinet is made more accurate, ensuring the welding quality. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] Figure 1 It is a structural schematic diagram of the conveying roller and the clamp of the present invention;

[0016] Figure 2 It is a structural schematic diagram of the welding gun unit of the present invention.

[0017] Among them, 1 is a steel cabinet, 2 is a conveyor roller, 3 is a round roller, 4 is a support frame, 5 is a chain, 6 is the first motor, 7 is the first telescopic motor, 8 is a block, 9 is a contact switch, 10 is a splint, 11 is the second telescopic motor, 12 is a position sensor, 13 is a welding gun unit, 14 is a connecting arm, 15 is a welding gun, 16 is the second motor, and 17 is a robotic arm. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0018] The following is a detailed description of an embodiment of the present invention. This embodiment is implemented based on the technical solution of the present invention, and provides a detailed implementation method and specific operation process. However, the protection scope of the present invention is not limited to the following embodiment.

[0019] Example 1

[0020] An automated welding device for a steel cabinet, the steel cabinet 1 comprises a bottom plate, two side plates, a front plate and a rear plate. The structure of the device is as follows: Figure 1 As shown, it includes a conveyor roller 2, an in-position sensing unit arranged at the front end of the conveyor roller 2, a movable clamp arranged on both sides of the conveyor roller 2 for clamping the steel cabinet 1, and a welding gun unit for welding, wherein:

[0021] The conveyor roller conveyor 2 comprises multiple rollers 3 arranged in parallel and parallel to each other, and supports 4 at each end of each roller 3. One end of each roller 3 is connected to the support 4 via a bearing, while the other end of each roller 3 is equipped with a gear. A chain 5 connects all the gears of each roller 3 to the main shaft of a first motor 6, which is connected to a PLC controller. This first motor 6 drives the chain 5, which in turn rotates the rollers 3, ultimately moving the steel cabinet 1 placed on top of the rollers 3.

[0022] The in-position sensing unit is a vertically arranged retractable stopper 8. The rear end face of the stopper 8 is provided with a contact switch 9, which is connected to the PLC controller. A first retractable motor 7 is provided below the stopper 8, which is also connected to the PLC controller. When the conveyor roller 2 drives the steel cabinet 1 forward, the PLC controller controls the extension of the first retractable motor 7 so that it is higher than the horizontal plane of the conveyor roller 2. When the steel cabinet 1 moves and collides with the stopper 8, on the one hand, the contact switch 9 is squeezed, sending a signal to the PLC controller, which controls the conveyor roller 2 to stop moving; on the other hand, the steel cabinet 1 stops moving under the action of the stopper 8, ensuring that the front end position of the steel cabinet 1 is fixed. When welding is completed, the PLC controller controls the contraction of the first retractable motor 7, the stopper 8 descends, and the steel cabinet 1 continues to move forward driven by the conveyor roller 2.

[0023] There are two pairs of clamps, one for clamping the front and one for clamping the rear end of the steel cabinet 1. Each pair consists of two vertically mounted clamps 10 and a second telescopic motor 11 for moving the clamps 10 perpendicular to the conveyor roller 2. The clamps 10 are located outside the two side panels. When the conveyor roller 2 stops moving, the PLC controller controls the four clamps 10 to move toward the two side panels of the steel cabinet 1, thereby clamping the steel cabinet 1 and keeping it fixed. The clamps 10 are equipped with position sensors 12, which are connected to the PLC controller.

[0024] The structure of the welding gun unit 13 is as follows Figure 2 As shown, it includes two welding guns 15 arranged opposite to each other, a welding gun arm fixed to the two welding guns 15, and a robot arm 17 for driving the welding gun arm to move in three-axis directions. The three-axis directions are X-axis, Y-axis and Z-axis perpendicular to each other. The robot arm 17 and the welding guns 15 are both connected to the PLC controller.

[0025] The welding gun arm includes two connecting arms 14 that intersect at the top and can rotate around the intersection, and a second motor 16 that drives the connecting arms 14 to rotate around the intersection. The bottom end of the connecting arm 14 is fixed with the welding gun 15, and the second motor 16 is connected to the PLC controller. When the robotic arm 17 moves the welding wall and the two welding guns 15 to the top of the plate surface of the steel cabinet 1 to be welded, the PLC controller controls the second motor 16 to rotate, causing the lower part of the connecting arm 14 to rotate outward, that is, the welding gun arm opens. The robotic arm 17 then descends, so that the plate surface of the steel cabinet 1 to be welded is located between the two welding guns 15. The second motor 16 then rotates in the opposite direction, causing the welding gun arm to close, until the two welding guns 15 abut against both sides of the plate surface of the steel cabinet 1 to be welded, and welding begins.

[0026] The working process of this equipment is as follows:

[0027] The operator splices the panels of the steel cabinet 1 at the rear end of the conveyor roller 2, then turns on the equipment, allowing the conveyor roller 2 to drive the steel cabinet 1 forward until the front end of the steel cabinet 1 contacts the stop block 8. At this time, the contact switch 9 sends a signal to the PLC controller. The PLC controller controls the conveyor roller 2 to stop running on the one hand, and controls the second telescopic motor 11 to extend on the other hand, pushing the clamping plate 10 toward the steel cabinet 1 until the four clamping plates 10 clamp the steel cabinet 1 firmly. At this time, the position sensor 12 on the clamping plate 10 sends a signal to the PLC controller, sending the specific positioning information of the steel cabinet 1 to the PLC controller. The PLC controller controls the robot arm 17 to move above the plate to be welded, and then controls the second motor 16 to open the connecting arm 14, so that the distance between the two welding guns 15 increases. The robot arm 17 descends, so that the two welding guns 15 are distributed on both sides of the plate to be welded. Then the second motor 16 closes the connecting arm 14, so that the distance between the two welding guns 15 decreases and contacts the two sides of the plate to be welded, and welding begins. When welding is completed, the PLC controller controls the robot arm 17 to remove the welding gun unit 13, the stopper 8 descends, and the conveyor roller 2 continues to move forward to transport the welded steel cabinet to the subsequent process.

Claims

1. An automated welding device for a steel cabinet comprising a bottom plate, two side plates, a front plate and a rear plate, characterized in that: The equipment includes a conveyor roller, an in-position sensing unit arranged at the front end of the conveyor roller, movable clamps arranged on both sides of the conveyor roller for clamping the steel cabinet, and a welding gun unit for welding. The equipment also includes a controller connected to the in-position sensing unit for controlling the movement of the conveyor roller, the clamps and the welding gun unit; The conveyor roller comprises a plurality of round rollers arranged in parallel and parallel to each other and support frames provided at both ends of the round rollers for supporting the round rollers. One end of the round roller is connected to the support frame via a bearing, and the other end of the round roller is provided with a gear. The gears of all the round rollers are connected to the main shaft of the first motor via a chain. The first motor is connected to a controller. The in-position sensing unit is a vertically arranged retractable stopper, a rear end surface of the stopper is provided with a contact switch, the contact switch is connected to the controller, a first retractable motor is provided below the stopper, and the first retractable motor is connected to the controller; There are two pairs of clamps, one for clamping the front and the other for clamping the steel cabinet. Each pair of clamps includes two vertically arranged clamping plates and a second telescopic motor for pushing the clamping plates to move in a direction perpendicular to the conveyor roller. The clamping plates are located on the outside of the two side plates. The clamping plate is provided with a position sensor, and the position sensor is connected to the controller; The welding gun unit includes two welding guns arranged opposite to each other, a welding gun arm fixed to the two welding guns, and a mechanical arm for driving the welding gun arm to move in three axes, wherein the three axes are mutually perpendicular X-axis, Y-axis and Z-axis. The mechanical arm and the welding guns are both connected to a controller. The welding gun arm includes two connecting arms that intersect at the top and can rotate around the intersection, and a second motor that drives the connecting arms to rotate around the intersection. The bottom end of the connecting arm fixes the welding gun, and the second motor is connected to the controller.

2. The automated welding equipment for steel cabinets according to claim 1, characterized in that: The controller is a PLC controller.

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