Molded article removal machine and teaching method for a molded article removal machine

Abstract

The present application provides a molded product taking-out machine and a teaching method thereof, which reliably sucks a molded product even when a torque monitoring section is provided, and does not damage structural components of the molded product taking-out machine or deform the molded product. A teaching execution section has a specified position determining section and a stop position determining section. The specified position determining section determines a position of the second advancing body when the suction section has sucked the molded product based on a sensing result of the suction pressure sensing section, in a state where the torque monitoring section does not perform a predetermined operation, and moves the second advancing body in a direction in which the suction section approaches the molded product in the mold, and determines a position of the second advancing body when the suction section has sucked the molded product based on a sensing result of the suction pressure sensing section as a specified position. The stop position determining section stops driving of the second advancing body when the driving torque sensed by the torque sensing section reaches an allowable upper limit torque or before the driving torque sensed by the torque sensing section reaches the allowable upper limit torque, and determines a position of the stopped second advancing body as a stop position.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to a molded article extraction machine and a teaching method for the molded article extraction machine, and particularly to a molded article extraction machine capable of reliably adsorbing and holding a molded article by means of an adsorption section, and a teaching method for the molded article extraction machine. Background Technology

[0002] Conventionally, transverse-type ejector machines have been known as devices for removing molded articles produced in a resin molding machine. Such ejector machines include: a head for holding the molded article formed by the mold of the resin molding machine; a drawing frame arranged along the opening and closing direction of the mold to move the head along the drawing direction of the molded article from the mold; a lifting arm for moving the head along the vertical direction; and a transverse frame arranged in a direction orthogonal to the opening and closing direction of the mold and the vertical direction to move the head to a predetermined position outside the resin molding machine (e.g., Patent Documents 1 and 2).

[0003] In this type of molded article removal machine, a head is inserted between the molds that are opened by the descent of a lifting arm, and the head moves along the drawing frame toward the side of the molded article formed by the mold. Furthermore, if the molded article is held by the head, the head moves along the drawing frame in the drawing direction of the molded article, and the head is removed from the mold by the rise of the lifting arm.

[0004] Prior art literature

[0005] Patent documents

[0006] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2002-283357

[0007] Patent Document 2: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2003-080529

[0008] -The problem the invention aims to solve-

[0009] In the aforementioned molded article removal machine, in order to realize the removal action of the molded article, the head movement path (action sequence) is taught in advance. Specifically, for example, the following head movement paths are stored: (a) horizontal movement of the head above the opening space when the mold opens from outside the molding machine; (b) descent of the head in the opening space when the mold opens based on the descent of the lifting arm; (c) horizontal movement of the head along the drawing frame towards the molded article adsorption position (forward movement); (d) horizontal movement of the head along the drawing frame towards the riser position (reverse movement); (e) rise of the head based on the rise of the lifting arm; (f) horizontal movement of the head out of the molding machine.

[0010] In the above demonstration, during the horizontal movement of the head along the drawing frame towards the molded article adsorption position (c), it is possible to set the position in which the head can more reliably hold the molded article to be removed. Therefore, in the head that holds the molded article by adsorption, in order to reliably adsorb the molded article, the molded article adsorption position is set to the position where the adsorption plate of the head is pressed against the molded article.

[0011] In many cases, the teaching described above is done manually. Therefore, the degree of pressure applied by the head to the molded part is often judged solely by the operator's sense of touch. The state where the head is pressed against the molded part more than necessary is the state where the head moves more than necessary along the guide body of the drawing frame towards the molded part, placing excessive load on the lifting arm support of the guide body. This excessive load is repeatedly applied during normal operations after teaching (molded part removal), thus becoming a major cause of damage to the lifting arm support. Furthermore, since the molded part being formed in the mold is also subjected to load, there is also a possibility of damage to the molded part.

[0012] As a solution to this problem, prior art 1 discloses a structure in which the head is configured to move to the side opposite to the molded article and includes a force-applying unit that applies force to the head towards the molded article. According to this structure, when the head is excessively pressed against the molded article, the head resists the force applied by the force-applying unit and moves to the side opposite to the molded article. As a result, excessive load on the lifting arm support can be avoided, preventing damage to the lifting arm support or the molded article. However, this structure requires a special mechanism in the head, making the structure complex and thus increasing the cost.

[0013] On the other hand, by employing a torque monitoring unit structure that can sense the drive torque of the drive motor, as disclosed in prior document 2, the movement of the traveling body can be forcibly stopped when the drive torque of the motor driving the traveling body during the pressing process reaches a preset value or higher. Based on this structure, in principle, excessive load on the lifting arm support can be avoided, preventing damage to the lifting arm support or the molded product. However, when using a structure that monitors the drive motor's drive torque, if the pressing amount is to be set relatively small, the threshold value of the drive torque needs to be set to a small value. With such a small threshold value, there is a concern that the traveling body might be forcibly stopped due to vibrations during forward movement from the lowering position of the lifting arm, even without contact with the molded product. To avoid such forced stopping, if the threshold value of the drive torque is set to a large value, the force on the pressing and adsorption part of the molded product becomes excessive, not only placing an excessive load on the lifting arm support of the traveling body but also increasing the likelihood of deformation of the molded product and thus increasing the incidence of defective products. Therefore, even with a structure that includes a torque monitoring unit and can sense the drive torque of the drive motor, it is impossible to obtain a result that is sufficiently satisfactory. Summary of the Invention

[0014] The present invention was made in view of the above-mentioned actual situation, and its object is to provide a molded article removal machine that reliably adsorbs molded articles even when a torque monitoring unit is provided, and does not damage the structural components of the molded article removal machine or deform the molded articles, and the teaching thereof.

[0015] -Methods for solving the problem-

[0016] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention employs the following technical means. The molded article extraction machine, the subject of the present invention, comprises: a drawing frame disposed along an imaginary centerline in the opening and closing direction of a mold forming the article; a traveling body disposed on the drawing frame and moving forward and backward along the long side of the drawing frame; a drive motor driving the traveling body; an arm structure movable and supported by the traveling body; a suction unit mounted on the arm structure for suctioning the molded article within the mold; a torque sensing unit for sensing the driving torque of the drive motor; and an action control unit. Here, the arm structure includes components existing between the traveling body and the suction unit, including the arm itself, an extraction head on which the suction unit is mounted, and a connection between the traveling body and the arm. The action control unit controls the following actions: according to a pre-set sequence of actions, at least the traveling body and the arm structure are moved, thereby extracting the molded article from the mold, transporting the extracted molded article to a predetermined position, and releasing it. Furthermore, the motion control unit includes: a torque monitoring unit, which performs a pre-defined action if the torque sensing unit detects a value exceeding the allowable upper limit torque that will not damage the components constituting the arm structure; and a teaching execution unit, capable of teaching the sequence of actions and determining the parameters of that sequence. The pre-defined actions performed by the torque monitoring unit include the occurrence of an alarm and stopping the action based on the detected torque value.

[0017] In the teaching method of the molded article removal machine of the present invention, an adsorption pressure sensing unit is provided to sense the adsorption pressure of the adsorption section and a traveling body position sensing unit to detect the position of the traveling body. Furthermore, using a teaching execution unit, in a state where the torque monitoring unit does not perform a predetermined action, the traveling body is moved in a direction that brings the adsorption section close to the molded article inside the mold. The position of the traveling body when the adsorption section has adsorbed the molded article, as confirmed by the sensing result of the adsorption pressure sensing unit, is determined as a designated position. To set the state where the torque monitoring unit does not perform a predetermined action, the threshold value used in the torque monitoring unit can be made larger, or the output of the torque monitoring unit can be stopped.

[0018] Subsequently, the torque monitoring unit is set to perform a pre-defined operation, causing the traveling body to move further towards the molded part, thereby allowing the adsorption unit to further press the molded part. Before the driving torque sensed by the torque sensing unit reaches or exceeds the allowable upper limit torque, the driving of the traveling body is stopped, and the position of the stopped traveling body is defined as the stop position. To set the torque monitoring unit to perform a pre-defined operation, the threshold value used in the torque monitoring unit is set to a commonly used threshold value, allowing the torque monitoring unit to output an output. Furthermore, in this invention, the designated position and the stop position are defined as part of the parameters in the operation sequence.

[0019] Furthermore, the adsorption pressure sensed by the adsorption pressure sensing unit and the driving torque sensed by the torque sensing unit can, of course, be the rate of change of the adsorption pressure and the rate of change of the torque, rather than the adsorption pressure and torque themselves. By using the rate of change, the position of the traveling body can be determined in more detail.

[0020] The method of the present invention can be performed automatically or by the user. In the case of user implementation, a display unit is further provided that displays the sensing results of the adsorption pressure sensor, the torque sensor, and the traveling body position sensor. Furthermore, the designated position and the stop position are determined based on the display results shown by the display unit. In the case of automatic operation, the motion control unit preferably further includes: a designated position determination unit that determines the designated position based on the sensing results of the adsorption pressure sensor; and a stop position determination unit that determines the stop position based on the sensing results of the torque sensor.

[0021] Furthermore, the presence of a shaped article adsorbed by the aforementioned adsorption section can be determined based on the sensing result of the adsorption pressure sensing section to indicate whether it has entered a stable state. A stable state refers to a state where the adsorption pressure has increased to approximately saturation.

[0022] Furthermore, the aforementioned allowable upper limit torque is determined when setting the threshold of the torque monitoring unit, based on the characteristics of the drive motor used and the mechanical strength of the arm structure. Therefore, it is possible to determine whether the drive torque sensed by the torque sensing unit has reached the allowable upper limit torque based on the operation of the torque monitoring unit. Moreover, if this allowable upper limit torque is used as a reference and a lower threshold is determined, it is possible to automatically detect before the drive torque reaches the allowable upper limit torque. These thresholds can be determined through prior experiments. Additionally, since exceeding the allowable upper limit torque will not immediately damage the components constituting the arm structure, the implementation of the present invention will not damage the molded product extraction machine.

[0023] According to the method of the present invention, since the torque monitoring unit does not perform a predetermined movement when the traveling body is moved to advance the adsorption part towards the molded article and it is determined that the adsorption part can be temporarily adsorbed onto the molded article at a designated position, the teaching process is not interrupted by the movement of the torque monitoring unit. However, in this state, the possibility of insufficient adsorption is relatively high. Therefore, in the present invention, the traveling body is moved further to further press the adsorption part onto the molded article, thereby determining a stopping position that allows reliable adsorption of the molded article based on the adsorption part. In the present invention, the allowable upper limit torque used in the torque monitoring unit is used as the reference for determining the stopping position. Therefore, if the stopping position determined in the present invention is used as a parameter for the sequence of operations, the arm structure will not be damaged or the molded article will not deform even after long-term use.

[0024] A molded article removal machine implementing the method of the present invention comprises: a drawing frame arranged along an imaginary centerline extending in the opening and closing direction of a mold forming the molded article; a traveling body arranged on the drawing frame and moving forward and backward in the long side direction of the drawing frame; a drive motor driving the traveling body; an arm structure supported by the traveling body and movable; an adsorption unit installed on the arm structure for adsorbing the molded article within the mold; a torque sensing unit sensing the drive torque of the drive motor; an adsorption pressure sensing unit sensing the adsorption pressure of the adsorption unit; a traveling body position sensing unit detecting the position of the traveling body; and an action control unit controlling the following actions: according to a preset action sequence, at least the traveling body and the arm structure are moved to remove the molded article from the mold, the removed molded article is transported to a predetermined position, and released. The action control unit includes: a torque monitoring unit that performs a preset action if the detection value of the torque sensing unit exceeds an allowable upper limit torque that will not damage the components constituting the arm structure; and a teaching execution unit capable of teaching the action sequence and determining the parameters of the action sequence. The teaching execution unit includes: a designated position determination unit, configured to a state where the torque monitoring unit does not perform a predetermined action, moves a traveling body in the direction that brings the adsorption unit close to the molded article inside the mold, and determines the position of the traveling body when the adsorption unit confirms that the molded article is adsorbed by the adsorption pressure sensing unit as a designated position; and a stop position determination unit, configured to a state where the torque monitoring unit performs a predetermined action after the designated position determination unit determines the designated position, moves the traveling body further toward the molded article so that the adsorption unit further presses the molded article, and stops the driving of the traveling body before the driving torque sensed by the torque sensing unit reaches or before reaching the allowable upper limit torque, and determines the position of the stopped traveling body as a stop position. Furthermore, in the molded article extraction machine of the present invention, the designated position and the stop position are determined as parameters in the action sequence. In the molded article extraction machine of the present invention, the teaching method of the molded article extraction machine of the present invention can be implemented automatically. Attached Figure Description

[0025] Figure 1 This is a perspective view schematically illustrating an example of a molded article extraction machine according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0026] Figure 2 This is a functional block diagram illustrating an example of a molded article extraction machine according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0027] Figure 3 (a) to (c) are explanatory diagrams schematically illustrating an example of a teaching process for the adsorption position of a molded article in a molded article removal machine according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0028] Figure 4This is a flowchart illustrating the algorithm of the program used when a microcomputer is used to implement the main part of the motion control unit of the molded article extraction machine according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0029] Symbol Explanation

[0030] 10. Molded product extraction machine

[0031] 14 Pull-out frame

[0032] 15 Second march

[0033] 16. Remove the head.

[0034] 16a Adsorption section

[0035] 17 Lifting Boom

[0036] 18-arm structure

[0037] 19 Controlled Department

[0038] 20 Motion Control Department

[0039] 21 Motor Control Department

[0040] 22 Torque Monitoring Unit

[0041] 23 Teaching Implementation Department

[0042] 23A Designated Position Determination Unit

[0043] 23B Stop Position Determination Unit

[0044] 24. Action Sequence Storage Unit

[0045] 25 Parameter Storage Section

[0046] 26 Alarm Generating Unit

[0047] 28 Display devices

[0048] 29. Indicator Input Section

[0049] M drive motor

[0050] 30 Torque Sensing Unit

[0051] 40 Adsorption pressure sensing unit

[0052] 50. Position sensing unit for moving objects. Detailed Implementation

[0053] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The present invention will be embodied as a molded article ejector, which is disposed on a fixed platen of a resin injection molding machine that opens and closes a mold in a horizontal direction, and which uses a transverse frame perpendicular to the mold opening and closing direction to eject the molded article from the resin injection molding machine.

[0054] Figure 1 This is a perspective view schematically showing the molded article extraction machine 10 according to this embodiment. Figure 1 As shown, the molded product extractor 10 is a so-called transverse type molded product extractor, which is fixed on the fixed pressure plate 101 of the molding machine 100.

[0055] The molding machine 100 is a known construction, configured with a fixed pressure plate 101 and a movable pressure plate 102 facing each other. The movable pressure plate 102 is slidably supported by four connecting rods 103 arranged horizontally from the four corners of the fixed pressure plate 101. The movable pressure plate 102 is driven horizontally by a mold closing device 105, which drives the mold 104, which consists of a fixed mold 104a mounted on the fixed pressure plate 101 and a movable mold 104b mounted on the movable pressure plate 102, to close and open the mold. When the mold 104 is in the closed state, heated and molten resin is injected into the cavity of the mold 104 from an injection device 106 connected to the fixed pressure plate 101, thereby manufacturing a molded article.

[0056] The molded article take-out machine 10 includes: a mounting platform 11, a horizontal frame 12, a first traveling body 13, a drawing frame 14, a second traveling body 15, a take-out head 16, and a lifting arm 17. The horizontal frame 12 is configured along the conveying direction of the molded article produced by the molding machine 100 out of the molding machine. In this example, as... Figure 1 As shown, the horizontal frame 12 is arranged in a direction perpendicular to the vertical plane of the axis of the connecting rod 103 containing the forming machine 100. The base end of the horizontal frame 12 is fixed to the mounting platform 11 provided on the fixed pressure plate 101, so that the forming product take-out machine 10 is mounted on the fixed pressure plate 101.

[0057] The first traveling body 13 is movably supported by the horizontal frame 12, and moves forward and backward along the horizontal frame 12 driven by a servo motor. The base end of the drawing frame 14 is fixed to the first traveling body 13 and is configured to move along the opening and closing direction of the mold 104. The second traveling body 15 is movably supported by the drawing frame 14, and moves forward and backward along the drawing frame 14 driven by a servo motor. The extraction head 16 is supported by the lower end of the lifting arm 17. The lifting arm 17 can be movably supported relative to the second traveling body 15 so that the servo motor of the second traveling body 15 can be used as a drive to move up and down in the vertical direction. As the lifting arm 17 moves in the vertical direction, the extraction head 16 moves up and down in the vertical direction. The extraction head 16 has an adsorption part 16a, which includes one or more adsorption plates disposed at a position corresponding to the forming position of the movable mold 104b. As is known, the adsorption unit 16a depressurizes the molded article by applying pressure within the closed space formed between the adsorption plate and the molded article while the adsorption plate is in contact with the molded article, thereby adsorbing and retaining the molded article.

[0058] In the molded article removal machine 10 with the above structure, in order to realize the removal action of the molded article, teaching is performed to pre-store the movement path (or action sequence) of the removal head 16. Specifically, the movement path of the removal head 16 is stored as follows: (1) the removal head 16 rises from the molded article release position (reference position) based on the rising of the lifting arm 17; (2) the removal head 16 moves horizontally from outside the molding machine to above the mold 104 based on the movement of the first traveling body 13 and the second traveling body 15; (3) the removal head 16 descends into the opening space between the fixed mold 104a and the movable mold 104b when the mold is opened based on the falling of the lifting arm 17; (4) the movement path of the removal head 16 based on the falling of the second traveling body 17 and the rising of the lifting arm 17; (5) the movement path of the removal head 16 moves horizontally from outside the molding machine to above the mold 104 based on the falling of the lifting arm 17; (6) the movement path of the removal head 16 moves horizontally from outside the molding machine to above the mold 104 based on the falling of the lifting arm 17; (7) the movement path of the removal head 16 moves horizontally from outside the molding machine to above the mold 104 based on the falling of the lifting arm 17; (8) the movement path of the removal head 16 moves horizontally from outside the molding machine to above the mold 104 based on the falling of the lifting arm 17; (9) the movement path of the removal head 16 moves horizontally from outside the molding machine to above the mold 104 based on the falling of the lifting arm 17; (10 ... (5) The take-out head 16 moves horizontally towards the molded product adsorption position based on the movement of the second traveling body 15 (forward movement); (6) The take-out head 16 moves horizontally towards the riser position based on the movement of the second traveling body 15 (reverse movement); (7) The take-out head 16 rises based on the rise of the lifting arm 17; (8) The take-out head 16 moves horizontally out of the molding machine based on the movement of the first traveling body 13 and the second traveling body 15; (9) The take-out head 16 descends towards the molded product release position based on the descent of the lifting arm 17. This teaching is performed by the user, for example, through the operation panel provided by the motion control unit 20 of the molded product take-out machine 10. The various elements that perform signal processing and data processing in the motion control unit 20 can be implemented, for example, by hardware having dedicated arithmetic circuits or processors, RAM (Random Access Memory), ROM (Read Only Memory) and other memory, as well as software stored in the memory and operating on the processor.

[0059] In the molded article take-out machine 10 of this embodiment, there is a feature in the setting of the molded article adsorption position in (4) above, and the operation will be described below. Figure 2 This is a functional block diagram of the main components of the molded article extraction machine 10 of this embodiment, which is capable of performing this action. (As shown...) Figure 2 As shown, the molded article removal machine 10 of this embodiment includes: a controlled unit 19, an action control unit 20, a torque sensing unit 30, a suction pressure sensing unit 40, a traveling body position sensing unit 50, a display device 28, and an instruction input unit 29. The controlled unit 19 includes: an arm structure 18 including a suction unit 16a, a removal head 16, and a lifting arm 17, a second traveling body 15, and a drive motor M for driving the second traveling body 15. The arm structure 18 includes components existing between the traveling body and the suction unit, including the lifting arm 17 itself, the removal head 16 on which the suction unit 16a is mounted, and a connection part between the second traveling body 15 and the lifting arm 17.

[0060] The motion control unit 20 includes: a motor control unit 21 that controls the motion of multiple drive motors, including the drive motor M for driving the second traveling body 15; a motion sequence storage unit 24; a parameter storage unit 25 that stores parameters for the motion sequence; a torque monitoring unit 22; a teaching execution unit 23 that includes a designated position determination unit 23A and a stop position determination unit 23B; and an alarm generation unit 26. Furthermore, as a sensor device, it includes a torque sensing unit 30, a suction pressure sensing unit 40, and a traveling body position sensing unit 50. Instructions for the teaching execution unit 23 to perform teaching are input via an instruction input unit 29. Additionally, if the display unit 28a has a touch switch function, a separate instruction input unit 29 is not required.

[0061] The torque sensing unit 30 senses the drive torque of the drive motor M, i.e., the servo motor, of the second traveling body 15. The method for sensing the drive torque is not particularly limited, and any known method can be used. In this embodiment, the torque sensing unit 30 senses the drive torque based on the drive current of the drive motor M of the second traveling body 15. In this embodiment, the torque sensing unit 30 obtains information related to the drive current from the motor control unit 21 within the motion control unit 20. Furthermore, the torque sensing unit 30 does not need to directly measure the drive torque; if it is a parameter that changes in accordance with the magnitude of the drive torque, any parameter can be used. For example, the rate of change of the drive torque can be used as the output of the torque sensing unit 30.

[0062] An adsorption pressure sensing unit 40 is installed in the piping between the vacuum generator 42, which is driven by the vacuum generator control unit 41, and the adsorption unit 16a, to sense the adsorption pressure of the adsorption unit 16a. The method for sensing the adsorption pressure is not particularly limited, and any known method can be used. In this embodiment, the adsorption pressure sensing unit 40 senses the adsorption pressure by sensing the pressure within the piping that performs pressure reduction on the adsorption unit 16a.

[0063] The position sensing unit 50 can be any component, as long as it can directly or indirectly detect the position of the second traveling body 15 on the pulling frame 14. In this embodiment, the position sensing unit 50 is configured to use the output of a rotary encoder provided with the drive motor M of the second traveling body 15 for sensing.

[0064] The outputs of the torque sensing unit 30, the adsorption pressure sensing unit 40, and the traveling body position sensing unit 50 are respectively input to the display device 28 and the motion control unit 20. The display device 28 can display the sensing results of the torque sensing unit 30, the adsorption pressure sensing unit 40, and the traveling body position sensing unit 50 in the form of text, charts, and combinations thereof.

[0065] The motion control unit 20 controls, according to the motion sequence pre-stored in the motion sequence storage unit 24, at least the actions of removing the molded product from the mold 104 by causing the second traveling body 15 and the arm structure 18 to move, transporting the removed molded product to a predetermined position, and releasing it. Furthermore, the motion control unit 20 includes: a torque monitoring unit 22, which performs a pre-defined action if the detection value of the torque sensing unit 30 exceeds the allowable upper limit torque that will not damage the components constituting the arm structure 18; and a teaching execution unit 23, which can teach the motion sequence and determine the parameters of that motion sequence. The pre-defined action performed by the torque monitoring unit includes the occurrence of an alarm and stopping the motion based on the detected torque value. There are no particular limitations on the alarm notification method. Any method that the user can recognize, such as display, sound, or email, can be used. Here, the alarm generation unit 26 displays warning text in a user-recognizable position on the display unit 28a, such as the display screen of the display device 28, and notifies the user of the alarm by emitting an alarm sound.

[0066] The teaching execution unit 23 includes a designated position determination unit 23A and a stop position determination unit 23B. The designated position determination unit 23A determines the position of the second traveling body 15 as the designated position when the position is confirmed by the adsorption pressure sensing unit 40 under the following condition: the torque monitoring unit 22 is not performing a predetermined action, and the second traveling body 15 is moved in a direction that brings the adsorption unit 16a closer to the molded product in the mold, and the adsorption unit 16a adsorbs the molded product. The adsorption unit 16a adsorbing the molded product can be determined, for example, based on whether the adsorption pressure sensing unit 40 has entered a stable state. That is, if the adsorption pressure detected by the adsorption pressure sensing unit 40 rises and then approaches a saturation state, it can be determined that a stable state has been reached. This determination can be easily achieved by comparing a threshold determined considering the stable state with the output of the adsorption pressure sensing unit 40.

[0067] In addition, in order to set the torque monitoring unit 22 to not perform the predetermined actions (such as the occurrence of an alarm from the alarm generation unit 26, or the temporary stop of the drive motor M), it is only necessary to increase the threshold used in the torque monitoring unit 22 or stop the output of the torque monitoring unit 22.

[0068] After the designated position is determined by the designated position determination unit 23A, the stop position determination unit 23B sets the torque monitoring unit 22 to perform a pre-defined action (such as the occurrence of an alarm from the alarm generation unit 26 or a temporary stop of the drive motor M), causing the second traveling body 15 to move further toward the molded part so that the adsorption unit 16a can further press the molded part. Furthermore, the stop position determination unit 23B stops the drive of the second traveling body 15 and determines the stopped position of the second traveling body 15 as the stop position when the drive torque sensed by the torque sensing unit 30 reaches or is just before reaching the allowable upper limit torque. The allowable upper limit torque is determined when setting the threshold of the torque monitoring unit 22, based on the characteristics of the drive motor used and the mechanical strength of the arm structure. Therefore, it is possible to determine whether the drive torque sensed by the torque sensing unit 30 has reached the allowable upper limit torque through the operation of the torque monitoring unit 22. Furthermore, if a lower threshold is determined based on the allowable upper limit torque before the drive torque reaches it, automatic detection is possible. These thresholds can be determined through prior experiments. In addition, since the driving torque exceeds the upper limit of the allowable torque, it will not immediately damage the components that make up the arm structure, so the teaching will not damage the molded product take-out machine.

[0069] Furthermore, in order to set the torque monitoring unit 22 to a state where it performs a predetermined operation, the threshold used in the torque monitoring unit 22 is set to a normally used threshold, and the torque monitoring unit 22 outputs an alarm. The specified position and stop position determined by the specified position determination unit 23A and the stop position determination unit 23B are stored in the parameter storage unit 25 as parameters in the operation sequence.

[0070] According to this embodiment, since the torque monitoring unit 22 is set to a state where it does not perform a predetermined operation when the second traveling body 15 is moved to advance the adsorption part 16a toward the molded article and it is determined that the adsorption part 16a can be temporarily adsorbed at a designated position on the molded article, the teaching process is not interrupted by the operation of the torque monitoring unit 22. At the determined designated position, the torque monitoring unit 22 is switched between performing a predetermined operation and not performing a predetermined operation. This switching can be performed in conjunction with the determination of the designated position and is included in the operation sequence. In addition, when determining the designated position, it is not necessary to stop the second traveling body 15 at the designated position, but it is also possible to temporarily stop the second traveling body 15 at the designated position to improve reliability.

[0071] However, even when a specific position is determined, there is a high probability that insufficient adsorption may not be achieved. Therefore, in this embodiment, the second traveling body 15 is moved further towards the molded article, further pressing the adsorption portion 16a onto the molded article, thereby determining a stopping position that ensures reliable adsorption of the molded article based on the adsorption portion 16a. In this embodiment, the allowable upper limit torque used in the torque monitoring unit 22 is used as a reference for determining the stopping position, thereby stopping the driving of the traveling body when the driving torque sensed by the torque sensing unit 30 reaches or is reached before the allowable upper limit torque. If the stopping position determined in this embodiment is used as a parameter for the operation sequence, even with long-term use, the arm structure 18 will not be damaged, or the molded article will not deform.

[0072] In the case of teaching, the movement of the second traveling block 15 is initiated by an instruction from the instruction input unit 29. In this embodiment, after the movement of the second traveling block 15 begins, the movement, stopping, specifying, and determining the stop position of the second traveling block 15 are performed automatically until the stop position is determined. However, the operator can instruct the movement and stopping of the second traveling block 15 from the instruction input unit 29 based on the perception information displayed on the display unit 28a of the display device 28 and the alarm from the alarm generation unit 26. Furthermore, the operator can instruct the specified position and the stop position to be determined and stored from the instruction input unit 29.

[0073] Furthermore, the main part of the motion control unit 20 in this embodiment can be implemented by a processor using RAM as a working area to execute programs stored in ROM. Figure 3 (a) to Figure 3 (c) is an explanatory diagram schematically illustrating an example of a teaching process in a molded article removal machine according to an embodiment of the present invention. Furthermore, Figure 4 This is a flowchart illustrating the algorithm of the program used when a microcomputer is used to implement the main part of the motion control unit 20 of the molded product extraction machine according to the above embodiment.

[0074] For example, the operator selects the adsorption position setting in (4) of the above-mentioned teaching by indicating the input unit 29, thereby starting the teaching of the adsorption position. Additionally, as... Figure 3 As shown in (a), the teaching of the adsorption position begins when the adsorption part 16a of the head 16 is positioned opposite the molded article W formed in the mold 104 and exposed on the forming surface side of the movable mold 104b after the mold is opened (the state in (3) of the above teaching is completed).

[0075] If this sequence begins, the teaching execution unit 23 first instructs the vacuum generator control unit 41 to begin decompression based on the start instruction input from the instruction input unit 29. Upon receiving this instruction, the vacuum generator control unit 41 drives the decompression unit, such as the vacuum pump constituting the vacuum generator 42, to begin decompression of the adsorption unit 16a (step ST1). Furthermore, the teaching execution unit 23 drives the drive motor M of the second traveling body 15 via the motor control unit 21 to begin the movement of the second traveling body 15 toward the molded article W (step ST2).

[0076] The designated position determination unit 23A of the teaching execution unit 23 is set to a state where the torque monitoring unit 22 does not perform the predetermined action (torque monitoring unit inactive state) (step ST2). Adsorption pressure information is obtained from the adsorption pressure sensing unit 40 (step ST3), and the second traveling body 15 is moved in the direction that brings the adsorption part 16a closer to the molded product in the mold (step ST4). It is determined whether the adsorption part 16a has adsorbed the molded product based on whether the sensing result of the adsorption pressure sensing unit 40 has entered a stable state (step ST5). Furthermore, the position of the second traveling body 15 at the time of adsorption, which is confirmed by the sensing result of the adsorption pressure sensing unit 40, is determined as the designated position (step ST6). In this example, the second traveling body 15 is temporarily stopped in step ST6. In addition, the pressure is maintained at this time (ST7). At this time, the adsorption part 16a of the head 16 is taken out as follows. Figure 3 As shown in (b), it abuts against the surface of the molded article W and is in a depressurized state inside the adsorption section 16a (first position). At this time, the designated position determination unit 23A determines the position of the traveling body 5 as the designated position based on the position information from the traveling body position sensing unit 50 (step ST6).

[0077] Figure 3In this illustration, only one adsorption plate of the adsorption unit 16a is shown, but it is common for multiple adsorption plates of the adsorption unit 16a to simultaneously adsorb the molded product. When the adsorption unit 16a has multiple adsorption plates, especially when the number of adsorption plates is large, it is difficult to determine whether all adsorption plates reliably adsorb the molded product W based solely on the adsorption pressure. If some adsorption plates fail to adsorb the molded product W, poor adsorption occurs when the molded product W is continuously molded in the molding machine 100, necessitating a stop of the molding machine 100. Therefore, it is necessary to move the second traveling body 15 from... Figure 3 The state of (b) moves further toward the molded article W, and the adsorption part 16a is further pressed onto the molded article W.

[0078] If the aforementioned designated position is determined, the stop position determination unit 23B of the teaching execution unit 23 is set to a state where the torque monitoring unit 22 performs a pre-defined action (the occurrence of an alarm from the alarm generation unit 26, temporary stop of the drive motor M, etc.) (torque monitoring unit operation state) (step ST8), causing the second traveling body 15 to move further toward the molded product side, thereby further pressing the molded product through the adsorption part 16a (step ST9). Since the adsorption part 16a abuts against the surface of the molded product W, the drive torque of the drive motor of the second traveling body 15 increases when the second traveling body 15 moves toward the molded product W side. Through this pressing action, the adsorption part 16a of the head 16 is removed as follows. Figure 3 As shown in (c), the surface of the molded article W is pressed. Then, the stop position determination unit 23B determines whether the driving torque sensed by the torque sensing unit 30 has reached the allowable upper limit torque or is before reaching the allowable upper limit torque (step ST10). Then, if the determination result is yes, the driving of the second traveling body 15 is stopped, and the position of the stopped second traveling body 15 is determined as the stop position (step ST11). Then, the determined specified position and stop position are stored in the parameter storage unit 25 (step ST11). Thus, the sequence of setting the adsorption position ends.

[0079] As explained above, according to the molded article extraction machine 10 of this embodiment, the torque monitoring unit 22 does not perform a predetermined operation until the adsorption unit 16a abuts against the molded article W and begins adsorption. Therefore, the undesirable situation where the movement of the second traveling body 15 is prohibited when the adsorption unit 16a is not abutting against the molded article W will not occur. Furthermore, since the structure monitors the magnitude of the driving torque of the second traveling body 15 during the pressure operation that specifies the amount of pressure from the position where the adsorption unit 16a abuts against the molded article W, it is not necessary to provide a special mechanism in the head or the like to avoid imposing excessive load on the second traveling body 15 that supports the adsorption unit 16a. Therefore, the molded article extraction machine 10 of this embodiment can easily and appropriately set the adsorption position of the molded article. As a result, even when the molding machine 100 continuously molds the molded article W, the adsorption unit 16a can stably adsorb and support the molded article W.

[0080] Furthermore, in the above embodiments, the adsorption pressure value sensed by the adsorption pressure sensing unit 40 is set as the adsorption pressure condition, but the value of the rate of change of the adsorption pressure can also be specified. Similarly, the driving torque value sensed by the torque sensing unit 30 is set as the torque condition, but the value of the rate of change of the driving torque can also be specified. By using the rate of change, the position of the second traveling body 15 can be determined in more detail.

[0081] As explained above, according to the present invention, in a molded article removal machine in which the adsorption part that holds the molded article by adsorption moves along the opening and closing direction of the molding die of the molded article, thereby holding the molded article, the adsorption position of the molded article can be easily and appropriately set.

[0082] Furthermore, the above-described embodiments are not intended to limit the technical scope of this invention. Various modifications and applications can be made within the scope of this invention, even beyond the content described. For example, Figure 4 The flowchart shown allows for appropriate changes to the order of steps within the scope of achieving equivalent effects.

[0083] Furthermore, the physical shape and material of the aforementioned elements, such as the pulling frame, the traveling body, and the extraction head, can be arbitrarily changed within the scope of achieving the effects of this invention.

[0084] Industrial availability

[0085] According to the present invention, the adsorption position of the molded article can be easily and appropriately set, which is useful as a molded article removal machine and its teaching method.

Claims

1. A teaching method for a molded article extraction machine, the molded article extraction machine comprising: The drawing frame is configured along an imaginary centerline extending in the opening and closing direction of the mold that forms the molded article; The traveling body is configured on the drawing frame and moves forward and backward along the long side of the drawing frame; A drive motor drives the traveling body; The arm structure is movable and supported by the traveling body; An adsorption section is installed on the arm structure to adsorb the molded article inside the mold. The torque sensing unit senses the drive torque of the drive motor; and The motion control unit controls the following actions: according to a pre-set sequence of actions, at least the traveling body and the arm structure move to remove the molded article from the mold, transport the removed molded article to a predetermined position, and release it. The motion control unit includes: The torque monitoring unit performs a predetermined action if the detected value of the torque sensing unit exceeds the upper limit torque that will not damage the components constituting the arm structure. and The instruction execution unit is capable of teaching the sequence of actions and determining the parameters of that sequence. The teaching method for the molded article removal machine is characterized in that... An adsorption pressure sensing unit is provided to sense the adsorption pressure of the adsorption section, and a moving body position sensing unit is provided to detect the position of the moving body. Using the teaching execution unit Set the torque monitoring unit to a state where it does not perform the predetermined action, and move the traveling body in the direction that brings the adsorption unit close to the molded article inside the mold, the position of the traveling body when the adsorption unit confirms that the molded article is adsorbed by the adsorption unit is determined as the designated position. Then, the torque monitoring unit is set to perform the predetermined action, causing the traveling body to move further towards the molded article, and the adsorption unit to further press the molded article. Before the driving torque sensed by the torque sensing unit reaches or exceeds the allowable upper limit torque, the driving of the traveling body is stopped, and the position of the stopped traveling body is determined as the stop position. The specified position and the stop position are determined as part of the parameters in the action sequence.

2. The teaching method for the molded article removal machine according to claim 1, characterized in that, The adsorption unit is judged to have adsorbed the molded product based on whether the adsorption pressure sensing unit has entered a stable state.

3. The teaching method for the molded article removal machine according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The molded product extraction machine further includes a display unit that displays the sensing results of the adsorption pressure sensing unit, the sensing results of the torque sensing unit, and the sensing results of the traveling body position sensing unit. Based on the display results shown on the display unit, the designated position and the stop position are determined.

4. The teaching method for the molded article removal machine according to claim 1, characterized in that, The motion control unit also includes: The designated location determination unit determines the designated location based on the sensing result of the adsorption pressure sensing unit; and The stop position determination unit determines the stop position based on the sensing result of the torque sensing unit.

5. The teaching method for the molded article removal machine according to claim 1, characterized in that, The allowable upper limit torque is determined based on the characteristics of the drive motor used and the mechanical strength of the arm structure.

6. A molded article removal machine, characterized in that, have: The drawing frame is configured along an imaginary centerline extending in the opening and closing direction of the mold that forms the molded article; The traveling body is configured on the drawing frame and moves forward and backward along the long side of the drawing frame; A drive motor drives the traveling body; The arm structure is movable and supported by the traveling body; An adsorption section is installed on the arm structure to adsorb the molded article inside the mold. The torque sensing unit senses the drive torque of the drive motor; An adsorption pressure sensing unit senses the adsorption pressure of the adsorption unit; The position sensing unit detects the position of the moving body; The motion control unit controls the following actions: according to a pre-set sequence of actions, at least the traveling body and the arm structure move to remove the molded article from the mold, transport the removed molded article to a predetermined position, and release it. The motion control unit includes: The torque monitoring unit performs a predetermined action if the detected value of the torque sensing unit exceeds the allowable upper limit torque that will not damage the components constituting the arm structure; and The instruction execution unit is capable of teaching the sequence of actions and determining the parameters of that sequence. The teaching execution unit is equipped with: The designated position determination unit, set to a state where the torque monitoring unit does not perform the predetermined action, moves the traveling body in a direction that brings the adsorption unit close to the molded article within the mold, and determines the position of the traveling body when the adsorption unit has confirmed, based on the sensing result of the adsorption pressure sensing unit, that the adsorption unit has adsorbed the molded article as the designated position; and After the designated position is determined by the specified position determination unit, the stop position determination unit is set to a state where the torque monitoring unit performs the predetermined action, causing the traveling body to move further towards the molded article, and further pressing the molded article by the adsorption unit. Before the driving torque sensed by the torque sensing unit reaches or exceeds the allowable upper limit torque, the driving of the traveling body is stopped, and the position of the stopped traveling body is determined as the stop position. The specified position and the stop position are determined as part of the parameters in the action sequence.

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