Feeding device and assembly apparatus

Abstract

This application relates to automated equipment, aiming to solve the problem of low feeding and assembly position accuracy of sheet parts, and provides a feeding device and assembly equipment. The feeding device includes a frame, a conveyor belt, a film, and a separating component. One side surface of the conveyor belt is recessed along its thickness direction to form a groove. The film adheres to the conveyor belt to mate with the groove, forming a cavity for placing the part to be assembled. The separating component is mounted on the frame and is used to separate the conveyor belt and the film along the length of the conveyor belt to fully expose the part to be assembled. The beneficial effect of this application is that it allows sheet parts to be fed and assembled into the product in an orderly and accurate manner, thereby improving assembly speed and assembly position accuracy.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to automated equipment, and more specifically, to feeding devices and assembly equipment. Background Technology

[0002] The existing feeding methods for sheet parts generally involve first stacking the sheet parts or arranging them along the production line, and then feeding them using a robot or manually.

[0003] Existing automatic feeding equipment has low positional accuracy in feeding sheet parts, which reduces the assembly speed of sheet parts. For example, it takes time to place the material in the right position before assembly, and it also leads to reduced positional accuracy of the assembled parts, such as misalignment or incomplete assembly. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This application provides a feeding device and assembly equipment to solve the problem of low feeding and assembly position accuracy of sheet parts.

[0005] In a first aspect, the feeding device provided in this application includes a frame, a conveyor belt, a film, and a separating assembly. One side surface of the conveyor belt is recessed along its thickness direction to form a groove. The film adheres to the conveyor belt to cooperate with the groove to form a cavity for placing a part to be assembled. The separating assembly is mounted on the frame and is used to separate the conveyor belt from the film along the length of the conveyor belt to fully expose the part to be assembled.

[0006] Compared with the prior art, the feeding device of this application fixes the position of the part to be assembled to the material belt by placing the part to be assembled in the chamber of the material belt, and separates the material belt from the film by the separation component, thereby exposing the part completely in the groove for part picking and assembly, so as to improve the feeding and assembly position accuracy of the part.

[0007] In one possible implementation, there are multiple grooves, and these grooves are spaced apart along the length of the strip.

[0008] Furthermore, multiple grooves are set on a material strip to feed parts in batches, resulting in high precision in the feeding position of the parts, which is beneficial for large-scale automated production.

[0009] In one possible implementation, the frame includes a reel, a shaft, and an adjusting block. The reel is used for winding the material strip. The shaft is drive-connected to the reel and can drive the reel to rotate about the shaft as its axis of rotation. The adjusting block is movably connected to the shaft and can adjust the pressure of the reel on the material strip along the axial direction of the shaft.

[0010] In one possible implementation, the adjusting block includes a main shaft, a pressure block, and an elastic element. The main shaft passes through the rotating shaft, and one end of the main shaft abuts against one side of the coil. The pressure block is located at the other end of the main shaft and presses against the other side of the coil along the axial direction of the main shaft. The elastic element passes through the main shaft and is located between the pressure block and the coil to adjust the clamping force.

[0011] In one possible implementation, the adjusting block further includes a concentric ring sleeved on the rotating shaft. The concentric ring and the pressure block are located on the same side of the coil so that the direction of the clamping force is aligned with the axis of the main shaft.

[0012] Furthermore, the elastic element controls the magnitude of the clamping force, and the concentric ring controls the direction of the clamping force. The elastic element and the concentric ring keep the strip in a coiled shape with a certain clamping force, which is conducive to the stable transport of parts by the strip and reduces the impact of the strip movement on the position of the parts in the groove.

[0013] In one possible implementation, the separation assembly includes a power unit, a first synchronous pulley, and a second synchronous pulley. The first synchronous pulley is driven by the power unit and is used to move the conveyor belt. The second synchronous pulley is driven by the power unit and is used to move the film.

[0014] In one possible implementation, the power unit includes a drive shaft, a first track, and a second track. One end of the first track is connected to the drive shaft, and the other end is connected to the first synchronizer pulley. One end of the second track is connected to the drive shaft, and the other end is connected to the second synchronizer pulley.

[0015] In one possible implementation, the first synchronizing pulley is equipped with a gear, and the material belt has a through hole. The tooth pitch of the gear is the same as the pitch of the through hole. The first synchronizing pulley drives the material belt to move via the gear. The second synchronizing pulley is equipped with a roller connected to the film. The rotation of the second synchronizing pulley causes the roller to drive the film and the material belt to move synchronously and separate.

[0016] Furthermore, the gears and the first track drive the material belt to move, and the rollers drive the film to move. The rollers, gears, and the first track, driven by the same transmission shaft, enable the material belt and film to separate synchronously, which is beneficial to the stable separation of the material belt and film and reduces the impact on the position of the parts during the separation process.

[0017] Secondly, this application also provides an assembly device, including a feeding device and an assembly assembly, wherein the assembly assembly picks up the part to be assembled from the feeding device for assembly operations.

[0018] In one possible implementation, the assembly assembly includes a vision module, a control module, and a clamping assembly. The vision module acquires position information of the groove to determine first position information of the part to be assembled, and acquires second position information of the semi-finished product to be assembled. The control module calculates the first position information and the second position information to obtain a displacement. The clamping assembly is electrically connected to the control module, and removes the part to be assembled from the groove and assembles it into the semi-finished product according to the displacement. Attached Figure Description

[0019] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application, the accompanying drawings in the embodiments will be briefly described below. It should be understood that the following drawings only show some embodiments of this application and should not be regarded as a limitation of the scope. For those skilled in the art, other related drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0020] Figure 1 This is a perspective view of a feeding device according to an embodiment of this application;

[0021] Figure 2 for Figure 1 A three-dimensional schematic diagram of the feeding device's feed belt and film;

[0022] Figure 3 for Figure 2 A cross-sectional view of the feeding device's belt and film along the III-III direction;

[0023] Figure 4 for Figure 1 A three-dimensional schematic diagram of some parts of the feeding device;

[0024] Figure 5 for Figure 1 A cross-sectional view of the feeding device along the V-V direction;

[0025] Figure 6 for Figure 1 A three-dimensional schematic diagram of the feeding device, including the feed belt, film, and separation components;

[0026] Figure 7 This is a perspective view of an assembly device according to an embodiment of this application.

[0027] Explanation of key component symbols:

[0028] Feeding device 1

[0029] Rack 11

[0030] 111 coil

[0031] Shaft 112

[0032] Adjusting block 113

[0033] Spindle 114

[0034] 115 blocks

[0035] Elastic component 116

[0036] Concentric Rings 117

[0037] Guide column 118

[0038] Structural frame 119

[0039] Material strip 12

[0040] Groove 121

[0041] Chamber 122

[0042] Through hole 123

[0043] Belt Adjustment Plate 124

[0044] Material strip pressure plate 125

[0045] 126 Receiving strip

[0046] Film 13

[0047] Separation component 14

[0048] Power Unit 141

[0049] First synchronization wheel 142

[0050] Second synchronous pulley 143

[0051] Drive shaft 144

[0052] First track 145

[0053] Second track 146

[0054] Gear 147

[0055] 148 rollers

[0056] Separator 149

[0057] Part 15

[0058] Assembly equipment 2

[0059] Assembly Component 21

[0060] Visual Module 211

[0061] Clamping assembly 213

[0062] Assembly Line 22

[0063] Mechanical gripper 23

[0064] Platform 24 Detailed Implementation

[0065] The technical solutions in the embodiments of this application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of this application, and not all embodiments.

[0066] It should be noted that when a component is said to be "fixed to" another component, it can be directly on the other component or there may be an intervening component. When a component is said to be "connected to" another component, it can be directly connected to the other component or there may be an intervening component. When a component is said to be "set on" another component, it can be directly set on the other component or there may be an intervening component. The terms "vertical," "horizontal," "left," "right," and similar expressions used in this document are for illustrative purposes only.

[0067] Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art. The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the application. The term "or / and" as used herein includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.

[0068] Some embodiments of this application are described in detail. Unless otherwise specified, the following embodiments and features can be combined with each other.

[0069] Please see Figure 1 and Figure 2 The feeding device 1 provided in this embodiment includes a frame 11, a feed strip 12, a film 13, and a separating component 14. One side surface of the feed strip 12 is recessed along its thickness direction to form a groove 121. The film 13 adheres to the feed strip 12 to cooperate with the groove 121 to form a chamber 122, which is used to place the part 15 to be assembled. The separating component 14 is mounted on the frame 11 and is used to separate the feed strip 12 and the film 13 along the length direction of the feed strip 12 to completely expose the part 15 to be assembled.

[0070] The part 15 to be assembled can be a relatively small part 15, such as foam, buckle, or other sheet-like elastic part 15. The size of the part 15 is within 20mm (length) × 20mm (width) × 5mm (thickness), such as foam with a thickness of 5mm or 1mm, buckle with a thickness of 0.8mm, metal spring with a thickness of 0.2mm, etc.

[0071] The shape of the groove 121 is similar to that of the part 15, for example, it is a rectangular groove 121, which is used to fix the part 15 in the groove 121.

[0072] The feeding device 1 fixes the position of the part 15 to the material belt 12 by placing the part 15 to be assembled into the chamber 122 of the material belt 12. In this way, the part 15 can be arranged in an orderly manner. Then, the material belt 12 is separated from the film 13 by the separation component 14, so that the part 15 is completely exposed in the groove 121 for the part 15 to be picked up and assembled, thereby improving the feeding and assembly position accuracy of the part 15.

[0073] Please see Figure 3 In this embodiment, there are multiple grooves 121, and these grooves 121 are arranged at intervals along the length of the strip 12. The multiple grooves 121 are used to feed the parts 15 in batches while arranging them in an orderly manner.

[0074] The width of the film 13 can be greater than or equal to the opening size of the groove 121, so that the film 13 completely covers the opening of the groove 121 to form a sealed chamber 122, which is beneficial for the long-term storage of the part 15 in the strip 12.

[0075] The width of the film 13 can also be smaller than the opening size of the groove 121, so that the film 13 does not completely seal the groove 121. The strip 12 and the groove 121 form a semi-closed chamber 122, so that the atmospheric pressure inside and outside the chamber 122 is the same. This is beneficial to reduce the pressure difference inside and outside the chamber 122 when the film 13 separates from the strip 12, and facilitates the separation of the film 13 from the strip 12, so as to reduce the impact of the separation of the film 13 on the positional accuracy of the part 15 in the strip 12.

[0076] Please see Figure 4 The frame 11 includes guide posts 118, a reel 111, a rotating shaft 112, and an adjusting block 113. The reel 111 is used for winding the feed strip 12. The rotating shaft 112 is driven by the reel 111, enabling the reel 111 to rotate about the rotating shaft 112. The adjusting block 113 is movably connected to the rotating shaft 112, and can adjust the pressure of the reel 111 on the feed strip 12 along the axial direction of the rotating shaft 112. The guide posts 118 are used to hold the feed strip 12 tangentially to the reel 111 when it rotates out of the reel 111. Two guide posts 118 can be used, each positioned on one side of the feed strip 12, to maintain the direction of movement of the feed strip 12.

[0077] Please see Figure 5In this embodiment, the adjusting block 113 includes a main shaft 114, a pressure block 115, and an elastic element 116. The main shaft 114 passes through the rotating shaft 112, and one end of the main shaft 114 abuts against one side of the coil 111. The pressure block 115 is located at the other end of the main shaft 114 and presses the other side of the coil 111 along the axial direction of the main shaft 114. The elastic element 116 passes through the main shaft 114 and is located between the pressure block 115 and the coil 111 to adjust the clamping force. The elastic force can be calculated based on the elastic deformation of the elastic element 116, which facilitates the control of the pressure of the pressure block 115 on the coil 111. Adjusting the pressure of the pressure block 115 on the coil 111 helps to keep the material strip 12 in a coil shape when it is wound in the coil 111, and prevents the material strip 12 from becoming a messy strip during movement, thereby maintaining the position of the part 15 in the material strip 12.

[0078] The adjusting block 113 also includes a concentric ring 117, which is sleeved on the rotating shaft 112. The concentric ring 117 and the pressure block 115 are located on the same side of the reel 111 so that the direction of the clamping force is aligned with the axial direction of the main shaft 114. The concentric ring 117 is used to firmly fix the rotating shaft 112, thereby keeping the rotating shaft 112 and the main shaft 114 on the same axis and preventing the material strip 12 from causing the reel 111 to shake during rotation. The concentric ring 117 further stabilizes the reel 111 to maintain the position of the part 15 in the material strip 12.

[0079] The elastic element 116 controls the magnitude of the clamping force, and the concentric ring 117 controls the direction of the clamping force. The elastic element 116 and the concentric ring 117 keep the strip 12 in a coiled shape with a certain clamping force.

[0080] The frame 11 may also include a structural frame 119, a separation block 149 fixed on the structural frame 119, a material belt adjustment plate 124, a material belt pressure plate 125, and a take-up plate 126.

[0081] The structural frame 119 is located on one side of the reel 111. The guide post 118 presses the strip 12 and film 13 against the structural frame 119, thereby moving the strip 12 and film 13 from the reel 111 toward the structural frame 119.

[0082] Separator 149 is connected to structural frame 119. After the strip 12 and film 13 pass the guide post 118, they continue to move along structural frame 119 and pass through separator 149. Film 13 is torn from strip 12 by separator 149, blocked by separator 149 and moved away from structural frame 119. Strip 12 passes between separator 149 and structural frame 119 and continues to move along structural frame 119. When film 13 is torn from strip 12, separator 149 presses down strip 12 to prevent strip 12 from being pulled by film 13, thereby reducing the positional displacement of part 15 in groove 121.

[0083] The conveyor belt adjusting plate 124 is connected to the structural frame 119. After passing the separating block 149, the conveyor belt 12 continues to move along the structural frame 119 and passes the conveyor belt adjusting plate 124. The conveyor belt adjusting plate 124 is located on the structural frame 119 and is spaced apart from the separating block 149 by a certain distance. The conveyor belt adjusting plate 124 is flat. A gap is provided between the conveyor belt adjusting plate 124 and the surface of the structural frame 119, so that the conveyor belt 12 passes between the conveyor belt adjusting plate 124 and the structural frame 119. The conveyor belt adjusting plate 124 is used to hold the conveyor belt 12 on the surface of the structural frame 119.

[0084] The belt pressure plate 125 is connected to the structural frame 119. After passing the belt adjustment plate 124, the belt 12 continues to move along the structural frame 119 and passes the belt pressure plate 125. The belt pressure plate 125, the separation block 149, and the belt adjustment plate 124 are arranged in a straight line. The belt pressure plate 125 is used to maintain the linear movement of the belt 12.

[0085] The take-up plate 126 is connected to the structural frame 119. After the material belt 12 passes the material belt pressure plate 125, the material belt 12 continues to move along the structural frame 119 and passes the take-up plate 126. The take-up plate 126 is flat, and its extension direction is at an angle to the material belt pressure plate 125. The take-up plate 126 is used to change the movement trajectory of the material belt 12, causing the material belt 12 to move towards the position where the part 15 is loaded.

[0086] Please see Figure 6 In one embodiment, the separation assembly 14 includes a power unit 141, a first synchronous pulley 142, and a second synchronous pulley 143. The first synchronous pulley 142 is driven by the power unit 141 and is used to drive the material belt 12 to move. The second synchronous pulley 143 is driven by the power unit 141 and is used to drive the film 13 to move.

[0087] In this embodiment, the power unit 141 includes a drive shaft 144, a first track 145, and a second track 146. The drive shaft 144 is powered by a stepper motor and is connected to the structural frame 119. One end of the first track 145 is connected to the drive shaft 144, and the other end is connected to a first synchronous pulley 142. One end of the second track 146 is connected to the drive shaft 144, and the other end is connected to a second synchronous pulley 143. This ensures that the first track 145 and the second track 146 operate synchronously.

[0088] The first synchronous pulley 142 and the second synchronous pulley 143 are connected to the structural frame 119. The first synchronous pulley 142 and the second synchronous pulley 143 are driven by the first track 145 and the second track 146 respectively and can rotate synchronously. The separating block 149 is located between the first synchronous pulley 142 and the second synchronous pulley 143. The first synchronous pulley 142 pulls the material belt 12 to move, and the second synchronous pulley 143 pulls the film 13 to move. The material belt 12 and the film 13 move in different directions. The material belt 12 and the film 13 are torn apart from the film 13 by passing through the separating block 149.

[0089] The first synchronous pulley 142 is equipped with a gear 147, and the material belt 12 is equipped with a through hole 123. Part of the gear 147 passes through the through hole 123, and the tooth spacing of the gear 147 is the same as the spacing of the through hole 123. Thus, the first synchronous pulley 142 drives the material belt 12 to move through the gear 147. The second synchronous pulley 143 is equipped with a roller 148, and the film 13 is wound around the circumferential surface of the roller 148. The rotation of the second synchronous pulley 143 causes the roller 148 to drive the film 13 to move and separate synchronously with the material belt 12. The synchronous separation of the material belt 12 and the film 13 is beneficial for the uniform speed of the material belt 12 during movement and keeps the material belt 12 flat, thereby reducing the impact of the separation of the material belt 12 and the film 13 on the position of the part 15.

[0090] Please see Figure 7 This embodiment also provides an assembly device 2, including a feeding device 1 and an assembly component 21, wherein the assembly component 21 picks up the part 15 to be assembled from the feeding device 1 for assembly operation.

[0091] In this embodiment, the assembly assembly 21 includes a vision module 211, a control module (not shown), and a clamping assembly 213. The vision module 211 acquires the position information of the groove 121 to determine the first position information of the part 15 to be assembled, and acquires the second position information of the semi-finished product to be assembled. The control module is used to calculate the first position information and the second position information to obtain the displacement. The clamping assembly 213 is electrically connected to the control module, and removes the part 15 to be assembled from the groove 121 and assembles it into the semi-finished product according to the displacement.

[0092] The vision module 211 includes an industrial camera, a light source, and a mounting base. The industrial camera and the light source are respectively fixed to the mounting base, and the light source is used to illuminate the industrial camera when it takes pictures. The industrial camera takes pictures of part 15, and the control module calculates the contour features of part 15. For example, the control module calculates the coordinates of the center point of part 15 as the first position information. The industrial camera takes pictures of the semi-finished product, and the control module analyzes the structural features of the semi-finished product. For example, the control module calculates the center coordinates of the assembly holes of the semi-finished product as the second position information.

[0093] The clamping assembly 213 can be used with an industrial robot, which is electrically connected to the control module. The industrial robot receives first position information and second position information. Then, the clamping assembly 213 moves from the first position to the second position to coincide, thereby completing the assembly operation of part 15 and the semi-finished product.

[0094] Assembly equipment 2 also includes a production line 22, a robotic gripper 23, and a platform 24. The production line 22 is used for feeding semi-finished products, and the robotic gripper 23 picks up the semi-finished products from the production line 22 and moves them to the platform 24 for assembly. Multiple feeding devices 1, a vision module 211, and a clamping assembly 213 are fixed to the platform 24. The platform 24 includes multiple workstations for assembling multiple parts 15 of the semi-finished products.

[0095] The above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of this application and are not intended to limit it. Although this application has been described in detail with reference to the above preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that modifications or equivalent substitutions to the technical solutions of this application should not depart from the spirit and scope of the technical solutions of this application.

Claims

1. A feeding device, comprising a frame, characterized in that, include: The material strip has a groove formed on one side surface along its thickness direction; A thin film is attached to the strip to mate with the groove to form a cavity for placing the part to be assembled. A separation assembly, mounted on the frame, is used to separate the strip from the film along the length of the strip to fully expose the parts to be assembled. The rack includes: A reel for winding the material strip; The rotating shaft is connected to the reel drive and can drive the reel to rotate around the rotating shaft as the rotation axis; An adjusting block is movably connected to the rotating shaft, and the adjusting block is capable of adjusting the pressure of the reel on the material strip along the axial direction of the rotating shaft; Guide posts are disposed on both sides of the strip and are used to keep the strip tangential to the reel when the strip rotates out of the reel. The separation component includes: Power unit; The first synchronous pulley is connected to the power unit for driving the material belt to move; The second synchronous pulley is connected to the power unit for driving the membrane to move; The adjustment block includes: A main shaft, which passes through the rotating shaft, with one end of the main shaft abutting against one side of the coil; A pressure block is located at the other end of the main shaft and presses against the other side of the coil along the axial direction of the main shaft; An elastic element is provided, which passes through the main shaft and is located between the pressure block and the coil to adjust the clamping force; The adjusting block also includes a concentric ring, which is sleeved on the rotating shaft. The concentric ring and the pressure block are located on the same side of the coil so that the direction of the clamping force is in a straight line with the axis of the main shaft. The frame also includes a structural frame, and a separation block, a strip adjustment plate and a strip pressure plate disposed on the structural frame. The structural frame is disposed on one side of the reel. The guide post presses the strip and the film against the structural frame, thereby causing the strip and the film to move from the reel toward the structural frame.

2. The feeding device according to claim 1, characterized in that: There are multiple grooves, and these grooves are arranged at intervals along the length of the material strip.

3. The feeding device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The power unit includes: transmission shaft; The first track has one end connected to the drive shaft and the other end connected to the first synchronous pulley; The second track has one end connected to the drive shaft and the other end connected to the second synchronous pulley.

4. The feeding device according to claim 3, characterized in that: The first synchronous pulley is provided with a gear, and the material belt is provided with a through hole. The tooth pitch of the gear is the same as the pitch of the through hole. The first synchronous pulley drives the material belt to move through the gear. The second synchronous wheel is equipped with a roller, which is connected to the film. The rotation of the second synchronous wheel causes the roller to drive the film and the material belt to move synchronously and separate.

5. An assembly device, characterized in that, The assembly includes an assembly component and a feeding device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the assembly component grips the part to be assembled from the feeding device for assembly operations.

6. The assembly equipment according to claim 5, characterized in that: The assembly components include: The vision module acquires the position information of the groove to determine the first position information of the part to be assembled, and acquires the second position information of the semi-finished product to be assembled. The control module is used to calculate the first position information and the second position information to obtain the displacement. The clamping assembly, electrically connected to the control module, removes the part to be assembled from the groove and assembles it into the semi-finished product according to the displacement.

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