Square block locking type rigid chain push-pull actuator

Abstract

The invention relates to the field of linear actuators, and discloses a square block locking type rigid chain push-pull actuator, which comprises a rigid chain in horizontal storage mode, a driver and a joint, the upper end of the rigid chain is connected with the joint, and the lower end of the rigid chain extends into the interior of the driver. The square block locking type rigid chain push-pull actuator provided by the invention, the locking of each chain plate of the rigid chain is realized by filling the square hole of the inner and outer chain plates with the square block of two rotating columns, when the rigid chain is in a rigid state, the bending resistance is stronger, and the stability is better.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of linear actuators, specifically to a block-locking rigid chain push-pull actuator. Background Technology

[0002] Rigid chains (also known as traction chains) are a special type of chain that combines the flexibility of ordinary chains with a certain degree of rigidity. Therefore, actuators composed of rigid chains and drivers can replace hydraulic cylinders, pneumatic cylinders, and electric actuators, and are widely used in applications requiring large-stroke traction loads to reduce equipment size and save space. There are two main types of existing rigid chains: single-row pin-driven rigid chains and double-row pin-driven rigid chains.

[0003] The inner or outer chain plate of the rigid chain with the single row of pins mentioned above is a limiting thrust plate. When the chain is subjected to thrust, the two adjacent limiting thrust plates abut against each other, thereby giving the chain a certain rigidity, such as the invention patent products with authorization announcement numbers CN2620795Y or CN2692423Y.

[0004] The article "Rigid Chain Drive and Its Application," published in the 2008 issue 3 of *Lifting and Transport Machinery* (pages 45-46), discloses a rigid chain with double-row pins. The upper row of drive pins hinges the inner and outer chain plates together, allowing the chain to be driven and bent. The lower row of guide pins each thread and fix a pair of inner chain plates or a pair of outer chain plates together, forming a box-shaped structure. When the chain is straight, it can be locked by the head of the guide pin embedding into the semi-circular notches on adjacent outer chain plates, thus exhibiting relatively high stability and load-bearing capacity. However, the chain's good stability in a straight state relies on two conditions: the diameter of the guide pin is equal to the diameter of the circle formed by the two semi-circular notches, and the line connecting the center of the circle formed by the semi-circular notches on adjacent outer chain plates and the drive pin is not within the parting surface of the semi-circular notches (i.e., the mating surface of adjacent outer chain plates). Therefore, when the chain needs to be bent, i.e., to release the lock, the diameter of the head of the guide pin must be reduced. To solve the above-mentioned technical problems, the existing solution is to reduce the head diameter of the guide pin and design the guide pin as a sleeve structure with a compression spring in the middle. The guide pin is shortened when passing through the guide groove in the transmission device, meaning that when the chain bends, the reduced-diameter head moves into the semi-circular notch. However, the locking structure formed by the semi-circular notches on the two adjacent outer chain plates of the guide pin has the following obvious shortcomings: 1. The requirements for the shape and diameter deviations of the guide pin and the semi-circular notch, as well as the positional deviations of the guide pin and the semi-circular notch, are very stringent, resulting in high processing costs; 2. Without a clear locking structure, relying solely on the slight interference caused by the semi-circular notch on the outer chain plate leaving the guide pin to ensure the rigidity of the entire chain in a straight state is clearly insufficient. Once a slightly larger external force is applied to the chain, the locking structure becomes the weakest point of the entire chain and fails; 3. With repeated bending of the entire chain, the sharp corners of the semi-circular notch quickly wear down and lose their locking function.

[0005] The invention patent application CN103470705A, entitled "A Single-Sided Driven Rigid Chain Push-Pull Actuator," improves upon the shortcomings of the aforementioned "double-row pin rigid chain." It utilizes a defined locking structure to make the rigid chain safer and more reliable. The locking structure uses a rigid-flexible state conversion pin to connect a pair of inner chain plates and an outer chain plate. The holes in the inner and outer chain plates through which the rigid-flexible state conversion pin passes are elongated transverse holes. The rigid-flexible state of the rigid chain can be switched by controlling the pin's back-and-forth sliding within these transverse elongated holes. However, the above solution still has the following shortcomings: 1. 1. Each pair of inner and outer chain plates is connected at a single point by a rigid-flexible transition pin, and the rigidity is provided by the interference between the corner of the outer chain plate and the boss on the inner chain plate, resulting in poor reliability. 2. When the chain is in a rigid state, although the chain cannot bend, each pair of inner chain plates and the adjacent pair of outer chain plates can still move relative to each other. If the chain is subjected to lateral force and moves, it will lose its rigidity. 3. Since the inner and outer chain plates can move relative to each other, this may cause the entire rigid chain to become uneven, which seriously affects the smooth operation of the push-pull actuator. Therefore, we propose a block-locking rigid chain push-pull actuator. Summary of the Invention

[0006] (a) Technical problems to be solved

[0007] To address the shortcomings of existing technologies, this invention provides a block-locking rigid chain push-pull actuator to solve the aforementioned problems.

[0008] (II) Technical Solution

[0009] To achieve the above-mentioned objectives, the present invention provides the following technical solution:

[0010] A block-locking rigid chain push-pull actuator comprises a rigid chain stored horizontally, a driver, and a connector. The upper end of the rigid chain is connected to the connector, and the lower end of the rigid chain extends into the interior of the driver.

[0011] The rigid chain consists of several links. Each link includes two overlapping half links, four fixing pins, and a locking mechanism located at the corner where the two overlapping half links meet. Each half link includes an outer link plate, an inner link plate, and two fixing pins. The two fixing pins are respectively located in the middle of the outer link plate and the inner link plate on both sides of a half link, which fix the outer link plate and the inner link plate together. The heads of the two fixing pins extend to the outside of the outer link plate and the inner link plate.

[0012] The outer and inner links of the two half-links are provided with protrusions that run through both sides of the link, and the sides of the protrusions are closely attached to the ends of the adjacent outer and inner links.

[0013] The corners of the outer and inner links at the hinge point of the two half-links are rounded, and the radius of the rounded corner is not greater than the distance from the hinge point to the side of the corresponding boss.

[0014] A square through hole is provided at the corner of the head of the outer link plate, and a square hole and a round hole with a depth of 1.5 mm are provided at the corner of the head of the inner link plate. The square through hole and the square hole are combined to form a square groove that can switch between rigidity and flexibility.

[0015] The locking mechanism includes a right-rotating column, a left-rotating column, and a threaded isolation column. Both the right-rotating column and the left-rotating column have a block in the middle that matches the square through hole. The right side of the block on the right-rotating column is a smooth cylindrical spherical surface and the left side is a threaded column. The right side of the block on the left-rotating column is a threaded column and the left side is a smooth cylindrical spherical surface. The block is inserted into the square through hole, and the smooth cylindrical spherical surface extends into the hole. The threaded column is connected to the middle of the chain link through the threaded isolation column.

[0016] The drive unit consists of a storage box, two sprockets that mesh with a rigid chain, and a worm gear reducer located outside the storage box. The two sprockets are supported inside the storage box by the main shaft and the drive shaft, respectively.

[0017] The storage box consists of a box body, a disassembly plate, and a box lid. The box body is equipped with a box lid on the top and a disassembly plate on the side wall of the box body.

[0018] The worm gear reducer consists of a worm wheel and a worm, with the worm wheel located on the main shaft.

[0019] The box body and the unloading plate are equipped with guide rails on the side of the box body. The guide rails are composed of a flexible linear motion guide section, a flexible bending motion guide section and a rigid linear motion guide section. The heads of the two fixed pins on one side, the smooth cylindrical spherical surface of the right rotating column and the smooth cylindrical spherical surface of the left rotating column extend to the side of the guide rail near the sprocket. The heads of the other two fixed pins on the other side extend to the side of the guide rail away from the sprocket.

[0020] The two inner surfaces of the housing are provided with eight control blocks. Each pair of control blocks is distributed in the rigid linear motion guide section near the flexible bending motion guide section. The control blocks are all located on the side of the guide rail near the sprocket. The distance between the centers of the sprockets is equal to the distance from the fixed pin to the center of the sprocket. The width of the control block is equal to the diameter of the right rotating column and the left rotating column. The inclination of the control blocks on both sides is the same, and the inclination direction is opposite.

[0021] The drive may also include various types of speed reduction devices, such as worm gear speed reduction devices with the worm wheel on the drive shaft, gear speed reduction devices with the final driven gear on the drive shaft, chain speed reduction devices with the driven sprocket on the drive shaft, and belt speed reduction devices with the driven pulley on the drive shaft, etc. These are all things that a person skilled in the art can easily conceive of.

[0022] (III) Beneficial Effects

[0023] Compared with the prior art, the block-locking rigid chain push-pull actuator provided by the present invention has the following advantages:

[0024] 1. This block-locking rigid chain push-pull actuator has a clear locking mechanism, ensuring safe and reliable operation.

[0025] 2. The block-locking rigid chain push-pull actuator locks each chain plate of the rigid chain by filling the square holes of the inner and outer chain plates with blocks from two rotating columns. When the rigid chain is in a rigid state, it has stronger bending resistance and better stability.

[0026] 3. The block-locking rigid chain push-pull actuator has a rigid chain storage box with two layers in the horizontal direction, which can save a lot of space resources. Attached Figure Description

[0027] Figure 1 This is a three-dimensional structural diagram of a specific embodiment of the push-pull actuator of the present invention;

[0028] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a link of a rigid chain according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0029] Figure 3 for Figure 2 AA section view;

[0030] Figure 4 This is a left view of the structure of a link of a rigid chain according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0031] Figure 5 This is a three-dimensional structural diagram of a link in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0032] Figure 6 This is a three-dimensional structural diagram of the outer link plate in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0033] Figure 7 This is a three-dimensional structural diagram of the inner chain plate in a chain link according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0034] Figure 8 This is a three-dimensional structural diagram of the right-hand rotating post in a chain link according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0035] Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram of the driver structure according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0036] Figure 10 for Figure 9 BB cross-sectional view;

[0037] Figure 11This is a top view of the driver structure according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0038] Figure 12 for Figure 11 A magnified view of the area circled in the middle;

[0039] Figure 13 This is a three-dimensional structural diagram of the storage box in the driver according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0040] Figure 14 This is a front view of the rigid chain according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0041] Figure 15 for Figure 14 CC section view;

[0042] Figure 16 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the principle of transforming a rigid chain into a flexible chain or a rigid chain into a flexible chain according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0043] Figure 17 This is a schematic diagram of the inner surface of the guide plate of the push-pull actuator with a rigid chain forming a vertical pushing load according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0044] In the diagram: 1. Rigid chain; 2. Driver; 3. Connector; 4. Outer chain plate; 4-1. Square through hole; 5. Inner chain plate; 5-1. Square hole; 5-2. Round hole; 6. Fixing pin; 7. Boss; 8. Right-hand rotating column; 9. Left-hand rotating column; 10. Threaded isolation column; 11. Block; 12. Smooth cylindrical spherical surface; 13. Threaded column; 14. Main shaft; 15. Sprocket; 16. Drive shaft; 17. Box body; 18. Unloading plate; 19. Box cover; 20. Worm gear; 21. Worm; 22. Guide rail; 22-1. Flexible linear motion guide section; 22-2. Flexible bending motion guide section; 22-3. Rigid linear motion guide section; 23. Control wedge block. Detailed Implementation

[0045] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0046] Example

[0047] Please see Figure 1-17 The block-locking rigid chain push-pull actuator provided in this embodiment of the invention comprises a rigid chain 1, a driver 2, and a connector 3, which are stored horizontally. The upper end of the rigid chain 1 is connected to the connector 3, and the lower end of the rigid chain 1 extends into the interior of the driver 2.

[0048] The rigid chain 1 consists of several links. Each link includes two overlapping half links, four fixing pins 6, and a locking mechanism located at the corner of the overlapping half links. Each half link includes an outer link plate 4, an inner link plate 5, and two fixing pins 6. The two fixing pins 6 are respectively located in the middle of the outer link plate 4 and the inner link plate 5 on both sides of one half link, and pass through and fix the outer link plate 4 and the inner link plate 5 together. The heads of the two fixing pins 6 extend to the outside of the outer link plate 4 and the inner link plate 5.

[0049] The outer link plate 4 and the inner link plate 5 in the two half links are provided with a boss 7 that runs through both sides of the link plate. The side of the boss 7 is closely attached to the end of the adjacent outer link plate 4 and inner link plate 5.

[0050] The corners of the outer link plate 4 and inner link plate 5 at the hinge of the two half-links are rounded, and the radius of the rounded corner is not greater than the distance from the hinge point to the side of the corresponding boss 7.

[0051] The outer link plate 4 has a square through hole 4-1 at the head corner, and the inner link plate 5 has a 1.5mm deep square hole 5-1 and a round hole 5-2 at the head corner. The square through hole 4-1 and the square hole 5-1 are combined to form a rigid-flexible square groove.

[0052] The locking mechanism includes a right-rotating column 8, a left-rotating column 9, and a threaded isolation column 10. Both the right-rotating column 8 and the left-rotating column 9 have a block 11 in the middle that matches the square through hole 4-1. The right side of the block 11 on the right-rotating column 8 is a smooth cylindrical spherical surface 12 and the left side is a threaded column 13. The right side of the block 11 on the left-rotating column 9 is a threaded column 13 and the left side is a smooth cylindrical spherical surface 12. The installation positions of the right-rotating column 8 and the left-rotating column 9 are the same. The block 11 is inserted into the square through hole 4-1, and the smooth cylindrical spherical surface 12 extends into the round hole 5-2. The threaded column 13 is connected to the middle of the chain link through the threaded isolation column 10 to achieve synchronous movement of the two.

[0053] The drive unit 2 consists of a storage box, two sprockets 15 that mesh with the rigid chain 1 respectively, and a worm gear reducer located outside the storage box. The two sprockets 15 are supported inside the storage box by the main shaft 14 and the drive shaft 16 respectively.

[0054] The storage box consists of a box body 17, a box unloading plate 18, and a box cover 19. The box body 17 is provided with a box cover 19 on the top, and the box unloading plate 18 is provided on the side wall of the box body 17.

[0055] The worm gear reducer consists of a worm wheel 20 and a worm 21, with the worm wheel 20 mounted on the main shaft 14.

[0056] Guide rails 22 are provided inside the housing 17 and on one side of the unloading plate 18 corresponding to the inside of the housing 17. The rigid chain 1 corresponding to the guide rail 22 has different characteristics and states. The guide rail 22 is composed of a flexible linear motion guide section 22-1, a flexible bending motion guide section 22-2, and a rigid linear motion guide section 22-3. The heads of the two fixing pins 6 on one side, the smooth cylindrical spherical surface 12 of the right rotating column 8, and the smooth cylindrical spherical surface 12 of the left rotating column 9 extend to the side of the guide rail 22 near the sprocket 15. The heads of the other two fixing pins 6 on the other side extend to the side of the guide rail 22 away from the sprocket 15. When the sprocket 15 drives the rigid chain 1 to move, the guide rail 22 forces the rigid chain 1 to change the direction of movement.

[0057] The two inner surfaces of the housing 17 are provided with eight control inclined blocks 23. Each pair of control inclined blocks 23 are distributed at the position of the rigid linear motion guide section 22-3 near the flexible bending motion guide section 22-2. The control inclined blocks 23 are all located on the side of the guide rail 22 near the sprocket 15. The distance between the centers of the sprocket 15 is equal to the distance from the fixed pin 6 to the center of the sprocket 15. The width of the control inclined block 23 is equal to the diameter of the right rotating column 8 and the left rotating column 9. The inclination of the control inclined blocks 23 on both sides is the same, and the inclination direction is opposite.

[0058] See Figure 9-12 , Figure 16 and combined Figure 1-5 In this embodiment, the process of switching between the rigid and flexible states of the rigid chain is as follows:

[0059] When the rigid chain 1 moves from the flexible bending motion guide section 22-2 to the rigid linear motion guide section 22-3, the rigid chain 1 is in a rigid state, and the locking state of one link is as follows: Figures 2-5 As shown, the square through-hole 4-1, the 1.5mm deep square hole 5-1, and the round hole 5-2 of the inner and outer chain plates are on the same axis. The smooth cylindrical spherical surface 12 of the right rotating column 8 will slide along the inclined surface of the control block 23. Therefore, the square block 11 of both the left and right rotating columns will completely enter the 1.5mm deep square hole 5-1, which can lock the inner chain plate 5, preventing the inner chain plate 5 from rotating relative to the outer chain plate 4. When the rigid chain 1 enters the flexible bending motion guide section 22-2 from the rigid linear motion guide section 22-3, the rigid chain 1 is in a flexible state. The unlocking state of one link is as follows: Figures 14-16 As shown, the square through hole 4-1, the 1.5mm deep square hole 5-1, and the round hole 5-2 of the inner and outer chain plates are still on the same axis. The smooth cylindrical spherical surface 12 of the left rotating column 9 will slide along the inclined surface of the control block 23. The square blocks 11 of the left and right rotating columns are completely removed from the 1.5mm deep square hole 5-1. The square blocks 11 cannot jam the inner chain plate 5, and the inner chain plate 5 can rotate relative to the outer chain plate 4.

[0060] The block-locking rigid chain push-pull actuator provided in the above embodiments of the present invention has a locking point for each chain plate of the rigid chain achieved by the block filling the square holes of the inner and outer chain plates by two rotating columns. When the rigid chain is in a rigid state, it has stronger bending resistance and better stability.

[0061] Although embodiments of the invention have been shown and described, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes, modifications, substitutions and alterations can be made to these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A block-locking rigid chain push-pull actuator, characterized in that, It consists of a rigid chain (1) with horizontal storage, a driver (2) and a connector (3), the upper end of the rigid chain (1) is connected to the connector (3), and the lower end of the rigid chain (1) extends into the interior of the driver (2); The rigid chain (1) consists of several links. Each link includes two half links with their heads overlapping each other and a locking mechanism located at the corner of the head where the two half links overlap. The half link includes an outer link plate (4), an inner link plate (5), and two fixing pins (6). The two fixing pins (6) are respectively located in the middle of the outer link plate (4) and the inner link plate (5) of one half link, and pass the outer link plate (4) and the inner link plate (5) through and fix them together. The heads of the two fixing pins (6) extend to the outside of the outer link plate (4) and the inner link plate (5). The outer chain plate (4) and inner chain plate (5) of the two half-links are provided with a boss (7) that runs through both sides of the chain plate in the middle. The side of the boss (7) is closely attached to the end of the adjacent outer chain plate (4) and inner chain plate (5). The corners of the outer link plate (4) and inner link plate (5) at the hinge of the two half-links are rounded, and the radius of the rounded corner is not greater than the distance from the hinge point to the side of the corresponding boss (7). The outer chain plate (4) has a square through hole (4-1) at the head corner, and the inner chain plate (5) has a square hole (5-1) with a depth of 1.5 mm and a round hole (5-2) at the head corner. The square through hole (4-1) and the square hole (5-1) are combined to form a rigid-flexible square groove. The locking mechanism includes a right rotating column (8), a left rotating column (9), and a threaded isolation column (10). The middle part of the right rotating column (8) and the left rotating column (9) is provided with a block (11) that matches the square hole through hole (4-1). The right side of the block (11) on the right rotating column (8) is a smooth cylindrical spherical surface (12) and the left side is a threaded column (13). The right side of the block (11) on the left rotating column (9) is a threaded column (13) and the left side is a smooth cylindrical spherical surface (12). The block (11) is inserted into the square hole through hole (4-1), and the smooth cylindrical spherical surface (12) extends into the round hole (5-2). The threaded column (13) is connected to the middle of the chain link through the threaded isolation column (10).

2. The block-locking rigid chain push-pull actuator according to claim 1, characterized in that: The drive (2) consists of a storage box, two sprockets (15) that mesh with a rigid chain (1) respectively, and a worm gear reduction device located on the outside of the storage box. The two sprockets (15) are supported inside the storage box by a main shaft (14) and a transmission shaft (16) respectively. The storage box consists of a box body (17), a box unloading plate (18), and a box cover (19). The box body (17) is provided with a box cover (19) on the top and a box unloading plate (18) is provided on the side wall of the box body (17). The worm gear reducer consists of a worm wheel (20) and a worm (21), wherein the worm wheel (20) is mounted on the main shaft (14).

3. The block-locking rigid chain push-pull actuator according to claim 2, characterized in that: The driver (2) includes a speed reduction device.

4. The block-locking rigid chain push-pull actuator according to claim 3, characterized in that: The box body (17) and the unloading plate (18) are both provided with guide rails (22) on one side of the box body (17). The guide rails (22) are composed of a flexible linear motion guide section (22-1), a flexible bending motion guide section (22-2), and a rigid linear motion guide section (22-3). The heads of the two fixed pins (6) on one side, the smooth cylindrical spherical surface (12) of the right rotating column (8), and the smooth cylindrical spherical surface (12) of the left rotating column (9) extend to the side of the guide rail (22) near the sprocket (15), while the heads of the other two fixed pins (6) on the other side extend to the side of the guide rail (22) away from the sprocket (15).

5. The block-locking rigid chain push-pull actuator according to claim 4, characterized in that: The two inner surfaces of the housing (17) are provided with control blocks (23). The control blocks (23) are distributed on the rigid linear motion guide section (22-3) near the flexible bending motion guide section (22-2). The control blocks (23) are all located on the side of the guide rail (22) near the sprocket (15). The width of the control blocks (23) is equal to the diameter of the right rotating column (8) and the left rotating column (9).

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