Hydraulic servo leveling device

Abstract

The invention relates to the field of metal plate machining, in particular to a hydraulic servo leveling device. The problems that due to rigid extrusion of an existing roller, a thin plate is prone to being excessively extruded, the cracking rate is high during follow-up punch forming, and meanwhile the flatness of the surface of the thin metal plate is reduced due to roller marks are solved. A hydraulic servo leveling device comprises a platform, a telescopic driving source, an air pressure adjusting assembly and an air cushion, the air cushion is arranged on the telescopic driving source, the telescopic driving source is arranged on the platform, and the air cushion is used for leveling an uneven area of a thin plate. The conditions of indentation and micro-fission easily caused by roller flattening are avoided through the material of the flexible pad, and meanwhile, the contact surface between the bottom of the flexible pad and the thin plate is smooth through the air pressure space of the air cushion.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of metal sheet processing, and specifically relates to a hydraulic servo leveling device. Background Technology

[0002] Thin metal sheets are widely used in numerous industrial production sectors, such as automobile manufacturing, aerospace, electronic equipment production, and precision instrument manufacturing. Taking thin metal sheets with a thickness of 0.1m-0.5m as an example, they play a crucial role in the manufacturing of product components in these industries. However, various shape deviations, such as bending and wavy unevenness, are easily generated during the production of thin metal sheets. In subsequent processing steps, such as stamping, welding, and assembly, uneven thin metal sheets lead to a decrease in processing accuracy, affecting the dimensional and shape accuracy of the components.

[0003] Currently, commonly used mechanical leveling mainly uses physical mechanical means, such as roller levelers, to apply pressure and bending force to thin metal sheets, causing plastic deformation to achieve the purpose of leveling. However, due to the rigid extrusion by the rollers, the leveling accuracy of roller levelers is limited, and it may be difficult to achieve the ideal leveling effect. At the same time, because the bending and wavy warping surfaces of thin sheets are not uniform, the rigid extrusion of the rollers is prone to over-extrusion. For thinner metal sheets such as 0.1m-0.5m with high precision requirements, over-extrusion can easily produce roller marks and micro-cracks, resulting in a higher cracking rate during subsequent stamping and forming. Roller marks also reduce the surface flatness of the thin metal sheet. Summary of the Invention

[0004] To address the aforementioned problems in the prior art, this invention provides a hydraulic servo leveling device.

[0005] The objective of this invention can be achieved through the following technical solutions: A hydraulic servo leveling device includes a platform, a telescopic drive source, a pneumatic pressure regulating component, and an air cushion. The air cushion is disposed on the telescopic drive source, which is disposed on the platform. The air cushion is used to level uneven areas of a thin plate. The pneumatic pressure regulating component is disposed on the air cushion. The air cushion includes a limiting shell and a flexible pad. The pneumatic pressure regulating component includes a bonding plate. The bonding plate slides within the air cushion and is bonded to the flexible pad, making the contact surface between the flexible pad and the thin plate flat.

[0006] Preferably, the bottom of the telescopic drive source is provided with a limiting shell, the limiting shell has a concave bottom structure, and the flexible pad is installed at the bottom of the limiting shell and forms an air pressure space between them.

[0007] Preferably, the air pressure regulating component further includes a pressure relief valve and an inflation valve. When the stroke of the driving component is too large, the pressure relief valve regulates the air pressure of the air cushion to eliminate the error of the telescopic driving source. When the stroke of the driving component is too small, the inflation valve regulates the air pressure of the air cushion to compensate for the error of the telescopic driving source.

[0008] Preferably, the telescopic drive source includes several drive components and a control module, and the drive components may be hydraulic cylinders or electric push rods.

[0009] Preferably, the pressure relief valve is electrically connected to the control module, with one end of the pressure relief valve connected to the pneumatic space and the other end protruding from the limiting shell to communicate with the outside.

[0010] Preferably, the inflation valve is electrically connected to the control module and controlled by the control module. One end of the inflation valve is connected to the air pressure space, and the other end is connected to an external air pump.

[0011] Preferably, the control module includes an identification module and a data module. The identification module is located on the platform and is used to identify uneven areas of the thin plate. The data module is electrically connected to the identification module. The data module contains a library of coordinate parameters of the thin plate area corresponding to several driving components, which are compared with the coordinates of the uneven areas identified by the identification module.

[0012] Preferably, the recognition module includes an industrial camera and a height laser scanner, both of which are mounted on the platform. The industrial camera identifies the shadow and grayscale feature information of the uneven area relative to the flat area and feeds it back to the data module. The height laser scanner feeds back the height information of the thin plate to the data module.

[0013] The beneficial effects of the present invention are as follows: 1. The flexible pad material avoids the indentation and micro-cracks caused by the roller pressing flat, and the air pressure space of the air pad also makes the contact surface between the bottom of the flexible pad and the thin plate flat.

[0014] 2. If the stroke of the driving component is too large, the bonding plate will move upward along the limiting shell and guide rod due to the upward force of the flat plate and the thin plate. The bonding plate will push the air pressure in the air pressure space out through the pressure relief valve. If the stroke of the driving component is too small, the air pressure space will be inflated through the inflation valve. The air pressure will cause the bonding plate to further squeeze the flexible pad. The flexible pad has a certain stretching and deformation force to adapt to the expansion caused by inflation and continue to flatten the thin plate.

[0015] 3. The uneven height of the thin plate is scanned by a height laser scanner. The data module contains a library of coordinate parameters corresponding to the uneven areas of the thin plate for several driving components. The data module comprehensively processes the shadow and grayscale features fed back by the industrial camera and combines them with the uneven height fed back by the height laser scanner. Combined with 3D reconstruction and image processing, the 2D image is converted into a 3D height distribution and compared with the coordinate parameter library. The control module then activates the driving components corresponding to the uneven areas to perform targeted leveling. Attached Figure Description

[0016] To facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art, the present invention will be further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0017] Figure 1 This is a three-dimensional structural diagram of the present invention; Figure 2 This is a partial three-dimensional structural schematic diagram of the present invention; Figure 3 This is a partial cross-sectional three-dimensional structural schematic diagram of the present invention; Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram simulating the planar concave and convex surfaces of the present invention; Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the control module of the present invention; Legend: 1. Placement rack; 2. Flat plate; 3. Conveyor roller; 4. Industrial camera; 5. Height scanner; 6. Control module; 61. Identification module; 62. Data module; 7. Drive component; 81. Limiting shell; 82. Flexible pad; 91. Guide rod; 92. Adhesive plate; 93. Pressure relief valve; 94. Inflation valve; 11. Leveling area; 111. Concave-convex surface simulation one; 112. Concave-convex surface simulation two. Detailed Implementation

[0018] To further illustrate the technical means and effects of the present invention in achieving its intended purpose, the following detailed description of the specific implementation methods, structures, features, and effects of the present invention, in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and preferred embodiments, is provided.

[0019] Example 1: For leveling thin metal sheets, current mechanical leveling methods primarily rely on physical means, such as roller levelers, to apply pressure and bending force to the sheet, causing plastic deformation to achieve leveling. However, due to the rigid extrusion of the rollers, roller levelers have limited leveling accuracy and may fail to achieve ideal leveling results. Furthermore, because the bending and wavy warping of thin sheets vary in location, rigid roller extrusion can easily over-extrude the sheet. For thinner metal sheets (0.1m-0.5m) with high precision requirements, over-extrusion can easily produce roller marks and micro-cracks, leading to a higher cracking rate during subsequent stamping. Roller marks also... The reduced surface flatness of thin metal sheets makes them unsuitable for applications such as automotive manufacturing, aerospace, electronic equipment production, and precision instrument manufacturing. Therefore, this example proposes a hydraulic servo leveling device, comprising a platform, a telescopic drive source, a pneumatic adjustment assembly, and an air cushion. The platform includes a placement frame 1, a leveling plate 2, and conveyor rollers 3. One end of the placement frame 1 is connected to the thin sheet production area, and the other end is connected to the thin sheet stamping area. The leveling plate 2 is fixedly connected to the middle of the placement frame 1. The upper surface of the leveling plate 2 is divided into leveling areas 11. Conveyor rollers 3 are rotatably connected to both ends of the leveling plate 2. One end of the conveyor roller 3 is connected to an external motor and is controlled by an external limiting device and a pushing device. The thin sheet is conveyed from the production area to one side of the conveyor roller 3 on the flat plate 2, and the external motor is started to drive the conveyor roller 3 to convey intermittently. Air cushions are installed at the bottom of several telescopic drive sources. Specifically, the air cushions include a limiting shell 81 and a flexible pad 82. Because the flexible pad 82 is made of soft material, it is not easy to leave an imprint on the surface of the thin sheet, thus avoiding indentations on the thin sheet. The limiting shell 81 is fixed to the bottom of the telescopic drive source. The bottom of the limiting shell 81 has a concave structure. The flexible pad 82 is installed at the bottom of the limiting shell 81, and an air pressure space is formed between the flexible pad 82 and the bottom of the limiting shell 81. The top of the telescopic drive source is fixed to the platform's placement frame 1. The air pressure is adjusted. The components are housed within several air cushions. Therefore, each air cushion is equipped with an air pressure regulating component for leveling uneven areas of the thin plate. The air pressure regulating component includes an adhesive plate 92, which slides within the air pressure space of the air cushion. The air pressure space of the air cushion is initially filled, causing the adhesive plate 92 to adhere to the flexible pad 82. The adhesive plate 92 makes the contact surface between the flexible pad 82 and the thin plate flat. The material of the flexible pad 82 prevents the roller from flattening, which can easily cause indentations and micro-cracks. At the same time, the air pressure space of the air cushion also makes the bottom of the flexible pad 82 and the contact surface between it and the thin plate flat. Finally, the external motor is started to drive the conveyor roller 3 to intermittently convey the thin plate.

[0020] Since the thin sheet is located in the leveling area of ​​the production line, with the front end being the area where the thin sheet is just formed and the rear end being the stamping area, the thin sheet needs to be leveled constantly to ensure the accuracy and precision of subsequent stamping. Furthermore, since each segment of the leveling area corresponds to each drive component 7, using a multi-point array hydraulic cylinder would require a greater number of drive components 7 for the leveling area. Therefore, the telescopic power supply in this embodiment can be either a hydraulic cylinder or an electric push rod. Hydraulic cylinders have a large driving force, and since the thin sheet is thin, using an electric push rod is less expensive; the fast response speed allows it to quickly reach the set position and pressure, making it more suitable for leveling thin sheets. For sheet materials requiring leveling of greater thickness, the drive component 7 can be replaced with a hydraulic cylinder to solve the above problems.

[0021] Although the thin sheet can be leveled by using hydraulic cylinders or electric push rods to drive the air cushion and bonding plate 92, due to the aforementioned issues, the thin sheet is constantly being produced and stamped. Therefore, each section of the thin sheet needs to be leveled, and each leveling area 11 corresponds to several driving components 7. Thus, a multi-point array of driving components 7, i.e., several hydraulic cylinders or electric push rods, is required. Each leveling operation involves the synchronous start and stop of several driving components 7. Because hydraulic cylinders are complex, there is a risk of hydraulic oil leakage. Electric push rods are displaced due to electrical drive, and the hydraulic cylinders and electric push rods all require a certain amount of time to adjust. Frequent synchronous start-stop lifting and lowering inevitably leads to stroke errors. Since the air pressure inside the pneumatic space is stable, if the stroke of one of the drive components 7 is too large or too small, if it's too large, the air cushion and bonding plate 92 will continue to compress the thin plate after leveling it, causing excessive pressure on the thin plate, resulting in micro-cracks and indentations. If it's too small, the bonding plate 92 and flexible pad 82 will not properly level the thin plate. Therefore, to address the instability caused by frequent lifting and lowering of several drive components 7 and improve the leveling efficiency and quality of the thin plate, a fixed device is installed on the limiting shell 81 of the air cushion. Equipped with a pressure relief valve 93 and an inflation valve 94, one end of each valve is connected to the pressurized space, and the other end of the inflation valve 94 is connected to an external air pump. The other end of the pressure relief valve 93 protrudes from the limiting shell 81 and is connected to the outside. Due to electromagnetic action, the inflation valve 94 and pressure relief valve 93 have a closing pressure, preventing gas from overflowing from the pressurized space. The pressure relief valve 93 and inflation valve 94 are electrically connected to the control module 6, which controls their opening and closing. Each time, several driving components 7 drive the bonding plate 92 and flexible pad 82 to level synchronously, the pressure relief valve 93 of each corresponding driving component 7... The air pump will open or the inflation valve 94 will open to pump air in, and the air pressure space will no longer be sealed. If the stroke of the drive component 7 is too large, the bonding plate 92 will move upward along the limiting shell 81 and the guide rod 91 through the upward force of the flat plate 2 and the thin plate. The bonding plate 92 will push the air pressure in the air pressure space out through the pressure relief valve 93. If the stroke of the drive component 7 is too small, the air pressure space will be inflated through the inflation valve 94. The air pressure will cause the bonding plate 92 to further squeeze the flexible pad 82. The flexible pad 82 has a certain stretching and deformation force to adapt to the expansion caused by inflation and continue to flatten the thin plate.

[0022] Example 2: Because when several driving components 7 synchronously level the leveling area 11 of the flat plate 2, the uneven area of ​​the thin plate is irregular. That is, the uneven area of ​​the thin plate may be local or it may be raised on one side. When the above synchronous leveling is faced with irregular flat areas, firstly, the overall leveling is a waste of power. Some driving components 7 corresponding to the flat area also need to be frequently started and stopped, which increases the stroke deviation. Secondly, when the synchronous leveling is adjusting the air pressure to buffer the stroke deviation, if the stroke of some driving components 7 is too small, the air inflation compensation is synchronized throughout. However, if the stroke of other driving components 7 is not normal, over-inflation will increase the squeezing pressure on the thin plate, resulting in indentation and micro-cracks. If the stroke of some driving components 7 is too large, the air deflation buffer is also synchronized throughout. However, if the stroke of other driving components 7 is not too large, over-inflation will increase the squeezing pressure on the thin plate, resulting in indentation and micro-cracks. Drive component 7, when depressurized, may release pressure before the uneven area of ​​the thin plate is fully reset, resulting in incomplete resetting of the thin plate. Therefore, to avoid this problem and reduce the frequent starting and stopping of several drive components 7 and the opening and closing of the air pressure regulating component, thus lowering the subsequent failure rate, this embodiment proposes an identification module 61. This module performs targeted leveling of uneven areas (partially) or (single-sided warping), activating only the drive component 7 corresponding to the uneven area for targeted leveling. Specifically, the identification module 61 includes an industrial camera 4 and a height laser scanner. Both the industrial camera 4 and the height laser scanner feed back the results to the data module 62. More specifically, the industrial camera 4 has a built-in coaxial light source. The core of the industrial camera 4's identification of thin plate warping is to acquire surface morphology information through optical imaging. It identifies the warping through grayscale and shadow feature analysis, using the grayscale changes or shadow features of the thin plate surface under uniform illumination to determine the undulations. Warped areas may exhibit abnormal grayscale values ​​due to different reflection angles, or shadows may appear at the edges. The specific steps are as follows: A. Lighting control: Use coaxial light sources, backlights, or multi-angle light sources to highlight the light and shadow differences on the surface undulations; B. Gray-scale threshold segmentation: Extracting gray-scale abnormal regions (such as bright or shadowed areas with raised edges). C. Morphological processing: Noise is removed through operations such as dilation and erosion to identify continuous uneven areas; The unevenness height of the thin plate is scanned by a height laser scanner. Data module 62 contains a library of coordinate parameters corresponding to the uneven areas of the thin plate, with several driving components 7. Data module 62 comprehensively processes the shadow and grayscale features fed back by industrial camera 4 and combines them with the unevenness height fed back by the height laser scanner. Through 3D reconstruction and image processing, the 2D image is converted into a 3D height distribution and compared with the coordinate parameter library. Control module 6 then activates the driving components 7 corresponding to the uneven areas for targeted leveling. (See details...) Figure 4When the industrial camera 4 identifies shadow and grayscale features, namely the concave-convex surface simulation 111 and the concave-convex surface simulation 212, the control module 6 activates all the driving components 7 involved in the corresponding concave-convex surface simulation 111 and the concave-convex surface simulation 212. At the same time, when each driving component 7 is leveled, the corresponding air pressure regulating component is also controlled by the control module 6 to perform depressurization and inflation. The remaining driving components 7 that are not activated and their air pressure regulating components will not be activated, which can also reduce the frequent start and stop of the remaining air pressure regulating components and improve the service life of some air pressure regulating components.

[0023] The above description is merely a preferred embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the present invention in any way. Although the present invention has been disclosed above with reference to preferred embodiments, it is not intended to limit the present invention. Any person skilled in the art can make some modifications or alterations to the above-disclosed technical content to create equivalent embodiments without departing from the scope of the present invention. Any simple modifications, equivalent changes and alterations made to the above embodiments based on the technical essence of the present invention without departing from the scope of the present invention shall still fall within the scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A hydraulic servo leveling device, characterized in that: The device includes a platform, a telescopic drive source, an air pressure regulating component, and an air cushion. The air cushion is located on the telescopic drive source, which is located on the platform. The air cushion is used to level uneven areas of the thin plate. The air pressure regulating component is located on the air cushion. The air cushion includes a limiting shell (81) and a flexible pad (82). The air pressure regulating component includes a bonding plate (92). The bonding plate (92) slides within the air cushion and is bonded to the flexible pad (82), making the contact surface between the flexible pad (82) and the thin plate flat.

2. The hydraulic servo leveling device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The telescopic drive source is provided with a limiting shell (81) at the bottom. The limiting shell (81) has a concave bottom structure. The flexible pad (82) is installed at the bottom of the limiting shell (81) and forms an air pressure space between them.

3. The hydraulic servo leveling device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The air pressure regulating component also includes a pressure relief valve (93) and an inflation valve (94). When the stroke of the drive component (7) is too large, the pressure relief valve (93) regulates the air pressure of the air cushion to eliminate the error of the telescopic drive source. When the stroke of the drive component (7) is too small, the inflation valve (94) regulates the air pressure of the air cushion to fill the error of the telescopic drive source.

4. The hydraulic servo leveling device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The telescopic drive source includes several drive components (7) and a control module (6). The drive components (7) may be hydraulic cylinders or electric push rods.

5. A hydraulic servo leveling device according to claim 3, characterized in that: The pressure relief valve (93) is electrically connected to the control module (6). One end of the pressure relief valve (93) is connected to the air pressure space, and the other end protrudes out of the limiting shell (81) to communicate with the outside.

6. The hydraulic servo leveling device according to claim 3, characterized in that: The inflation valve (94) is electrically connected to the control module (6) and is controlled by the control module (6). One end of the inflation valve (94) is connected to the air pressure space, and the other end is connected to an external air pump.

7. A hydraulic servo leveling device according to claim 4, characterized in that: The control module (6) includes an identification module (61) and a data module (62). The identification module (61) is located on the platform and is used to identify the uneven areas of the thin plate. The data module (62) is electrically connected to the identification module (61). The data module (62) contains a library of coordinate parameters of the thin plate area corresponding to several driving components (7), which are compared with the coordinates of the uneven areas identified by the identification module (61).

8. A hydraulic servo leveling device according to claim 7, characterized in that: The identification module (61) includes an industrial camera (4) and a height laser scanner. Both the industrial camera (4) and the height laser scanner are located on the platform. The industrial camera (4) identifies the shadow and grayscale feature information of the uneven area relative to the flat area and feeds it back to the data module (62). The height laser scanner feeds back the height information of the thin plate to the data module (62).

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