Machine tool double-material-box alternate machining method

Abstract

According to the machine tool double-material-box alternate machining method, role distribution and interactive replacement are carried out on two material positions, so that when material changing is carried out in two adjacent machining periods, early-stage material boxes in a vacant state do not need to be replaced with new materials, and only material boxes loaded with machined materials need to be replaced with material boxes loaded with materials to be machined every time; the material changing frequency can be reduced, the manual intervention intensity can be reduced, and the production continuity and the system reliability can be improved, so that the high-beat and high-automation modern manufacturing requirements can be better met; an existing machine tool material box structure does not need to be changed complexly, implementation can be achieved only by optimizing management logic of a control system, the transformation cost is lowered, implementation is convenient, and economic benefits are remarkable.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of CNC machining, and in particular to a method for machining with dual material boxes on a machine tool. Background Technology

[0002] In the field of machine tool processing, the material box management system is one of the key components for achieving automated production. Traditional material box management typically uses two fixed boxes to store semi-finished and finished products respectively. The semi-finished product box holds the workpieces to be processed, while the finished product box receives the processed workpieces. At the end of each processing cycle, the operator must perform two replacement actions: first, remove the box full of finished products and replace it with an empty box; then, replace the empty semi-finished product box with a new box full of semi-finished products. While this operating mode is simple and intuitive, it has revealed several serious flaws in actual continuous production.

[0003] Because two material box changes are required per processing cycle, frequent manual intervention not only significantly increases operation time but also compresses the machine tool's effective processing time, making it difficult to improve overall production efficiency. Furthermore, the highly repetitive and mechanical material changing operations easily lead to operator fatigue, resulting in operational errors such as incorrect material box loading, failure to change materials in a timely manner, or confusion between semi-finished and finished product material boxes. These errors often cause production interruptions, material chaos, and even product quality problems. In addition, this method is highly dependent on operators, making it difficult to adapt to the development trend of "unmanned workshops" or "reduced-personnel operation" in modern intelligent manufacturing, thus limiting the automation and flexibility of the production system.

[0004] Therefore, the existing technology of fixed roles and independent replacement of dual material boxes has gradually become a bottleneck restricting the improvement of machine tool processing efficiency and the further improvement of automation. Summary of the Invention

[0005] In order to overcome at least one of the defects described in the prior art, the present invention provides a machine tool dual-material box rotation processing method, which can reduce the frequency of material changes, reduce the intensity of manual intervention, and improve production continuity and system reliability, thereby better adapting to the needs of modern manufacturing with high cycle time and high automation.

[0006] The technical solution adopted by this invention to solve its problem is: A method for machining with dual material boxes on a machine tool includes the following steps: Step S1: Place the material box and define the role of each material position. Place the first material box loaded with the material to be processed into the first material position of the machine tool, and place the empty second material box into the second material position of the machine tool. The control system defines the first material position as the loading position and the second material position as the unloading position. Step S2: Perform the first cycle processing. The feeding device sequentially transfers the materials to be processed from the feeding position to the processing position. After processing, the processed materials are transferred one by one to the material box at the unloading position for storage until all materials are processed and transferred. At this time, the first material box is empty and the second material box is loaded with processed materials. The first processing cycle ends. Step S3: Replace with a new material box and replace the roles of each material position. Keep the first material box in an empty state. Move the second material box loaded with processed materials away from the second material box. Place the third material box loaded with materials to be processed into the second material position of the machine tool. The control system redefines the second material position as the loading material position and redefines the first material position as the unloading material position. Step S4: Perform the second cycle processing. The feeding device sequentially transfers the materials to be processed from the feeding position to the processing position. After processing, the processed materials are transferred one by one to the material box at the unloading position for storage until all materials have been processed and transferred. At this time, the third material box is empty and the first material box is loaded with processed materials. The second processing cycle ends. Step S5: Based on steps S3 and S4, repeat the process, sequentially changing the material box containing the processed material to the material box containing the material to be processed, and interactively replacing the roles of the first material position and the second material position to complete the processing of all batches.

[0007] As an optional implementation, before performing cycle processing, the control system obtains and records the initial quantity N of the material to be processed in the material box. After the cycle processing begins, the control system accumulates the quantity M of the material already processed in the current batch and compares the quantity M of the material already processed with the initial quantity N of the material to be processed. When M=N, the control system determines that the current processing cycle has been completed and begins to replace the material box with a new one and interactively replace the roles of each material position.

[0008] As an optional implementation, after the replacement of the new material box is completed, the control system receives the material replacement confirmation instruction, clears the processing counter to zero, and updates the initial quantity N of the material to be processed in the material box for the next processing cycle.

[0009] As an optional implementation, the material change confirmation command can be sent by the operator clicking on the interface of the control system and / or by the material box positioning sensor being triggered by the new material box.

[0010] As an optional implementation, when the control system determines that the current processing cycle has been completed, it issues a material change reminder command.

[0011] As an optional implementation, the material change reminder instruction includes sending an audible and visual signal to the audible and visual alarm and / or sending a prompt message signal to the screen and / or sending a material change signal to the host computer, so as to notify the operator to replace the material box containing the processed material with the material box containing the material to be processed.

[0012] As an optional implementation, the control system obtains the initial quantity N of the material to be processed in the hopper by means of manual preset input and / or machine vision recognition and / or RFID material monitoring.

[0013] As an optional implementation method, the material box can be changed manually or by an automated device.

[0014] In summary, the machine tool dual-material box alternating processing method provided by the present invention has the following technical effects: By assigning roles and allowing interactive replacement between the two material locations, the early material boxes that are empty do not need to be replaced when changing materials between two adjacent processing cycles (i.e., the early material boxes are reused through the in-place emptying function, changing their status from semi-finished material boxes to empty material boxes). Each time, only the material box containing processed materials needs to be replaced with the material box containing materials to be processed (i.e., removing the finished material box and replacing it with a new semi-finished material box), thereby significantly reducing the frequency and complexity of material changing operations, greatly improving production efficiency, reducing the number of material changing operations per subsequent processing cycle from twice to once, and significantly shortening non-processing time. Downtime directly improves equipment utilization and production cycle time; effectively reduces labor and error costs, simplifies operation processes, and reduces the frequency of manual intervention, thereby reducing operational risks and quality accidents such as incorrect material changes and production interruptions caused by fatigue or negligence; enhances system automation and continuity. This method has clear and stable logic, is easy to integrate into automated control systems, and provides a solid technical foundation for achieving unmanned or minimally manned continuous production; it does not require complex modifications to the existing machine tool material box structure, and can be achieved simply by optimizing the management logic of the control system, resulting in lower modification costs, convenient implementation, and significant economic benefits. Attached Figure Description

[0015] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the rotation processing method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0016] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the material box transformation from the initial state to the completion of the second cycle processing according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0017] Explanation of key figure labels: 100, First material position; 200, Second material position; 1, First material box; 2, Second material box; 3, Third material box; 300, Material to be processed; 400, Processed material. Detailed Implementation

[0018] 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.

[0019] In this invention, the terms "upper," "lower," "left," "right," "front," "rear," "top," "bottom," "inner," "outer," "middle," "vertical," "horizontal," "lateral," and "longitudinal" indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings. These terms are primarily for the purpose of better describing the invention and its embodiments, and are not intended to limit the indicated devices, elements, or components to having a specific orientation, or to be constructed and operated in a specific orientation.

[0020] Furthermore, in addition to indicating direction or positional relationship, some of the aforementioned terms may also have other meanings. For example, the term "above" may also be used in certain situations to indicate a dependency or connection. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of these terms in this invention based on the specific circumstances.

[0021] Furthermore, the terms "installation," "setup," "equipped with," "connection," and "linked" should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral structure; they can refer to a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; they can refer to a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium, or an internal connection between two devices, components, or parts. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of these terms in this invention based on the specific circumstances.

[0022] Furthermore, the terms "first," "second," etc., are primarily used to distinguish different devices, components, or parts (which may be the same or different in specific type and construction), and are not intended to indicate or imply the relative importance or quantity of the indicated devices, components, or parts. Unless otherwise stated, "a plurality of" means two or more.

[0023] This application provides a dual-material-box rotation processing method for machine tools, applicable to CNC machine tools, machining centers, and other equipment, to improve material changing efficiency and automation level. Taking a machine tool as an example, the machine tool includes a control system, a first material position 100, a second material position 200, a machining station, and a loading device. The control system is used to control the movement path of the loading device to realize material transfer between the dual material positions and the machining station, and to control the machining spindle of the machining station to perform cutting, grinding, drilling, and other operations. Both the first material position 100 and the second material position 200 can be used to place material boxes. The material boxes can be in an empty state, a state of being loaded with materials to be processed, or a state of being loaded with processed materials. The loading device is used to transfer the material to be processed 300 in one material box to the machining station and to transfer the processed material 400 to the other material box for storage. The materials can be plates, workpieces, etc. The material to be processed 300 can also be understood as a semi-finished product, and the processed material 400 can also be understood as a finished product.

[0024] See Figure 1 and Figure 2 The machine tool dual-material box rotation processing method of this application aims to solve the problems of high material change frequency and low efficiency in the traditional dual-material box mode. The method includes the following steps: Step S1: With the machine tool's control system in its initial state, place the material boxes and define the roles of each material position. Specifically, place the first material box 1, which is loaded with the material to be processed 300, into the first material position 100 of the machine tool, and place the empty second material box 2 into the second material position 200 of the machine tool. The control system defines the first material position 100 as the loading position and the second material position 200 as the unloading position. The role of each material location depends on the identity of the material box placed on it. For example, in this step, the first material box 1 placed at the first material location 100 is in the state of loading materials to be processed (which can also be understood as the first material box 1 being a semi-finished product material box). The first material box 1 placed at the second material location 200 is in an empty state (which can also be understood as the second material box 2 being an empty material box). Therefore, the first material location 100 is defined as the loading material location, and the second material location 200 is defined as the unloading material location. The loading material location corresponds to the material box in the state of loading materials to be processed (i.e., the semi-finished product material box), and the unloading material location corresponds to the material box in the empty state (i.e., the empty material box).

[0025] Step S2: Perform the first cycle processing to empty the material to be processed 300 in the first material box 1 at the first material position 100, and use the second material box 2 at the second material position 200 to receive the processed material 400, so that the first material box 1 is empty and the second material box 2 is loaded with processed material. The first processing cycle ends. Specifically, the feeding device sequentially transfers the material to be processed 300 at the feeding position to the processing station for processing. After processing, the processed material 400 is transferred one by one to the material box at the unloading position for storage until all materials are processed and transferred, thus ending the first processing cycle.

[0026] Step S3: Replace with a new material box and change the roles of each material position. Keep the first material box 1 empty. Remove the second material box 2, which is loaded with processed material 400, from the second material position 200. Place the third material box 3, which is loaded with material 300 to be processed, into the second material position 200 of the machine tool. The control system redefines the second material position 200 as the loading position and redefines the first material position 100 as the unloading position. In this step, since all the material 300 to be processed in the first material box 1 at the first material position 100 has been processed and transferred to the second material box 2 at the second material position 200 at the end of the first processing cycle, the second material box 2 is now full of processed material 400, while the first material box 1 is empty. Therefore, the operator or automated equipment only needs to remove the second material box 2 (finished product box) as a whole and place a pre-prepared third material box 3 (i.e., a new semi-finished product box) loaded with material 300 to be processed on the second material position 200. At this point, the key point is that the original first material box 1 (now empty) does not need to be replaced or removed. Its status naturally changes to an "empty material box" used to receive the processed material 400 in the next cycle. That is, the original first material box 1 is kept in its original position (i.e., the first material position 100). Therefore, the second material position 200, which contains the third material box 3 (i.e., the new semi-finished product material box), is defined as the feeding position, and the first material position 100, which retains the first material box 1 (now converted to an empty material box), is defined as the unloading position.

[0027] Step S4: Perform the second processing cycle to empty the material to be processed 300 in the third material box 3 at the second material position 200, and use the first material box 1 at the first material position 100 to receive the processed material 400, so that the third material box 3 is empty and the first material box 1 is loaded with processed material. The second processing cycle ends. Specifically, the feeding device sequentially transfers the material to be processed 300 at the feeding position to the processing station for processing. After processing, the processed material 400 is transferred one by one to the material box at the unloading position for storage until all materials are processed and transferred, thus ending the second processing cycle.

[0028] Step S5: Following steps S3 and S4, the process is repeated, sequentially changing the container holding the processed material 400 to the container holding the material to be processed 300, and interactively defining the roles of the first material position 100 and the second material position 200, thus completing the processing of all batches. This step marks the start of the next processing cycle. Similarly, taking the third processing cycle as an example, in this step, since the material to be processed 300 in the third material box 3 at the second material position 200 has been completely processed and transferred to the first material box 1 at the first material position 100 at the end of the second processing cycle, the first material box 1 is now fully loaded with the processed material 400, while the third material box 3 is empty. Therefore, the operator or automated equipment only needs to remove the first material box 1 (finished product box) as a whole and place a pre-prepared new material box (i.e., a new semi-finished product box) holding the material to be processed 300 on the first material position 100. At this point, the original third material box 3 (now empty) does not need to be replaced or removed. Its status naturally changes to an "empty material box" used to receive the processed material 400 in the next cycle. Therefore, the second material position 200 with the new semi-finished material box is defined as the feeding position, and the first material position 100 with the first material box 1 (now empty) is defined as the unloading position.

[0029] The fourth processing cycle, the fifth processing cycle, and so on up to the Sth processing cycle, follow the same cyclical pattern. In the fourth processing cycle, the fifth material box replaces the third material box (3); in the fifth processing cycle, the sixth material box replaces the fourth material box; in the sixth processing cycle, the seventh material box replaces the fifth material box; and so on. In the Sth processing cycle, the (S+1)th material box replaces the (S-1)th material box. Throughout the overall processing of all batches, except for the second material box (2) and the (S+1)th material box, all other material boxes undergo two processing cycles (in turn, they become semi-finished material boxes, empty material boxes, and finished material boxes, respectively). This shows that the material replacement occurs only once between adjacent processing cycles. That is, material boxes other than the second material box (2) and the (S+1)th material box are reused through in-place emptying and functional conversion, significantly reducing the frequency and complexity of material replacement operations. Furthermore… To determine whether a processing cycle is complete, as a preferred example, this application provides a simple counting logic-based solution: Before the cycle begins, the control system acquires and records the initial quantity N of the materials 300 to be processed in the material bins. This acquisition method includes, but is not limited to, manual preset input, machine vision recognition, and RFID material monitoring. These specific acquisition methods can be used independently or in combination. After the cycle begins, the control system accumulates the quantity M of the materials 400 already processed in the current batch and compares the quantity M of the currently processed materials 400 with the initial quantity N of the materials 300 to be processed. When M=N, the control system determines that the current processing cycle is complete and begins to replace the material bins and interactively switch the roles of each material position. Taking the first processing cycle as an example, the accumulation can be specifically done through a processing counter. That is, the value of the processing counter increases with each material transfer. During the processing, the control system continuously compares the accumulated quantity M of the processing counter with the initial quantity N. When M=N, the control system determines that the first processing cycle is complete. At this time, the first material bin 1 is empty, the second material bin 2 is full, and the machine tool stops processing. Thus, this solution simplifies the overall process, achieving a doubling of material changing efficiency with only two material positions and simple counting logic, demonstrating significant practicality and economy.

[0030] When the current processing cycle is completed, the control system can also issue a material change reminder command to notify the operator to replace the material box containing the processed material 400 with the material box containing the material to be processed 300. The reminder command can be sent in the following ways: sending an audible and visual signal to the audible and visual alarm, sending a prompt message signal to the screen, or sending a material change signal to the host computer. These specific reminder methods can be used independently or in combination.

[0031] After replacing the material box with a new one, the control system can also reset the processing counter upon receiving a material replacement confirmation command, and update the initial quantity N of the material box to be processed 300 for the next processing cycle (the initial quantity of the material box to be processed 300 in the new semi-finished material box is usually the same as the initial quantity of the material box to be processed 300 in the previous cycle; of course, it can also be different), in order to prepare for the next processing cycle. The material replacement confirmation command can be issued in various ways, including but not limited to: a confirmation command clicked by the operator on the interface of the control system, and a confirmation command sent by the material box position sensor triggered by the new material box (for example, a position sensor can be installed at the material position, which will be automatically triggered when the new material box is installed in place, thereby sending a signal and converting it into a confirmation command). These specific confirmation methods can be used independently or in combination.

[0032] Material changing based on the material box can be done manually to meet basic application scenarios; of course, automated equipment can also be used to change the material box to suit more automated scenarios. The automated equipment can be a six-axis robot or a gantry manipulator to adapt to the development trend of "unmanned workshops" or "reduced manpower" in modern intelligent manufacturing.

[0033] In summary, in the machine tool dual-material box rotation processing method of this application, by assigning roles and interactively replacing the two material positions, the earlier material box, which is in an empty state, does not need to be replaced when changing materials between two adjacent processing cycles. Each time, only the material box containing 400 units of processed material needs to be replaced with the material box containing 300 units of material to be processed. This significantly reduces the frequency and complexity of material changing operations and greatly improves production efficiency. Compared with the traditional dual-material box mode where the two material boxes are replaced independently, the following significant effects are achieved: (1) The number of material changes per subsequent processing cycle was reduced from two to one, which significantly shortened the non-processing downtime and directly improved equipment utilization and production cycle time; (2) Effectively reduced labor and error costs, simplified the operation process, reduced the frequency of manual intervention, thereby reducing the operational risks and quality accidents caused by fatigue or negligence, such as incorrect material replacement and production interruption; (3) Enhanced system automation and continuity. This method has clear and stable logic and is easy to integrate into the automated control system, providing a solid technical foundation for realizing unmanned or minimally manned continuous production. (4) No complex modifications are required to the existing machine tool material box structure. It can be achieved simply by optimizing the management logic of the control system, which reduces the cost of modification, makes implementation convenient, and has significant economic benefits.

[0034] The technical means disclosed in this invention are not limited to those disclosed in the above embodiments, but also include technical solutions composed of any combination of the above technical features. It should be noted that those skilled in the art can make various improvements and modifications without departing from the principles of this invention, and these improvements and modifications are also considered within the scope of protection of this invention.

Claims

1. A method for machining with dual material boxes on a machine tool, characterized in that, Includes the following steps: Step S1: Place the material box and define the role of each material position. Place the first material box loaded with the material to be processed into the first material position of the machine tool, and place the empty second material box into the second material position of the machine tool. The control system defines the first material position as the loading material position and the second material position as the unloading material position. Step S2: Perform the first cycle processing. The feeding device sequentially transfers the materials to be processed from the feeding position to the processing position. After processing is completed, the processed materials are transferred one by one to the material box at the unloading position for storage until all materials are processed and transferred. At this time, the first material box is empty and the second material box is loaded with processed materials. The first processing cycle ends. Step S3: Replace with a new material box and replace each material position role, retain the empty first material box, move the second material box loaded with processed material away from the second material box, and place the third material box loaded with material to be processed into the second material position of the machine tool. The control system redefines the second material position as the loading material position and redefines the first material position as the unloading material position. Step S4: Perform the second cycle of processing. The feeding device sequentially transfers the materials to be processed from the feeding position to the processing position. After processing, the processed materials are transferred one by one to the material box at the unloading position for storage until all materials have been processed and transferred. At this time, the third material box is empty and the first material box is loaded with processed materials. The second processing cycle ends. Step S5: Based on steps S3 and S4, repeat the process, sequentially changing the material box containing the processed material to the material box containing the material to be processed, and interactively replacing the roles of the first material position and the second material position to complete the processing of all batches.

2. The machine tool dual-material box alternating processing method according to claim 1, characterized in that, Before performing cycle processing, the control system obtains and records the initial quantity N of the material to be processed in the material box. After the cycle processing begins, the control system accumulates the quantity M of the material already processed in the current batch and compares the quantity M of the material already processed with the initial quantity N of the material to be processed. When M=N, the control system determines that the current processing cycle has been completed and begins to replace the material box with a new one and interactively replace the roles of each material position.

3. The machine tool dual-material box alternating processing method according to claim 2, characterized in that, After the replacement of the new material box is completed, the control system receives the material replacement confirmation instruction, clears the processing counter to zero, and updates the initial quantity N of the material to be processed in the material box for the next processing cycle.

4. The machine tool dual-material box alternating processing method according to claim 3, characterized in that, The material change confirmation command can be issued by the operator clicking on the interface of the control system or by the material box positioning sensor being triggered by the new material box.

5. The machine tool dual-material box alternating processing method according to claim 2, characterized in that, When the control system determines that the current processing cycle has been completed, the machine tool stops processing and issues a material change reminder command.

6. The machine tool dual-material box alternating processing method according to claim 5, characterized in that, The material change reminder instruction includes sending an audible and visual signal to the audible and visual alarm and / or sending a prompt message signal to the screen and / or sending a material change signal to the host computer, so as to notify the operator to replace the material box containing the processed material with the material box containing the material to be processed.

7. The machine tool dual-material box alternating processing method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The control system obtains the initial quantity N of the material to be processed in the hopper through methods including manual preset input and / or machine vision recognition and / or RFID material monitoring.

8. The machine tool dual-material box alternating processing method according to claim 1, characterized in that, Material changing methods for material boxes include manual material changing or automated material changing equipment changing material boxes.

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