Automatic spring clip feeding mechanism

Abstract

The present application relates to the field of spring clip loading equipment, in particular to an automatic spring clip loading mechanism, comprising a material guiding assembly for bearing and supporting, hydraulic buffers fixedly arranged at the front and rear of the upper end surface of the material guiding assembly, linear sliding rails fixedly arranged at both sides of the upper end surface of the material guiding assembly, and a servo motor fixedly arranged at the center of the lower end surface of the material guiding assembly through a motor base. The present application is a spring clip automatic loading mechanism of the magazine type. When the spring clip is loaded in batches reciprocally, the servo motor can be adapted to the sliding of the positioning shaft and the limiting baffle, thereby quickly and stably driving the loading sliding seat to perform cyclic displacement at the bottom of the material bin shell, so that the material guiding chute can quickly and accurately position the spring clip one by one into the loading clamping groove, effectively improving the accuracy and efficiency of the loading sliding seat in loading the spring clip in batches.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of snap ring feeding equipment, specifically to an automatic snap ring feeding mechanism. Background Technology

[0002] Snap rings, also known as retaining rings or retaining rings, are elastic open-ring standard parts used in mechanical assembly to achieve axial limiting and prevent loosening. Snap ring automatic feeding mechanisms are core feeding equipment used in automated assembly fields such as machinery, automobiles, and electronics. They can quickly transport various types of snap rings, facilitating the subsequent assembly of other components.

[0003] However, existing automatic circlip feeding mechanisms lack the accuracy and stability to feed multiple sets of circlips in batches. They also make it difficult to detect the arrival of the circlips in real time, which reduces the stability of the equipment in feeding circlips in batches. Therefore, an automatic circlip feeding mechanism is needed to solve the problems mentioned above. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The purpose of this invention is to provide an automatic feeding mechanism for snap rings to solve the problems mentioned in the background art.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention provides the following technical solution: an automatic feeding mechanism for spring clips, comprising a guide assembly for bearing and supporting, hydraulic buffers fixedly disposed at the front and rear of the upper end face of the guide assembly, linear slide rails fixedly disposed on both sides of the upper end face of the guide assembly, and a servo motor fixedly disposed at the center of the lower end face of the guide assembly via a motor mount, wherein two opposing photoelectric switches are disposed at the two feeding limits of the guide assembly.

[0006] The adjustment component has two sets, which are respectively set on both sides of the upper end face of the material guide component. The feeding bin is fixedly connected to the upper end face of the material guide component by the two sets of adjustment components. The feeding bin is equipped with snap rings at equal intervals inside. The adjustment component is used to adjust the positioning height of the feeding bin.

[0007] The feeding assembly moves back and forth at the bottom of the feeding bin via the guiding assembly. The feeding assembly is used to reciprocate feeding the retaining spring inside the feeding bin.

[0008] Specifically, the feeding assembly includes a feeding slide, two sets of feeding slots on the front and rear of the upper end of the feeding slide, two sets of linear sliders fixedly disposed on the front and rear of the lower end of the feeding slide, and two sets of stops integrally formed and fixedly disposed at the center of the front and rear of the lower end of the feeding slide. A detection guide groove is provided on the upper end face of the feeding slide directly opposite the center of the feeding slots, and a limit baffle is fixedly disposed at the center of the lower end face of the feeding slide.

[0009] Specifically, the feeding slide block is slidably engaged with the linear slide rail via a linear slider, and two sets of opposing photoelectric switches detect the feeding of the spring clip inside the feeding slot via a detection guide groove.

[0010] Specifically, the feeding hopper includes a hopper shell, and the inner end face of the hopper shell is provided with material guide grooves at the four corners for feeding. Each set of material guide grooves is provided with a viewing window at the rear for observation.

[0011] Specifically, the bottom of the hopper shell is fitted and connected to the upper end face of the feeding slide, and when the feeding slide moves to its limit, the stop block is fitted and connected to the hydraulic buffer, and the snap ring is linearly and equidistantly slidably engaged with the inner end face of the guide slide.

[0012] Specifically, the adjustment assembly includes a linear clamp, an adjustment screw that is rotatably clamped inside the linear clamp via two sets of bearing seats, and a handwheel fixedly mounted on the top of the linear clamp. The inner end face of the linear clamp is threadedly connected to a locking plate via the adjustment screw and a threaded guide seat.

[0013] Specifically, the locking plate is fixedly connected to the side of the hopper housing, and the handwheel is adapted to the adjusting screw through the threaded guide seat, thereby driving the hopper housing to move up and down by thread.

[0014] Specifically, the material guiding assembly includes a support slide and two sets of positioning grooves on the upper end face of the support slide. The inner end face of the support slide is rotatably connected to a transmission turntable via a bearing seat, and a positioning pin is rotatably connected to the upper end face of the transmission turntable.

[0015] Specifically, the power output end of the servo motor drives the transmission turntable and the positioning pin to rotate in a circular motion, and the transmission turntable, through the matching of the positioning pin and the limit baffle, drives the two sets of feeding slots to reciprocate and position themselves to the bottom of the guide chute.

[0016] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the present invention are as follows:

[0017] 1. This invention is an automatic feeding mechanism for cartridge-type snap rings. When feeding snap rings in batches, the servo motor can quickly and stably drive the feeding slide to circulate at the bottom of the hopper housing through the sliding adaptation of the positioning pin and the limiting baffle. This allows the guide slide to quickly and accurately position the snap rings one by one into the feeding slot, effectively improving the accuracy and efficiency of the feeding slide for feeding batches of snap rings.

[0018] 2. This invention is a real-time detection structure. By setting up photoelectric switches, the front and rear sets of photoelectric switches can detect the feeding position of the retaining springs inside the feeding slot, which effectively improves the accuracy and stability of the subsequent feeding slot for cyclic feeding of retaining springs. At the same time, the two sets of adjustment components can quickly and accurately control the guiding height of the hopper shell, improving the adaptability of the equipment to feeding retaining springs of different thicknesses one by one. Attached Figure Description

[0019] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention, the accompanying drawings used in the description of the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0020] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the main body of the present invention;

[0021] Figure 2 For the present invention Figure 1 A magnified view of a section at point I;

[0022] Figure 3 This is a side view of the main body of the invention;

[0023] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the feeding assembly of the present invention;

[0024] Figure 5 This is a side view of the feeding assembly of the present invention;

[0025] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the feeding hopper of the present invention;

[0026] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the adjustment component of the present invention;

[0027] Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of the material guiding assembly of the present invention.

[0028] In the diagram: 1-Snap ring, 2-Feeding assembly, 3-Feeding bin, 4-Adjusting assembly, 5-Guide assembly, 6-Linear slide rail, 7-Hydraulic buffer, 8-Servo motor, 9-Photoelectric switch, 21-Feeding slide, 22-Stop block, 23-Linear slider, 24-Detection guide groove, 25-Feeding slot, 26-Limit baffle, 31-Viewing window, 32-Guide chute, 33-Binding bin housing, 41-Locking plate, 42-Adjusting screw, 43-Threaded guide seat, 44-Linear bracket, 45-Handwheel, 51-Positioning groove, 52-Supporting slide, 53-Transmission turntable, 54-Positioning shaft. Detailed Implementation

[0029] To enable those skilled in the art to better understand the present application, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present application, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative effort should fall within the scope of protection of the present application.

[0030] It should be noted that the terms "first," "second," etc., in the specification, claims, and accompanying drawings of this application are used to distinguish similar objects and are not necessarily used to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that such data can be interchanged where appropriate for the embodiments of this application described herein. Furthermore, the terms "comprising" and "having," and any variations thereof, are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion; for example, a process, method, system, product, or apparatus that comprises a series of steps or units is not necessarily limited to those steps or units explicitly listed, but may include other steps or units not explicitly listed or inherent to such processes, methods, products, or apparatus.

[0031] The invention will be further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0032] Example 1

[0033] Please see Figure 1-3 One embodiment of the present invention provides an automatic feeding mechanism for snap rings, comprising a guide assembly 5 for bearing and supporting, hydraulic buffers 7 fixedly disposed at the front and rear of the upper end face of the guide assembly 5, linear slide rails 6 fixedly disposed on both sides of the upper end face of the guide assembly 5, and a servo motor 8 fixedly disposed at the center of the lower end face of the guide assembly 5 via a motor mount. Two opposing photoelectric switches 9 are disposed at each of the two feeding limits of the guide assembly 5.

[0034] Adjustment component 4, there are two sets of adjustment components 4, which are respectively set on both sides of the upper end face of the material guide component 5. The feeding bin 3 is fixedly connected to the upper end face of the material guide component 5 by the two sets of adjustment components 4. The feeding bin 3 is equidistantly arranged with retaining springs 1 inside the feeding bin 3. The adjustment component 4 is used to adjust the positioning height of the feeding bin 3.

[0035] The feeding component 2 moves back and forth at the bottom of the feeding bin 3 via the guiding component 5. The feeding component 2 is used to reciprocate feeding the retaining spring 1 inside the feeding bin 3.

[0036] like Figure 4 and Figure 5The feeding assembly 2 includes a feeding slide 21, two sets of feeding slots 25 opened at the front and rear of the upper end of the feeding slide 21, two sets of linear sliders 23 fixedly installed at the front and rear of the lower end of the feeding slide 21, and two sets of stops 22 integrally formed and fixedly installed at the center of the front and rear of the lower end of the feeding slide 21. A detection guide groove 24 is opened at the center of the feeding slots 25 on the upper end of the feeding slide 21, and a limit baffle 26 is fixedly installed at the center of the lower end of the feeding slide 21.

[0037] like Figure 1 and Figure 4 The feeding slide 21 is slidably engaged with the linear slide rail 6 via the linear slider 23. The two sets of linear slide rails 6 can slide and adapt to the linear slider 23, thereby improving the stability of the subsequent reciprocating sliding displacement of the feeding slide 21 on the upper part of the support slide 52.

[0038] Furthermore, the two sets of opposing photoelectric switches 9 detect the feeding of the retaining spring 1 inside the feeding slot 25 through the detection guide groove 24. The two sets of photoelectric switches 9 are normally open. When the feeding slide 21 moves to the feeding limit, the retaining spring 1 inside the detection guide groove 24 is pushed out by the external clamping module. At this time, the two sets of photoelectric switches 9 shoot at each other, thereby providing a signal for the servo motor 8 to start again.

[0039] like Figure 6 The feeding hopper 3 includes a hopper shell 33. The four corners of the inner end face of the hopper shell 33 are provided with material guide grooves 32 for feeding. Each set of material guide grooves 32 is provided with a viewing window 31 for observation at the rear.

[0040] like Figure 4 and Figure 6 The bottom of the hopper housing 33 is fitted and connected to the upper end face of the feeding slide 21, which can effectively improve the accuracy and stability of the hopper housing 33 feeding the clip 1 into the feeding slot 25.

[0041] When the feeding slide 21 moves to its limit, the stop block 22 and the hydraulic buffer 7 are connected in contact. The snap ring 1 is linearly and equidistantly engaged with the inner end face of the guide slide 32. The hydraulic buffer 7 can limit the side limit of the feeding slide 21 to prevent the feeding slide 21 from exceeding the limit when it moves to guide the material.

[0042] like Figure 7 The adjustment assembly 4 includes a linear clamp 44, an adjustment screw 42 that is rotatably clamped inside the linear clamp 44 via two sets of bearing seats, and a handwheel 45 fixedly installed on the top of the linear clamp 44. The inner end face of the linear clamp 44 is threadedly connected to a locking plate 41 through the adjustment screw 42 and the threaded guide seat 43.

[0043] like Figure 6 and 7The locking plate 41 is fixedly connected to the side of the hopper housing 33, and the handwheel 45 is adapted to the adjusting screw 42 through the threaded guide seat 43, thereby driving the hopper housing 33 to move up and down by thread. When the height of the hopper housing 33 is adjusted, the adjusting screw 42 can be threadedly connected to the threaded guide seat 43, thereby accurately adjusting the height of the hopper housing 33 relative to the feeding slot 25, which facilitates the subsequent adaptive feeding operation of the retaining spring 1 of different thicknesses.

[0044] like Figure 8 The material guiding assembly 5 includes a support slide 52 and two sets of positioning grooves 51 formed on the upper surface of the support slide 52. The positioning grooves 51 can be adapted and snapped into the photoelectric switch 9, which facilitates the quick and convenient installation of the photoelectric switch 9.

[0045] The inner end face of the support slide 52 is rotatably connected to the transmission turntable 53 via a bearing seat, and the upper end face of the transmission turntable 53 is rotatably connected to the positioning pin 54.

[0046] like Figure 3 , Figure 4 and Figure 6 The power output of the servo motor 8 drives the transmission turntable 53 and the positioning pin 54 to rotate in a circular motion. The transmission turntable 53, through the matching of the positioning pin 54 and the limiting baffle 26, drives the two sets of feeding slots 25 to reciprocate and position themselves at the bottom of the guide slide 32. When the snap ring 1 is cyclically fed, the transmission turntable 53 can be slidably limited by the positioning pin 54 and the limiting baffle 26, thereby driving the feeding slide 21 to reciprocate and move back at the bottom of the hopper housing 33. This allows the feeding slots 25 to reciprocate and position themselves at the bottom of the guide slide 32, so that the snap ring 1 inside the guide slide 32 can be accurately positioned at the temporal part of the feeding slot 25, improving the accuracy and stability of the snap ring 1's cyclic feeding.

[0047] Working principle: Before use, the operator can adjust the feeding distance of the hopper housing 33. During adjustment, the operator holds two sets of handwheels 45 and rotates them, allowing the handwheels 45 to connect with the threaded guide seat 43 via the adjusting screw 42. This synchronously drives the two sets of locking plates 41 downwards, causing the two sets of locking plates 41 to move the hopper housing 33 until the bottom of the hopper housing 33 is in contact with the upper part of the feeding slide 21. This facilitates the feeding of the retaining spring 1 inside the guide slide 32 into the feeding slot 25. During the reciprocating feeding of the retaining spring 1, the operator can start the servo motor 8 via the external touchscreen module. The servo motor 8 then drives the transmission turntable 53 to rotate, and the transmission turntable 53 connects with the limiting baffle 2 via the positioning pin 54. 6. The sliding limit is then used to move the loading slide 21 back and forth inside the support slide 52. When the positioning pin 54 moves the limiting baffle 26 to the inner limit, the retaining spring 1 inside the guide slide 32 can fall directly to the loading slot 25 inside the loading slide 21. Then, the transmission turntable 53 can move the limiting baffle 26 and the loading slide 21 to the loading limit through the positioning pin 54. At this time, the servo motor 8 stops running. When the external clamping module clamps the two sets of retaining springs 1 from the loading slot 25, the two sets of photoelectric switches 9 can detect that the two sets of loading slots 25 are empty through the detection guide 24. Then, the servo motor 8 is restarted under the control of the PLC, which causes the loading slide 21 to move inward again, completing the cyclic loading and unloading operation of the retaining spring 1.

[0048] 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. An automatic feeding mechanism for spring clips, comprising a guide assembly (5) for bearing and supporting, a hydraulic buffer (7) fixedly disposed at the front and rear of the upper end face of the guide assembly (5), linear slide rails (6) fixedly disposed on both sides of the upper end face of the guide assembly (5), and a servo motor (8) fixedly disposed at the center of the lower end face of the guide assembly (5) via a motor mount, wherein two opposing photoelectric switches (9) are provided at both feeding limits of the guide assembly (5), characterized in that: Adjustment component (4), the adjustment component (4) is provided in two sets, the two sets of adjustment components (4) are respectively set on both sides of the upper end face of the guide component (5), and the feeding bin (3) is fixedly connected to the upper end face of the guide component (5) by the two sets of adjustment components (4). The feeding bin (3) is provided with snap rings (1) at equal intervals inside the feeding bin (3), and the adjustment component (4) is used to adjust the positioning height of the feeding bin (3); The feeding component (2) moves back and forth at the bottom of the feeding bin (3) via the guiding component (5). The feeding component (2) is used to reciprocate feeding the snap ring (1) inside the feeding bin (3).

2. The automatic circlip feeding mechanism according to claim 1, characterized in that: The feeding assembly (2) includes a feeding slide (21), two sets of feeding slots (25) opened on the front and rear of the upper end of the feeding slide (21), two sets of linear sliders (23) fixedly installed on the front and rear of the lower end of the feeding slide (21), and two sets of blocks (22) integrally formed and fixedly installed at the center of the front and rear of the lower end of the feeding slide (21). The upper end of the feeding slide (21) is provided with a detection guide groove (24) at the center of the feeding slots (25), and a limit baffle (26) is fixedly installed at the center of the lower end of the feeding slide (21).

3. The automatic circlip feeding mechanism according to claim 2, characterized in that: The feeding slide (21) is slidably engaged with the linear slide rail (6) via the linear slider (23), and two sets of opposite photoelectric switches (9) perform feeding detection on the retaining spring (1) inside the feeding slot (25) via the detection guide groove (24).

4. The automatic circlip feeding mechanism according to claim 2, characterized in that: The feeding hopper (3) includes a hopper shell (33). The inner end face of the hopper shell (33) is provided with four corners for feeding guide grooves (32). Each set of guide grooves (32) is provided with a viewing window (31) for observation at the rear.

5. The automatic circlip feeding mechanism according to claim 4, characterized in that: The bottom of the hopper housing (33) is fitted and connected to the upper end face of the feeding slide (21), and when the feeding slide (21) moves to the limit, the stop block (22) is fitted and connected to the hydraulic buffer (7), and the snap ring (1) is linearly and equidistantly slidably engaged with the inner end face of the guide groove (32).

6. The automatic circlip feeding mechanism according to claim 4, characterized in that: The adjustment assembly (4) includes a linear bracket (44), an adjustment screw (42) that is rotatably engaged inside the linear bracket (44) via two sets of bearing seats, and a handwheel (45) fixedly mounted on the top of the linear bracket (44). The inner end face of the linear bracket (44) is adapted to the threaded guide seat (43) via the adjustment screw (42) and is thus threadedly connected to a locking plate (41).

7. The automatic circlip feeding mechanism according to claim 6, characterized in that: The locking plate (41) is fixedly connected to the side of the hopper housing (33), and the handwheel (45) is adapted to the adjusting screw (42) through the threaded guide seat (43) to drive the hopper housing (33) to move up and down by threaded displacement.

8. The automatic circlip feeding mechanism according to claim 6, characterized in that: The material guiding assembly (5) includes a support slide (52) and two sets of positioning grooves (51) opened on the upper end face of the support slide (52). The inner end face of the support slide (52) is rotatably connected to the transmission turntable (53) through the bearing seat, and the upper end face of the transmission turntable (53) is rotatably connected to the positioning shaft (54).

9. The automatic circlip feeding mechanism according to claim 6, characterized in that: The power output end of the servo motor (8) drives the transmission turntable (53) and the positioning pin (54) to rotate in a circle. The transmission turntable (53) drives the two sets of feeding slots (25) to reciprocate to the bottom of the guide chute (32) through the matching of the positioning pin (54) and the limiting baffle (26).

Images