A heart machine feeding device and a heart machine

Abstract

The application discloses a feeding device of a walking core machine and the walking core machine, which comprises a feeding mechanism, a distributing mechanism and a clamping and transferring mechanism installed on a machine tool. The feeding mechanism adopts a vibrating disc matched with an inclined discharging track to rely on gravity to convey workpieces. The distributing mechanism is provided with a distributing seat with a transverse through hole for passing workpieces. The workpieces are rolled into the distributing seat from a lateral material receiving opening and are pushed to a discharging end by a distributing push rod. The workpieces are supported by a bottom supporting flange and are axially limited by an end positioning baffle. An open discharging opening is formed on the upper side of the discharging end and the longitudinal side of the discharging end facing a pneumatic chuck. The clamping and transferring mechanism drives the pneumatic chuck to longitudinally reciprocate through a longitudinal driving source, clamps the workpieces from the discharging opening and transfers the workpieces to a spindle machining end. The device has a compact structure, no interference in material taking, is suitable for narrow installation space and can realize efficient and stable feeding of short shaft bulk materials. The application solves the problems of a complex structure, large occupied space and incapability of large-batch continuous production of the existing short shaft bulk material feeding device.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of Swiss-type lathe equipment technology, and in particular to a Swiss-type lathe feeding device and a Swiss-type lathe. Background Technology

[0002] Swiss-type lathes, also known as headstock lathes, are widely used in the mass production of various precision shaft parts due to their high machining accuracy, high rigidity, and ability to complete multiple composite machining operations in a single setup. The conventional feeding mode for existing Swiss-type lathes is continuous feeding of long bar stock: a feeding device axially pushes the entire long bar stock into the spindle chuck for clamping. During machining, the spindle drives the bar stock to feed axially synchronously. After each section of the workpiece is machined, a cutting mechanism separates the finished product from the bar stock, thus achieving a continuous and automated machining process. This mode is highly adaptable to scenarios where long bar stock needs to be machined in one go, and a single refill can achieve several hours of unmanned continuous production, making it the mainstream application solution in the current Swiss-type lathe industry.

[0003] However, in actual industrial production, there are many special process scenarios that make it impossible to directly adopt a full-process machining solution for long bar stock. Due to process planning, some precision shaft parts require rough machining operations such as external turning, end face finishing, and chamfering on low-cost equipment like ordinary automatic lathes and cam lathes, resulting in short, loose blanks. These blanks are then fed into a Swiss-type lathe for secondary precision machining, including end face finishing, external turning, micro-groove milling, and micro-hole machining. This process route fully leverages the cost advantages of different equipment: low-cost equipment removes large allowances during rough machining, while a Swiss-type lathe ensures final precision during finishing, reducing overall manufacturing costs by more than 30% compared to full-process machining with a Swiss-type lathe. Furthermore, some parts require pre-treatment such as heat treatment, surface anodizing, and sandblasting after rough machining before final finishing, which also inevitably results in short, loose shaft blanks.

[0004] Currently, the industry generally uses a combination of a tray and a multi-axis robot for automated feeding of short-shaft bulk materials: the bulk workpieces are manually or semi-automatically arranged in a special matrix tray according to a preset posture, and the pneumatic grippers driven by a three-axis or four-axis motion robot sequentially pick up the workpieces in the tray. After multi-axis linkage alignment, the workpieces are transferred to the front end of the Swiss-type lathe spindle and inserted into the machining end of the spindle to complete the feeding. While this solution can automate material loading, it has several drawbacks in practical applications: First, the workpiece loading efficiency is low and the labor cost is high. Loose materials need to be pre-placed one by one into the positioning holes of the tray, which is time-consuming and labor-intensive. If an automatic loading mechanism is used, it will significantly increase the equipment cost and overall size. Second, the continuous production capacity is weak. The number of workpieces that can be loaded on a single tray is limited, and frequent shutdowns are required to replace the trays during mass production. Third, the equipment occupies a large space and the modification cost is high. Multi-axis motion robots require a large working space, but the installation space at the front end of the Swiss-type lathe spindle is generally narrow and difficult to arrange directly. In addition, the multi-axis system control system is complex, has many failure points, and has high maintenance costs in the later stage.

[0005] In summary, the existing short-shaft bulk material feeding scheme cannot simultaneously meet the needs of compact structure and adaptability to large-scale continuous production of short-shaft workpieces. Summary of the Invention

[0006] To improve the existing technology where the Swiss-type lathe cannot simultaneously meet the requirements of compact structure and adaptability to large-volume continuous production of short-shaft workpieces when feeding short-shaft bulk materials.

[0007] On the one hand, this application provides a feeding device for a Swiss-type lathe, comprising:

[0008] The machine tool includes a feeding mechanism, a material distribution mechanism, and a clamping and transferring mechanism; the feeding mechanism, the material distribution mechanism, and the clamping and transferring mechanism are all mounted on the machine tool, and the clamping and transferring mechanism slides longitudinally between the material distribution mechanism and the machining end of the Swiss-type lathe spindle.

[0009] The feeding mechanism includes a vibratory feeder and an inclined feeding track. The upper part of the inclined feeding track is connected to the discharge end of the vibratory feeder, and the lower part extends downward along the direction of gravity to the dispensing mechanism.

[0010] The material distribution mechanism includes a material distribution seat and a material distribution push rod. The material distribution seat is fixed on the machine tool, and a through-hole is transversely opened in the material distribution seat along the workpiece axis. A receiving port facing the inclined feeding track is opened on the side wall of the material distribution seat perpendicular to the workpiece axis. The receiving port connects the through-hole and the lower part of the inclined feeding track. The material distribution push rod is laterally slidably disposed on one side of the through-hole and is used to push the workpiece to the outside of the discharge end of the material distribution seat. The bottom of the discharge end of the material distribution seat is provided with a bearing support edge, and a positioning stop is fixed at the end of the discharge end. The side of the positioning stop facing the through-hole is a positioning end face, and the distance between the positioning end face and the outer end face of the through-hole is not less than the axial length of the workpiece. The discharge end of the material distribution seat forms an unobstructed discharge port above the bearing support edge and on the longitudinal side facing the clamping and conveying mechanism.

[0011] The material clamping and conveying mechanism includes a pneumatic chuck and a longitudinal drive source. The longitudinal drive source is fixed on the machine tool and is used to drive the pneumatic chuck to move longitudinally reciprocally between the discharge port and the front side of the machining end of the Swiss-type lathe.

[0012] Optionally, the bottom wall of the material passage hole is provided with an arc-shaped material loading groove that matches the outer contour of the workpiece. The arc-shaped material loading groove is used to carry the workpiece entering through the receiving port.

[0013] Optionally, the material distribution seat includes a receiving part and a discharging part. The material passage hole and the material receiving port are both opened in the receiving part. The material receiving port is opened in the receiving part. The material passage hole connects the receiving part and the discharging part. The supporting edge is located on the side of the discharging part away from the receiving part. The discharging part has a guide sidewall on the side of the supporting edge facing away from the clamping and conveying mechanism. The guide sidewall is recessed with an arc-shaped guide groove arranged coaxially with the material passage hole. The inner contour of the arc-shaped guide groove is adapted to the outer contour of the workpiece.

[0014] Optionally, the pneumatic chuck includes a chuck body and three claw sleeves, which are detachably and circumferentially evenly arranged at the clamping end of the chuck body.

[0015] Optionally, each of the claw sleeves has an elongated through groove along its own axis on its inner clamping wall, and two inclined clamping surfaces are formed on both sides of the through groove.

[0016] Optionally, each of the jaw sleeves has a limiting step on the end of its clamping inner wall away from the main shaft of the Swiss Army machine, and the end of the workpiece abuts against the end face of the limiting step when the workpiece is clamped.

[0017] Optionally, the groove width of the inclined feeding track is adapted to the axial length of the workpiece, and the two side walls of the inclined feeding track constrain the axial ends of the workpiece.

[0018] Optionally, a photoelectric sensor is fixed on the machine tool, and the detection end of the photoelectric sensor faces the front side of the machining end of the Swiss-type lathe spindle.

[0019] On the other hand, this application provides a Swiss-type lathe, wherein the machining end of the lathe spindle is provided with an elastic collet, and a clamping drive cylinder is slidably sleeved inside the cylindrical housing of the spindle; the outer wall of the elastic collet is provided with an outer conical wedge-tightening slope, and the inner wall of the clamping drive cylinder is provided with an inner conical mating surface adapted to the outer conical wedge-tightening slope; a return spring is provided between the elastic collet and the clamping drive cylinder, and the two ends of the return spring abut against the elastic collet and the clamping drive cylinder respectively.

[0020] Optionally, a hollow ejector rod is slidably arranged inside the spindle along its own axis. The inner cavity of the hollow ejector rod is connected to a compressed air source, and multiple radially penetrating blow holes are opened on the side wall of the hollow ejector rod facing the processing end.

[0021] In summary, this application includes at least one of the following beneficial technical effects:

[0022] 1. The Swiss-type lathe feeding device of this application achieves automated and continuous feeding of short-shaft bulk materials through the coordinated operation of the feeding mechanism, the distributing mechanism, and the clamping and transferring mechanism. This device effectively solves the problems of low feeding efficiency, high labor costs, weak continuous production capacity, and large equipment space occupation in existing technologies. Its compact structural design makes it possible to achieve large-scale continuous production within the narrow space at the front end of the Swiss-type lathe spindle, significantly improving production efficiency, reducing manufacturing costs, and meeting the precision secondary processing needs of short-shaft bulk materials in special process scenarios.

[0023] 2. When the workpiece is pushed out of the material receiving hole by the material pusher and falls onto the support edge of the discharge section, its cylindrical outer surface will precisely slide in the arc-shaped guide groove on the guide sidewall. Since the arc-shaped guide groove is coaxially arranged with the material receiving hole and its inner contour matches the outer contour of the workpiece, it provides a certain degree of guidance for the workpiece. The workpiece is not only supported from the bottom by the support edge but also guided from the side by the arc-shaped guide groove, effectively reducing lateral swaying and rolling of the workpiece while waiting to be clamped.

[0024] 3. After the workpiece is machined and unloaded, the compressed air source inside the hollow ejector bar can be activated. High-pressure airflow is ejected through the radial purging holes to effectively purge the inner cavity of the spindle collet and the machining area, ensuring the cleanliness of the collet cavity. A clean collet cavity ensures that the workpiece fits tightly against the collet wall during clamping, thereby achieving accurate and reliable clamping, significantly improving the machining accuracy and surface quality of the workpiece, and enhancing the overall operating efficiency and stability of the equipment. Attached Figure Description

[0025] Figure 1This is a schematic diagram illustrating the overall functionality of an embodiment of this application;

[0026] Figure 2 This is an embodiment of the present application. Figure 1 A magnified view of a section at point A in the middle;

[0027] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the feeding mechanism and the dispensing mechanism at a certain angle in an embodiment of this application;

[0028] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the feeding mechanism and the dispensing mechanism from another angle in an embodiment of this application;

[0029] Figure 5 This is an embodiment of the present application. Figure 4 A magnified view of a section at point B in the middle;

[0030] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the pneumatic chuck according to an embodiment of this application;

[0031] Figure 7 This application embodiment is a partial sectional view showing the internal structure of the spindle.

[0032] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures:

[0033] 1. Machine tools;

[0034] 2. Feeding mechanism; 21. Vibratory feeder; 22. Inclined feeding track;

[0035] 3. Material distribution mechanism; 31. Material distribution seat; 311. Material receiving part; 312. Material discharge part; 313. Material passage hole; 314. Material receiving port; 315. Arc-shaped material loading groove; 316. Bearing support edge; 317. Arc-shaped guide groove; 318. Positioning stop bar; 32. Material distribution push rod;

[0036] 4. Material clamping and conveying mechanism; 41. Pneumatic chuck; 411. Chuck body; 412. Claw sleeve; 413. Through slot; 414. Inclined clamping surface; 415. Limiting step; 42. Longitudinal drive source;

[0037] 5. Elastic collet; 51. Clamping drive cylinder; 52. Return spring; 53. Hollow top material rod; 54. Purge through hole; 55. Photoelectric sensor. Detailed Implementation

[0038] To make the above-mentioned objectives, features, and advantages of this application more apparent and understandable, the specific embodiments of this application are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Many specific details are set forth in the following description to provide a thorough understanding of this application. However, this application can be implemented in many other ways different from those described herein, and those skilled in the art can make similar modifications without departing from the spirit of this application. Therefore, this application is not limited to the specific embodiments disclosed below.

[0039] Furthermore, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of technical features indicated. Thus, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include at least one of that feature. In the description of this application, "multiple" means at least two, such as two, three, etc., unless otherwise explicitly specified.

[0040] In this application, unless otherwise expressly specified and limited, the terms "installation," "connection," "joining," and "fixing," etc., should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral part; 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; they can refer to the internal communication of two components or the interaction between two components, unless otherwise expressly limited. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in this application according to the specific circumstances.

[0041] The present application will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0042] This application discloses a Swiss-type lathe feeding device and a Swiss-type lathe, comprising: a Swiss-type lathe adapted to a spindle, the overall structure including a machine tool 1, a feeding mechanism 2, a distributing mechanism 3, and a clamping and transferring mechanism 4. The machine tool 1 serves as the support platform for the entire device, and the feeding mechanism 2, the distributing mechanism 3, and the clamping and transferring mechanism 4 are all mounted on the machine tool 1. The clamping and transferring mechanism 4 is configured to slide longitudinally between the distributing mechanism 3 and the machining end of the Swiss-type lathe spindle to realize the transfer of workpieces.

[0043] The feeding mechanism 2 is responsible for organizing and conveying scattered shaft-type workpieces. The feeding mechanism 2 includes a vibratory feeder 21 and an inclined feeding track 22. The vibratory feeder 21 uses high-frequency vibration to move the workpieces within the feeder and arrange them in a specific direction before discharging them from its outlet. The inclined feeding track 22 receives the outlet of the vibratory feeder 21 and uses gravity to allow the workpieces to slide down the track. The inclined feeding track 22 extends low to the distribution mechanism 3, allowing the workpieces to smoothly enter the distribution mechanism 3. In this embodiment, the inclined feeding track 22 has a U-shaped groove structure. After the workpieces are vibrated and screened by the vibratory feeder 21, the axial direction of the workpieces is in the same direction as the width of the U-shaped groove. For ease of understanding, a horizontal and a vertical direction are defined perpendicularly on a horizontal plane. The axial direction of the screened workpieces is defined as the horizontal direction, while the inclined feeding track 22 extends downwards along the vertical direction to the distribution mechanism 3.

[0044] The material separating mechanism 3 is used to separate and position workpieces conveyed by the feeding mechanism 2. The material separating mechanism 3 includes a material separating seat 31 and a material separating push rod 32. The material separating seat 31 is fixedly mounted on the machine tool 1, and its interior has a through-hole 313 extending laterally along the axial direction of the workpiece. This through-hole 313 is a circular channel for the workpiece to move laterally within it. A receiving port 314 is provided on the side wall of the material separating seat 31, facing the inclined unloading track. This receiving port 314 communicates with the lower part of the inclined unloading track 22, allowing the workpiece to slide from the inclined unloading track 22 into the through-hole 313.

[0045] The material distribution push rod 32 is laterally slidably disposed on one side of the material passage hole 313. The material distribution push rod 32 is driven by a cylinder, and through reciprocating motion, it pushes the workpiece that has entered the material passage hole 313 out from the discharge end on the other side, so that the workpiece is freed from the constraint of the material passage hole 313 and enters the clamping position.

[0046] The bottom of the discharge end of the material distribution seat 31 is provided with a support edge 316 for providing support after the workpiece is pushed out. In this embodiment, the support edge 316 is a flat extension plate. A positioning stop 318 is also fixed to the discharge end of the material distribution seat 31. The positioning stop 318 has a positioning end face on the side facing the material passage hole 313. The distance between the positioning end face and the outer end face of the material passage hole 313 is not less than the axial length of the workpiece, so that the workpiece can be axially positioned by abutting against the positioning end face after being pushed out. The discharge end of the material distribution seat 31 forms an unobstructed discharge port above the support edge 316 and on the longitudinal side facing the clamping and transferring mechanism 4, so that the clamping and transferring mechanism 4 can clamp the workpiece.

[0047] The clamping and transferring mechanism 4 is responsible for clamping and transferring the workpiece prepared by the dispensing mechanism 3 to the machining end of the Swiss-type lathe spindle. The clamping and transferring mechanism 4 includes a pneumatic chuck 41 and a longitudinal drive source 42. The pneumatic chuck 41 is a three-jaw chuck, which uses air pressure to drive the jaws to open and close, thereby clamping the workpiece. The longitudinal drive source 42 is fixed on the machine tool 1. In this embodiment, the longitudinal drive source 42 is a linear guide rail coupled with a servo motor, thereby driving the pneumatic chuck 41 to reciprocate longitudinally between the discharge port of the dispensing mechanism 3 and the front side of the machining end of the Swiss-type lathe spindle, thereby realizing the gripping, transferring and feeding of the workpiece into the spindle.

[0048] The Swiss-type lathe feeding device in this embodiment achieves automated and continuous feeding of short-shaft bulk materials through the coordinated operation of the feeding mechanism 2, the material distribution mechanism 3, and the clamping and transferring mechanism 4. This device effectively solves the problems of low feeding efficiency, high labor costs, weak continuous production capacity, and large equipment space occupation in existing technologies. Its compact structural design makes it possible to achieve large-scale continuous production within the narrow space at the front end of the Swiss-type lathe spindle, significantly improving production efficiency, reducing manufacturing costs, and meeting the precision secondary processing needs of short-shaft bulk materials in special process scenarios.

[0049] The machine employs a vibratory feeder 21 paired with an inclined track for automatic gravity feeding, eliminating the need for manual pre-arrangement of workpieces. The material distribution seat 31 integrates material distribution, support, axial limiting, and lateral avoidance functions. A single transverse material distribution pusher 32 completes the separation and pushing of individual workpieces. A large, unobstructed open discharge port is provided at the discharge end. Only a single longitudinal drive source 42 drives the pneumatic chuck 41 to complete the material picking and feeding actions. The entire machine uses only two sets of linear drive actuators, resulting in an extremely simple motion structure. Compared to some traditional multi-axis linkage robots, this application significantly reduces the number of motion axes, simplifies the control program logic, and significantly reduces the number of potential failure points. The machine eliminates the need for an external large material tray and multi-axis cantilever structure, effectively saving space. The compact structural design of this application makes it possible to achieve large-scale continuous production within the narrow space at the front end of the Swiss-type lathe spindle, significantly improving production efficiency, reducing manufacturing costs, and meeting the precision secondary processing needs of short-shaft bulk materials in special process scenarios.

[0050] In some embodiments of this application, the workpiece enters the material passage 313 of the material distribution mechanism 3 via the inclined feeding track 22. However, after the workpiece enters the material passage 313, especially when the workpiece is cylindrical, its positioning at the bottom of the material passage 313 may not be stable enough, and it is prone to rolling or deflection, which may affect the accurate pushing of the material distribution push rod 32, or even cause jamming or material distribution failure, reducing the reliability and efficiency of feeding.

[0051] In this regard, this application further proposes that the bottom wall of the material passage 313 is provided with an arc-shaped material loading groove 315 adapted to the outer circle contour of the workpiece, and the arc-shaped material loading groove 315 is used to carry the workpiece entering through the material receiving port 314.

[0052] The arc-shaped material loading groove 315 is formed on the bottom wall of the material passage hole 313 of the material distribution seat 31, and its curvature precisely matches the outer circle contour of the workpiece to be processed. For the short shaft type workpiece of this application, the arc-shaped material loading groove 315 has a semi-circular cross section. Specifically, the arc-shaped material loading groove 315 is arranged laterally along its length so that after the workpiece rolls into the material passage hole 313, it can be smoothly supported in the arc-shaped material loading groove 315. The arc-shaped material loading groove 315 provides a stable bearing surface and guide for the entering workpiece.

[0053] The above technical solution effectively solves the problems of rolling, skewness, or inaccurate positioning that may occur after the workpiece enters the material distribution mechanism 3, ensuring that the workpiece is always in a stable, ready-to-push state. The material distribution push rod 32 can accurately push the workpiece to the discharge end, greatly improving the stability and reliability of the material distribution process, avoiding jamming or feeding failure caused by poor workpiece positioning, thereby ensuring the continuous and efficient operation of the Swiss-type lathe feeding device.

[0054] In some embodiments of this application, the feeding mechanism 3 of the Swiss Army machine feeding device initially supports and positions the workpiece through the material passage 313 and the arc-shaped material loading groove 315 in the material distribution seat 31, and pushes the workpiece to the discharge end through the material distribution push rod 32. However, after the workpiece is pushed out of the material passage 313, when it is waiting for the clamping and transfer mechanism 4 to clamp it on the bearing support edge 316, especially for cylindrical workpieces, there may still be a certain degree of lateral or rotational instability, which may lead to a decrease in clamping accuracy or clamping failure.

[0055] In this regard, this application further proposes that the material distribution seat 31 includes a receiving part 311 and a discharging part 312. Specifically, a receiving port 314 is opened in the receiving part 311, and a material passage hole 313 connects the receiving part 311 and the discharging part 312. The workpiece entering from the inclined feeding track 22 is first received in the receiving part 311 and initially supported and aligned in the material passage hole 313. The supporting edge 316 is located on the side of the discharging part 312 away from the receiving part 311. When the material distribution push rod 32 pushes the workpiece out of the material passage hole 313 of the receiving part 311, the workpiece will fall on the supporting edge 316 of the discharging part 312. In addition, the discharging part 312 has a guide sidewall on the side of the supporting edge 316 facing away from the clamping and transferring mechanism 4. This guide sidewall provides a lateral constraint for the workpiece, preventing the workpiece from moving excessively away from the clamping and transferring mechanism 4 on the supporting edge 316. The guide sidewall is recessed with an arc-shaped guide groove 317 arranged coaxially with the material passage hole 313, and the inner contour of the arc-shaped guide groove 317 is adapted to the outer contour of the workpiece. The arc-shaped guide groove 317 is coaxial with the material passage hole 313, and the adaptation of its inner contour to the outer contour of the workpiece further guides and positions the shaft-type workpiece.

[0056] It is worth mentioning that the discharge section 312 has a semi-open cantilever structure, with a continuous guide sidewall only on the longitudinal side facing away from the clamping and transferring mechanism 4. The longitudinal side facing the clamping and transferring mechanism 4 is completely unobstructed, forming a laterally open discharge space. At the bottom of the discharge section 312, only at the root position, a short strip-shaped support edge 316 is protruding. The axial extension length of the support edge 316 is significantly less than the total axial length of the workpiece, only able to support a small section of the workpiece near the root of the receiving section 311, and does not provide full-length support for the workpiece. The side of the support edge 316 facing away from the clamping and transferring mechanism 4 is integrally connected to the guide sidewall. The guide sidewall is milled into an arc-shaped guide groove 317 on the inner surface of the workpiece, forming a unilateral radial constraint on the workpiece and ensuring that the axis does not deviate during the workpiece pushing process.

[0057] From the outer end face of the bearing support edge 316 to the positioning stop 318 at the outermost end of the discharge section 312, there is no solid support structure at the bottom of the discharge section 312, and no side wall obstruction on the longitudinal side facing the clamping and conveying mechanism 4, forming a clamping and clearance space that is open at both the bottom and the side. When the workpiece is pushed outward from the receiving section 311 by the distributing push rod 32, the bearing support edge 316 provides initial bottom support and the arc-shaped guide groove 317 provides radial guidance to prevent the front end of the workpiece from falling and deviating when it is just pushed out of the through hole. As the push rod continues to push, the main body of the workpiece gradually enters the clamping and clearance space. Finally, only a small section at the root of the workpiece is supported by the bearing support edge 316, and the outer end face abuts against the positioning end face of the positioning stop 318 to complete axial positioning. Most of the rod body from the middle to the outer end of the workpiece is in a suspended open state with no extra structure obstructing it, so that the pneumatic chuck 41 can clamp the workpiece.

[0058] Through the above technical solution, when the workpiece is pushed out from the material receiving part 311 through the material passage 313 by the material pusher 32 and falls onto the bearing support edge 316 of the discharge part 312, its cylindrical outer surface will precisely slide in the arc-shaped guide groove 317 on the guide sidewall. Since the arc-shaped guide groove 317 is coaxially arranged with the material passage 313 and its inner contour matches the outer contour of the workpiece, it provides a certain degree of guidance for the workpiece. The workpiece is not only supported from the bottom by the bearing support edge 316, but also guided from the side by the arc-shaped guide groove 317, effectively reducing the lateral swaying and rolling of the workpiece while waiting to be clamped.

[0059] This application further proposes that the pneumatic chuck 41 includes a chuck body 411 and three claw sleeves 412, the three claw sleeves 412 being detachably and evenly arranged circumferentially on the clamping end of the chuck body 411.

[0060] The pneumatic chuck 41 uses compressed air to drive its internal clamping mechanism, enabling rapid clamping and release of the workpiece. This embodiment employs a piston-driven parallel jaw type. The jaw sleeves 412 are detachably connected to the chuck body 411, for example, by bolts, quick-change pins, or dovetail joints, allowing for easy installation, disassembly, and replacement of the jaw sleeves 412. In this embodiment, the three jaw sleeves 412 are arranged at 120-degree intervals along the circumference of the chuck body 411, ensuring uniform distribution of clamping force when clamping the workpiece, thus providing a stable clamping effect and reducing deformation or damage caused by uneven force on the workpiece. The clamping end is the area on the chuck body 411 used to install the jaw sleeves 412 and directly clamp the workpiece.

[0061] However, in practice, traditional clamping methods may have problems such as unstable clamping, damage to the workpiece surface, or inability to adapt to various workpiece shapes.

[0062] In this regard, this application further proposes that each claw sleeve 412 has an elongated through groove 413 along its own axis on its inner clamping wall, and two inclined clamping surfaces 414 are formed on both sides of the through groove 413.

[0063] Specifically, the elongated through-slot 413 refers to a slender groove formed on the inner wall of the jaw sleeve 412 along the axial direction of the jaw sleeve 412, i.e., the axial direction of the workpiece. The through-slot 413 is a groove structure that is radially recessed inward along the jaw sleeve 412, and the radial depth of the groove bottom is greater than the radial position of the two clamping surfaces. In the clamping state, there is always a gap between the inner wall of the through-slot 413 and the outer circle of the workpiece, and it does not contact the workpiece surface, thus playing a role in preventing air leakage. The inclined clamping surface 414 means that the side wall of the through-slot 413 is not perpendicular to the radial direction of the jaw sleeve 412, but is inclined inward at a certain angle. When the pneumatic chuck 41 is closed, these inclined clamping surfaces 414 will contact the outer surface of the workpiece and generate a centripetal clamping force to achieve stable and reliable clamping. In actual working conditions, when the pneumatic chuck 41 is closed, a total of 6 inclined clamping surfaces 414 on the 3 jaw sleeves 412 simultaneously abut against the outer side wall of the workpiece to achieve workpiece limiting.

[0064] Through the above technical solution, each jaw sleeve 412 has an elongated through groove 413 along its own axial direction on its inner clamping wall, forming two inclined clamping surfaces 414. This allows the pneumatic chuck 41 to provide a larger contact area and a more uniform clamping force distribution when clamping a workpiece. Compared to a complete arc clamping surface, multi-plane narrow-face clamping can increase the contact pressure per unit area, allowing the clamping surface to be microscopically embedded in the turning patterns on the workpiece surface. During the transfer acceleration and deceleration process, it can effectively prevent short-axis workpieces from axial movement and circumferential rotation. At the same time, the machining process of the inclined plane is much less difficult than that of the arc forming surface, making it easier to control dimensional consistency during mass production, reducing processing costs, and making grinding after wear more convenient.

[0065] In some embodiments described above, a pneumatic chuck 41 is proposed to clamp a workpiece using the inclined clamping surface 414 of the jaw sleeve 412. However, in actual operation, relying solely on the inclined clamping surface 414 for clamping may result in insufficient precision or consistency in the axial position of the workpiece during clamping. This can lead to positioning errors in subsequent machining, affecting machining accuracy and stability. Especially in applications requiring high-precision machining, such uncertainty in axial positioning becomes a key factor restricting machining quality.

[0066] In this regard, this application further proposes that a limiting step 415 is provided on the clamping inner wall of each claw sleeve 412 at the end away from the main shaft of the Swiss Army machine, and the end of the workpiece abuts against the end face of the limiting step 415 when the workpiece is clamped.

[0067] Specifically, the limiting step 415 is a structure provided on the inner wall of the jaw sleeve 412. Its function is to provide an axial positioning reference for the clamped workpiece. The limiting step 415 has an end face facing away from the chuck body 411, which is used to abut against the workpiece. The limiting step 415 is a raised stepped structure on the inner wall of each jaw sleeve 412. The end face of the limiting step 415 is perpendicular to the axis of the workpiece, so that the end of the workpiece abuts against the end face of the limiting step 415 stably. The step surface of the limiting step 415 is perpendicular to the axis of the jaw sleeve 412 itself, and the limiting steps 415 of the three jaw sleeves 412 are in the same vertical plane. When the pneumatic chuck 41 moves longitudinally to approach the discharge port of the feed seat 31 and clamps the workpiece, the positioning end face and the abutting end face of the limiting step 415 are in the same plane, so as to ensure that the workpiece can abut against the end face of the limiting step 415 when it is clamped. The end face of the short-axis workpiece away from the main spindle is fully fitted to the end face of the limiting step 415 formed by the three claw sleeves 412, so that the axial position of the workpiece is completely locked by the step.

[0068] When traditional stepless grippers hold short-shaft workpieces, the workpiece is prone to shifting back and forth during acceleration and deceleration during the transfer process, resulting in inconsistent insertion depths into the spindle's elastic collet 5 and causing machining datum offset. The limiting step 415 structure in this embodiment can uniformly limit the axial position of the workpiece after clamping, ensuring a completely consistent axial extension length for each workpiece gripping. This guarantees a uniform clamping datum after the workpiece is fed into the spindle's machining end, ensuring stable dimensional accuracy during Swiss-type lathe machining.

[0069] In some of the embodiments described above in this application, the Swiss-type lathe feeding device delivers the workpiece to the front side of the machining end of the Swiss-type lathe spindle. However, in its implementation, if the spindle clamping mechanism is not properly designed, it may result in insufficient workpiece clamping force, unstable clamping, or untimely release when changing workpieces, thereby affecting machining accuracy and feeding efficiency.

[0070] This application further proposes that the groove width of the inclined feeding track 22 is adapted to the axial length of the workpiece, and the two side walls of the inclined feeding track 22 constrain the axial ends of the workpiece. Specifically, the groove width of the inclined feeding track 22 matches the axial length of the workpiece to be processed, which can effectively limit the excessive lateral swinging or rotation of the workpiece. In this embodiment, the groove width is set to be slightly larger than the axial length of the workpiece to allow the workpiece to slide smoothly while ensuring its axial stability. In addition, the two side wall structures of the inclined feeding track 22 are in close contact with the axial ends of the workpiece, thereby forming an effective constraint on the axial ends of the workpiece. This constraint ensures that the workpiece is prevented from tilting or overturning under the action of gravity or vibration throughout the entire conveying path along the inclined feeding track 22.

[0071] Through the above technical solution, the groove width of the inclined feeding track 22 is designed to match the axial length of the workpiece, and the two side walls constrain the axial ends of the workpiece. This ensures that the workpiece can smoothly enter the feeding mechanism 3 with a stable posture and correct direction, thereby significantly improving the reliability and efficiency of the feeding process, reducing downtime or malfunctions caused by incorrect workpiece posture, and ensuring the continuous and stable operation of the Swiss-type lathe feeding device.

[0072] In some of the embodiments described above in this application, the feeding device for the Swiss-type lathe needs to ensure that the workpiece can be accurately and safely fed into the machining end of the Swiss-type lathe spindle. However, the lack of real-time monitoring of the status of the machining end of the spindle may lead to interference between the workpiece and the spindle, or misfeeding when the spindle is not ready to receive the workpiece, thereby affecting the reliability and efficiency of the feeding.

[0073] To address this, this application further proposes that a photoelectric sensor 55 be fixed on the machine tool 1, with the detection end of the photoelectric sensor 55 facing the front side of the machining end of the Swiss-type lathe spindle. Specifically, the photoelectric sensor 55 is a sensor that utilizes the photoelectric effect for detection, and it can determine the presence of an object by detecting whether the light beam is blocked. In this embodiment, a reflective photoelectric sensor 55 is used, with its detection end directly pointing to a specific space in front of the machining end of the spindle, used to detect whether there is an object at that location. Specifically, the specific space in front of the machining end of the spindle refers to the position where the pneumatic chuck 41 moves the workpiece to the front of the machining end of the spindle. Subsequently, the front push of the spindle can achieve the clamping engagement between the workpiece and the elastic collet 5 of the spindle. Then, releasing the clamping constraint of the pneumatic chuck 41 on the workpiece can realize the loading of the spindle. The photoelectric sensor 55 can monitor whether the pneumatic chuck 41 has already clamped a workpiece, so as to facilitate subsequent processing.

[0074] By fixing a photoelectric sensor 55 on the machine tool 1 with its detection end facing the front of the machining end of the Swiss-type lathe spindle, this application can monitor the state in front of the machining end of the spindle in real time and accurately. When the front of the machining end of the spindle is cleared and ready to receive a new workpiece, the photoelectric sensor 55 can provide a clear signal, thereby guiding the clamping and transfer mechanism 4 to accurately feed the workpiece in. When it is detected that the pneumatic chuck 41 has reached the front of the machining end of the spindle and is holding the workpiece inside, it can guide the subsequent spindle loading process. This effectively avoids interference or collision between the workpiece and the spindle that may occur when loading is not ready, and significantly improves the reliability and safety of the loading process.

[0075] In this embodiment, at the front end of the material distribution execution, a through hole is provided on the top of the receiving part 311 of the material distribution seat 31. A proximity sensor (not shown in the figure) is provided on the outside of the through hole. The detection end of the proximity sensor faces the internal material loading area of ​​the material through hole 313, and is used to detect whether a workpiece rolls into the receiving port 314 and falls stably into the arc-shaped material loading groove 315. In this embodiment, the proximity sensor is an inductive detection type, which is suitable for non-contact detection of metal shaft workpieces. When the workpiece rolls laterally from the inclined feeding track 22 into the material through hole 313 and falls into the preset receiving position of the arc-shaped material loading groove 315, the proximity sensor senses the workpiece and outputs a position trigger signal to the control system. After receiving the signal, the control system drives the material distribution push rod 32 to extend laterally along the workpiece axis and pushes the single workpiece to the discharge end to complete the positioning. If the proximity sensor does not detect the workpiece, the material distribution push rod 32 remains in a retracted standby state and does not perform the pushing action, thereby avoiding the empty stroke loss in the absence of material and preventing the accidental pushing failure when multiple workpieces are stacked.

[0076] On the other hand, this application further proposes a Swiss-type lathe, wherein the machining end of the lathe spindle is provided with an elastic collet 5, and a clamping drive cylinder 51 is slidably sleeved inside the cylindrical housing of the spindle; the outer wall of the elastic collet 5 is provided with an outer conical wedge-tightening inclined surface, and the inner wall of the clamping drive cylinder 51 is provided with an inner conical mating surface adapted to the outer conical wedge-tightening inclined surface; a return spring 52 is provided between the elastic collet 5 and the clamping drive cylinder 51, and the two ends of the return spring 52 abut against the elastic collet 5 and the clamping drive cylinder 51 respectively.

[0077] Specifically, the elastic collet 5 is made of a metal material with a certain degree of elasticity. The internal diameter of the elastic collet 5 is adapted to the outer diameter of the workpiece to be clamped. The elastic collet 5 can undergo elastic deformation, thereby tightly gripping the workpiece. The cylindrical outer shell of the spindle is the external structure of the Swiss-type lathe spindle. It is hollow inside and is used to house and protect the transmission components and clamping mechanism of the spindle. The clamping drive cylinder 51 is a component that can slide axially inside the cylindrical outer shell of the spindle. Its main function is to act as the driving element of the elastic collet 5. In this embodiment, the clamping drive cylinder 51 is connected to an external drive source on the side away from the machining end of the spindle. The external drive source works to drive the clamping drive cylinder 51 to reciprocate along the axial direction of the spindle, thereby controlling the clamping or loosening state of the elastic collet 5. The external drive source can be a cylinder or a servo motor.

[0078] The outer wall of the elastic collet 5 is provided with an outer conical wedge-shaped inclined surface, while the inner wall of the clamping drive cylinder 51 is provided with an inner conical mating surface that is adapted to the outer conical wedge-shaped inclined surface. Specifically, when the clamping drive cylinder 51 slides axially toward the machining end of the spindle inside the spindle cylindrical housing, its inner conical mating surface interacts with the outer conical wedge-shaped inclined surface of the elastic collet 5, generating a radial wedge-shaped force. This wedge-shaped force causes the elastic collet 5 to contract and tightly clamp the workpiece.

[0079] The outer conical wedge-tightening inclined surface is a continuous conical annular surface extending along the main shaft axis, and the generatrix of the conical surface forms a fixed wedge-tightening conical angle with the main shaft axis. The front end of the elastic collet 5 has multiple expansion and contraction grooves evenly opened along the circumference, so that the front end of the collet has uniform radial elastic deformation capability. The clamping drive cylinder 51, which is coaxially slidably assembled inside the cylindrical housing of the main shaft, has an inner conical mating surface machined on its inner wall front end. The inner conical mating surface is a conical inner hole surface with a taper that is completely consistent with the taper of the outer conical wedge-tightening inclined surface. A cylindrical helical return spring 52 is assembled between the tail end of the elastic collet 5 and the tail end of the clamping drive cylinder 51. The two ends of the spring abut against the rear end face of the elastic collet 5 and the inner stepped surface of the clamping drive cylinder 51, respectively. When the external drive source pushes the clamping drive cylinder 51 to slide forward along the axial direction toward the machining end of the spindle, the inner conical mating surface gradually contacts and squeezes the outer conical wedge inclined surface, converting the axial thrust of the drive cylinder into a uniform radial extrusion force in the circumferential direction, causing the elastic collet 5 to uniformly contract radially along the expansion and contraction groove, thereby gripping the short shaft workpiece inside; when the driving force is removed, the return spring 52 releases the elastic potential energy, pushing the clamping drive cylinder 51 to slide backward and reset, the extrusion force on the outer conical wedge inclined surface disappears, and the elastic collet 5 opens up by its own elastic rebound, releasing the workpiece and completing the unloading.

[0080] The above technical solution can efficiently convert axial driving force into radial clamping force, thereby achieving fast, accurate, and stable clamping of the workpiece. The reset spring 52 ensures that after the clamping drive cylinder 51 is released, the elastic collet 5 can quickly and reliably reset, allowing the workpiece to be released smoothly and avoiding reduced processing efficiency and workpiece jamming problems caused by untimely clamping or release.

[0081] In some embodiments described above in this application, a scheme is proposed to send the workpiece to the machining end of the Swiss-type lathe spindle for processing via the clamping and transfer mechanism 4. However, in actual processing, chips, coolant residue, or small impurities may remain inside the spindle collet, affecting the accurate clamping of the workpiece and even leading to a decrease in machining accuracy or equipment failure.

[0082] In this regard, this application further proposes that a hollow ejector rod 53 is slidably arranged inside the spindle along its own axis, the inner cavity of the hollow ejector rod 53 is connected to a compressed air source, and a plurality of radially penetrating blow holes 54 are opened on the circumferential sidewall of the hollow ejector rod 53 near the machining end of the spindle.

[0083] Specifically, the hollow ejector rod 53 is a rod with a hollow structure. It is precisely installed inside the spindle of the Swiss-type lathe and can reciprocate along the spindle's own axis. The main function of this ejector rod is to provide axial thrust during workpiece unloading after machining, while its hollow structure provides a channel for airflow. The sliding of the hollow ejector rod 53 is controlled by an independent drive mechanism such as a cylinder, hydraulic cylinder, or servo motor. In this embodiment, a servo motor is selected for drive control.

[0084] The inner cavity of the hollow ejector rod 53 is connected to an external compressed air source. Multiple radially penetrating purge holes 54 are formed on the side wall of the hollow ejector rod 53 facing the processing end. These holes extend from the inner cavity of the ejector rod to its outer surface and are radially distributed. When compressed air enters the inner cavity of the ejector rod, it is ejected outward through these purge holes 54.

[0085] With the above technical solution, after the workpiece is processed and unloaded, the compressed air source inside the hollow top rod 53 can be activated. High-pressure airflow is ejected through the radial purging hole 54 to effectively purge the inner cavity of the elastic collet 5 and the processing area, ensuring the cleanliness of the collet's inner cavity. A clean collet cavity ensures that the workpiece fits tightly against the collet's inner wall during clamping, thereby achieving accurate and reliable clamping, significantly improving the workpiece's processing accuracy and surface quality, and enhancing the overall operating efficiency and stability of the equipment.

[0086] The embodiments described in this specific implementation are preferred embodiments of this application and are not intended to limit the scope of protection of this application. Identical components are represented by the same reference numerals. Therefore, all equivalent changes made to the structure, shape, and principle of this application should be covered within the scope of protection of this application.

Claims

1. A feeding device for a Swiss-type headstock machine, adapted to a Swiss-type headstock machine with a main shaft, characterized in that, include: The machine tool (1), feeding mechanism (2), material distribution mechanism (3) and clamping and transferring mechanism (4) are all mounted on the machine tool (1), and the clamping and transferring mechanism (4) slides longitudinally between the material distribution mechanism (3) and the machining end of the Swiss-type lathe spindle. The feeding mechanism (2) includes a vibratory plate (21) and an inclined feeding track (22). The high position of the inclined feeding track (22) is connected to the discharge end of the vibratory plate (21), and the low position extends downward along the direction of gravity to the distributing mechanism (3). The material distribution mechanism (3) includes a material distribution seat (31) and a material distribution push rod (32); the material distribution seat (31) is fixed on the machine tool (1), and a through material passage hole (313) is transversely opened in the material distribution seat (31) along the workpiece axis; the material distribution seat (31) has a receiving port (314) facing the inclined unloading track (22), and the receiving port (314) connects the through material passage hole (313) and the lower part of the inclined unloading track (22); the material distribution push rod (32) is laterally slidably disposed on one side of the through material passage hole (313) for... The workpiece is pushed to the outside of the discharge end of the material distribution seat (31); the bottom of the discharge end of the material distribution seat (31) is provided with a bearing support edge (316), and the end of the discharge end is fixed with a positioning stop (318). The side of the positioning stop (318) facing the material passage hole (313) is the positioning end face. The distance between the positioning end face and the outer end face of the material passage hole (313) is not less than the axial length of the workpiece. The discharge end of the material distribution seat (31) forms an unobstructed discharge port above the bearing support edge (316) and on the longitudinal side facing the clamping and conveying mechanism (4). The material clamping and conveying mechanism (4) includes a pneumatic chuck (41) and a longitudinal drive source (42). The longitudinal drive source (42) is fixed on the machine tool (1) and is used to drive the pneumatic chuck (41) to reciprocate longitudinally between the discharge port and the front side of the spindle machining end of the Swiss-type lathe. The pneumatic chuck (41) includes a chuck body (411) and three claw sleeves (412), which are detachably and evenly arranged circumferentially on the clamping end of the chuck body (411). Each of the claw sleeves (412) has an elongated through groove (413) along its own axis on its inner wall, and two inclined clamping surfaces (414) are formed on both sides of the through groove (413). Each of the jaw sleeves (412) has a limiting step (415) on the inner wall of the clamping mechanism away from the main shaft of the Swiss Army machine. When the workpiece is clamped, its end abuts against the end face of the limiting step (415).

2. The feeding device for a Swiss Army machine according to claim 1, characterized in that, The bottom wall of the material passage (313) is provided with an arc-shaped material loading groove (315) that is adapted to the outer circle contour of the workpiece. The arc-shaped material loading groove (315) is used to carry the workpiece entering through the receiving port (314).

3. The feeding device for a Swiss Army machine according to claim 2, characterized in that, The material distribution seat (31) includes a receiving part (311) and a discharging part (312). The receiving port (314) is opened in the receiving part (311). The material passage hole (313) connects the receiving part (311) and the discharging part (312). The supporting edge (316) is located on the side of the discharging part (312) away from the receiving part (311). The discharging part (312) has a guide sidewall on the side of the supporting edge (316) facing away from the clamping and conveying mechanism (4). The guide sidewall is recessed with an arc-shaped guide groove (317) arranged coaxially with the material passage hole (313). The inner contour of the arc-shaped guide groove (317) is adapted to the outer contour of the workpiece.

4. The feeding device for a Swiss Army machine according to claim 1, characterized in that, The groove width of the inclined feeding track (22) is adapted to the axial length of the workpiece, and the two side walls of the inclined feeding track (22) constrain the two ends of the workpiece in the axial direction.

5. The feeding device for a Swiss Army machine according to claim 1, characterized in that, A photoelectric sensor (55) is fixed on the machine tool (1), and the detection end of the photoelectric sensor (55) is facing the front side of the machining end of the Swiss Army machine spindle.

6. A type of hand-held device, characterized in that, The feeding device for a Swiss-type headstock lathe according to any one of claims 1 to 5 is provided with an elastic collet (5) at the processing end of the main shaft of the Swiss-type headstock lathe, and a clamping drive cylinder (51) is slidably sleeved inside the cylindrical outer shell of the main shaft; the outer wall of the elastic collet (5) is provided with an outer conical wedge tightening slope, and the inner wall of the clamping drive cylinder (51) is provided with an inner conical mating surface adapted to the outer conical wedge tightening slope; a return spring (52) is provided between the elastic collet (5) and the clamping drive cylinder (51), and the two ends of the return spring (52) abut against the elastic collet (5) and the clamping drive cylinder (51) respectively.

7. A sliding headstock machine according to claim 6, characterized in that, A hollow ejector rod (53) is slidably arranged inside the spindle along its own axis. The inner cavity of the hollow ejector rod (53) is connected to a compressed air source. Multiple radially penetrating blow holes (54) are opened on the side wall of the hollow ejector rod (53) facing the processing end.

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