Tray automatic overturning device, tray automatic overturning system and tray automatic overturning method

Abstract

The application discloses a tray automatic overturning device, a tray automatic overturning system and a tray automatic overturning method, relates to the material overturning technical field, and the tray automatic overturning device comprises a device main body, a conveying mechanism, a conveying mechanism for conveying a raw tray to an overturning station, a raw tray carrying a cutting tool and one machining surface of the cutting tool facing upward, a transfer alignment mechanism, a transfer alignment mechanism for placing a target tray opposite to the upper side of the raw tray, and an overturning mechanism, an overturning mechanism for driving the raw tray and the target tray to overturn together and making another machining surface of the cutting tool face upward.The tray automatic overturning device of the embodiment of the application can place the target tray opposite to the upper side of the raw tray, can improve operation precision, avoid the blade edge of the cutting tool from being broken, and make the cutting tool on the raw tray overturn to the target tray under the action of gravity, so that simultaneous overturning of multiple cutting tools can be realized, and overturning efficiency and overturning consistency can be improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of material turning technology, and in particular to an automatic tray turning device, an automatic tray turning system, and an automatic tray turning method. Background Technology

[0002] Cutting tools are typically high-precision, edge-sensitive tools made of materials such as cemented carbide, cermet, ceramic, PCD (polycrystalline diamond), and CBN (cubic boron nitride). The manufacturing process of cutting tools usually involves grinding, passivation, and coating on both sides of the tool blank. On the production line, the tools are arranged in an orderly fashion within a grid on a dedicated jig tray (also called a material tray). When side A is machined, the entire tray of tools needs to be flipped and transferred from the "incoming material tray" to the "target tray" for side B machining; this process is commonly known as "tray flipping."

[0003] Currently, the main solutions for turning over the material tray in the tool manufacturing industry include manual or simple mechanical turning. This relies on operators to manually turn the tray or use simple pneumatic grippers to turn it. This solution is inefficient and it is difficult to guarantee consistency. For ultra-hard and brittle tools such as PCD and CBN, operational deviations are very likely to cause chipping of the cutting edge, resulting in product scrap. There is room for improvement. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This invention aims to at least solve one of the technical problems existing in the prior art. To this end, this invention proposes an automatic tray flipping device, which can improve operating accuracy, avoid chipping of the cutting edge of the cutting tool, and enable the simultaneous flipping of multiple cutting tools, thereby improving flipping efficiency and flipping consistency.

[0005] According to an embodiment of the present invention, an automatic tray flipping device is used to flip a cutting tool, the cutting tool having two mutually opposite machining surfaces, and includes: a device body having a flipping station; a conveying mechanism for conveying a incoming tray to the flipping station, the incoming tray carrying the cutting tool with one machining surface of the cutting tool facing upwards; a transfer and alignment mechanism for placing a target tray directly above the incoming tray; and a flipping mechanism for clamping the incoming tray and the target tray and driving the incoming tray and the target tray to flip together, causing the cutting tool to flip onto the target tray with the other machining surface of the cutting tool facing upwards.

[0006] According to the embodiments of the present invention, the automatic tray flipping device can move the incoming tray and the target tray to the flipping station through the conveying mechanism and the transfer and alignment mechanism respectively. The transfer and alignment mechanism can place the target tray directly above the incoming tray, which can improve the operation accuracy and avoid chipping of the cutting edge of the cutting tool. Furthermore, the flipping mechanism can simultaneously clamp the incoming tray and the target tray and flip them together, so that the cutting tool on the incoming tray can be flipped onto the target tray under its own gravity. This can realize the simultaneous flipping of multiple cutting tools, which can improve the flipping efficiency and flipping consistency, and make the other machining surface of the cutting tool face upward, so as to facilitate the machining of the other machining surface.

[0007] According to an embodiment of the present invention, an automatic tray flipping device further includes a controller and a first information acquisition unit. The first information acquisition unit is used to acquire positional deviation data between the target tray and the incoming tray. The controller is electrically connected to the first information acquisition unit and the transfer alignment mechanism respectively to control the transfer alignment mechanism to align the target tray and the incoming tray according to the positional deviation data.

[0008] According to an embodiment of the present invention, an automatic tray flipping device is provided with at least three spaced-apart markers on both the incoming tray and the target tray. The first information acquisition unit is used to acquire positional deviation data of the markers on the incoming tray and the markers on the target tray.

[0009] According to an embodiment of the present invention, an automatic tray flipping device further includes a second information acquisition unit, which is used to acquire feature data of the incoming tray. The main body of the device forms a target tray supply compartment, in which a plurality of target trays of different specifications are arranged at intervals. The controller is electrically connected to the second information acquisition unit to control the transfer and alignment mechanism to place the target tray corresponding to the incoming tray directly above the incoming tray according to the feature data of the incoming tray. The controller is electrically connected to the flipping mechanism and is used to control the flipping mechanism to flip according to a preset speed curve.

[0010] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the automatic tray flipping device includes a conveyor belt, a lifting platform, and a limiting member. The conveyor belt is used to convey the incoming tray. The limiting member is used to limit and press against the incoming tray when the incoming tray moves to below the flipping station. The lifting platform is located below the flipping station and is movable relative to the main body of the device to drive the incoming tray to rise or drive the target tray to fall.

[0011] According to an embodiment of the present invention, an automatic tray flipping device includes a flipping mechanism comprising a driving member, a flipping member, and a gripper. The gripper is configured to be able to approach or move away from the flipping station, so as to clamp the target tray and the incoming tray when approaching the flipping station, and to release the target tray and the incoming tray and move away from the flipping station after flipping is completed. The gripper is fixedly connected to the flipping member, and the driving member is poweredly connected to the flipping member and is used to drive the flipping member to drive the gripper to flip.

[0012] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the automatic tray flipping device includes a transfer and alignment mechanism comprising a support frame and a gripper, the gripper being movably mounted on the support frame and movable relative to the support frame to move the target tray above the incoming tray.

[0013] The present invention also proposes an automatic tray flipping system.

[0014] The automatic tray flipping system according to the present invention includes a production actuator and an automatic tray flipping device as described in any of the above embodiments, wherein the production actuator is electrically connected to the automatic tray flipping device to send specification information of the cutting tool to be processed to the automatic tray flipping device.

[0015] The present invention also proposes a method for automatic tray flipping.

[0016] According to the automatic tray flipping method of the present invention, the automatic tray flipping method is applicable to the automatic tray flipping device described in any of the above embodiments, and includes: acquiring the feature data of the incoming tray and conveying the incoming tray to the flipping station; placing the corresponding target tray facing each other above the incoming tray according to the feature data of the incoming tray; clamping the incoming tray and the target tray and driving the incoming tray and the target tray to flip together; removing the incoming tray and outputting the target tray.

[0017] According to the automatic tray flipping method of the present invention, the step of placing the corresponding target tray directly above the incoming tray based on the characteristic data of the incoming tray includes: acquiring positional deviation data between the target tray and the incoming tray; determining whether the positional deviation data is within a preset convergence threshold range; selectively adjusting the state of the target tray according to the determination result so that the positional deviation data is within the preset convergence threshold range; and placing the target tray above the incoming tray.

[0018] The automatic tray turning system, the automatic tray turning method, and the automatic tray turning device described above all have the same advantages over the prior art, and will not be elaborated here.

[0019] Additional aspects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. Attached Figure Description

[0020] The above and / or additional aspects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent and readily understood from the description of the embodiments taken in conjunction with the following drawings, in which: Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the automatic tray flipping device according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 1 ; Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the automatic tray flipping device according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 ; Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the conveying mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the transfer and alignment mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the flipping mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 6 The flow chart of the automatic tray flipping method according to the present invention Figure 1 ; Figure 7 The flow chart of the automatic tray flipping method according to the present invention Figure 2 .

[0021] Figure label: Automatic tray tilting device 100, Device main body 1, tilting station 11, target tray supply bin 12 Conveying mechanism 2, conveyor belt 21, lifting platform 22, limiting component 23, pulley 24, rotating shaft 25, drive motor 26. Transfer and alignment mechanism 3, support frame 31, gripping component 32, vacuum suction cup 321. The components include: a flipping mechanism 4, a drive unit 41, a flipping component 42, a gripper 43, an upper gripper 431, a lower gripper 432, and a pressure sensor 433. 5. Incoming material tray, 6. Target tray, 7. First information collection component, 8. Second information collection component, 9. Marker point. Detailed Implementation

[0022] Embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below. Examples of these embodiments are shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein the same or similar reference numerals denote the same or similar elements or elements having the same or similar functions throughout. The embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings are exemplary and are only used to explain the present invention, and should not be construed as limiting the present invention.

[0023] In the description of this invention, it should be understood that the terms "center," "longitudinal," "lateral," "length," "width," "thickness," "upper," "lower," "front," "rear," "left," "right," "vertical," "horizontal," "top," "bottom," "inner," "outer," "clockwise," "counterclockwise," "axial," "radial," and "circumferential," etc., indicating orientation or positional relationships, are based on the orientation or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings and are only for the convenience of describing the invention and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore should not be construed as a limitation of the invention. Furthermore, features defined with "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of that feature. In the description of this invention, unless otherwise stated, "a plurality of" means two or more.

[0024] In the description of this invention, it should be noted that, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "installation," "connection," and "linking" should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; 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; and they can refer to the internal connection of two components. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in this invention based on the specific circumstances.

[0025] The following is for reference. Figures 1-7 The automatic tray flipping device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention can improve operating accuracy, avoid chipping of the cutting edge of the cutting tool, and enable the simultaneous flipping of multiple cutting tools, thereby improving flipping efficiency and flipping consistency.

[0026] like Figures 1-5 As shown, according to an embodiment of the present invention, an automatic tray flipping device 100 is used to flip a cutting tool, the cutting tool having two mutually opposite machining surfaces, and includes: a device body 1, a conveying mechanism 2, a transfer and alignment mechanism 3, and a flipping mechanism 4.

[0027] The main body 1 of the device has a flipping station 11; the conveying mechanism 2 is used to convey the incoming material tray 5 to the flipping station 11, the incoming material tray 5 carries the cutting tool and one of the machining surfaces of the cutting tool is facing upward; the transfer and alignment mechanism 3 is used to place the target tray 6 directly above the incoming material tray 5; the flipping mechanism 4 is used to clamp the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 and drive the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 to flip together, and make the cutting tool flip onto the target tray 6 and make the other machining surface of the cutting tool face upward.

[0028] Specifically, cutting tools are core tools used in mechanical manufacturing for cutting processes. They can be used to process the outer circle or end face of a workpiece to form the required shape. Cutting tools have two machining surfaces, which are the outer surfaces that need to be ground, passivated, or coated during the manufacturing process of the cutting tool. The two machining surfaces are set away from each other, that is, the two machining surfaces can be two outer surfaces of the cutting tool that are away from each other along the length, width, or thickness direction of the cutting tool.

[0029] When machining two surfaces, one surface is usually set to face upwards first and machined. After one surface is machined, the cutting tool is flipped so that the other surface faces upwards and machined. This allows for separate machining of the two surfaces and ensures the reliability of machining both surfaces.

[0030] The automatic tray flipping device 100 is used to flip the tray so that the cutting tools can be flipped. The tray is a component used to carry the cutting tools. An array of tray grids is formed on the tray. The tray grids are used to accommodate the cutting tools. That is, multiple cutting tools can be set on the tray at the same time. Thus, when the tray is flipped by the automatic tray flipping device 100, multiple cutting tools can be flipped at the same time, which helps to improve the flipping efficiency and the consistency of flipping.

[0031] The automatic tray turning device 100 includes a device body 1, a conveying mechanism 2, a transfer and alignment mechanism 3, and a turning mechanism 4. The device body 1 serves as the main structure of the automatic tray turning device 100 and can be used to provide space for the setting and installation of other components within the automatic tray turning device 100, so as to ensure the reliable setting and operation of each component. The device body 1 has a turning station 11, which provides space for the turning of the tray, that is, the tray can be turned at the turning station 11 to realize the turning of the cutting tool.

[0032] The conveying mechanism 2 is used to convey the incoming material tray 5 to the flipping station 11. That is, the conveying mechanism 2 can be used to convey the incoming material tray 5 to move the incoming material tray 5 to the flipping station 11. The incoming material tray 5 is a tray carrying cutting tools. That is, the conveying device can be used to convey the incoming material tray 5 and the cutting tools on the incoming material tray 5 together to the flipping station 11. One of the machining surfaces of the cutting tools on the incoming material tray 5 is facing upwards. That is, the machining surfaces of multiple cutting tools on the incoming material tray 5 are all set to face upwards. In other words, the machined surfaces of multiple cutting tools on the incoming material tray 5 are all set to face upwards. In this way, when the incoming material tray 5 is flipped at the flipping station 11, the other machining surface of multiple cutting tools on the incoming material tray 5 can be flipped to face upwards. That is, the unmachined surfaces of multiple cutting tools on the incoming material tray 5 can be flipped to face upwards, so as to facilitate the subsequent machining of the unmachined surfaces of the cutting tools.

[0033] The transfer and alignment mechanism 3 is used to place the target disk 6 directly above the incoming material disk 5. The target disk 6 is a material disk that does not carry a cutting tool. That is, the transfer and alignment mechanism 3 can be used to move the target disk 6 to grab the target disk 6 from other positions and place the target disk 6 above the incoming material disk 5 located at the flipping station 11. Moreover, the transfer and alignment mechanism 3 can be used to adjust the position of the target disk 6 so that the target disk 6 is directly opposite the incoming material disk 5 and the target disk 6 has its material disk grid facing downwards. In this way, when the target disk 6 is placed directly above the incoming material disk 5 after being directly opposite the incoming material disk 5, the material disk grid on the target disk 6 can be aligned with the material disk grid on the incoming material disk 5, which can improve the operating accuracy and prevent the crossbeam of the target disk 6 from squeezing the cutting tool and causing the cutting edge of the cutting tool to chip.

[0034] The flipping mechanism 4 is used to clamp the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 and drive them to flip together. After the target tray 6 is placed directly above the incoming material tray 5, the flipping mechanism 4 can simultaneously clamp the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 located at the flipping station 11, so that the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 can be relatively fixed. Then, the flipping mechanism 4 can drive the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 to flip together, so that the target tray 6 is flipped to the bottom of the incoming material tray 5 and the incoming material tray 5 is flipped to the top of the target tray 6. Under the action of its own gravity, the cutting tools on the incoming material tray 5 can fall into the material tray grid of the target tray 6 along the falling channel formed by the material tray grid on the incoming material tray 5 and the material tray grid on the target tray 6. In this way, multiple cutting tools on the incoming material tray 5 can be flipped to the target tray 6 at the same time, so that the other processing surface of the cutting tool can be flipped to face upward, that is, the unprocessed processing surface of the cutting tool can be flipped to face upward, so as to facilitate processing.

[0035] The conveying mechanism 2, the transfer and alignment mechanism 3, and the flipping mechanism 4 can be connected to the main body 1 of the device respectively to achieve reliable installation of the conveying mechanism 2, the transfer and alignment mechanism 3, and the flipping mechanism 4, and ensure the reliable operation of the conveying mechanism 2, the transfer and alignment mechanism 3, and the flipping mechanism 4.

[0036] According to the embodiment of the present invention, the automatic tray flipping device 100 can move the incoming tray 5 and the target tray 6 to the flipping station 11 through the conveying mechanism 2 and the transfer and alignment mechanism 3 respectively. The target tray 6 can be placed directly above the incoming tray 5 through the transfer and alignment mechanism 3, which can improve the operation accuracy and avoid chipping of the cutting edge of the cutting tool. Furthermore, the flipping mechanism 4 can simultaneously clamp the incoming tray 5 and the target tray 6 and flip the incoming tray 5 and the target tray 6 together, so that the cutting tool on the incoming tray 5 can be flipped onto the target tray 6 under its own gravity. This can realize the simultaneous flipping of multiple cutting tools, which can improve the flipping efficiency and flipping consistency, and make the other processing surface of the cutting tool face upward, so as to facilitate the processing of the other processing surface.

[0037] In some embodiments, the automatic tray flipping device 100 further includes a controller and a first information acquisition unit 7. The first information acquisition unit 7 is used to acquire position deviation data between the target tray 6 and the incoming tray 5. The controller is electrically connected to the first information acquisition unit 7 and the transfer alignment mechanism 3 respectively to control the transfer alignment mechanism 3 to align the target tray 6 and the incoming tray 5 according to the position deviation data.

[0038] Specifically, the transfer and alignment mechanism 3 can place the target tray 6 directly opposite the incoming tray 5. The first information acquisition element 7 is used to acquire the positional deviation data between the target tray 6 and the incoming tray 5. For example, the first information acquisition element 7 can be a camera, etc. The first information acquisition element 7 can acquire the positional deviation data between the target tray 6 and the incoming tray 5 by taking pictures and images. That is, the transfer and alignment mechanism 3 first suspends the target tray 6 at a certain distance above the incoming tray 5, and then the first information acquisition element 7 simultaneously takes pictures and images of the target tray 6 and the incoming tray 5 to acquire the positional deviation data between the target tray 6 and the incoming tray 5. The first information acquisition element 7 can be fixedly installed on the transfer and alignment mechanism 3, and the first information acquisition element 7 can be set downward, that is, facing the target tray 6 and the incoming tray 5, so as to facilitate taking pictures of the target tray 6 and the incoming tray 5.

[0039] Furthermore, the controller is electrically connected to the first information acquisition unit 7 and the transfer alignment mechanism 3 respectively, so that the controller can obtain the acquisition results of the first information acquisition unit 7, that is, obtain the position deviation data of the target plate 6 and the incoming plate 5. Then, the controller can control the transfer alignment mechanism 3 to adjust the position state of the target plate 6 according to the acquired position deviation data, so that the target plate 6 is aligned with the incoming plate 5, thereby improving the operation accuracy and avoiding the crossbeam of the target plate 6 from squeezing the cutting tool and causing the cutting edge of the cutting tool to chip.

[0040] It should be noted that, in practice, a convergence threshold for the position deviation data can be preset based on actual needs and empirical values. The alignment of the target tray 6 and the receiving tray 5 can be determined by comparing the position deviation data with the preset convergence threshold. When the absolute value of the position deviation data is within the preset convergence threshold, it indicates that the alignment of the target tray 6 and the receiving tray 5 meets the requirements. When the absolute value of the position deviation data exceeds the preset convergence threshold, it indicates that the alignment of the target tray 6 and the receiving tray 5 does not meet the requirements, and the position of the target tray 6 needs to be adjusted.

[0041] The positional deviation data includes the translational deviation of the target disk 6 and the receiving disk 5 along the X-axis, the translational deviation along the Y-axis, and the rotational deviation around the Z-axis. If any of the translational deviations along the X-axis, the translational deviations along the Y-axis, and the rotational deviations around the Z-axis exceed the corresponding convergence threshold, the controller can generate a compensation motion command based on the reverse value of the deviation, driving the transfer alignment mechanism 3 to perform a correction motion, thereby adjusting the position of the target disk 6 to align it with the receiving disk 5. If one correction cannot bring the deviation into the preset convergence threshold, a second correction can be performed. This process can be repeated until the translational deviations along the X-axis, the translational deviations along the Y-axis, and the rotational deviations around the Z-axis are all within the corresponding convergence thresholds, ensuring the alignment accuracy of the target disk 6 and the receiving disk 5.

[0042] The X-axis can be along the front-back direction of the main body 1, the Y-axis can be along the left-right direction of the main body 1, and the Z-axis can be along the up-down direction of the main body 1.

[0043] In some embodiments, at least three spaced marker points 9 are provided on both the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6. The first information acquisition unit 7 is used to acquire positional deviation data of the marker points 9 on the incoming material tray 5 and the marker points 9 on the target tray 6.

[0044] Specifically, the first information acquisition unit 7 is used to acquire positional deviation data between the target tray 6 and the receiving tray 5. Marking points 9 are provided on the receiving tray 5. These marking points 9 can be used to mark the positional information of the receiving tray 5. At least three marking points 9 are set, meaning the number of marking points 9 can be three, four, or more. The positional information of the receiving tray 5 can be marked by at least three marking points 9 working together, and these at least three marking points 9 are spaced apart, allowing them to mark the positional information of the receiving tray 5 simultaneously at at least three locations. This ensures the reliability and accuracy of marking the positional information of the receiving tray 5. The marking points 9 are structural features inherent to the receiving tray 5 itself, such as positioning holes or corner features, eliminating the need for additional independent marking elements on the receiving tray 5 and reducing operational difficulty.

[0045] Simultaneously, the target disk 6 is also equipped with marker points 9. These marker points 9 can be used to mark the position information of the target disk 6. At least three marker points 9 can be set, meaning the number of marker points 9 can be three, four, or more. The position information of the target disk 6 can be marked by at least three marker points 9 working together, and these marker points 9 are spaced apart, allowing them to mark the position information of the target disk 6 simultaneously at at least three locations. This ensures the reliability and accuracy of marking the position information of the target disk 6. The marker points 9 are inherent structural features of the target disk 6 itself, such as positioning holes or corner features, eliminating the need for additional independent marking elements on the target disk 6 and reducing operational difficulty.

[0046] Furthermore, the first information acquisition unit 7 is used to acquire the positional deviation data of the marker point 9 on the incoming material tray 5 and the marker point 9 on the target tray 6. The positional deviation data of the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 can be determined by acquiring the positional deviation data of the marker point 9 on the incoming material tray 5 and the marker point 9 on the target tray 6. Both the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 have at least three marker points 9, which means that the marker points 9 on the incoming material tray 5 and the marker points 9 on the target tray 6 are distributed in a one-to-one correspondence. By acquiring the positional deviation data of the corresponding marker points 9 on the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6, the positional deviation data of the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 can be determined. Thus, the positional deviation data of the two surfaces of the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 can be determined by acquiring the positional deviation data of the target tray 6 and the incoming material tray 5.

[0047] In such Figure 1 , Figure 3 and Figure 5 In the embodiment shown, four spaced-apart markers 9 are respectively provided on the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6, and the four markers 9 on the incoming material tray 5 correspond to the four markers 9 on the target tray 6. In this way, the position deviation data of the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 can be determined by obtaining the position deviation data of three sets of markers 9, which can reduce the difficulty of obtaining the position deviation data of the target tray 6 and the incoming material tray 5, and improve the reliability and accuracy of the obtained position deviation data.

[0048] It should be noted that the number of marking points 9 on the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 is not limited to that described in this embodiment, and can be flexibly set according to actual needs and space size.

[0049] In practice, the target disk 6 can be suspended at a distance (e.g., 5mm~15mm) above the incoming disk 5 using the transfer and alignment mechanism 3. Images of at least three non-collinear marker points 9 on the incoming disk 5 and target disk 6 are acquired using the first information acquisition unit 7. The center coordinates of each marker point 9 are extracted using an image processing algorithm. The relative positional deviations of the incoming disk 5 and target disk 6 in the plane are calculated, including the translational deviation ΔX along the X-axis, the translational deviation ΔY along the Y-axis, and the rotational deviation Δθ around the Z-axis. The absolute values ​​of each calculated deviation are compared with the pre-defined... The convergence thresholds are compared. If any deviation exceeds the corresponding convergence threshold, the controller can generate a compensation motion command based on the reverse value of the deviation, driving the transfer alignment mechanism 3 to perform the correction motion. After the correction is completed, the image is acquired again and the deviation is calculated. The closed-loop process of "acquisition → calculation → comparison → compensation → verification" is repeated until the absolute values ​​of all deviations converge to within the corresponding convergence threshold. After the deviation converges, the transfer alignment mechanism 3 lowers the target disk 6 vertically at a low speed (e.g., not exceeding 5 mm / s) until it is completely superimposed on the incoming disk 5.

[0050] Understandably, by repeatedly executing the closed-loop process of "collection → calculation → comparison → compensation → verification" using the marking points 9 on the material tray itself, the alignment accuracy between the material tray 5 and the target tray 6 can be improved to the micrometer level (e.g., within ±0.03mm). Compared with related technologies, the alignment accuracy is improved by orders of magnitude, providing a precisely aligned falling channel for the cutting tool. This effectively reduces the risk of contact between the cutting tool and the crossbeam of the target tray 6, thereby reducing jamming and cutting edge damage.

[0051] For example, the convergence thresholds can be ΔX_threshold≤0.03mm, ΔY_threshold≤0.03mm, and Δθ_threshold≤0.01°.

[0052] In some embodiments, the automatic tray flipping device 100 further includes a second information acquisition element 8, which is used to acquire feature data of the incoming tray 5. The main body 1 of the device has a target tray supply chamber 12, in which a plurality of target trays 6 of different specifications are arranged at intervals. The controller is electrically connected to the second information acquisition element 8 to control the transfer alignment mechanism 3 to place the target tray 6 corresponding to the incoming tray 5 directly above the incoming tray 5 according to the feature data of the incoming tray 5.

[0053] Specifically, the second information acquisition device 8 is used to acquire feature data of the incoming material tray 5. For example, the second information acquisition device 8 can be a camera, etc. The second information acquisition device 8 can be set upstream of the flipping station 11 so that the second information acquisition device 8 can take pictures of the incoming material tray 5 before the incoming material tray 5 is conveyed or when the incoming material tray 5 is paused, so as to acquire feature data of the incoming material tray 5. The feature data includes the number of grid rows and columns on the incoming material tray 5, the outer dimensions of the incoming material tray 5, and the image template information of the marker point 9, etc. The second information acquisition device 8 can be set above the conveying mechanism 2 and can be set downward, that is, facing the incoming material tray 5, so as to take pictures of the incoming material tray 5 through the second information acquisition device 8.

[0054] Meanwhile, the main body 1 of the device has a target plate supply chamber 12, which is used to accommodate target plates 6. Multiple target plates 6 of different specifications are arranged in the target plate supply chamber 12 at intervals. The controller is electrically connected to the second information acquisition device 8 so that the controller can obtain the acquisition results of the second information acquisition device 8, that is, obtain the feature data of the incoming material plate 5. Based on the feature data of the incoming material plate 5, a target plate 6 of the same specification is matched. Then, the controller can control the transfer alignment mechanism 3 to place the target plate 6 corresponding to the incoming material plate 5 directly above the incoming material plate 5. That is, the controller can control the transfer alignment mechanism 3 to select the target plate 6 corresponding to the current incoming material plate 5 from multiple target plates of different specifications to ensure that the target plate 6 can be directly aligned with the incoming material plate 5 and avoid damage to the cutting edge of the cutting tool.

[0055] Furthermore, by distributing multiple target disks 6 separately in the target disk supply compartment 12, interference between the multiple target disks 6 can be avoided, ensuring the reliability of the transfer and alignment mechanism 3 in moving the target disks 6 to the flipping station 11.

[0056] It should be noted that in the target plate supply compartment 12, the target plate 6 is set with the material tray grid facing downwards. This means that the material tray grid of the target plate 6 is open downwards, so that when the target plate 6 is placed above the incoming material tray 5, the material tray grid on the target plate 6 can be aligned with the material tray grid on the incoming material tray 5. This allows the cutting tool on the incoming material tray 5 to fall into the material tray grid of the target plate 6 when the material tray 5 and the target plate 6 are flipped together in the future.

[0057] The controller has a readable and writable specification parameter library. The specification parameter library stores the identification codes of various material trays and the corresponding sets of operation parameters. The set of operation parameters includes the parameters of the target tray 6. The specification parameter library is indexed by the material tray code and stores the number of grid rows, the number of grid columns, the material tray dimensions, and the image templates of the four marker points 9 for each material tray. After the controller obtains the feature data of the incoming material tray 5, it can retrieve the matching set of operation parameters and generate a grabbing command to control the transfer and alignment mechanism 3 to grab the matching target tray 6 from the target tray supply bin 12 and move it above the incoming material tray 5.

[0058] Furthermore, the controller is configured to: when the feature data of two consecutive incoming material trays 5 are consistent, skip the step of retrieving the specification parameter library and directly reuse the operation parameter set of the previous cycle; when the feature data are inconsistent, it is regarded as a production change and the new parameter matching and retrieval process is automatically executed.

[0059] In some embodiments, the controller is electrically connected to the flipping mechanism 4 and is used to control the flipping mechanism 4 to flip according to a preset speed curve.

[0060] Specifically, the controller is electrically connected to the flipping mechanism 4, so that the controller can control the flipping mechanism 4 to flip according to a preset speed curve. After the flipping mechanism 4 clamps the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6, the controller can control the flipping mechanism 4 to flip according to the preset speed curve. This allows the flipping speed of the flipping mechanism 4 to adapt to the size of the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6, the number of cutting tools, etc., and to flip 180° according to the preset smooth speed curve. This can suppress the sudden acceleration changes during the flipping start and stop phase, reduce the inertial force impact on the cutting tools in the tray grid, and ensure the stability of the cutting tool flipping.

[0061] Therefore, by combining high-precision alignment features with smooth flipping features, precise alignment of the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 can be achieved, ensuring the geometric smoothness of the channel, guaranteeing the mechanical stability of the cutting tool in the channel, and improving the reliability of the flipping process.

[0062] It should be noted that the preset velocity curve can be a seven-segment S-shaped velocity profile with controlled acceleration, including acceleration segment, uniform acceleration segment, deceleration segment, uniform speed segment, acceleration-deceleration segment, uniform deceleration segment, and deceleration-deceleration segment. The maximum angular velocity ω_max ≤ 120° / s, the maximum angular acceleration α_max ≤ 300° / s², and the maximum jerk J_max ≤ 1000° / s³ can be set.

[0063] Furthermore, the alignment convergence state can be linked with the flipping start through linkage interlock control. The flipping will not be started before the deviation converges to the threshold, reducing the risk of "flipping without alignment" caused by operational errors. The set of operating parameters also includes clamping width, clamping pressure, flipping speed curve, etc. That is, the controller can control the clamping width and clamping pressure of the flipping mechanism 4 on the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6, and can also control the flipping mechanism 4 to flip according to the preset speed curve.

[0064] In some embodiments, the conveying mechanism 2 includes a conveyor belt 21, a lifting platform 22, and a limiting member 23. The conveyor belt 21 is used to convey the incoming material tray 5. The limiting member 23 is used to limit and press against the incoming material tray 5 when the incoming material tray 5 moves to the bottom of the flipping station 11. The lifting platform 22 is located below the flipping station 11 and can be raised and lowered relative to the device body 1 to drive the incoming material tray 5 to rise or drive the target tray 6 to fall.

[0065] Specifically, the conveying mechanism 2 is used to convey the incoming material tray 5 to the flipping station 11. The conveying mechanism 2 includes a conveyor belt 21, a lifting platform 22, and a limiting member 23. The conveyor belt 21 is used to carry the incoming material tray 5 and can convey the incoming material tray 5. That is, the incoming material tray 5 is placed on the conveyor belt 21 so that the conveyor belt 21 can drive the incoming material tray 5 to move. The limiting member 23 is used to limit and press against the incoming material tray 5 when the incoming material tray 5 moves to the bottom of the flipping station 11. That is, the limiting member 23 can be used to limit the incoming material tray 5. The limiting member 23 can be set on the movement path of the incoming material tray 5 so that the incoming material tray 5 can be limited and pressed against the limiting member 23 when it moves to the bottom of the flipping station 11, which can ensure the accuracy of the movement position of the incoming material tray 5.

[0066] Meanwhile, by setting the lifting platform 22 below the flipping station 11 and constructing the lifting platform 22 to be able to rise and fall relative to the main body 1 of the device to drive the incoming material tray 5 to rise or drive the target tray 6 to fall, the setting height of the lifting platform 22 can be lower than the conveyor belt 21. Thus, when the incoming material tray 5 moves to the bottom of the flipping station 11, it can be above the lifting platform 22. In this way, the lifting platform 22 can drive the incoming material tray 5 to rise to transport the incoming material tray 5 to the flipping station 11. Moreover, after the flipping mechanism 4 drives the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 to flip, the lifting platform 22 can drive the target tray 6 to fall to transport the target tray 6 to the conveyor belt 21 so that the target tray 6 can be output through the conveyor belt 21.

[0067] In an embodiment of the present invention, when the automatic tray flipping device 100 is running, the characteristic information of the incoming tray 5 can be collected first by the second information acquisition device 8. Then, the conveyor belt 21 transports the incoming tray 5 to the area below the flipping station 11, and the lifting platform 22 lifts the incoming tray 5 to the flipping station 11. Then, the controller can control the transfer alignment mechanism 3 to select the target tray 6 corresponding to the incoming tray 5 from the target tray supply bin 12 according to the characteristic information of the incoming tray 5, and move the target tray 6 to a distance above the incoming tray 5 for coarse positioning. Then, the first information acquisition device 7 can collect the position deviation data between the target tray 6 and the incoming tray 5. Then, the controller can control the transfer alignment mechanism 3 to selectively adjust the position state of the target tray 6 according to the position deviation data, so that the target tray 6 is placed above the incoming tray 5 after being aligned with the incoming tray 5.

[0068] Subsequently, the controller can control the flipping mechanism 4 to clamp the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6. At this time, the lifting platform 22 can be lowered and reset to avoid interference with the flipping of the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6. Then, the flipping mechanism 4 can flip the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 together to achieve the flipping of the cutting tool. After the flipping is completed, the lifting platform 22 can be raised to support the target tray 6 and the incoming material tray 5. Then, the flipping mechanism 4 releases the target tray 6 and the incoming material tray 5. The incoming material tray 5 is moved out by the transfer and alignment mechanism 3. The lifting platform 22 is lowered and drives the target tray 6 to be lowered so that the target tray 6 can be lowered above the conveyor belt 21. Then, the target tray 6 can be output through the conveyor belt 21.

[0069] In such Figures 1-3 In the illustrated embodiment, there are two conveyor belts 21, which are spaced apart. The two conveyor belts 21 can jointly support and transport the incoming material tray 5 or the target tray 6, thereby improving the reliability and stability of transporting the incoming material tray 5 or the target tray 6. The two ends of the two conveyor belts 21 are respectively wound around a pulley 24. The two pulleys 24 located on the same side are connected by a rotating shaft 25, and a drive motor 26 is provided on one of the rotating shafts 25. The drive motor 26 can drive the two pulleys 24 to rotate simultaneously through the rotating shaft 25 connected to itself, thereby driving the two conveyor belts 21 to move synchronously. The forward and reverse rotation of the drive motor 26 can realize the bidirectional movement of the conveyor belts 21, so that the incoming material tray 5 can be transported to the bottom of the flipping station 11 or the target tray 6 can be output through the conveyor belts 21.

[0070] In some embodiments, the flipping mechanism 4 includes a drive member 41, a flipping member 42, and a gripper 43. The gripper 43 is configured to be able to approach or move away from the flipping station 11, so as to clamp the target disk 6 and the incoming disk 5 when approaching the flipping station 11, and to release the target disk 6 and the incoming disk 5 and move away from the flipping station 11 after the flipping is completed. The gripper 43 is fixedly connected to the flipping member 42, and the drive member 41 is poweredly connected to the flipping member 42 and is used to drive the flipping member 42 to drive the gripper 43 to flip.

[0071] Specifically, the flipping mechanism 4 is used to clamp the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 and drive the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 to flip together. The flipping mechanism 4 includes a driving component 41, a flipping component 42 and a gripper 43. The gripper 43 is configured to be able to approach or move away from the flipping station 11. For example, the gripper 43 can be connected to a cylinder so that the cylinder can drive the gripper 43 to approach or move away from the flipping station 11. Thus, the gripper 43 can clamp the target tray 6 and the incoming material tray 5 when it is close to the flipping station 11. After the flipping is completed, the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 can be released and moved away from the flipping station 11. It can be understood that setting the gripper 43 to be able to move away from the flipping station 11 can avoid interference between the gripper 43 and the incoming material tray 5 or the target tray 6, so as to ensure the reliability of the rising of the incoming material tray 5 and the falling of the target tray 6.

[0072] Among them, such as Figure 1 , Figure 2 and Figure 5 As shown, the gripper 43 includes an upper gripper 431 and a lower gripper 432. The upper gripper 431 and / or the lower gripper 432 can be pneumatically driven, allowing the upper gripper 431 and the lower gripper 432 to move closer or further apart. This allows the upper gripper 431 and the lower gripper 432 to clamp the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 when they are close together, and to release the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 when they are far apart. The gripper 43 is equipped with a pressure sensor 433, which is used to adapt to the thickness tolerance of the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 and provide a uniform clamping force when clamping the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6.

[0073] Furthermore, the gripper 43 is fixedly connected to the tilting member 42, allowing the tilting member 42 and the gripper 43 to move together. The driving member 41 provides driving force, and is poweredly connected to the tilting member 42, enabling the driving member 41 to provide driving force to the tilting member 42, thereby driving the tilting member 42 to rotate the gripper 43. This achieves the joint rotation of the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6. The driving member 41 can be a servo motor, and the tilting member 42 can be a C-shaped tilting arm. The servo motor can be poweredly connected to the tilting arm via a precision reducer, allowing the driving member 41 to smoothly rotate the gripper 43.

[0074] In such Figure 1 , Figure 2 and Figure 5In the illustrated embodiment, there are two grippers 43 and two driving members 41, and the two driving members 41 and the two grippers 43 are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence. The two driving members 41 are each connected to the grippers 43 by a flipping member 42, so that the two grippers 43 can rotate under the action of one driving member 41 to reliably flip the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6. Moreover, the two grippers 43 are arranged opposite to each other on both sides of the flipping station 11, so that the two grippers 43 can simultaneously clamp the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 on both sides of the flipping station 11, which can improve the reliability and stability of clamping and flipping the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6.

[0075] It should be noted that the number of grippers 43 and drive components 41 is not limited to that described in this embodiment, and can be flexibly set according to actual needs and space.

[0076] Two drive components 41 can be fixedly installed on the main body 1 of the device to install the flipping mechanism 4, ensuring the reliable operation of the flipping mechanism 4. The distribution direction of the two grippers 43 is perpendicular to the extension direction of the conveyor belt 21, which can avoid interference and ensure the reliability of their respective operations.

[0077] In some embodiments, the transfer alignment mechanism 3 includes a support frame 31 and a gripper 32, the gripper 32 being movably mounted on the support frame 31 and movable relative to the support frame 31 to move the target tray 6 above the incoming tray 5.

[0078] Specifically, the transfer and alignment mechanism 3 is used to place the target disk 6 directly above the incoming material disk 5. The transfer and alignment mechanism 3 includes a support frame 31 and a gripper 32. The gripper 32 is used to grip and release the target disk 6 to move the target disk 6 from the target disk supply bin 12 to above the incoming material disk 5. It can selectively adjust the position of the target disk 6 when gripping it so that the target disk 6 is directly opposite the incoming material disk 5. The support frame 31 is used to install the gripper 32. The support frame 31 is installed on the main body 1 of the device, and the gripper 32 is installed on the support frame 31. The gripper 32 is movably installed on the support frame 31, that is, the gripper 32 is movable relative to the support frame 31. Thus, while the gripper 32 is moving relative to the support frame 31, it can move the target disk 6 located in the target disk supply bin 12 to above the incoming material disk 5, and can place the target disk 6 directly opposite the incoming material disk 5 above the incoming material disk 5.

[0079] Among them, such as Figure 1 , Figure 2 and Figure 4As shown, the transfer and alignment mechanism 3 can be constructed as a four-axis gantry robot. The four-axis gantry robot includes three linear motion axes (X, Y, and Z) plus an end-effector rotation axis, for a total of four degrees of freedom. That is, the four-axis gantry robot can place the target disk 6 directly above the receiving disk 5. The gripper 32 can include four spaced-apart vacuum suction cups 321 for picking up the target disk 6 from the back and placing the target disk 6 directly above the receiving disk 5, or for picking up the receiving disk 5 from the back to remove the receiving disk 5. The vacuum suction cups 321 can be pneumatic vacuum suction cups, which can use air pressure difference to generate suction force to grip or release the target disk 6, place the target disk 6 above the receiving disk 5, or grip or release the receiving disk 5 to remove the receiving disk 5.

[0080] In practice, the support frame 31 can include a first moving shaft, a second moving shaft, and a third moving shaft. The first moving shaft, the second moving shaft, and the third moving shaft can be set along the X-axis, the Y-axis, and the Z-axis, respectively, and any one of the first moving shaft, the second moving shaft, and the third moving shaft can move relative to the other two. At the same time, the gripper 32 can be connected to the end of the third moving shaft, so that the gripper 32 and the third moving shaft can move together relative to the first moving shaft and the second moving shaft. This allows the gripper 32 to move along the X-axis and the Y-axis. The gripper 32 can also be movably connected to the third moving shaft, so that the gripper 32 can move up and down along the Z-axis and rotate around the Z-axis relative to the third moving shaft. This allows the gripper 32 to place the target disk 6 directly above the receiving disk 5.

[0081] It should be noted that the controller can cache the feature data of the previous incoming material tray 5. When the next incoming material tray 5 arrives, if the grid array and external dimensions are consistent, it is determined to be continuous production of the same specification, and the query step of the operation parameter library can be skipped, reducing the cycle time to about 12 seconds. If a new type of material tray is detected and there is no corresponding record in its specification parameter library, the system will prompt the operator. After the operator confirms, the system will automatically write the currently collected grid features, external dimensions, marker point 9 information, and operation parameters as new entries into the specification parameter library. After that, the new type of material tray can be automatically identified and processed. Moreover, the controller is also configured to prompt the operator through the human-machine interface when a corresponding set of operation parameters cannot be matched from the specification parameter library, and after confirmation, write the currently collected feature data and the set operation parameters as new entries into the specification parameter library.

[0082] Furthermore, in practice, the first information acquisition unit 7 can be used to acquire both the positional deviation data of the target tray 6 and the incoming tray 5, and the feature data of the incoming tray 5. This reduces the need for the second information acquisition unit 8, lowers the setup cost, and reduces the complexity of the automatic tray flipping device 100. Specifically, after the incoming tray 5 is transported to the flipping station 11, the first information acquisition unit 7 can be used to take an image of the incoming tray 5 to acquire its feature data. Then, the controller can control the transfer and alignment mechanism 3 to select the corresponding target tray 6 based on the feature data of the incoming tray 5, and move the target tray 6 above the incoming tray 5 for coarse positioning. At this time, the first information acquisition unit 7 can be used to take an image of both the target tray 6 and the incoming tray 5 simultaneously to acquire their positional deviation data. Then, the target tray 6 can be placed above the incoming tray 5 after being aligned with the incoming tray 5.

[0083] The present invention also proposes an automatic tray flipping system.

[0084] The automatic tray flipping system according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a production actuator and an automatic tray flipping device 100 of any of the above embodiments. The production actuator is electrically connected to the automatic tray flipping device 100 to send specification information of the cutting tool to be processed to the automatic tray flipping device 100. That is, the production actuator can send the specification information of the cutting tool to be processed to the controller in the automatic tray flipping device 100, so that the controller can preload the corresponding set of operating parameters based on the specification information, which can effectively save the flipping time of the tray, improve the flipping efficiency, and help improve user satisfaction.

[0085] Furthermore, in the automatic tray flipping device 100, the incoming tray 5 and the target tray 6 can be moved to the flipping station 11 by the conveying mechanism 2 and the transfer and alignment mechanism 3 respectively. The target tray 6 can be placed directly above the incoming tray 5 by the transfer and alignment mechanism 3, which can improve the operation accuracy and avoid chipping of the cutting edge of the cutting tool. In addition, the flipping mechanism 4 can clamp the incoming tray 5 and the target tray 6 at the same time and flip the incoming tray 5 and the target tray 6 together, so that the cutting tool on the incoming tray 5 can be flipped onto the target tray 6 under its own gravity. This can realize the simultaneous flipping of multiple cutting tools, which can improve the flipping efficiency and flipping consistency, and make the other machining surface of the cutting tool face upward, so as to facilitate the machining of the other machining surface.

[0086] When the target disk 6 is placed directly above the receiving disk 5, the target disk 6 can first be suspended at a distance above the receiving disk 5 by the transfer and alignment mechanism 3. The first information acquisition unit 7 acquires images of at least three non-collinear marker points 9 of the receiving disk 5 and the target disk 6. The center coordinates of each marker point 9 are extracted using an image processing algorithm. The relative positional deviations of the receiving disk 5 and the target disk 6 in the plane are calculated, including the translational deviation ΔX along the X-axis, the translational deviation ΔY along the Y-axis, and the rotational deviation Δθ around the Z-axis. The calculated values ​​are then... The absolute values ​​of the deviations are compared with preset convergence thresholds. If any deviation exceeds the corresponding convergence threshold, the controller can generate a compensation motion command based on the reverse value of the deviation, driving the transfer alignment mechanism 3 to perform correction motion. After correction, the image is acquired again and the deviation is calculated. The closed-loop process of "acquisition → calculation → comparison → compensation → verification" is repeated until all absolute values ​​of the deviations converge to within the corresponding convergence threshold. After the deviations converge, the transfer alignment mechanism 3 lowers the target disk 6 vertically at a low speed until it is completely overlapped with the incoming disk 5.

[0087] Therefore, by combining high-precision alignment features with smooth flipping features, precise alignment of the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 can be achieved, ensuring the geometric smoothness of the channel, guaranteeing the mechanical stability of the cutting tool in the channel, and improving the reliability of the flipping process.

[0088] The present invention also proposes a method for automatic tray flipping.

[0089] like Figure 6 As shown, according to the automatic tray flipping method of the present invention, the automatic tray flipping method is applicable to the automatic tray flipping device 100 of any of the above embodiments, and includes: S10: Obtain the feature data of the incoming material tray 5 and transport the incoming material tray 5 to the flipping station 11.

[0090] Specifically, the automatic tray flipping method is applicable to the automatic tray flipping device 100. The tray can be flipped through the automatic tray flipping method, which in turn can flip the cutting tool. When flipping the tray, the feature data of the incoming tray 5 can be acquired first and the incoming tray 5 can be transported to the flipping station 11. The second information acquisition device 8 can be used to take pictures of the incoming tray 5 so that the controller can acquire the feature data of the incoming tray 5.

[0091] Then, the material tray 5 can be conveyed to the flipping station 11 by the conveyor mechanism 2. The material tray 5 can be conveyed to the bottom of the flipping station 11 by the conveyor belt 21 and the material tray 5 can be limited by the limit block to ensure that the material tray 5 can stay below the flipping station 11. Then, the material tray 5 can be lifted to the flipping station 11 by the lifting platform 22.

[0092] S20: Based on the characteristic data of the incoming material tray 5, place the corresponding target tray 6 directly above the incoming material tray 5.

[0093] Then, the controller can match the characteristic data of the target disk 6 corresponding to the incoming material tray 5 in the operating parameter set according to the characteristic data of the incoming material tray 5, and control the transfer and alignment mechanism 3 to grab the target disk 6 corresponding to the incoming material tray 5 from the target disk supply bin 12. The gripping member 32 can be controlled to move relative to the support frame 31 to grab the target disk 6 corresponding to the incoming material tray 5 from the target disk supply bin 12, and can drive the target disk 6 to move above the incoming material tray 5, so that the target disk 6 and the incoming material tray 5 are aligned and placed above the incoming material tray 5.

[0094] S30: Clamp the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 and drive the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 to rotate together.

[0095] Then, the controller can control the flipping mechanism 4 to work, so that the gripper 43 can move towards the flipping station 11 to clamp the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6. At this time, the lifting platform 22 descends and resets, and the drive component 41 drives the gripper 43 to rotate through the flipping component 42, so that the gripper 43 can drive the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 to rotate together by 180°, so that the target tray 6 is flipped to the bottom of the incoming material tray 5 and the incoming material tray 5 is flipped to the top of the target tray 6. The cutting tools on the incoming material tray 5 can fall into the material tray grid of the target tray 6 along the falling channel formed by the material tray grid on the incoming material tray 5 and the material tray grid on the target tray 6 under the action of their own gravity. This can realize that multiple cutting tools on the incoming material tray 5 can be flipped to the target tray 6 at the same time, so that the other processing surface of the cutting tool can be flipped to face upward, that is, the unprocessed processing surface of the cutting tool is facing upward, so as to facilitate processing.

[0096] S40: Move the future material tray 5 out and output the target tray 6.

[0097] Finally, after the flipping is completed, the lifting platform 22 can be raised to support the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6, so that the gripper 43 can release the incoming material tray 5 and the target tray 6 and move them away from the flipping station 11. Then, the controller can control the transfer and alignment mechanism 3 to move the incoming material tray 5 located above out, and the lifting platform 22 drives the target tray 6 down onto the conveyor belt 21. The controller controls the conveying mechanism 2 to output the target tray 6.

[0098] like Figure 7 As shown, the automatic tray flipping method according to the present invention includes placing the corresponding target tray 6 directly above the incoming tray 5 based on the characteristic data of the incoming tray 5, comprising: S50: Obtain the positional deviation data between the target plate 6 and the incoming plate 5.

[0099] Specifically, when the incoming material tray 5 is placed directly above the receiving material tray 5, the target tray 6 corresponding to the receiving material tray 5 can be moved to a distance above the receiving material tray 5 by the transfer and alignment mechanism 3 to perform coarse positioning of the receiving material tray 5 and the target tray 6. Then, the receiving material tray 5 and the target tray 6 can be photographed by the first information acquisition device 7, so that the controller can obtain the position deviation data of the target tray 6 and the receiving material tray 5 according to the acquisition results of the first information acquisition device 7. The position deviation data of the receiving material tray 5 and the target tray 6 can be determined by the position deviation data of the mark point 9 on the receiving material tray 5 and the mark point 9 on the target tray 6.

[0100] S60: Determine whether the position deviation data is within the range of the preset convergence threshold.

[0101] Then, after the controller obtains the position deviation data of the target tray 6 and the receiving tray 5, it can compare the position deviation data with a preset convergence threshold to determine whether the position deviation data is within the range of the preset convergence threshold. When the position deviation data is within the range of the preset convergence threshold, it means that the alignment accuracy of the target tray 6 and the receiving tray 5 meets the requirements. When the position deviation data is not within the range of the preset convergence threshold, it means that the alignment accuracy of the target tray 6 and the receiving tray 5 does not meet the requirements.

[0102] S70: Selectively adjust the state of the target disk 6 according to the judgment result so that the position deviation data is within the range of the preset convergence threshold.

[0103] Then, the controller can selectively adjust the state of the target disk 6 according to the judgment result. That is, when the absolute value of any deviation in the position deviation data exceeds the corresponding convergence threshold, the controller can generate a compensation motion command according to the reverse value of the deviation, drive the transfer alignment mechanism 3 to perform correction motion to adjust the state of the target disk 6. After the correction is completed, the image is acquired again and the deviation is calculated. The closed-loop process of "acquisition → calculation → comparison → compensation → verification" is repeated until the absolute value of all deviations converges to within the corresponding convergence threshold. When all deviations in the position deviation data are within the preset convergence threshold range, that is, the alignment accuracy between the target disk 6 and the incoming disk 5 meets the requirements, the controller does not drive the transfer alignment mechanism 3 to perform compensation motion.

[0104] S80: Place the target tray 6 above the incoming tray 5.

[0105] Finally, when the position deviation data is within the preset convergence threshold range, that is, when the initial position deviation data is within the preset convergence threshold range, or when the position deviation data after correction is within the preset convergence threshold range, the transfer alignment mechanism 3 lowers the target disk 6 vertically at a low speed until it is completely overlapped with the incoming disk 5, so that the incoming disk 5 and the target disk 6 can be clamped and flipped together by the flipping mechanism 4 to achieve the flipping of the cutting tool.

[0106] For example, the cutting tool can be a PCD end mill insert. The PCD end mill insert has a sharp and brittle cutting edge and is sensitive to impact. The PCD end mill insert can be flipped. The material tray used is a TRAY-204 with external dimensions of 284mm×385mm×14mm. The grid array on the material tray is 12 rows and 17 columns (grid spacing of about 22mm×22mm). The four corners of the material tray have pre-set positioning holes with a diameter of 3mm as marking points 9.

[0107] First, the incoming material tray 5 can carry the PCD milling cutter inserts with surface A already machined. The second information acquisition device 8 can take pictures of the incoming material tray 5 before or during the conveying mechanism 2 to convey it. Then, the incoming material tray 5 is conveyed by the conveyor belt 21, so that the incoming material tray 5 can stop below the flipping station 11 when it moves to the limit device 23 and is limited and pressed. At this time, the lifting platform 22 can lift the incoming material tray 5 to the flipping station 11.

[0108] Secondly, the controller's built-in vision tools (Blob analysis and pattern matching) can extract the outer contour dimensions of the material tray 5 based on the acquisition results of the second information acquisition unit 8, identify the internal 12×17 grid distribution, locate four marker points 9, match the TRAY-204 specification in the specification parameter library based on the combination of the grid number 12×17 and the outer dimensions, and retrieve the corresponding set of operating parameters.

[0109] Then, the controller directs the transfer and alignment mechanism 3 to move towards the designated compartment of the target tray supply compartment 12 according to the matched set of operating parameters. It descends from above and activates the vacuum suction cup 321 to grip a target tray 6 with its opening facing downwards. The target tray 6 is then moved directly above the flipping station 11, hovering approximately 10mm above the upper surface of the incoming tray 5. At this time, the first information acquisition unit 7 continuously acquires images, extracting the center coordinates of the four marker points 9 on the incoming tray 5 and the corresponding center coordinates of the four marker points 9 on the target tray 6.

[0110] Using the least squares method, the translational deviation ΔX of the four sets of marker points 9 along the X-axis, the translational deviation ΔY along the Y-axis, and the rotational deviation Δθ around the Z-axis are calculated. Let the measurement results be (ΔX1=+0.18mm, ΔY1=-0.14mm, Δθ1=+0.06°). The above deviation values ​​are compared one by one with the preset convergence thresholds (such as ΔX_threshold=0.03mm, ΔY_threshold=0.03mm, Δθ_threshold=0.01°). All three exceed the corresponding convergence thresholds. The controller generates a compensation command based on the reverse value of the deviation, driving the gripper 32 of the transfer alignment mechanism 3 to move -0.18mm along the X-axis, +0.14mm along the Y-axis, and rotate -0.06° around the Z-axis to adjust the state of the target disk 6.

[0111] After the adjustment is completed, the first information acquisition unit 7 acquires images again and calculates the deviation. Let the measurement result be (ΔX2=+0.03mm, ΔY2=-0.04mm, Δθ2=+0.015°). The above deviation values ​​are compared with the preset convergence thresholds one by one. ΔX2 has met the standard, but ΔY2 and Δθ2 still exceed the corresponding convergence thresholds. The controller generates a compensation command based on the reverse value of the deviation, and drives the gripper 32 of the transfer alignment mechanism 3 to move +0.04mm along the Y-axis and rotate -0.015° around the Z-axis to readjust the state of the target disk 6.

[0112] After the adjustment is completed, the first information acquisition unit 7 acquires images again and calculates the deviation. Let the measurement result be (ΔX3=+0.01mm, ΔY3=-0.02mm, Δθ3=+0.008°). All three deviations are within the threshold, which means that the convergence condition is met, that is, the correction is completed. The controller confirms the convergence, and the transfer and alignment mechanism 3 descends vertically at a speed of 2mm / s to stack the target disk 6 on the incoming disk 5.

[0113] Then, after confirming that convergence has been completed, the controller allows the flipping mechanism 4 to start. Under the feedback of the pressure sensor 433, the upper gripper 431 and the lower gripper 432 of the flipping mechanism 4 clamp the incoming tray 5 and the target tray 6 with a pressure of 120N. The lifting platform 22 descends, and the drive unit 41 receives the preset smooth speed curve planning instruction and drives the gripper 43 to flip at the preset speed curve. The maximum angular velocity can be ω_max=100° / s, the maximum angular acceleration can be α_max=200° / s², and the maximum jerk can be J_max=1000° / s³. The flipping process takes about 1.8 seconds. After rotating more than 90°, the cutting blade falls into the corresponding grid of the target tray 6 along the alignment channel under the action of gravity.

[0114] After the flipping is completed, the lifting platform 22 rises to support the target plate 6 and the incoming plate 5. The upper gripper 431 and the lower gripper 432 release and move away from the flipping station 11. The transfer and alignment mechanism 3 grabs the empty incoming plate 5 and moves it away. The lifting platform 22 drives the target plate 6 to descend above the conveyor belt 21 and outputs the target plate 6 through the conveyor belt 21.

[0115] In the description of this specification, the references to terms such as "one embodiment," "some embodiments," "illustrative embodiment," "example," "specific example," or "some examples," etc., indicate that a specific feature, structure, material, or characteristic described in connection with that embodiment or example is included in at least one embodiment or example of the invention. In this specification, the illustrative expressions of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Furthermore, the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments or examples.

[0116] Although embodiments of the invention have been shown and described, those skilled in the art will understand 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 claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. An automatic tray flipping device, characterized in that, The automatic tray-turning device is used to turn the cutting tool over. The cutting tool has two mutually opposing machining surfaces and includes: The device body (1) has a flipping station (11). A conveying mechanism (2) is used to convey a feed tray (5) to the flipping station (11), the feed tray (5) carrying the cutting tool with one of the machining surfaces of the cutting tool facing upwards; The transfer and alignment mechanism (3) is used to place the target tray (6) directly above the incoming tray (5); The flipping mechanism (4) is used to clamp the incoming material tray (5) and the target tray (6) and drive the incoming material tray (5) and the target tray (6) to flip together, and make the cutting tool flip onto the target tray (6) and make the other machining surface of the cutting tool face upward.

2. The automatic tray flipping device according to claim 1, characterized in that, It also includes a controller and a first information acquisition device (7), the first information acquisition device (7) is used to acquire the position deviation data of the target disk (6) and the incoming disk (5), the controller is electrically connected to the first information acquisition device (7) and the transfer alignment mechanism (3) respectively to control the transfer alignment mechanism (3) to align the target disk (6) and the incoming disk (5) according to the position deviation data.

3. The automatic tray flipping device according to claim 2, characterized in that, Both the incoming material tray (5) and the target tray (6) are provided with at least three spaced-apart marker points (9). The first information acquisition device (7) is used to acquire the positional deviation data of the marker points (9) on the incoming material tray (5) and the marker points (9) on the target tray (6).

4. The automatic tray flipping device according to claim 2, characterized in that, It also includes a second information acquisition device (8), which is used to acquire the feature data of the incoming material tray (5), and the main body (1) of the device forms a target tray supply compartment (12), in which a plurality of target trays (6) of different specifications are arranged at intervals. The controller is electrically connected to the second information acquisition device (8) to control the transfer alignment mechanism (3) to place the target tray (6) corresponding to the incoming material tray (5) directly above the incoming material tray (5) according to the feature data of the incoming material tray (5); The controller is electrically connected to the flipping mechanism (4) and is used to control the flipping mechanism (4) to flip according to a preset speed curve.

5. The automatic tray flipping device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The conveying mechanism (2) includes a conveyor belt (21), a lifting platform (22), and a limiting member (23). The conveyor belt (21) is used to convey the incoming material tray (5). The limiting member (23) is used to limit and press against the incoming material tray (5) when the incoming material tray (5) moves to the bottom of the flipping station (11). The lifting platform (22) is located below the flipping station (11) and can be raised and lowered relative to the main body of the device (1) to drive the incoming material tray (5) to rise or drive the target tray (6) to fall.

6. The automatic tray flipping device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The flipping mechanism (4) includes a drive member (41), a flipping member (42), and a gripper (43). The gripper (43) is configured to be able to approach or move away from the flipping station (11) so that it can clamp the target disk (6) and the incoming disk (5) when it is close to the flipping station (11), and release the target disk (6) and the incoming disk (5) and move away from the flipping station (11) after the flipping is completed. The gripper (43) is fixedly connected to the flipping member (42). The drive member (41) is poweredly connected to the flipping member (42) and is used to drive the flipping member (42) to drive the gripper (43) to flip.

7. The automatic tray flipping device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The transfer and alignment mechanism (3) includes a support frame (31) and a gripper (32). The gripper (32) is movably mounted on the support frame (31) and is movable relative to the support frame (31) to move the target tray (6) above the incoming tray (5).

8. An automatic tray flipping system, characterized in that, The device includes a production actuator and an automatic tray turning device according to any one of claims 1-7, wherein the production actuator is electrically connected to the automatic tray turning device to send specification information of the cutting tool to be processed to the automatic tray turning device.

9. A method for automatically flipping a material tray, characterized in that, The automatic tray flipping method is applicable to the automatic tray flipping device according to any one of claims 1-7, and includes: Acquire the feature data of the incoming material tray (5) and transport the incoming material tray (5) to the flipping station (11); Based on the characteristic data of the incoming material tray (5), the corresponding target tray (6) is placed directly above the incoming material tray (5); Clamp the incoming material tray (5) and the target tray (6) and drive the incoming material tray (5) and the target tray (6) to rotate together; Remove the incoming material tray (5) and output the target tray (6).

10. The automatic tray flipping method according to claim 9, characterized in that, The step of placing the corresponding target tray (6) directly above the incoming tray (5) based on the characteristic data of the incoming tray (5) includes: Obtain the positional deviation data between the target plate (6) and the incoming plate (5); Determine whether the position deviation data is within the range of a preset convergence threshold; Based on the judgment result, the state of the target disk (6) is selectively adjusted so that the position deviation data is within the range of the preset convergence threshold; Place the target tray (6) above the incoming tray (5).

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