A blister mechanical hand capable of reducing stroke

Abstract

The application belongs to the technical field of mechanical hands and specifically relates to a plastic suction mechanical hand capable of reducing stroke, which comprises a three-axis servo mechanical frame, a lateral sliding plate is installed on the lateral sliding rail of the three-axis servo mechanical frame, one end of a connecting plate is installed at the bottom of the lateral sliding plate, a rotating plate is rotatably installed at one end of the connecting plate through a hinge, a horizontal strip is installed at the other end of the rotating plate, and one suction disc for sucking and grabbing a plastic meal box cover is installed on each side of the horizontal strip; a turnover mechanism is installed at the bottom of the connecting plate, and the other end of the turnover mechanism is connected with the rotating plate, in use, the rotating plate is turned down on one side of the connecting plate through the cylinder, the linkage arm, the positioning frame, the clamping mechanism and the turnover arm of the turnover mechanism, so that the rotating plate, the horizontal strip and the suction disc can be adjusted to the downward state through the structure when not in use, the lateral stretching length can be reduced, and the occupancy of the space when not in use can be reduced.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of robotic arm technology, specifically relating to a vacuum forming robotic arm with reduced stroke. Background Technology

[0002] Vacuum forming is the mainstream process for molding plastic sheets and is widely used in many industries such as packaging, electronics, hardware, and daily necessities. As the core automated material handling equipment in the vacuum forming production line, the vacuum forming robot mainly relies on the suction cup assembly to complete the negative pressure material handling, transfer, and unloading of the molded products. It can effectively replace manual operation, improve the material handling efficiency and production consistency of vacuum forming products, and is a key piece of equipment for realizing automated production of vacuum forming.

[0003] The core execution structures of existing fixed vacuum forming robots, such as the lateral material-grabbing arm and the suction cup mounting bar, are always extended, and the overall lateral extension length of the equipment is fixed and cannot be reduced. In the case of a compact production line layout with multiple devices arranged side by side in a workshop, when the robot is idle, the fixed extension structure occupies a large amount of lateral space. This not only significantly reduces the utilization rate of workshop space, but also easily leads to interference and collisions with surrounding production equipment, conveyor lines, and operators. This poses safety hazards and is not conducive to the flexible layout and intensive arrangement of equipment in the production line, making it difficult to adapt to the compact and high-density production layout requirements of small and medium-sized workshops. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The purpose of this invention is to provide a thermoforming robot with reduced stroke, aiming to solve the problem that when the robot is idle in a compact workshop production line with multiple devices arranged side by side, the fixed extension structure occupies a large amount of lateral space. This not only leads to a significant reduction in workshop space utilization, but also makes it easy to interfere with and collide with surrounding production equipment, conveyor lines, and operators. This poses both safety hazards and is not conducive to the flexible layout of the production line and the intensive arrangement of equipment, making it difficult to adapt to the compact and high-density production layout requirements of small and medium-sized workshops.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention provides the following technical solution: a blister packaging robot with reduced stroke, comprising a three-axis servo mechanical frame, a transverse slide plate mounted on the transverse slide rail of the three-axis servo mechanical frame, a connecting plate mounted at the bottom of one end of the transverse slide plate, a rotating plate mounted at one end of the connecting plate via a hinge, a horizontal bar mounted at the bottom of the other end of the rotating plate, and a suction cup for adsorbing and gripping plastic lunch box lids mounted on both sides of the horizontal bar; The bottom of the connecting plate is equipped with a flipping mechanism, the other end of which is connected to the rotating plate. Two baffles are symmetrically installed on the surface of the connecting plate. When the rotating plate is horizontally set on one side of the connecting plate, the bottom of one end of the baffle abuts against the surface of the rotating plate.

[0006] In order to enable the top of the flipping arm to be positioned and mounted on the rotating plate, as a type of vacuum forming robot of the present invention with reduced stroke, preferably, a side plate is installed on each of the two outer walls of the rotating plate near the connection end with the connecting plate, and a connecting rod is installed between the two side plates, with two adjusting sleeves screwed onto the connecting rod.

[0007] In order to enable the rotating plate to function as a type of vacuum forming robot with reduced stroke, the flipping mechanism preferably includes a cylinder and a connecting arm. One side of the cylinder is mounted on the bottom of the connecting plate, the telescopic end of the connecting plate is rotatably connected to the top of the connecting arm, the center end of the connecting arm is rotatably positioned below the connecting plate by a positioning frame, and the top end of the connecting arm is mounted on the bottom of the connecting plate. The bottom of the linkage arm is connected to one side of the clamping mechanism, the other end of the clamping mechanism is rotatably connected to one end of the flipping arm, and the other end of the flipping arm is movably sleeved on the connecting rod. An arc-shaped through groove is provided on the rotating plate below the center end of the connecting rod. A flip arm moves through the arc-shaped through groove, and two adjusting sleeves are respectively arranged on both sides of the flip arm.

[0008] In order to enable the flipping arm to form an effective positioning structure with the clamping mechanism, as a vacuum forming robot of the present invention with reduced stroke, preferably, the clamping mechanism includes a clamping plate and a clamping head. The two clamping plates are respectively installed on both sides of the bottom of the connecting arm, and the clamping head is movably installed in the two clamping plates. One end of the clamping head is connected to one end of a spring, and the other end of the spring is installed in the connecting arm. One end of the card head has an arc-shaped outer wall, and a set of toothed grooves are equally spaced on the arc-shaped outer wall of the card head. The other end of the card head has a round hole that mates with the spring. The surface of the card head is symmetrically provided with two upper guide grooves, and the bottom center end of the card head is provided with a lower guide groove.

[0009] A set of locking teeth is provided at equal intervals on the arc-shaped outer wall of one end of the flipping arm, and the flipping arm is positioned and locked with the tooth groove on the locking head through the locking teeth.

[0010] In order to constrain the movement trajectory of the clamping head inside the clamping mechanism, as a type of vacuum forming robot that can reduce stroke, preferably, an upper guide bar adapted to the upper guide groove is installed on both sides of the connecting arm and the clamping mechanism docking end, and a lower guide bar adapted to the lower guide groove is installed at the bottom of the connecting arm.

[0011] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the present invention are: During use, the cylinder, connecting arm, positioning frame, clamping mechanism, and tilting arm of the tilting mechanism drive the rotating plate to tilt downwards on one side of the connecting plate. When not in use, this structure allows the rotating plate, crossbar, and suction cup to be adjusted to this downward position. This reduces the lateral extension length and minimizes the space occupied when not in use.

[0012] The clamping mechanism, consisting of a clamping plate, a clamping head, toothed grooves, upper guide grooves, lower guide grooves, a round hole, a spring, an upper guide bar, and a lower guide bar, provides elastic positioning for the tilting arm, ensuring its stability. This prevents instability caused by a loose tilting arm on the rotating plate, thus improving the stability of the suction cup during material handling. Attached Figure Description

[0013] The accompanying drawings are provided to further illustrate the invention and form part of the specification. They are used in conjunction with embodiments of the invention to explain the invention and do not constitute a limitation thereof. In the drawings: Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the overall assembly structure provided for an embodiment of this application.

[0014] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the connection structure of the connecting plate provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0015] Figure 3 This is a bottom view of the connection structure of the connecting plate provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0016] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the bottom structure of the connecting arm provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0017] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the tilting arm structure provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0018] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the right view structure of the card head provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0019] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the left-side view of the card head structure provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0020] In the diagram: 1. Three-axis servo mechanical frame; 2. Lateral slide plate; 3. Connecting plate; 31. Baffle; 4. Rotating plate; 41. Side plate; 42. Connecting rod; 43. Adjusting sleeve; 44. Arc-shaped through groove; 5. Horizontal bar; 6. Suction cup; 7. Tilting mechanism; 71. Cylinder; 72. Linkage arm; 73. Positioning frame; 74. Clamping mechanism; 741. Clamping plate; 742. Clamping head; 7421. Tooth groove; 7422. Upper guide groove; 7423. Lower guide groove; 7424. Round hole; 743. Spring; 744. Upper guide bar; 745. Lower guide bar; 75. Tilting arm; 751. Clamping tooth. Detailed Implementation

[0021] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0022] Please see Figure 1-7 The present invention provides the following technical solution: a blister packing robot with reduced stroke, comprising a three-axis servo mechanical frame 1, a transverse slide plate 2 mounted on the transverse slide rail of the three-axis servo mechanical frame 1, a connecting plate 3 mounted on the bottom of one end of the transverse slide plate 2, a rotating plate 4 mounted on one end of the connecting plate 3 via a hinge, a horizontal bar 5 mounted on the bottom of the other end of the rotating plate 4, and a suction cup 6 for adsorbing and gripping plastic lunch box lids mounted on both sides of the horizontal bar 5; When in use, the suction cup 6 moves longitudinally and laterally via the three-axis servo mechanical frame 1 and the transverse sliding plate 2, so that the suction cup 6 can reach into the interior of the plastic lunch box injection molding machine to grab the lunch box.

[0023] The bottom of the connecting plate 3 is equipped with a flipping mechanism 7, and the other end of the flipping mechanism 7 is connected to the rotating plate 4. Two baffles 31 are symmetrically installed on the surface of the connecting plate 3. When the rotating plate 4 is horizontally set on one side of the connecting plate 3, the bottom of one end of the baffle 31 abuts against the surface of the rotating plate 4.

[0024] Preferably, a side plate 41 is installed on each of the two outer walls of the rotating plate 4 near the connection end with the connecting plate 3, and a connecting rod 42 is installed between the two side plates 41, with two adjusting sleeves 43 screwed onto the connecting rod 42.

[0025] In practical use, the two side plates 41 are fixed to both sides of the rotating plate 4 by bolt fastening, providing a stable support and installation benchmark for the connecting rod 42 and ensuring the vertical assembly accuracy of the connecting rod 42 and the rotating plate 4.

[0026] The connecting rod 42 is made of high-strength alloy steel, which has the characteristics of deformation resistance and wear resistance, and can withstand the force of the flipping transmission for a long time. Two adjusting sleeves 43 are symmetrically installed on the connecting rod 42 by threaded connection. The position can be adjusted according to the actual assembly requirements to achieve precise adjustment of the axial limit distance. This can effectively limit the left and right offset of the flipping arm 75 on the connecting rod 42, eliminate the problem of lateral swaying and offset of the flipping arm 75 during operation, ensure the alignment accuracy of the flipping transmission structure, and lay the structural foundation for subsequent flipping action and adsorption gripping operation. Preferably, the flipping mechanism 7 includes a cylinder 71 and a connecting arm 72. One side of the cylinder 71 is installed at the bottom of the connecting plate 3. The telescopic end of the connecting plate 3 is rotatably connected to the top of the connecting arm 72. The center end of the connecting arm 72 is rotatably positioned and installed below the connecting plate 3 by a positioning frame 73. The top end of the connecting arm 72 is installed at the bottom of the connecting plate 3. The bottom of the linkage arm 72 is connected to one side of the clamping mechanism 74, and the other end of the clamping mechanism 74 is rotatably connected to one end of the flipping arm 75. The other end of the flipping arm 75 is movably sleeved on the connecting rod 42. An arc-shaped through groove 44 is provided on the rotating plate 4 below the center end of the connecting rod 42. A flip arm 75 is movably passed through the arc-shaped through groove 44, and two adjusting sleeves 43 are respectively arranged on both sides of the flip arm 75.

[0027] In practical use, the tilting mechanism 7 serves as the core transmission structure for the equipment's tilting and adjustment. It relies on cylinder 71 as its power source, and cylinder 71 uses standard pneumatic actuators, suitable for high-frequency reciprocating mechanical operations. The positioning frame 73 is manufactured using an integrated casting process, resulting in strong structural rigidity. It can precisely rotate and position the center end of the connecting arm 72, limiting the rotation trajectory of the connecting arm 72 and preventing transmission deviation.

[0028] When the equipment completes the vacuum forming operation and is idle, the telescopic end of cylinder 71 retracts, pulling the linkage arm 72 to rotate around the positioning frame 73 as a fulcrum. Simultaneously, this drives the clamping mechanism 74 and the flipping arm 75 to move in tandem. The flipping arm 75 slides along the internal trajectory of the arc-shaped through groove 44, and under the limiting and guiding action of the connecting rod 42, it stably drives the rotating plate 4 to flip downwards around the hinge at the end of the connecting plate 3. Through this linkage structure, the horizontally extended rotating plate 4, crossbar 5, and suction cup 6 can be adjusted to a downward-folded storage state, significantly reducing the lateral extension length of the equipment when idle, effectively reducing the space occupied by the equipment in the production area, and improving the utilization rate of the workshop space.

[0029] When the equipment needs to operate, the telescopic end of the cylinder 71 extends, pushing the connecting arm 72 to rotate in the opposite direction, which in turn drives the tilting arm 75 to push the rotating plate 4 back to the horizontal state. At this time, the bottom of the baffle 31 abuts against the surface of the rotating plate 4 to limit the movement, ensuring the horizontal accuracy of the rotating plate 4 in the operating state.

[0030] Preferably, the clamping mechanism 74 includes a clamping plate 741 and a clamping head 742. The two clamping plates 741 are respectively installed on both sides of the bottom of the connecting arm 72. The clamping head 742 is movably installed between the two clamping plates 741. One end of the clamping head 742 is connected to one end of the spring 743, and the other end of the spring 743 is installed in the connecting arm 72. The outer wall of one end of the clip 742 is arc-shaped, and a set of toothed grooves 7421 are equally spaced on the arc-shaped outer wall of the clip 742. The other end of the clip 742 is provided with a round hole 7424 that mates with the spring 743. The surface of the card head 742 is symmetrically provided with two upper guide grooves 7422, and the bottom center end of the card head 742 is provided with a lower guide groove 7423.

[0031] In practical use, the two clamping plates 741 are symmetrically arranged to form a closed limiting cavity, providing limiting space for the reciprocating sliding of the clamp 742 and preventing lateral deviation during operation. The clamp 742 is made of high-hardness wear-resistant steel and its surface is hardened to improve structural strength and wear resistance, making it suitable for high-frequency clamping and positioning operations. The spring 743 is a high-strength compression spring, which is precisely connected and fixed to the clamp 742 through the round hole 7424, providing a continuous elastic pushing force to the clamp 742 and ensuring the automatic reset performance of the clamping and positioning. The clamp 742 is structurally adapted to the linkage arm 72 through the upper guide groove 7422 and the lower guide groove 7423 to achieve precise sliding guidance, limit the sliding trajectory of the clamp 742, eliminate jamming and deviation problems, ensure the smoothness of the extension and retraction of the clamp 742, and provide stable structural support for the elastic positioning of the tilting arm 75.

[0032] Preferably, a set of locking teeth 751 are provided at equal intervals on the arc-shaped outer wall of one end of the flipping arm 75, and the flipping arm 75 is positioned and locked with the tooth groove 7421 on the locking head 742 through the locking teeth 751.

[0033] In practical use, the locking teeth 751 of the tilting arm 75 and the tooth grooves 7421 of the locking head 742 adopt an equal-spaced precision meshing design. The tooth shape adopts a trapezoidal tooth structure, resulting in a large meshing contact surface, high positioning accuracy, and good locking effect. Under the elastic pushing action of the spring 743, the locking head 742 continuously adheres to the outer wall of the tilting arm 75, so that the tooth grooves 7421 and the locking teeth 751 are stably meshed, realizing the elastic locking positioning of the tilting arm 75's rotation angle.

[0034] This meshing positioning structure can effectively eliminate the assembly gap and looseness between the tilting arm 75 and the clamping mechanism 74, prevent the tilting arm 75 from shaking or shifting due to vibration and load during equipment operation, accurately lock the working angle of the tilting arm 75, and ensure the structural stability of the rotating plate 4 from the transmission end. Preferably, an upper guide bar 744 adapted to the upper guide groove 7422 is installed on both sides of the connecting arm 72 and the clamping mechanism 74, and a lower guide bar 745 adapted to the lower guide groove 7423 is installed at the bottom of the connecting arm 72.

[0035] In practical use, both the upper guide bar 744 and the lower guide bar 745 are made of wear-resistant alloy material and are fixed to the corresponding positions of the connecting arm 72 by bolt fastening, forming a sliding fit structure with the upper guide groove 7422 and the lower guide groove 7423 of the chuck 742. During operation, the guide bars and guide grooves are in full contact with each other for guidance, further restricting the sliding degree of freedom of the chuck 742, retaining only axial extension and retraction, completely avoiding malfunctions such as tilting, jamming, and offset of the chuck 742, and ensuring the smoothness of the extension and retraction movement and the positioning accuracy of the chuck 742.

[0036] With the elastic force of the spring 743, the clamp 742 and the flip arm 75 can be adaptively engaged, dynamically compensating for structural wear and assembly gaps, ensuring the long-term positioning stability of the flip arm 75, avoiding the problem of material vibration and misalignment caused by loose transmission structure, and greatly improving the accuracy and stability of plastic lunch box lid adsorption and gripping.

[0037] Working principle: The blister packaging robot arm, which can reduce the stroke, relies on the three-axis servo mechanical frame 1 to achieve precise three-dimensional displacement in the horizontal, vertical and longitudinal directions. During operation, the horizontal slide plate 2 slides along the horizontal slide rail of the three-axis servo mechanical frame 1, which drives the connecting plate 3, rotating plate 4 and suction cup 6 at the bottom to move above the plastic lunch box lid to be grasped. The negative pressure adsorption of the suction cup 6 completes the stable grasping operation of the lunch box lid.

[0038] When the equipment is idle and no gripping operation is required, the flipping mechanism 7 is activated. The cylinder 71 retracts and pulls the connecting arm 72 to rotate around the positioning frame 73 at a fixed point, which drives the clamping mechanism 74 and the flipping arm 75 to move together. The flipping arm 75 slides along the arc-shaped through groove 44 of the rotating plate 4, and simultaneously drives the rotating plate 4 to flip downward around the hinge axis, so that the horizontally extended rotating plate 4, the crossbar 5 and the suction cup 6 are folded and stored as a whole, which greatly reduces the horizontal space occupied by the equipment and reduces the space occupancy rate of the site.

[0039] During the flipping adjustment and normal operation, the clamping mechanism 74 continuously plays an elastic positioning and locking role: the upper guide bar 744 and lower guide bar 745 on the connecting arm 72 cooperate with the upper guide groove 7422 and lower guide groove 7423 of the clamp 742 to guide and ensure that the clamp 742 slides smoothly; the spring 743 continuously outputs elastic thrust to push the clamp 742 to fit against the flipping arm 75, so that the tooth groove 7421 and the clamping tooth 751 of the flipping arm 75 precisely mesh, realizing the elastic positioning and locking of the angle of the flipping arm 75, completely eliminating the gap and looseness of the transmission structure, effectively avoiding the instability of the rotating plate 4 caused by the shaking and deviation of the flipping arm 75, and ensuring the stability and accuracy of the suction cup 6 when suctioning materials.

[0040] When the gripping operation needs to be carried out again, the cylinder 71 extends to push the linkage arm 72 to rotate in the opposite direction, which drives the flipping arm 75 to reset and pushes the rotating plate 4 back to the horizontal state. The horizontal limit is achieved by the baffle 31 on the connecting plate 3 to ensure the accuracy of the operation benchmark. With the stable locking of the clamping mechanism 74, high-precision vacuum forming gripping operation can be carried out continuously, taking into account both space storage performance and operation stability.

[0041] Finally, it should be noted that the above descriptions are merely preferred embodiments of the present invention and are not intended to limit the present invention. Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art can still modify the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments or make equivalent substitutions for some of the technical features. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A thermoforming robot with reduced stroke, comprising a three-axis servo mechanical frame (1), wherein a transverse slide plate (2) is mounted on a transverse slide rail of the three-axis servo mechanical frame (1), characterized in that, A connecting plate (3) is installed at the bottom of one end of the horizontal sliding plate (2). A rotating plate (4) is installed at one end of the connecting plate (3) via a hinge. A horizontal bar (5) is installed at the bottom of the other end of the rotating plate (4). A suction cup (6) for adsorbing and gripping plastic lunch box lids is installed on both sides of the horizontal bar (5). The bottom of the connecting plate (3) is equipped with a flipping mechanism (7), and the other end of the flipping mechanism (7) is connected to the rotating plate (4). Two baffles (31) are symmetrically installed on the surface of the connecting plate (3). When the rotating plate (4) is horizontally set on one side of the connecting plate (3), the bottom of one end of the baffle (31) abuts against the surface of the rotating plate (4).

2. The vacuum forming robot with reduced stroke according to claim 1, characterized in that: A side plate (41) is installed on each of the two outer walls of the rotating plate (4) near the connection end with the connecting plate (3). A connecting rod (42) is installed between the two side plates (41), and two adjusting sleeves (43) are screwed onto the connecting rod (42).

3. The vacuum forming robot with reduced stroke according to claim 1, characterized in that: The flipping mechanism (7) includes a cylinder (71) and a connecting arm (72). One side of the cylinder (71) is installed at the bottom of the connecting plate (3). The telescopic end of the connecting plate (3) is rotatably connected to the top of the connecting arm (72). The center end of the connecting arm (72) is rotatably positioned and installed below the connecting plate (3) by a positioning frame (73). The top end of the connecting arm (72) is installed at the bottom of the connecting plate (3).

4. The vacuum forming robot with reduced stroke according to claim 3, characterized in that: The bottom of the linkage arm (72) is connected to one side of the clamping mechanism (74), the other end of the clamping mechanism (74) is rotatably connected to one end of the flipping arm (75), and the other end of the flipping arm (75) is movably sleeved on the connecting rod (42).

5. A vacuum forming robot with reduced stroke according to claim 2, characterized in that: An arc-shaped through groove (44) is provided on the rotating plate (4) below the center end of the connecting rod (42). A flip arm (75) is movably passed through the arc-shaped through groove (44), and two adjusting sleeves (43) are respectively arranged on both sides of the flip arm (75).

6. A vacuum forming robot with reduced stroke according to claim 4, characterized in that: The clamping mechanism (74) includes a clamping plate (741) and a clamping head (742). The two clamping plates (741) are respectively installed on both sides of the bottom of the connecting arm (72). The clamping head (742) is movably installed between the two clamping plates (741). One end of the clamping head (742) is connected to one end of the spring (743), and the other end of the spring (743) is installed in the connecting arm (72).

7. A vacuum forming robot with reduced stroke according to claim 6, characterized in that: The outer wall of one end of the card head (742) is an arc-shaped structure, and a set of toothed grooves (7421) are equally spaced on the arc-shaped outer wall of the card head (742). The other end of the card head (742) is provided with a round hole (7424) that connects with the spring (743).

8. A vacuum forming robot with reduced stroke according to claim 6, characterized in that: The surface of the card head (742) is symmetrically provided with two upper guide grooves (7422), and the bottom center end of the card head (742) is provided with a lower guide groove (7423).

9. A vacuum forming robot with reduced stroke according to claim 4, characterized in that: A set of locking teeth (751) is provided at equal intervals on the arc-shaped outer wall of one end of the flip arm (75). The flip arm (75) is positioned and locked with the tooth groove (7421) on the locking head (742) through the locking teeth (751).

10. A vacuum forming robot with reduced stroke according to claim 3, characterized in that: On both sides of the connecting arm (72) and the clamping mechanism (74), an upper guide bar (744) adapted to the upper guide groove (7422) is installed, and a lower guide bar (745) adapted to the lower guide groove (7423) is installed at the bottom of the connecting arm (72).

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