A modular combined immersion cleaning and electroplating all-in-one machine and a surface treatment method thereof

Abstract

The application discloses a modular combined immersion cleaning and electroplating all-in-one machine and a surface treatment method thereof. The machine comprises a shared conveying track assembly, a column type handling manipulator, a functional groove group and a control device. The shared conveying track assembly is composed of at least one unit shared conveying track assembly. When two or more units are arranged, the adjacent two units are detachably connected. Each unit corresponds to a group of independent functional product units. Each unit is provided with an independent base, at least one functional groove and a unit independent controller. The units are provided with a mechanical butt joint structure, a track butt joint locking mechanism, a power quick connection interface and a wired or wireless signal communication interface. The number, type and arrangement order of the units can be freely increased, reduced or replaced according to process requirements. The units can be cooperated by the unit independent controllers or uniformly scheduled by a general controller. The application can be independently operated by a single unit or expanded by multiple units. When a new plating type is added, only an independent unit needs to be added, and the production does not need to be stopped for the whole line reconstruction.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of surface treatment equipment technology, and more specifically, it relates to a modular combined immersion cleaning electroplating integrated machine and its surface treatment method. Background Technology

[0002] Barrel plating and immersion coating are the mainstream surface treatment processes for small hardware parts such as fasteners, springs, and electronic connectors. Barrel plating relies on the indirect conductive deposition of metal plating layers by a barrel, while immersion coating forms a protective coating by dipping a barrel in paint. Both are mass-produced using barrels. Currently, fully automated surface treatment production lines on the market are all integral fixed line structures, with the tank, track, and robotic arms welded together as one unit. The number of tanks and the sequence of processes are fixed at the factory.

[0003] When a factory needs to add a new plating type or adjust the pretreatment washing process, it can only modify the entire line or repurchase equipment, which is costly and has a long downtime. At the same time, the tracks, robots, and frame structures of the dip coating and barrel plating equipment are highly overlapping, but the two sets of equipment cannot communicate with each other. The company needs to purchase two sets of complete machines repeatedly, which puts a lot of pressure on the investment in space and equipment. The existing equipment tracks are single long tracks, which cannot be sold in units or expanded in stages, resulting in poor modular scalability. Traditional robots can only support vertical entry into the tank, and the draining method is singular, which can easily lead to problems such as chemical cross-contamination, workpiece scratches, and residual liquid accumulation in blind holes. In addition, the traditional production line operates in a fixed sequence. When individual tanks are occupied or malfunction, the entire production line must be stopped and wait. It lacks the flexible scheduling ability to allow for staggered stoppages and skipping occupied tanks.

[0004] Therefore, in view of this, this solution is proposed to improve upon the shortcomings of the existing integrated production line, which has indivisible tracks, limited processing posture, and inability of units to work independently. Summary of the Invention

[0005] To solve the above-mentioned technical problems, the present invention provides a modular combined immersion cleaning electroplating integrated machine and its surface treatment method, which is achieved by the following specific technical means:

[0006] A modular, combined immersion cleaning electroplating machine includes a shared conveyor track assembly, a column-mounted handling robot, functional tanks, and a control device. The shared conveyor track assembly consists of at least one unit-level shared conveyor track assembly; when two or more units are installed, adjacent units are connected. Its extension direction can be straight, curved, circular, or multi-layered to adapt to different workshop layouts. Each unit-level shared conveyor track assembly corresponds to a set of independent functional product units. The column-mounted handling robot is slidably mounted on the upper side of the shared conveyor track assembly, capable of gripping drums and performing lifting, lateral movement, and rotation. Each independent functional product unit includes an independent base, at least one integrated functional tank, and an independent unit controller. The independent unit controller has a pre-installed cross-unit collaborative interface program. The functional tanks consist of at least one independent functional product unit; when two or more independent functional product units are installed, they are assembled side-by-side along the shared conveyor track assembly. Adjacent independent functional product units are connected by a uniform, detachable mechanical docking structure and track. The system includes a locking mechanism, a power quick-connect interface, and a signal communication interface. The signal communication interface can be a wired electrical quick-connect interface and / or a wireless communication module. The wireless communication module can adopt Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Zigbee, industrial 5G, etc., allowing the number, type, and arrangement order of independent functional product units to be freely increased, decreased, or changed according to process requirements. The entire machine can be composed of only one independent functional product unit and operate independently in single-unit mode, or it can be assembled from two or more independent functional product units and operate collaboratively. The control device includes unit-independent controllers set in each independent functional product unit, and / or a general controller that uniformly controls each independent functional product unit. When using unit-independent controllers, the unit-independent controllers of two adjacent independent functional product units can be merged and coordinated, or multiple unit-independent controllers can relay and coordinate through a cross-unit coordination interface. After the previous independent functional product unit completes its process, it automatically triggers the operation of the next unit. When using a general controller, the general controller uniformly schedules the operation of the column-type handling robot and each independent functional product unit according to the set process path.

[0007] Furthermore, it also includes a barrel loading mechanism, which is an independent, modular unit. It includes a movable platform with casters, a loading guide at the end of the movable platform, and a belt feeding assembly and a barrel limiting seat on the top surface of the movable platform. The belt feeding assembly is driven by a first motor reducer unit. Multiple barrels are arranged sequentially in the barrel limiting seat and can be transported to the loading station by the belt feeding assembly. The barrel loading mechanism can be selected as an independent unit or omitted.

[0008] Furthermore, the shared conveying track assembly includes a track support and a track body, the track body being assembled from the shared conveying track assemblies of each unit; the column-type handling robot includes a transverse slide, a first electric turntable, a lifting column, a second electric turntable, a multi-claw gripper, and a second motor reducer unit; the transverse slide is slidably mounted on the upper side of the track body, the first electric turntable is fixedly mounted on the top of the transverse slide, the lifting column is vertically mounted on the upper side of the first electric turntable, the second electric turntable is fixedly mounted on the lifting end of the lifting column, and the multi-claw gripper is mounted on the bottom of the second electric turntable and is driven to open and close by the second motor reducer unit to grip the drum; the column-type handling robot supports both upright and inclined entry posture control, and can perform various draining actions such as hovering dripping, tilting rotation guiding, and rapid rise and fall shaking; the rapid rise and fall shaking action uses a sine wave or square wave set frequency, and deceleration is performed at the moment the drum enters and leaves the liquid surface of the tank to avoid workpiece collision damage and tank liquid splashing.

[0009] Furthermore, each independent functional product unit of the functional tank group includes three functional tanks: an immersion paint tank, a draining and spin-drying tank, and a cleaning tank. A third motor reducer unit is installed on the side of the draining and spin-drying tank. This third motor reducer unit can drive the roller to rotate inside the draining and spin-drying tank to achieve workpiece draining or centrifugal drying. After centrifugal drying, the second electric turntable can drive the roller to rotate to a set angle and then reverse at low speed. This, combined with the guide vanes on the inner wall of the roller, peels off the adhered workpiece, preventing wet workpiece residue from remaining on the tank wall. The functional tank can be any one or more combinations of a water washing tank, an ultrasonic cleaning tank, an electrolytic degreasing tank, an electroplating tank, an electrophoresis tank, or an electrolytic polishing tank.

[0010] Furthermore, the functional tank module can be replaced with an electroplating tank module; the multi-claw gripper integrates conductive contacts, which make contact with the energized part of the drum when the multi-claw gripper grasps the drum, and connect with the rectifier in conjunction with the anode component in the electroplating tank module, so that the workpiece in the drum can be used as an electrode to complete the drum plating operation; when the drum is tilted into the tank, the mouth part is immersed in the liquid surface, and the rotation realizes the natural convection and interaction of the chemical solution.

[0011] Furthermore, the end of the shared conveyor track assembly is sequentially equipped with a tilting and unloading mechanism, a pallet unloading conveyor line, and a drying device, which together constitute an independent and assembleable unloading and drying product unit. The tilting and unloading mechanism includes a frame, with a barrel loading frame and a loading frame tilting and unloading component installed inside the frame. The barrel loading frame can receive the barrels delivered by the column-type handling robot and tilt and unload them smoothly under the drive of the loading frame tilting and unloading component. The pallet unloading conveyor line includes a conveyor line support, with a pallet unloading conveyor component installed on the conveyor line support. The pallet unloading conveyor component is driven by a fourth motor reducer unit. The drying device includes a drying track and a track-type hot air drying oven. The pallet unloading conveyor component passes through the interior of the track-type hot air drying oven and is used to transport pallets to complete the drying and curing of workpieces. When used for electroplating processes, the drying and unloading product unit can be omitted entirely.

[0012] Furthermore, the installation height and lateral coordinate of the slot openings of each functional tank module relative to the unit's shared conveyor rail assembly are unified. After any functional tank module is assembled into any installation position within the unit, the column-type handling robot can complete the picking and placing of the drum through the same gripping coordinate and lifting stroke. Each independent functional product unit has a built-in automatic liquid replenishment system, including a pre-prepared liquid storage tank and an automatic liquid suction pump. The unit's independent controller replenishes the tank liquid quantitatively according to time / processing batch.

[0013] Furthermore, the control device includes multiple independent unit controllers or a single master controller, which stores multiple sets of process formulas. Each set of formulas corresponds to the unit combination method, drum posture, rotation speed, draining mode, and replenishment cycle parameters. When using independent unit controllers, the unit automatically sends a coordinated start signal to the adjacent unit after completing the process. When using the master controller, the master controller uniformly schedules each unit to run sequentially according to the process formula, without the need for manual program switching.

[0014] Surface treatment methods for dip coating process:

[0015] A surface treatment method utilizing the aforementioned modular combined immersion cleaning electroplating integrated machine includes the following specific steps:

[0016] S1: Select the corresponding type and quantity of functional tank modules according to the target immersion coating process, assemble them sequentially along the common conveyor track, and connect them to the control device through the electrical quick-connect interface;

[0017] S2: The belt feeding assembly of the upper barrel mechanism transports the barrel containing the workpiece to be processed to the loading station. The multi-claw gripper of the column-type handling robot grips and holds the barrel and moves it laterally along the common conveyor track.

[0018] S3: The column-type handling robot arm drives the roller to sequentially feed the cleaning tank, the paint soaking tank, and the desiccation and spin-drying tank, correspondingly completing the workpiece cleaning, dipping and coating, and rotary spin-drying processes.

[0019] S4: After processing, the column-type handling robot moves the drum to the drum loading frame of the tilting and unloading mechanism. The tilting and unloading component of the loading frame drives the drum to tilt and unload the workpiece onto the pallet of the pallet unloading conveyor line.

[0020] S5: The workpiece carried by the pallet enters the track-type hot air drying oven along with the pallet unloading and conveying assembly to complete the coating drying and curing;

[0021] S6: The dried workpiece is conveyed to the end by the pallet unloading conveyor assembly to complete the unloading.

[0022] Surface treatment methods for barrel plating:

[0023] A surface treatment method utilizing the aforementioned modular combined immersion cleaning electroplating integrated machine includes the following specific steps:

[0024] S1: Select the corresponding type and quantity of electroplating tank modules and water washing tank modules according to the target barrel plating process, assemble them sequentially along the common conveyor track, and connect them to the control device and rectifier through the electrical quick-connect interface;

[0025] S2: The column-type handling robot grabs the drum containing the workpiece and sequentially feeds it into each electroplating tank module and water washing tank module according to the set process path.

[0026] S3: After the drum enters the electroplating tank module, the rectifier is turned on, so that the workpiece in the drum is used as the cathode and the anode component in the electroplating tank module is used as the anode. The drum rotates in the electroplating solution to complete the drum plating operation.

[0027] S4: The processing of different plating types or plating colors is achieved by sequentially moving the roller into the corresponding electroplating tank module. The plating room is cleaned by the water washing tank module between adjacent electroplating processes to prevent plating solution cross-contamination.

[0028] S5: After all processes are completed, the column-type handling robot will move the drum to the unloading station to complete the unloading.

[0029] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects:

[0030] 1. This invention adopts a segmented unit-based independent track + independent functional product unit architecture. Each unit comes with its own base, at least one tank, independent controller, and independent track, which can be sold as a single unit or expanded in stages. The tracks between units can be quickly spliced, and the controller has a built-in cross-unit collaborative program. The completion of the previous unit automatically triggers the start of the next unit. This solves the defects of traditional integrated production lines that cannot be disassembled and modified, and have high expansion costs. Adding a new plating type only requires adding the corresponding independent unit, without the need to stop production and dismantle the entire equipment. The control architecture can also be configured according to the production line scale, with two sets of independent controllers for each unit combined and coordinated, multiple sets of distributed relay coordination, or centralized scheduling by the main controller. It can be adapted to both small-scale single-machine and large-scale production line centralized management.

[0031] 2. This invention supports both upright and inclined entry postures into the tank using a column-type handling robot, and is equipped with a multi-mode draining program: high-gloss workpieces are guided and scratch-resistant by slow rotation at an inclined angle, while hard parts with blind holes are removed by rapid rise and fall shaking to remove residual liquid from dead corners. The electroplating / sealing process is semi-immersed at an inclined angle to achieve chemical convection, which greatly reduces liquid cross-contamination between tanks and the defect rate of workpieces; at the same time, the grippers integrate a conductive structure, and the same set of robots is compatible with both dip coating and barrel plating processes. One basic track platform can switch between the two production lines, which greatly reduces equipment purchase and site occupation costs.

[0032] 3. This invention features an automatic quantitative replenishment system configured in each independent unit. The controller automatically replenishes the electroplating solution, sealing oil, and cleaning agent according to the production batch and time cycle, stabilizing the concentration of the tank solution and reducing the workload of manual maintenance. The material unloading and drying are independent optional units, and the electroplating process can be directly omitted, making the equipment selection more flexible.

[0033] 4. This invention sets up a flexible allocation logic for staggered cycle dwelling / slot skipping; the status of the downstream slot is detected before the drum is transported; when the slot is occupied, it supports dwelling and waiting or skipping to the downstream empty slot, and the entry processing is performed when the slot is empty; if individual slots are busy or have short-term failures, the production line does not need to be shut down, thus improving the overall line utilization rate and production flexibility. Attached Figure Description

[0034] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the overall structural layout of an embodiment of the present invention;

[0035] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the upper bucket mechanism in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0036] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the assembly of the shared conveyor track assembly, the column-type handling robot, and the functional slot assembly in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0037] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the pallet unloading conveyor line, drying device, and tilting and unloading mechanism in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0038] Figure 5This is a flowchart of the surface treatment method for the immersion coating process according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0039] Figure 6 This is a flowchart of the surface treatment method for the barrel plating process according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0040] Figure 7 This is a flowchart illustrating the cross-unit collaboration and cycle time misalignment dwell / spin-off control process according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0041] Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of the multi-unit assembly structure and the arrangement of communication quick-connect and fast track components according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0042] Figure 9 This is a partial schematic diagram of the unit independent track splicing and interface locking in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0043] Figure 10 This is a schematic diagram of the control architecture of a single-group single machine, two or more groups of distributed collaboration, and multiple groups of central control collaboration in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0044] Figure 11 This is a schematic diagram of the tilted entry posture of the roller into the groove according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0045] In the diagram, the correspondence between component names and drawing numbers is as follows:

[0046] 1. Loading mechanism; 2. Shared conveyor track assembly; 3. Column-type handling robot; 4. Functional trough assembly; 5. Pallet unloading conveyor line; 6. Drying device; 7. Tilting and unloading mechanism; 8. Rolling drum; 9. Quick-connect communication connector; 10. Quick track assembly; 11. Moving platform; 12. Loading guide; 13. Belt feeding assembly; 14. First motor reducer unit; 15. Drum body limiting seat; 21. Track support; 22. Track body; 23. Track docking and locking mechanism; 24. Signal communication interface; 31. Horizontal sliding block; 32. ... 33. Electric turntable; 34. Lifting column; 35. Second electric turntable; 36. Multi-claw gripper; 47. Second motor reducer unit; 48. Paint soaking bucket; 49. Draining and spin-drying bucket; 40. Third motor reducer unit; 41. Washing bucket; 42. Pre-mixed liquid storage tank; 43. Automatic liquid suction pump; 54. Conveyor line support; 55. Pallet unloading and conveying assembly; 56. Fourth motor reducer unit; 67. Drying track; 68. Track-type hot air drying oven; 79. Frame; 70. Bucket loading rack; 71. Loading rack tilting and unloading assembly. Detailed Implementation

[0047] The embodiments of the present invention will be described in further detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and examples. The following examples are for illustrative purposes only and should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention.

[0048] In the description of this invention, unless otherwise stated, "a plurality of" means two or more; the terms "upper," "lower," "left," "right," "inner," "outer," "front end," "rear end," "head," "tail," etc., indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship 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, the terms "first," "second," "third," etc., are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance.

[0049] In the description of this invention, it should be noted that, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "connected" and "linked" 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. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in this invention based on the specific circumstances.

[0050] Example:

[0051] Figures 1 to 9 as well as Figure 11 The example shown is only one of the independent functional product units of the present invention that includes soaking and sealing oil, centrifugal drying and drying. Figure 10 This diagram illustrates three optional forms of the control architecture of the present invention. The conveyor track shown in the diagram is the shared conveyor track assembly that comes with the product unit. Those skilled in the art should understand that when multiple product units are assembled, the track segments that come with each unit are connected end to end to form an overall conveyor channel; and the robot arm can switch between different action postures such as upright entry into the tank, inclined entry into the tank, hovering dripping, slow tilting angle rotation for draining, or shaking for draining according to a preset program; the unit independent controller can execute the flexible allocation logic of staggered dwell / skipping. In addition, the number of functional slots in each independent functional product unit can be one, two, or more, and the number of independent functional product units contained in the whole machine can be one, two, or more; when the whole machine contains only one independent functional product unit, the unit shared conveyor track assembly that comes with that unit constitutes the shared conveyor track assembly 2, and the whole machine operates independently in single-unit mode.

[0052] Reference Figures 1 to 11 As shown:

[0053] This invention provides a modular combined immersion cleaning electroplating integrated machine, including a tank loading mechanism 1, a common conveyor track assembly 2, a column-type handling robot 3, a functional tank group 4, and a control device.

[0054] 1. Independent product units and segmented tracks

[0055] The independent functional product unit (i.e., independent product group) described in this invention is a standardized integrated equipment. Each independent functional product unit includes an independent base, at least one independent functional slot, a unit-shared conveyor track assembly, and an independent unit controller. Each independent functional product unit can be produced independently as a standalone machine and sold separately. When multiple processes need to be spliced ​​and combined, the independent functional product units are mutually fitted and locked together by the standardized positioning structure of the base, and the unit-shared conveyor track assembly (i.e., ...) of each unit is used for production. Figure 9 The quick track assembly 10 shown is smoothly connected and locked at both ends by the track docking and locking mechanism 23, forming a complete shared conveyor track assembly 2. The column-type handling robot 3 can move freely across units along the assembled complete track, transferring the drum 8 between different units. When the whole machine is configured with only one independent functional product unit, the quick track assembly 10 of that unit constitutes the shared conveyor track assembly 2 alone, and the column-type handling robot 3 moves laterally within this unit to transport the drum 8.

[0056] The unit base is equipped with a signal communication interface 24 and a power quick-connect interface on its side. The signal communication interface 24 includes both wired electrical quick-connect interface and wireless communication module to realize coordinated signal transmission between units. The wireless communication module can adopt communication protocols such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Zigbee, and industrial 5G to adapt to the wiring conditions of different factory areas. The ends of two adjacent quick track components 10 are respectively equipped with communication quick connectors 9. After the two track sections are connected and locked, the communication quick connectors 9 at both ends are plugged in and connected. The communication quick connector 9 integrates the power quick-connect interface and the signal communication interface 24 to realize a one-line quick connection for power supply and communication between units.

[0057] The shared conveyor rail assembly 2 consists of a rail support 21 and a rail body 22. The rail body 22 is composed of one or more segments of the shared conveyor rail assembly, which are spliced ​​together when there are multiple segments. The column-type handling robot 3 includes a transverse slide 31, a first electric turntable 32, a lifting column 33, a second electric turntable 34, a multi-claw gripper 35, and a second motor reducer unit 36. The transverse slide 31 is slidably mounted on the upper side of the rail body 22. The first electric turntable 32 is fixedly mounted on the top of the transverse slide 31. The lifting column 33 is vertically mounted on the upper side of the first electric turntable 32. The second electric turntable 34 is fixedly mounted on the lifting end of the lifting column 33. The multi-claw gripper 35 is mounted on the bottom of the second electric turntable 34 and is driven to open and close by the second motor reducer unit 36. It can grab the drum 8 and complete lifting, transverse and rotation actions.

[0058] The control architecture of this invention has three optional forms: one is a single-unit, single-machine form, in which the entire machine contains only one independent functional product unit, and the unit's independent controller independently completes all process control of the unit, such as... Figure 10(a) As shown in Figure 1; the second is a distributed collaborative form with two or more groups, where the independent controllers of two adjacent independent functional product units can be merged and collaborated, and the independent controllers of multiple independent functional product units are interconnected via signal communication interface 24. After the previous unit completes its process, it automatically triggers the operation of the next unit, realizing relay-style collaboration, such as... Figure 10 (ii) As shown; the third is a multi-group centralized control and coordination form, in which two or more independent functional product units and the column-type handling robot 3 are uniformly connected to a central controller, which centrally schedules the tanks of each unit, the automatic liquid replenishment system and the handling sequence of the robot according to the process formula, such as Figure 10 (iii) As shown, the three forms can be freely selected or upgraded according to the production line scale, budget and expansion stage, and all of them are within the protection scope of this invention.

[0059] 2. Multi-pose slot entry and natural interaction

[0060] The handling robot has full-degree-of-freedom program control over the insertion posture of the drum 8 into the groove, such as... Figure 11 As shown. In the ordinary water washing and basic soaking processes, the robot arm controls the drum 8 to descend vertically in an upright position and be fully immersed in the bath solution; in the electroplating, electrophoresis, and lacquer oil soaking processes, the robot arm controls the drum 8 to be tilted at 15° to 75°, preferably 30° to 45°, and partially submerged in the bath. The lower half of the opening of the drum 8 cuts into the liquid surface to a depth of 1 / 10 to 3 / 4. During the rotation of the drum, the bath solution naturally flows in and out from the opening, improving the uniformity of contact between the workpiece and the solution.

[0061] 3. Multi-mode anti-cross-contamination and drainage action formula

[0062] The control device can automatically match the liquid-draining action program according to the workpiece material, surface finish, and chemical viscosity:

[0063] For high-gloss workpieces that are easily scratched or workpieces that have just been coated with protective paint, the method of hovering and dripping in mid-air combined with low-speed tilting and rotating in both directions is used to slowly remove residual liquid from the barrel wall and avoid friction and scratches on the paint surface.

[0064] For hard hardware parts with many blind holes and complex structures, a high-frequency shaking and dredging method with rapid rise and fall is adopted. The shaking action is set to a sine wave or square wave frequency. The roller 8 decelerates and slows down the moment it enters and leaves the liquid surface of the tank. It relies on inertia to shake off residual chemicals in holes and gaps, minimizing cross-contamination between tanks and avoiding workpiece collision damage and tank liquid splashing.

[0065] Each functional tank unit 4 contains three functional tanks: an immersion paint tank 41, a draining and spin-drying tank 42, and a cleaning tank 44. A third motor reducer unit 43 is installed on the side of the draining and spin-drying tank 42. This unit drives the roller 8 to rotate at high speed within the tank, achieving centrifugal draining and spin-drying of the workpiece. After centrifugal spin-drying, a second electric turntable 34 drives the roller 8 to rotate to a set angle and then reverses at low speed. This, combined with the guide vanes on the inner wall of the roller 8, peels off any adhered workpiece, preventing wet workpiece residue from remaining on the tank wall. The functional tanks can be replaced as needed with any one or more combinations of water washing tanks, ultrasonic cleaning tanks, electrolytic degreasing tanks, electroplating tanks, electrophoresis tanks, and electrolytic polishing tanks.

[0066] The functional tank module can be replaced with an electroplating tank module; the multi-jaw gripper 35 integrates conductive contacts, which make contact with the power receiving part of the drum 8 when the multi-jaw gripper 35 grips the drum 8, and connect with the rectifier in conjunction with the anode component in the electroplating tank module, so that the workpiece in the drum 8 can be used as the cathode to complete the drum plating operation; the conductive line is arranged along the lifting column 33, and the continuous conduction during the rotation process is achieved through the slip ring.

[0067] 4. Automatic suction pump for quantitative liquid replenishment

[0068] Each independent functional product unit is equipped with an automatic liquid replenishment system, which includes a pre-prepared liquid storage tank 45 and an automatic liquid suction pump 46. The liquid suction pump is connected to the unit's independent controller. The controller can be set to a fixed time interval, such as 2 hours, or to count the total number of processing batches of the robotic arm's transfer drum 8. Once the threshold is reached, the liquid suction pump is automatically activated to quantitatively replenish the corresponding functional tank with electroplating main salt, electrophoretic paint, lacquer protective oil, and cleaning agents, continuously stabilizing the tank solution concentration and reducing the need for frequent manual checks and replenishments.

[0069] 5. Beat misalignment and flexible allocation logic for stay / job hopping (skip-slot)

[0070] The control device has built-in slot status detection subroutine and slot skipping scheduling subroutine. Before the column-type handling robot 3 moves the transfer drum 8 to the next target slot, the control device first reads the equipment status signal of the next target slot to determine whether the slot is in a processing occupied state.

[0071] If the next slot is detected to be occupied, the system provides two optional scheduling modes: Mode 1 is the stationary mode, in which the column-type handling robot 3 stays in a safe position and waits, periodically and repeatedly checking the slot status until the slot is released; Mode 2 is the skip mode, which skips the currently occupied slot, automatically searches for other free slots downstream, and transfers the drum 8 to the downstream free slot for processing.

[0072] If the next slot is detected to be idle, the column-mounted handling robot 3 is directly controlled to perform the drum 8 insertion action. This logic can prevent the entire production line from being locked down due to a single slot being busy or experiencing a short-term failure, improving the operational flexibility and equipment uptime of the modular assembly production line. See the corresponding flowchart. Figure 7 .

[0073] The barrel loading mechanism 1 is an independent, modular unit, including a movable platform 11 with casters. The movable platform 11 has a loading guide 12 at its end and a belt feeding assembly 13 and a barrel limiting seat 15 on its top surface. The belt feeding assembly 13 is driven by a first motor reducer unit 14. Multiple barrels 8 are arranged sequentially in the barrel limiting seat 15 and can be transported to the loading station by the belt feeding assembly 13. The barrel loading mechanism 1 can be selected and assembled as an independent unit, and manual barrel loading can be omitted in small production lines.

[0074] At the end of the shared conveyor rail assembly 2, a tilting and unloading mechanism 7, a pallet unloading conveyor line 5, and a drying device 6 are sequentially arranged, forming an independent and assembleable unloading and drying product unit. The tilting and unloading mechanism 7 includes a frame 71, and a barrel loading frame 72 and a loading frame tilting and unloading assembly 73 are arranged inside the frame 71. The barrel loading frame 72 can receive the barrels 8 sent by the column-type handling robot 3 and tilt and unload the workpieces smoothly and at low speed. The pallet unloading conveyor line 5 includes a conveyor support 51, and a pallet unloading conveyor assembly 52 is arranged on the conveyor support 51. The pallet unloading conveyor assembly 52 is driven by the fourth motor reducer unit 53. The drying device 6 includes a drying rail 61 and a rail-type hot air drying oven 62. The pallet unloading conveyor assembly 52 passes through the interior of the rail-type hot air drying oven 62 and is used to transport the pallet to complete the drying and curing of the workpiece. The drying and unloading unit can be omitted entirely in the pure electroplating process.

[0075] The slot openings of each functional slot module are installed at the same height and lateral coordinate relative to the unit's shared conveyor rail assembly. After any functional slot module is assembled into any installation position within the unit, the column-type handling robot 3 can complete the picking and placing of the drum 8 through the same gripping coordinate and lifting stroke. The modules are highly interchangeable, and there is no need to adjust the robot's motion program when changing the slot.

[0076] The control device includes multiple independent unit controllers or a single master controller. It stores multiple sets of process formulas, each formula corresponding to the unit combination method, drum posture, rotation speed, draining mode, and replenishment cycle parameters. When all processes of the previous independent functional product unit are completed, if an independent unit controller is used, it automatically sends a start signal through the cross-unit collaborative interface to trigger the operation of the next adjacent processing unit. If a master controller is used, it uniformly schedules the operation of the next processing unit without the need for manual intervention to switch production line programs.

[0077] Surface treatment process of dip coating:

[0078] S1: Select the corresponding type and quantity of functional tank modules (independent immersion and sealing unit, multi-level cleaning unit, and independent unloading and drying unit) according to the target immersion coating process, lock the end of the common conveyor track assembly of each unit, and connect the independent controller of each unit to the control device through the electrical quick-connect interface.

[0079] S2: The belt feeding assembly 13 of the upper barrel mechanism 1 transports the drum 8 containing the workpiece to be processed to the loading station. The multi-claw gripper 35 of the column-type handling robot 3 grips and grabs the drum 8 and moves it laterally along the common conveying track assembly 2.

[0080] S3: The column-type handling robot 3 drives the roller 8 to sequentially feed into the cleaning tank 44, the paint soaking tank 41, and the draining and spin-drying tank 42, respectively completing the workpiece cleaning, dipping and coating, and rotary spin-drying processes. After the processing of each tank is completed, the tilting angle slow rotation guides the drain liquid. The third motor reducer unit 43 drives the roller 8 to rotate at high speed in the draining and spin-drying tank 42 to achieve centrifugal spin-drying.

[0081] S4: After processing, the column-type handling robot 3 moves the drum 8 to the drum loading frame 72 of the tilting and unloading mechanism 7. The tilting and unloading component 73 of the loading frame drives the drum 8 to tilt smoothly and unload the workpiece onto the pallet of the pallet unloading conveyor line 5.

[0082] S5: The workpiece carried by the pallet enters the track-type hot air drying oven 62 along with the pallet unloading and conveying component 52 to complete the coating drying and curing;

[0083] S6: The dried workpiece is conveyed to the end by the pallet unloading conveyor assembly 52 to complete the unloading.

[0084] Surface treatment process for barrel plating:

[0085] S1: Select the corresponding type and quantity of electroplating tank modules and water washing tank modules (i.e., pretreatment water washing unit, electroplating unit, post-plating cleaning unit) according to the target barrel plating process, assemble the common conveying track components of each unit in sequence along the common conveying track, and connect them to the control device and rectifier through electrical quick-connect interface;

[0086] S2: The column-type handling robot 3 grabs the drum 8 containing the workpiece and, according to the set process path, semi-immerses it at a 30° angle and sequentially sends it into each electroplating tank module and water washing tank module.

[0087] S3: After the roller 8 enters the electroplating tank module, the rectifier is turned on, so that the workpiece in the roller 8 is used as the cathode and the anode component in the electroplating tank module is used as the anode. The roller 8 rotates in the electroplating solution to complete the roller plating operation.

[0088] S4: The processing of different plating types or plating colors is achieved by sequentially moving the roller 8 into the corresponding electroplating tank module. The plating room is cleaned by the water washing tank module between adjacent electroplating processes. During the transfer, the liquid is shaken by rapid rise and fall to prevent the plating solution from mixing.

[0089] S5: After all processes are completed, the column-type handling robot 3 moves the drum 8 to the discharge station to complete the discharge.

[0090] It should be noted that during non-electroplating processes (such as pure immersion / washing), the conductive contacts on the grippers are de-energized and removable.

[0091] The working principle of this embodiment:

[0092] During the equipment procurement and expansion phase, customers can select corresponding independent functional product units according to their current production needs. When adding new plating types later, customers only need to purchase the corresponding electroplating unit separately, connect the splicing track and plug in the signal communication interface, and integrate it into the existing production line without the need for complete line dismantling and modification.

[0093] During production, the corresponding process formula is selected, and the independent controller of each unit automatically matches the motion parameters, replenishment cycle, and cross-unit collaborative logic; the robot switches between upright / tilted tank entry posture according to the program, and matches the appropriate draining action; the automatic replenishment system inside the unit replenishes the tank liquid at regular intervals to ensure the stability of the chemical performance; in the multi-unit collaborative mode, the subsequent unit is automatically started after the previous unit is completed, realizing unmanned continuous processing; in pure electroplating production, the drying and unloading independent unit can be directly disassembled to reduce the equipment footprint.

[0094] The embodiments of the present invention are given for illustrative and descriptive purposes only, and are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the forms disclosed. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to better illustrate the principles and practical application of the invention, and to enable those skilled in the art to understand the invention and to design various embodiments with various modifications suitable for a particular purpose.

Claims

1. A modular, combined immersion cleaning electroplating integrated machine, characterized in that: It includes a shared conveyor rail assembly (2), a column-mounted handling robot (3), a functional trough assembly (4), and a control device; The shared conveying track assembly (2) is composed of at least one unit shared conveying track assembly; when two or more unit shared conveying track assemblies are set, the adjacent two sections can be detachably connected and spliced ​​to form a continuous transport track; each unit shared conveying track assembly corresponds to a set of independent functional product units; At least one column-type handling robot (3) is provided, which is slidably mounted on the upper side of the common conveying track assembly (2) and can grab the drum (8) and complete lifting, lateral movement and rotation actions; The independent functional product unit includes an independent base, at least one functional slot integrated within the unit, and an independent unit controller. The independent unit controller has a pre-installed cross-unit collaborative interface program. The functional slot group (4) is composed of at least one independent functional product unit; when two or more independent functional product units are set, each independent functional product unit is assembled side by side along the common conveying track assembly (2), and adjacent independent functional product units are provided with a uniform detachable mechanical docking structure, track docking locking mechanism (23), power quick-connect interface and signal communication interface (24). The signal communication interface (24) is a wired electrical quick-connect interface and / or a wireless communication module, so that the number, type and arrangement order of independent functional product units can be freely increased, decreased and changed according to process requirements; The control device includes a unit independent controller set in each independent functional product unit, and / or a general controller that controls each independent functional product unit in a unified manner; the unit independent controller is electrically connected to the tank body in the unit via a signal communication interface, and the control device controls the column-type handling robot (3) to transport the drum (8) between each functional tank according to the set process path; when two or more independent functional product units are set, the unit independent controllers of two adjacent independent functional product units can be combined and coordinated, or multiple unit independent controllers can be coordinated in turn through the cross-unit coordination interface, or the general controller can uniformly schedule each independent functional product unit and the column-type handling robot (3) according to the set process path.

2. The modular combined immersion cleaning electroplating integrated machine according to claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes a barrel loading mechanism (1), which is an independent modular unit that can be assembled or omitted according to process requirements; the barrel loading mechanism (1) includes a mobile platform (11) with casters, and a loading guide (12) is provided at the end of the mobile platform (11). The top surface of the mobile platform (11) is provided with a belt feeding assembly (13) and a barrel limiting seat (15). The belt feeding assembly (13) is driven by a first motor reducer unit (14). Multiple barrels (8) are arranged in sequence in the barrel limiting seat (15) and can be transported to the loading station with the belt feeding assembly (13).

3. The modular combined immersion cleaning electroplating integrated machine according to claim 1, characterized in that: The extension direction of the shared conveying track assembly (2) is any one or a combination of straight line direction, curved ring direction or three-dimensional multi-layer extension direction; the shared conveying track assembly (2) includes track support (21) and track body (22), the track body (22) is composed of at least one segment of unit shared conveying track assembly, and when two or more segments are provided, they are spliced ​​together from each segment of unit shared conveying track assembly; The column-type handling robot (3) includes a transverse slide (31), a first electric turntable (32), a lifting column (33), a second electric turntable (34), a multi-claw gripper (35), and a second motor reducer unit (36). The transverse slide (31) is slidably mounted on the upper side of the track body (22). The first electric turntable (32) is fixedly mounted on the top of the transverse slide (31). The lifting column (33) is vertically mounted on the upper side of the first electric turntable (32). The second electric turntable (34) is fixedly mounted on the lifting end of the lifting column (33). The multi-claw gripper (35) is mounted on the bottom of the second electric turntable (34) and is driven to open and close by the second motor reducer unit (36) to grip the drum (8). The column-type handling robot (3) supports two inlet postures: upright and tilted, and can perform at least one of the following actions: hovering and dripping, tilting and rotating to guide the flow, and rapid lifting and descent shaking.

4. The modular combined immersion cleaning electroplating integrated machine according to claim 3, characterized in that: The rapid rise and fall shaking action is operated at a set frequency of sine wave or square wave, and the roller (8) decelerates and slows down at the moment it enters and leaves the liquid surface of the tank.

5. The modular combined immersion cleaning electroplating integrated machine according to claim 1, characterized in that: The functional tanks within the independent functional product unit can be selected from any one or more combinations of water washing tank, ultrasonic cleaning tank, electrolytic degreasing tank, electroplating tank, electrophoresis tank, electrolytic polishing tank, paint soaking bucket (41), draining and spin-drying bucket (42), and cleaning bucket (44). When the unit contains a draining and spin-drying drum (42), a third motor reducer unit (43) is provided on the side of the draining and spin-drying drum (42). The third motor reducer unit (43) drives the drum (8) to rotate inside the draining and spin-drying drum (42) to achieve centrifugal spin-drying.

6. The modular combined immersion cleaning electroplating integrated machine according to claim 3, characterized in that: The multi-claw gripper (35) is equipped with conductive contacts. When the multi-claw gripper (35) grips the drum (8), the conductive contacts make contact with the power receiving part of the drum (8) and conduct electricity. In conjunction with the anode component in the functional tank, the rectifier is connected so that the workpiece in the drum (8) can be used as an electrode to complete the drum plating operation. The conductive line is arranged along the lifting column (33) and is continuously conductive during the rotation of the drum (8) through the slip ring. When the drum (8) is tilted into the tank, the mouth part is immersed in the liquid surface, and the chemical solution is naturally convected and interacted through rotation.

7. The modular combined immersion cleaning electroplating integrated machine according to claim 1, characterized in that: The end of the shared conveyor track assembly (2) is provided with an independent, assembleable unloading and drying product unit consisting of a flipping and dumping mechanism (7), a tray unloading conveyor line (5), and a drying device (6); The flipping and unloading mechanism (7) includes a frame (71), and a barrel loading frame (72) and a loading frame flipping and unloading assembly (73) are provided on the inner side of the frame (71). The barrel loading frame (72) receives the barrel (8) sent by the column-type handling robot (3) and flips and unloads the material under the drive of the loading frame flipping and unloading assembly (73). The pallet unloading conveyor line (5) includes a conveyor support (51) and a pallet unloading conveyor assembly (52), which is driven by a fourth motor reducer unit (53). The drying device (6) includes a drying track (61) and a track-type hot air drying oven (62), and the tray unloading conveyor assembly (52) passes through the interior of the track-type hot air drying oven (62).

8. The modular combined immersion cleaning electroplating integrated machine according to claim 1, characterized in that: The installation height and lateral coordinate of the slot opening of each functional tank module relative to the unit's shared conveyor track assembly are unified; each independent functional product unit has a built-in automatic liquid replenishment system, including a pre-prepared liquid storage tank (45) and an automatic liquid suction pump (46), and the unit's independent controller replenishes the tank liquid quantitatively according to the set time or processing batch.

9. A modular combined immersion cleaning electroplating integrated machine according to claim 1, characterized in that: The control device has a built-in slot status detection and scheduling program; before the column-type handling robot (3) transfers the drum (8) to the next target slot, the control device reads the target slot status. If the target slot is occupied, the control device controls the column-type handling robot (3) to stay and wait, or controls the column-type handling robot (3) to skip the occupied slot and transfer the drum (8) to the downstream vacant slot.

10. A modular surface treatment system kit, characterized in that, It consists of the following modules that can be selectively combined: A shared conveyor rail assembly consists of at least one unit shared conveyor rail assembly and at least one column-type handling robot that can slide and move laterally along the shared conveyor rail assembly (3). At least one independent functional product unit, each independent functional product unit has its own independent base, at least one functional slot, unit shared conveyor rail assembly and unit independent controller, and each independent functional product unit has a standardized physical docking structure of uniform specifications, rail docking locking mechanism (23) and power quick-connect interface and signal communication interface (24). Users can either select only one independent functional product unit to form a single machine for operation, or splice two or more independent functional product units according to the process flow. In this case, each unit shares the same conveyor track assembly for connection and continuation. When splicing two or more independent functional product units, the control of each unit can be achieved by merging and coordinating the independent controllers of two adjacent units, or by relaying and coordinating multiple independent controllers through a cross-unit coordination program. Alternatively, a master controller can be selected to centrally schedule each independent functional product unit and the column-type handling robot (3) to automatically relay and transfer the drum (8).

11. A surface treatment method using the all-in-one machine according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that, Includes the following steps: S1: Select independent functional product units according to the target process, connect the shared conveyor rail components of each unit, and connect the independent controllers of each unit. S2: Control the column-type handling robot (3) to grab the drum (8), send it into each functional tank according to the preset posture to complete the processing procedure, and perform the draining action when leaving the tank; S3: When two or more independent functional product units are set up, after the process in a single independent functional product unit is completed, the control device automatically takes over through the cross-unit collaborative program or is uniformly scheduled by the main controller to control the column-type handling robot (3) to transfer the drum (8) to the next independent functional product unit. S4: After all processes are completed, the roller (8) is transferred to the discharge station to complete the unloading.

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