Automatic feeding supply box

Abstract

The application relates to the field of automatic material feeding, in particular to an automatic feeding box, which comprises an outer frame provided with a plurality of installation grooves, a plurality of guide columns arranged vertically and surrounding a guide frame are arranged in the installation grooves, a storage plate for containing a material tray is arranged in the guide frame, a lifting mechanism for driving the storage plate to reciprocate up and down is arranged at the side of the guide frame, a mechanical hand for transferring materials and the material tray is arranged in the middle of the outer frame, the outer frame comprises a rectangular frame seat and a panel, the guide column is in an L shape, the lifting mechanism comprises a motor, a guide groove and the like, and proximity sensors, photoelectric sensors and the like are further arranged. The application achieves the technical effects of realizing automatic material feeding, guiding and limiting the storage plate, detecting the slider and the material state of the material tray, and preventing external dust from entering the lifting mechanism.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of material feeding and transfer, and in particular to an automatic feeding box. Background Technology

[0002] In industrial automated production lines, the feeding device is one of the key pieces of equipment to ensure the continuous and efficient operation of the assembly line. Its function is to stably and orderly transport parts or materials to designated workstations for robotic arms or robots to pick up and assemble. Especially in the assembly of electronic products such as remote controls, the continuity and reliability of the feeding system directly affect the cycle time and capacity of the entire production line.

[0003] Currently, common material feeding methods mostly employ single-layer trays or simple silo structures. Operators need to frequently monitor the tray status during production and manually replace them as needed. This method not only increases the labor intensity of operators but also causes frequent production line stoppages due to waiting for material, severely restricting the improvement of overall production efficiency and making it difficult to adapt to the development trend of "unmanned workshops." Existing material feeding devices generally have limited functions, lacking automatic retrieval and buffering capabilities for empty trays, and cannot meet the demands of modern production lines for long-term continuous operation and high automation.

[0004] The aforementioned technologies have drawbacks, including frequent production line shutdowns due to poor material supply continuity, high labor intensity and low production efficiency due to cumbersome manual tray changing operations, and difficulty in achieving large-capacity material storage within a limited space due to structural layout limitations. Utility Model Content

[0005] To overcome the shortcomings of the prior art, this utility model provides an automatic feeding box that can realize the automation and continuity of material supply in the production line, and greatly reduce the frequency of manual intervention.

[0006] This application is achieved through the following technical solution: An automatic feeding box includes an outer frame with several mounting slots. Several guide posts are arranged vertically within each mounting slot, forming a guide frame for guiding the directional movement of a material tray. A shelf is provided within the guide frame for holding the material tray. A lifting mechanism is provided on the side of the guide frame to drive the shelf to reciprocate up and down along the guide frame. A robotic arm is located in the middle of the outer frame, positioned between the mounting slots, for transferring materials and the material tray.

[0007] By adopting the above technical solution, an automated feeding unit integrating storage, lifting, and material retrieval was creatively constructed. The guide frame ensures smooth and unobstructed movement of the storage plate and the stacked trays during lifting; the lifting mechanism automatically and progressively lifts the trays, accurately delivering full-load trays to the retrieval station; and the robotic arm is responsible for the automatic loading and unloading of materials and the transfer of empty trays. These three components work together to achieve full-process automation from full tray feeding to empty tray removal, effectively solving the production line interruption problem caused by manual material changes.

[0008] Optionally, the outer frame includes a rectangular frame base and a panel disposed on the upper end of the rectangular frame base, and the robotic arm is disposed on the panel.

[0009] By adopting the above technical solution, the rectangular frame provides a stable support foundation, while the panel provides a high and stable installation platform for the robot, making it convenient for the robot to perform material handling operations at the optimal work position.

[0010] Optionally, the guide post has an L-shaped structure and is used to guide and limit the placement of the shelf.

[0011] By adopting the above technical solution, the L-shaped guide column has a simple structure and can effectively guide the rectangular shelf, preventing it from deflecting or getting stuck during the lifting process. At the same time, it plays a limiting role to ensure accurate movement trajectory.

[0012] Optionally, the outer wall of the guide post is provided with several rectangular ear plates, which are used to fix the guide post to the outer frame.

[0013] By adopting the above technical solution, the rectangular ear plate increases the contact and connection area between the guide post and the outer frame. The guide post can be conveniently and reliably installed in the mounting groove by fasteners such as bolts, ensuring the rigidity of the overall structure.

[0014] Optionally, the side wall of the mounting groove is provided with a vertically arranged mounting plate, the upper end of the mounting plate is provided with a mounting seat, and the lifting mechanism is mounted on the mounting seat.

[0015] By adopting the above technical solution, the mounting plate and mounting base provide an independent and stable mounting base for the lifting mechanism, making it closely connected with the guide frame. At the same time, it avoids the lifting mechanism directly occupying the material tray storage space, optimizes the internal layout, and facilitates disassembly and assembly.

[0016] Optionally, the lifting mechanism includes a motor, a guide groove, a lead screw, and a slider; the lead screw and the guide groove are vertically arranged at the bottom of the mounting base, the slider is slidably connected in the guide groove, and the slider is threaded onto the lead screw; the motor is used to provide rotational power to drive the lead screw to rotate, so that the slider moves in the guide groove.

[0017] By adopting the above technical solution, using a motor-driven lead screw transmission method, and cooperating with the guide groove to constrain the slider, the lifting motion is made smooth, precise and controllable, ensuring that the shelf and tray can be accurately raised or lowered by a distance equal to the thickness of one tray.

[0018] Optionally, a long slide groove is fixed on the side wall of the guide groove, and a proximity sensor is provided on the slide groove. The proximity sensor is used to detect the position of the slider; the proximity sensor is electrically connected to the control unit.

[0019] By adopting the above technical solution, the proximity sensor can detect the real-time position of the slider in the groove non-contactly. This sensor is electrically connected to the control unit and can feed back the detected position signal to the control system in real time, thereby achieving precise control and automatic limit of the lifting mechanism's movement stroke. It is a key component ensuring the automatic and safe operation of the equipment.

[0020] Optionally, a lifting seat is fixed on the slider, and an L-shaped stop is provided on the outer wall of the lifting seat to match the proximity sensor. When the slider moves to the position corresponding to the upper or lower limit of the shelf, the stop acts on the proximity sensor.

[0021] By adopting the above technical solution, the L-shaped stop block, in conjunction with the proximity sensor, can accurately set the upper and lower limits of the shelf's movement. When the stop block enters the sensor's sensing area, a trigger signal is generated, allowing the control system to stop the motor, preventing overtravel and ensuring operational safety.

[0022] Optionally, the mounting base is provided with a protective plate to prevent external dust from entering the lifting mechanism. The protective plate has bent portions on both sides. The lifting base is provided with a relief groove that matches the bent portions. A lifting arm is fixed on the lifting base, and the storage plate is fixed on the lifting arm.

[0023] By adopting the above technical solutions, the protective plate effectively isolates external dust from contaminating precision lifting mechanisms such as lead screws and guide grooves, extending the service life of the equipment. The coordinated design of the bending section and the clearance groove provides protection while avoiding interference between the protective plate and the lifting seat, ensuring smooth movement. The lifting arm, as a connecting component, reliably transmits the linear movement of the lifting seat to the placement plate.

[0024] Optionally, a photoelectric sensor is provided at the top of the guide column; the photoelectric sensor is electrically connected to the control unit and is used to detect the material status in the tray located at the top of the guide frame.

[0025] By adopting the above technical solution, the photoelectric sensor is placed on the top of the guide column, ensuring that its detection optical path accurately covers the material handling station located at the top of the guide frame. This results in a more reasonable and stable installation position. The sensor is electrically connected to the control unit, enabling real-time monitoring of the presence or status of material in the uppermost tray and feeding the signal back to the control system. This provides a direct and reliable basis for automatically triggering the lifting and tray-changing process or issuing a material shortage alarm, making it a key component in achieving fully automatic closed-loop control of the feeding system.

[0026] In summary, this utility model has at least one of the following beneficial technical effects: 1. This application achieves the orientation, smooth lifting and lowering of the material tray and automatic tray changing by cooperating with the guide frame composed of guide columns and the lifting mechanism, thus solving the problem of poor material supply continuity and greatly reducing production line downtime; 2. This application achieves automation of full-pan feeding and empty-pan transfer by integrating a robotic arm and a lifting mechanism, reducing the frequency of manual pan changing operations by an order of magnitude and significantly reducing labor intensity; 3. This application adopts a vertical multi-layer spatial layout, which is compact and achieves maximum material storage capacity within a limited area, making the production line layout more reasonable and the space utilization rate extremely high. Attached Figure Description

[0027] Figure 1 This is a three-dimensional structural diagram of an automatic feeding box as described in the embodiment; Figure 2 This is a three-dimensional structural diagram of the guide frame described in the embodiment; Figure 3 This is a side view of the guide frame structure described in the embodiment; Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the guide groove described in the embodiment; Figure 5 This is a partial enlarged view of the mounting base described in the embodiment; Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the lifting arm described in the embodiment; Figure 7 This is a partial enlarged view of the stop block described in the embodiment; Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of the slide groove described in the embodiment; Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the protective plate described in the embodiment.

[0028] In the diagram: 1. Guide column; 11. Ear plate; 12. Mounting base; 121. Guard plate; 122. Bending part; 13. Mounting plate; 2. Shelf plate; 3. Lifting mechanism; 31. Motor; 32. Guide groove; 321. Slide groove; 322. Proximity sensor; 33. Lead screw; 34. Slider; 341. Lifting seat; 342. Stop block; 343. Clearance groove; 35. Lifting arm; 4. Outer frame; 41. Rectangular frame base; 42. Panel; 43. Mounting groove; 44. Photoelectric sensor; 5. Robotic arm; 6. Material tray. Detailed Implementation

[0029] The following will be combined with the appendix Figure 1 To be continued Figure 9 The technical solutions of the various embodiments of this application have been clearly and completely described. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of this application, and not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of this application, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0030] Example 1 Reference Figure 1 and Figure 2 This application discloses an automatic feeding box, including an outer frame 4, with a plurality of mounting slots 43 on the outer frame 4, and a plurality of guide posts 1 in the mounting slots 43. The guide posts 1 are arranged vertically and surround a guide frame for guiding the directional movement of a material tray 6. A shelf 2 is provided in the guide frame for holding the material tray 6. A lifting mechanism 3 is provided on the side of the guide frame for driving the shelf 2 to move up and down along the guide frame. A robot arm 5 is provided in the middle of the outer frame 4, and the robot arm 5 is placed between the mounting slots 43 for transferring the material in the material tray 6 and the material tray 6.

[0031] For details, please refer to Figure 1 The outer frame 4 includes a rectangular frame base 41 and a panel 42 disposed on the upper end of the rectangular frame base 41. The rectangular frame base 41 is usually made of metal, such as stainless steel or aluminum alloy, which has high strength and stability and can withstand the weight of the entire feed box and various forces during operation. The panel 42 can be made of steel plate or plastic plate and is installed on the upper end of the rectangular frame base 41 to provide a mounting position for the robot arm 5. The surface of the panel 42 should be flat and smooth to ensure the stable installation and operation of the robot arm 5. The outer frame 4 is provided with several mounting slots 43, which can be grooves formed by cutting or casting on the rectangular frame base 41. Their function is to provide mounting positions for components such as guide posts 1. The shape and size of the mounting slots 43 are designed according to the structure and installation requirements of the guide posts 1, and are generally rectangular or trapezoidal.

[0032] refer to Figure 1A photoelectric sensor 44 is installed at the top of the guide column 1. The photoelectric sensor 44 is electrically connected to the control unit and is used to detect the material status in the material tray 6 located at the top of the guide frame. The photoelectric sensor 44 can be a through-beam photoelectric sensor 44 or a reflective photoelectric sensor 44, used to detect the material status, such as the presence or absence of material, position, etc. When the material is detected to reach the set state, the photoelectric sensor 44 will send a signal to control the operation of the entire feeding box. During operation, eight full-load material trays 6 are stacked in the storage plate 2. The robot arm 5 takes material from the top-level material tray 6. After the tray is emptied, the photoelectric sensor 44 sends a signal, the lifting mechanism 3 is activated, and the entire stack of material trays 6 is lifted 15mm. At the same time, the robot arm 5 moves to push the empty tray into the empty tray recycling bin at the rear. A new full-load material tray 6 arrives at the picking station, and the robot continues to work. This cycle continues until all material trays 6 are used up, and the system lights up to indicate this.

[0033] refer to Figures 1 to 3 The guide frame consists of several guide posts 1 arranged vertically at predetermined positions. The guide posts 1 have an L-shaped structure, which guides and limits the placement panel 2, preventing it from shifting or wobbling during movement. The guide posts 1 can be made of metal rods, and their L-shaped bending angle is typically 90 degrees. Several rectangular ear plates 11 are provided on the outer wall of the guide posts 1. These rectangular ear plates 11 can be fixed to the guide posts 1 by welding or bolting, thus securing the guide posts 1 to the outer frame 4.

[0034] refer to Figure 2 and Figure 3 The shelf 2 is used to hold the tray 6 and can move vertically within the guide frame formed by the guide posts 1. The shelf 2 can be made of wood, plastic, or metal, and its surface should be flat and smooth to ensure the stable placement of the tray 6. The dimensions of the shelf 2 are designed according to the size of the tray 6 to fully accommodate it.

[0035] refer to Figures 4 to 6The lifting mechanism 3 includes a motor 31, a guide groove 32, a lead screw 33, and a slider 34. The lead screw 33 and the guide groove 32 are vertically arranged at the bottom of the mounting base 12. The slider 34 is slidably connected in the guide groove 32 and is threadedly engaged with the lead screw 33. The motor 31 provides rotational power to drive the lead screw 33 to rotate, thereby moving the slider 34 in the guide groove 32. The motor 31 is usually a stepper motor 31 or a servo motor 31. The stepper motor 31 has lower cost but relatively lower precision; the servo motor 31 has high precision but higher cost. The guide groove 32 provides guidance for the movement of the slider 34, ensuring that the slider 34 can move along a straight line. The threaded engagement between the lead screw 33 and the slider 34 converts the rotational motion of the motor 31 into the linear motion of the slider 34, realizing the lifting function of the shelf 2. The mounting plate 13 is vertically arranged in the side wall of the mounting groove 43, and the upper end of the mounting plate 13 is provided with a mounting base 12. The lifting mechanism 3 is mounted on the mounting base 12. Mounting plate 13 provides a mounting position for mounting base 12, and mounting base 12 provides stable support for lifting mechanism 3. Mounting plate 13 and mounting base 12 are generally made of metal and are fixed together by welding or bolting.

[0036] refer to Figure 6 and Figure 7 A lifting seat 341 is fixed to the slider 34. The lifting seat 341 can be fixed to the slider 34 by bolts or welding. An L-shaped stop 342 is provided on the outer wall of the lifting seat 341. When the slider 34 moves to the upper or lower limit position corresponding to the shelf 2, the stop 342 acts on the proximity sensor, causing the proximity sensor to send a signal, thereby controlling the motor 31 to stop rotating. A lifting arm 35 is fixed to the lifting seat 341. The lifting arm 35 is usually a long strip of metal rod with certain strength and rigidity. The material can be carbon steel, aluminum alloy, etc. One end of the lifting arm 35 is fixedly connected to the lifting seat 341, which can be achieved by welding, bolting, etc., and the other end is fixedly connected to the shelf 2, which can also be achieved by welding, bolting, etc., to ensure that the shelf 2 can move together with the lifting seat 341.

[0037] refer to Figure 8 A long slide groove 321 is fixed on the side wall of the guide groove 32, and a proximity sensor is fixed on the slide groove 321. The proximity sensor can be an inductive proximity sensor or a capacitive proximity sensor, which is used to detect the position of the slider 34 to control the movement stroke of the lifting mechanism 3.

[0038] refer to Figure 9The mounting base 12 is equipped with a protective plate 121 to prevent external dust from entering the lifting mechanism 3. The protective plate 121 is thin and made of a flexible plastic material. The bent portions 122 on both sides are arc-shaped. This arc-shaped bending design ensures compatibility with the clearance groove 343 on the lifting seat 341 and can also buffer the impact of external forces to a certain extent, preventing damage to the protective plate 121. The lifting seat 341 is equipped with clearance grooves 343 that are adapted to the bent portions 122. The lifting seat 341 is fixedly connected to the lifting arm 35. The lifting mechanism 3 can also be replaced by other mechanisms that can realize the lifting function, such as a hydraulic lifting mechanism 3.

[0039] The implementation principle of this embodiment is as follows: This automatic feeding box achieves automatic feeding and delivery of materials and trays 6 through the coordinated work of components such as the outer frame 4, guide frame, lifting mechanism 3, and robotic arm 5. The outer frame 4 provides a stable support structure for the entire device, the guide frame guides the tray 6 to move in a directional manner, the lifting mechanism 3 realizes the lifting and lowering of the placement plate 2, the robotic arm 5 transfers materials and trays 6, and the photoelectric sensor 44 detects the material status. The cooperation of each component improves the efficiency and accuracy of material feeding and delivery, reduces the intensity of manual labor, and solves the problems of low efficiency, high labor intensity, error susceptibility, and poor versatility and flexibility of existing material feeding and delivery methods. It adapts to the production needs of modern industry for large-scale, high-efficiency, and high-precision production.

[0040] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of this application, and are not intended to limit them. Although this application has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that modifications can still be made to the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments, or equivalent substitutions can be made to some or all of the technical features therein. Such modifications or substitutions do not cause the essence of the corresponding technical solutions to deviate from the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application.

Claims

1. An automatic feeding box, characterized in that, The device includes an outer frame (4), which has several mounting slots (43). Several guide posts (1) are provided in the mounting slots (43). The guide posts (1) are arranged vertically and form a guide frame for guiding the material tray (6) to move in an orientation. A storage plate (2) is provided in the guide frame for holding the material tray (6). A lifting mechanism (3) is provided on the side of the guide frame for driving the storage plate (2) to move up and down along the guide frame. A robot (5) is provided in the middle of the outer frame (4). The robot (5) is placed between the mounting slots (43) for transferring the material in the material tray (6) and the material tray (6).

2. The automatic feeding box according to claim 1, characterized in that, The outer frame (4) includes a rectangular frame base (41) and a panel (42) disposed on the upper end of the rectangular frame base (41), and the robotic arm (5) is disposed on the panel (42).

3. The automatic feeding box according to claim 1, characterized in that, The guide post (1) has an L-shaped structure and is used to guide and limit the placement plate (2).

4. An automatic feeding box according to claim 3, characterized in that, The outer wall of the guide post (1) is provided with several rectangular ear plates (11), which are used to fix the guide post (1) to the outer frame (4).

5. An automatic feeding box according to claim 4, characterized in that, The side wall of the mounting groove (43) is provided with a vertically arranged mounting plate (13), and the upper end of the mounting plate (13) is provided with a mounting seat (12). The lifting mechanism (3) is mounted on the mounting seat (12).

6. An automatic feeding box according to claim 1, characterized in that, The lifting mechanism (3) includes a motor (31), a guide groove (32), a lead screw (33), and a slider (34); the lead screw (33) and the guide groove (32) are vertically arranged at the bottom of the mounting base (12), the slider (34) is slidably connected in the guide groove (32), and the slider (34) is threaded onto the lead screw (33); the motor (31) is used to provide rotational power to drive the lead screw (33) to rotate so that the slider (34) moves in the guide groove (32).

7. An automatic feeding box according to claim 6, characterized in that, The guide groove (32) is fixedly provided with a long strip groove (321) on its side wall. A proximity sensor is provided on the groove (321) and the proximity sensor is used to detect the position of the slider (34). The proximity sensor is electrically connected to the control unit.

8. An automatic feeding box according to claim 7, characterized in that, The slider (34) is fixedly provided with a lifting seat (341), and the outer wall of the lifting seat (341) is provided with an L-shaped stop (342) adapted to the proximity sensor. When the slider (34) moves to the upper or lower limit position corresponding to the shelf (2), the stop (342) acts on the proximity sensor.

9. An automatic feeding box according to claim 8, characterized in that, The mounting base (12) is provided with a guard plate (121) to prevent external dust from entering the lifting mechanism (3). The guard plate (121) has a bent part (122) on both sides. The lifting seat (341) is provided with a relief groove (343) that is adapted to the bent part (122). The lifting arm (35) is fixed on the lifting seat (341). The storage plate (2) is fixed on the lifting arm (35).

10. An automatic feeding box according to claim 1, characterized in that, The top of the guide column (1) is provided with a photoelectric sensor (44); the photoelectric sensor (44) is electrically connected to the control unit and is used to detect the material status in the tray (6) located at the top of the guide frame.

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