Wire EDM machine

Abstract

Wire EDM machine (1, 1A) which causes a wire electrode (21) and a workpiece (W) to move relative to each other and performs an EDM on the workpiece (W), wherein the wire EDM machine (1, 1A) comprises: an articulated robot (40); and a suction mechanism (50) which is provided on a front end part (41) of the articulated robot (40) and which extracts machining waste (S) and gas (G) generated by EDM, wherein the suction mechanism (50) has a coupling mechanism (40) which is arranged at the front end part (41) of the articulated robot (40) and which detachably couples the front end part (41) of the articulated robot (40) and a base (42) of the articulated robot (40).

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates to a wire cutting machine. RELATED PRIOR ART

[0002] Generally, a wire EDM machine has been known as a type of EDM machine. Wire EDM involves machining a shaped profile on a workpiece by causing an erosion phenomenon to occur between the workpiece and a wire electrode, which are electrically conductive. Wire EDM is performed by a wire EDM machine. The wire EDM machine includes a mechanism that supports the workpiece and the wire electrode, a structure that continuously feeds the wire electrode, which is consumed concomitantly during the erosion phenomenon, and a structure that controls the relative positions between the wire electrode and the workpiece by means of a numerical control system.

[0003] The wire electrode is wound around a cylindrical spool and unwound from the spool by a structure that then feeds the wire electrode to the wire EDM machine. The wire EDM machine also includes a guide, a structure that supports the wire electrode in a precise position, and a mechanism and function for controlling the voltage on the wire electrode by means of a numerical control. Furthermore, the wire EDM machine has the function of monitoring and controlling the state of the erosion or electrical discharge occurring between the wire electrode and the workpiece by means of the numerical control. Furthermore, the wire EDM machine is capable of machining the shaped profile into the workpiece by means of the wire electrode by issuing any movement command to the numerical control (see Laid-Open Patent Applications 1, 2, and 3). Disclosure document 1: unexamined utility model application with publication number JP H02- 107 429 A Disclosure document 2: unexamined utility model application with publication number JP H05- 9 830 A Disclosure document 3: Utility model application with publication number JP S58- 52 035 A

[0004] Furthermore, in this context, the published patent application JP 2012-51 108 A relates to a machining device for small holes by electrical discharge, the published patent application DE 10 2016 002 658 A1 relates to a machining system that can remove chips generated by machining, and the published patent application DE 10 2017 208 372 A1 relates to a wire spark erosion machining system. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0005] It has been known that efficient removal of machining waste (hereinafter referred to as "sludge") generated by wire EDM and gases generated by the machining fluid supplied to the EDM site of the wire electrode, which is electrolyzed by EDM from the EDM part, improves machining speed and machining accuracy. Furthermore, a structure has been known that carries out heat removal generated by EDM, stabilizes conductivity at the EDM site, and eliminates generated sludge and gases by providing a nozzle-shaped working fluid supply structure on the wire EDM machine and supplying the working fluid to the EDM site from a top and bottom surface of a workpiece.

[0006] Furthermore, as described in the above-mentioned Laid-Open Patent Publications 1 to 3, improvements in machining speed and machining accuracy have been attempted by exhausting the generated sludge and gases through a part of the working fluid supply structure or by an added suction mechanism.

[0007] However, since the efficiency of working fluid supply during EDM decreases in the suction method using a part of the working fluid supply structure, the machining speed and accuracy will decrease. Furthermore, in the method of adding a suction mechanism, the suction mechanism is fixed to a part of the wire EDM machine. Since moving or replacing the suction mechanism is difficult, flexible handling is difficult due to the diverse shapes of workpieces and the generation of slurry and gases that change according to the progress of EDM.

[0008] The present invention had as its object to provide a wire EDM machine which counteracts a decrease in machining speed and machining accuracy and is capable of flexibly handling the shapes of various workpieces and the generation of sludge and gases which change according to the progress of wire EDM.

[0009] According to a first aspect of the present invention, a wire electric discharge machining machine (for example, the wire electric discharge machining machine 1 described later) that causes a wire electrode (for example, the wire electrode 21 described later) and a workpiece (for example, the workpiece W described later) to move relatively and performs electrical discharge machining on the workpiece includes an articulated robot (for example, the robot 40 described later) and a suction mechanism (for example, the suction mechanism 50 described later) provided at a front end part (for example, the front wrist end 41 described later) of the articulated robot and suctions machining waste (for example, the sludge S described later) and gas (for example, the gas G described later) generated by wire electric discharge machining.

[0010] In accordance with a second aspect of the present invention, the wire electric discharge machining machine described in the first aspect may further comprise synchronous control means (for example, the robot controller 35 described later) that synchronizes the articulated robot with a movement of the wire electrode that moves relatively with respect to the workpiece.

[0011] According to a third aspect of the present invention, the wire electric discharge machining machine described in the first or second aspect may further comprise a main body (for example, the column 15 described later) that supports the wire electrode, wherein the articulated robot can be supported by the main body.

[0012] According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the wire electric discharge machining apparatus described in the first aspect, the wire electrode may be supported by an upper guide portion (for example, the upper guide portion 23 described later) and a lower guide portion (for example, the lower guide portion 25 described later), and the articulated robot may be capable of relatively moving the suction mechanism with respect to the upper guide portion.

[0013] In accordance with a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the wire electric discharge machine described in the first aspect, the articulated robot may be capable of moving the suction mechanism along the wire electrode.

[0014] According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the wire electric discharge machining machine described in the first aspect, the suction mechanism may include a suction part (for example, the suction part 51 described later) having a semicircular ring shape that sucks machining waste and gas generated by wire electric discharge machining.

[0015] According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the wire electric discharge machine described in the sixth aspect, the suction part may be arranged relative to the wire electrode on a side opposite to the machining direction of the workpiece by the wire electrode.

[0016] According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the wire electric discharge machine described in the first aspect, the suction mechanism includes a coupling mechanism (for example, the coupling mechanism 45 described later) disposed at the front end part (for example, the front wrist end 41 described later) of the articulated robot and detachably coupling the front end part of the articulated robot and a base (for example, the base 42 described later) of the articulated robot.

[0017] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a wire electric discharge machining machine that counteracts a decrease in machining speed and machining accuracy and is capable of flexibly handling the shapes of various workpieces and the generation of sludge and gases that change according to the progress of wire electric discharge machining. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Fig. 1 is a front outline view showing a wire electric discharge machine 1 in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 2 is a front view showing a state in which a suction part 51 at a front wrist end 41 of a robot 40 of a wire electric discharge machine 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention is at a position spaced apart from a wire electrode 21; Fig. 3 is a front view showing a state in which the suction part 51 is arranged at the front wrist end 41 of the robot 40 of the wire electric discharge machine 1 in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention in the vicinity of the wire electrode 21; Fig. 4 is a bottom outline view showing the suction part 51 at the front wrist end 41 of the robot 40 of the wire-cutting electric discharge machine 1 in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 5 is an outline view showing an aspect of the front wrist end 41 and the base 42 of the robot 40 of the wire-cutting electric discharge machine 1 in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention in the separated state; Fig. 6 is an enlarged view of a coupling mechanism 45 showing an aspect of the front wrist end 41 and the base 42 of the robot 40 of the wire-cutting electric discharge machine 1 in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention in a separated state; Fig. 7 is a schematic enlarged partial view of the coupling mechanism 45, showing an aspect of a rotational engagement member 452 of the front wrist end 41 and a rotational engagement member 462 of the base 42 of the robot 40 of the wire-cutting electric discharge machine 1 in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention in a rotated and end-to-end abutting state; Fig. 8 is a schematic enlarged partial view of the coupling mechanism 45 showing an aspect of the front wrist end 41 and the base 42 of the robot 40 of the wire-cutting electric discharge machine 1 in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention in the connected state; Fig. 9 is a schematic enlarged partial view of the coupling mechanism 45, showing an aspect of the rotation engagement member 452 of the front wrist end 41 and the rotation engagement member 462 of the base 42 being caused to rotate in a state where the front wrist end 41 and the base 42 of the robot 40 of the wire-cutting electric discharge machine 1 are connected in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 10 is a schematic enlarged partial view of the coupling mechanism 45 showing an aspect of the front wrist end 41 starting to separate in a rotated state of the rotational engagement member 452 of the front wrist end 41 and the rotational engagement member 462 of the base 42 of the robot 40 of the wire-cutting electric discharge machine 1 in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 11 is a schematic enlarged partial view of the coupling mechanism 45 showing an aspect of the front wrist end 41 and the base 42 of the robot 40 of the wire-cutting electric discharge machine 1 in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention in the separated state; Fig. 12 is a schematic partial sectional view showing an aspect of a workpiece W having a fixed thickness in the vertical direction, which is eroded by the wire electric discharge machine 1 in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 13 is a schematic partial sectional view showing an aspect of a thickness portion of a workpiece W in which the thickness in the vertical direction, which is partially different, is eroded by the wire electric discharge machine 1 in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 14 is a schematic partial sectional view showing an aspect of a thin portion of a workpiece W, in which the thickness partially differs in the vertical direction, being eroded by the wire electric discharge machine 1 in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention; and Fig. 15 is a front outline view showing a wire electric discharge machine 1a in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0018] Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the present invention will be explained. For the sake of simplicity of explanation, the upward direction is Fig. 1 is defined as vertically upwards, the opposite direction is defined as downwards, and these are defined as the vertical direction in the following explanation. In addition, a direction from a back side to the top side of the sheet plane is defined in Fig. 1 is defined as the machining direction of the workpiece (workpiece W). It should be noted that for the sake of simplicity of explanation, Fig. 1 and the Fig. 15, which will be described later, are illustrated as a state with the direction of the suction part 51 of the suction mechanism 50 of the robot 40 rotated by 90° around the wire electrode 21, and when actually carrying out the erosion, the suction part 51 can be made to correspond to the state shown in the later-described Fig. 12 to 14 shown direction.

[0019] The wire EDM machine 1 is a numerically controlled machine tool which carries out electrical erosion by means of the wire electrode 21 and, as shown in Fig. 1, includes a machine stand 11, a work tank 13, a column 15 as a main body, a workpiece placing table 17, a wire electrode 21, an upper guide part 23 and a lower guide part 25, a numerical controller 31, a servo motor 33, a robot controller 35, a recovery mechanism 37, a robot 40, and a suction mechanism 50.

[0020] The wire electrode 21 is installed at the upper end of the column 15 and is unwound from a wire spool 211 around which the wire electrode 21 is wound. A predetermined torque is applied to the wire spool 211 by an unillustrated partial feed torque motor in the opposite direction to the unwinding direction of the wire electrode 21. The wire electrode 21 unwound from the wire spool 211 is recovered at an unillustrated wire electrode recovery box by passing through a brake shoe driven by an unillustrated brake motor, the upper guide member 23, the lower guide member 25, and a lower guide roller and a feed roller (not illustrated).

[0021] The front view in Fig. The wire electrode 21 shown in FIG. 1 is supported by the upper guide part 23, which is arranged at the top of a work tank 13, supported by the column 15, and supplies the working fluid to the work tank 13, and the lower guide part 25, which is arranged at the bottom of the work tank 13, supported by the column 15, and supplies the working fluid to the work tank 13, and extends linearly between the upper guide part 23 and the lower guide part 25. This linearly extending wire electrode 21 forms an EDM part that machines the workpiece W and is immersed in the working fluid. The positions of the upper guide part 23 and the lower guide part 25, which support the wire electrode 21 of the wire EDM machine 1, are fixed or variable according to the shape of the workpiece W, the fixing method, and the program corresponding to the machining shape of the workpiece W.

[0022] A workpiece placement table 17, on which the workpiece W is placed, is provided in the work tank 13 on the machine frame 11. In an EDM area (an EDM part) between the upper guide part 23 and the lower guide part 25, the workpiece W, which serves as an unillustrated workpiece W that is the target of EDM, is placed on the workpiece placement table 17. The relative position between the wire electrode 21 and the workpiece placement table 17 is determined by control by means of the numerical controller 31 and the servo motor 33. A high-frequency voltage is applied to the wire electrode 21 from an unillustrated machining power source, thereby performing EDM on the workpiece W.

[0023] The robot 40 is configured as an articulated robot, which is mobile relative to the upper guide part 23 and the wire electrode 21. The base 42 of the robot 40 is supported by a fixture on the top of the column 15 together with the wire electrode 21 and is relatively mobile with respect to the workpiece W. The front wrist end 41 as the front end part of the robot 40 includes the suction mechanism 50. Therefore, the robot 40 is capable of relatively moving a suction part 51 of the suction mechanism 50, described later, with respect to the upper guide part 23 and is capable of moving the suction part 51 of the suction mechanism 50 along the wire electrode 21.More specifically, the robot 40 is capable of moving the suction part 51 in the vertical direction along the wire electrode 21, and the robot 40 is capable of moving the suction part 51 relative to the upper guide part 23 in the machining direction, opposite to the machining direction, and perpendicular to the machining direction.

[0024] For the robot 40, the posture and operation are controlled by the robot controller 35. The numerical controller 31 and the robot controller 35 are connected by wires or wirelessly, and by sharing information about the target to be controlled between the numerical controller 31 and the robot controller 35, the numerical controller 31 sequentially detects the position and posture of the robot 40 (the position and posture of the suction part 51 of the suction mechanism 50 at the front wrist end 41 of the robot 40), and the robot controller 35 sequentially detects the positions of the wire electrode 21 and the workpiece placement table 17. Then, the numerical controller 31 adjusts the positions of the upper guide part 23 and the lower guide part 25 that support the wire electrode 21 to match the position and posture of the suction part 51 of the suction mechanism 50 of the robot 40.

[0025] When the numerical controller 31 and the servo motor 33 of the wire electric discharge machine 1 place the workpiece placing table 17 in advance under control at the home position (machine home position), the suction mechanism 50 of the robot 40 is positioned or brought into contact with the wire electrode 21 extending between the upper guide part 23 and the lower guide part 25 with respect to the relative position of the suction mechanism 50 and the wire electrode 21 installed on the front wrist end 41 of the robot 40, and the current position is shared by storing in the numerical controller 31 or the robot controller 35.

[0026] The suction mechanism 50 has the suction part 51 including a plurality of nozzles 52 that can suck a gas G and liquid (machining fluid) or a powdered solid (slurry S, etc.) provided by the machining fluid supplied from the upper guide part 23 and the lower guide part 25 to the work tank 13 and electrolyzed by erosion. In the event that it is necessary to suck the slurry S and gas G, the suction part 51 of the suction mechanism 50 is positioned by the robot 40 near the upper guide part 23. Furthermore, the suction part 51 is formed with a shape surrounding the upper guide part 23, specifically, as shown in Fig. 4, having a substantially semi-annular shape, so that positioning of the suction nozzles 52 with which the suction mechanism 50 is equipped near the upper guide part 23 becomes possible without moving the upper guide part 23. For the suction part 51, a portion of the center point in the circumferential direction of the suction part 51 is connected to the later-described front end part 41 of the robot 40, and during EDM, the lower end of the upper guide part 23 is positioned at a gap 511 surrounded by the inner peripheral surface of the suction part 51, thereby establishing a positional relationship in which the lower end of the upper guide part 23 is surrounded by the suction part 51 and the wire electrode 21 is positioned in the gap 511 surrounded by the inner peripheral surface of the suction part 51, thereby establishing a positional relationship in which the wire electrode 21 is surrounded by the suction part 51.

[0027] The plurality of nozzles 52 are provided over the entire area on the lower side of the substantially semicircular suction part 51 and are, as shown in Fig. 1, is connected to the recovery mechanism 37 by a pipe member 55. The recovery mechanism 37 includes a mechanism and function for returning the sludge S and gas G absorbed by the nozzles 52 of the suction mechanism 50 to the wire-cutting electric discharge machine 1. The recovery mechanism 37 is wired or wirelessly connected to the numerical controller 31, and the pressure and flow rate at which the suction mechanism 50 connected to the pipe member 55 recovers the sludge S and gas G are controlled by the numerical controller 31.

[0028] As mentioned above, the positions of the upper guide member 23 and the lower guide member 25 supporting the wire electrode 21 of the EDM machine 1 are fixed or variable according to the shape of the workpiece W or the fixing method, and the program is in accordance with the shape to be machined on the workpiece W. According to the positions of the upper guide member 23 and the lower guide member 25, the relative position of the upper guide member 23 and the lower guide member 25 relative to the suction part 51 of the suction mechanism 50 is maintained by changing the posture of the robot 40.

[0029] The information related to the position and posture of the robot 40 and the suction mechanism 50 at the front wrist end 41 is stored in the numerical controller 31. The operator of the wire-cutting machine 1 is able to confirm the operation and operation trajectory of the robot 40 and the suction part 51 of the front wrist end 41 according to the shape of the workpiece to be machined by means of the display on the display 311 of the numerical controller 31.

[0030] The robot 40 includes the coupling mechanism 45, which detachably couples the front wrist end 41 of the articulated robot, and the base 42 of the articulated robot. Specifically, the front wrist end 41 of the robot 40 is detachable relative to the base 42 of the robot 40.The base end of the front wrist end 41 and the front end of the base 42 each have projections 451, 461; rotational engagement members 454, 464 serving as guides on a male side; rotational engagement member engagement spaces 4532, 4632 allowing insertion of the rotational engagement members 452, 462, whereby the rotational engagement members 452, 462 are rotatable; projection receiving spaces 4531, 4631 serving as guides on a female side capable of receiving the projections 451, 461; release rods 454, 464 causing the rotational engagement members 452, 462 to rotate; and return springs 456, 466 which bias the release rods 454, 464 in a direction which returns the rotational engagement elements 452, 462 to the starting position.

[0031] As in the Fig. 6 etc., the projection 451 of the front wrist end 41 projects toward the base 42, and when the front wrist end 41 is connected to the base 42, this is, as shown in Fig. 8, in the projection receiving space 4631 of an engaged part. In addition, the projection 461 of the base 42 projects toward the front wrist end 41, and when the front wrist end 41, as shown in Fig. 8, is connected to the base 42, this is, as shown in Fig. 8, in a projection receiving space 4531 of the engaged part.

[0032] The rotational engagement element 452 of the front wrist end 41 is rotatably supported by the front wrist end 41. The cross-sectional shape viewed in the direction of the rotational axis of the rotational engagement element 452 is as shown in the Fig. 6, etc., is semicircular and is received in the rotary engagement element engagement space 4532, which has a semicircular shape with a radius slightly larger than the rotary engagement element 452 in the same viewing direction. One end of the release rod 454 is connected to the rotary engagement element 452, and the release rod 454 is biased by the return spring 456 formed by a compression spring, whereby the rotary engagement element 452 is received in the rotary engagement element engagement space 4532 in a positional relationship rotated on the order of approximately 45° relative to the rotary engagement element engagement space 4532 (see Fig. 6). The state of the rotational engagement element 452 thus received is the initial state of the rotational engagement element 452.

[0033] The rotational engagement element 462 of the base 42 is rotatably supported by the base 42. The cross-sectional shape, viewed in the direction of the rotational axis of the rotational engagement element 462, is semicircular and is received in the rotational engagement element engagement space 4632, which has a semicircular shape with a radius slightly larger than the rotational engagement element 462 in the same viewing direction. The release rod 464 is connected to the rotational engagement element 462, and the release rod 464 is biased by a return spring 466 formed by a compression spring, whereby the rotational engagement element 462 is received in the rotational engagement element engagement space 4632 in a positional relationship rotated on the order of approximately 45° relative to the rotational engagement element engagement space 4632 (see Fig. 6). The state of the rotational engagement element 462 thus received is the initial state of the rotational engagement element 462.

[0034] As in Fig. As shown in Figure 9, the other end portion of the release rods 464, 454 may be connected to a pneumatic cylinder Cy, and the operator of the wire-cutting machine 1 may operate it by means of his hand H. By pulling the other end portion of the release rods 454, 464, the rotational engagement members 452, 462 rotate to assume a positional relationship that corresponds in rotational direction to the rotational engagement member engagement spaces 4532, 4632. In accordance with the biasing force by the return springs 456, 466, the rotational engagement members 452, 462 rotate to return to the initial state.

[0035] Hereinafter, the coupling between the front wrist end 41 of the robot 40 and the base 42 of the robot 40 and the separation process will be described. When the front wrist end 41 of the robot 40 and the base 42 of the robot 40 are coupled as shown in Fig. 6, and the rotation engagement elements 452, 462 are at the home position, the front wrist end 41 and the base 42 of the robot 40 are brought closer to each other. Then, the projection 451 of the front wrist end 41, as shown in Fig. 7, is inserted into the projection receiving space 4631 of the base 42, just as the projection 461 of the base 42 is inserted into the projection receiving space 4531 of the front wrist end 41. When this is done, the rotational engagement element 452 of the front wrist end 41 and the rotational engagement element 462 of the base 42 abut against each other, whereby each rotates to reach a state in which sides or surfaces forming the diameter of the rotational engagement elements 452, 462, as shown in Fig. 7, lie against each other on the sides.

[0036] Furthermore, it is caused that the front wrist end 41 and the base 42 of the robot 40, as in Fig. 8, approach each other, the rotational engagement elements 452, 462 of the front wrist end 41 and the base 42 rotate, with a portion of the rotational engagement element 452 of the front wrist end 41 engaging by entering the rotational engagement element engagement space 4632 of the base 42, and a portion of the rotational engagement element 462 of the base 42 engaging by entering the rotational engagement element engagement space 4532 of the front wrist end 41. The front wrist end 41 of the robot 40 is thereby coupled and secured to the base 42 of the robot 40.

[0037] Next, as in Fig. 8, to establish a separated state from the state in which the front wrist end 41 of the robot 40 is coupled to the base 42 of the robot 40, first, the pneumatic cylinder Cy is connected to the other end of the release rod 464 of the base 42 of the robot 40, as shown in Fig. 9, via a triangular lever member K. Then, the pneumatic cylinder Cy is driven to pull the release rod 464 of the base 42 from the robot 40, just as the release rod 454 of the front wrist end 41 of the robot 40 is pulled by the hand H of the operator of the wire-cutting machine 1. Thereby, the entire rotation engagement member 452 of the front wrist end 41 enters a state of entering the rotation engagement member engagement space 4532 of the front wrist end 41, and the entire rotation engagement member 462 of the base 42 enters a state of entering the rotation engagement member engagement space 4632 of the base 42. As a result, it enters a state that allows the front wrist end 41 of the robot 40 to move away from the base 42 of the robot 40.

[0038] Next, the front wrist end 41 of the robot 40 moves away, as shown in Fig. 10, from the base 42 of the robot 40 and enters a state in which the rotation engagement element 452 of the front wrist end 41 of the robot 40 and the rotation engagement element 462 of the base 42 of the robot 40, as shown in Fig. 11, do not abut each other, and further enters a state in which the projection 451 of the base 42 is removed from the projection receiving space 4531 of the front wrist end 41, and the projection 451 of the front wrist end 41 is removed from the projection receiving space 4631 of the base 42. The release rods 454, 464 are thereby returned by the biasing force of the return springs 456, 466, and the rotational engagement members 452, 462 rotate to return to the initial state.

[0039] Next, the EDM on the workpiece W by the wire EDM machine 1 will be explained. When performing EDM on a workpiece W with a constant thickness in the vertical direction, the workpiece placing table 17 is set as shown in Fig. 12, caused to move so that the workpiece W moves relative to the wire electrode 21 to the right direction in Fig. 12. In other words, the machining direction of the workpiece W is the direction from left to right in Fig. 12, and the workpiece W is machined in this direction relative to the wire electrode 21.

[0040] In this case, the suction part 51 is arranged relative to the wire electrode 21 on the opposite side to the machining direction by the wire electrode 21 of the workpiece W, that is, the side shown in Fig. 12 left side relative to the wire electrode 21, and an opening part of the suction part 51 having a substantially semicircular shape (portion on the left side of the in Fig. 4) is arranged in a state facing the right side. The sludge S generated by the erosion is absorbed in the machining fluid together with the gas G generated by the machining fluid supplied from the upper guide part 23 and the lower guide part 25 to the work tank 13 (see Fig. 1) and is electrolyzed by erosion, and becomes the Fig. 12 shown machining direction (left side of the wire electrode 21); however, such sludge S and gas G are sucked out by the nozzle 52 of the suction part 51 and recovered in the recovery mechanism 37 (see Fig. 1). In the recovery mechanism 37, the working fluid is filtered and fed back to the upper guide part 23 and the lower guide part 25 via a pipe element not shown.

[0041] When performing electrical discharge machining on a workpiece W in which the thickness in the vertical direction has a thick portion and a thin portion, the suction part 51 is arranged on the same side relative to the wire electrode 21 in the machining direction of the workpiece W through the wire electrode 21. In other words, the Fig. 13 and Fig. 14, that the workpiece W is in relation to the wire electrode 21 relative to the Fig. 12 shown direction in the opposite direction; however, the suction part 51 is relative to the wire electrode 21 on the same side as the machining direction of the workpiece W by the wire electrode 21, that is, the relative to the wire electrode 21 in Fig. 13, the left side, and the opening part of the suction part 51 having a substantially semicircular shape is arranged in a right-facing state.

[0042] When as in Fig. 14 shown machining of the section with the low thickness in the vertical direction is then carried out according to the method as shown in Fig. 13, the suction part 51 is caused to move downward along the wire electrode 21 by the robot 40 to be located at a position near the upper surface of the workpiece W and to suck the slurry S and gas G from the nozzles 52 of the suction part 51 with good efficiency.

[0043] According to the present embodiment, the wire electric discharge machine 1, which performs electric discharge machining on the workpiece W by causing the wire electrode 21 and the workpiece W as a workpiece to move relative to each other in the above manner, includes the robot 40 and the suction mechanism 50 provided at the front wrist end 41 of the robot 40, and sucks the machining waste (sludge S) and the gas G generated by the electric discharge machining.

[0044] By changing the position of the suction part 51 of the suction mechanism 50 through the operation of the robot 40 according to the shape of the workpiece W and the progress of the erosion, it becomes possible to flexibly handle the sludge S and the gas G that are generated from the workpiece W during the erosion and that vary according to the progress of the erosion, and to efficiently suck the sludge S and the gas G, thereby achieving improvements in the machining speed and machining precision of the workpiece W.

[0045] Furthermore, when discharging the sludge S and the gas G from the vicinity of the wire electrode 21, which is the EDM part, it becomes possible to perform the discharge by suctioning the sludge S and the gas G via the suction mechanism 50 of the robot 40, which, unlike the conventional method, is not dependent on the pressure and flow rate of the working fluid from the upper guide part 23 and the lower guide part 25. Thus, improving the efficiency of the wire EDM machine becomes possible by promoting the discharge of the sludge S and the gas G from the EDM part, and thus increasing the machining speed becomes possible.

[0046] Furthermore, the wire-cutting machine 1 includes the column 15 as the main body supporting the wire electrode 21, and the robot 40 is supported by the column 15. Since the column 15 and the wire electrode 21, like the robot 41, move together relatively with respect to the workpiece W, it is possible to eliminate the need for the robot 40 to perform control that synchronizes the suction part 51 of the suction mechanism 50 from the front wrist end 41 of the robot 40 with the wire electrode 21.

[0047] In addition, the wire electrode 21 is supported by the upper guide part 23 and the lower guide part 25, and the robot 40 can relatively move the suction mechanism 50 with respect to the upper guide part 23.

[0048] In the case of a design that also mounts the suction mechanism part for discharging the slurry S and gas G near the upper guide part in the conventional manner, the additional fixed suction mechanism part is located near the upper guide part. Therefore, in the preparatory work called "planning," which manually or automatically registers the position of the workpiece W in the numerical control system of the wire-cutting machine using various measuring tools, the efficiency of the "planning work" decreases because bringing the various measuring tools close to the workpiece W becomes an obstacle.

[0049] In contrast, in the present embodiment, by changing the posture of the robot 40, it is easy to keep the suction part 51 of the suction mechanism 50, which is installed at the front wrist end 41 of the robot 40 relatively movable with respect to the upper guide part 23, at a distance from the vicinity of the upper guide part 23, etc.; thus, preparation similar to that of a wire-cutting electric discharge machine without the suction mechanism 50 is enabled during the "planning work."

[0050] In addition, in the case of a conventional construction in which a suction mechanism part for discharging the sludge S and the gas G is attached near the upper guide, when the wire electrode 21 is clamped on the wire electric discharge machine 1 by the operator of the wire electric discharge machine and the upper guide part 23 is maintained, there is a concern that the additionally attached suction mechanism part and the pipe member connected to the suction mechanism part become an obstacle.

[0051] On the other hand, in the present embodiment, since it becomes easy to keep the suction part 51 of the suction mechanism 50 installed at a distance from the vicinity of the upper guide part 23 at the front wrist end 41 of the robot 40 by changing the posture of the robot 40, similarly to a wire electric discharge machine without a suction mechanism part, clamping of the wire electrode 21 and maintenance of the upper guide part 23 become possible.

[0052] In addition, the robot 40 is capable of moving the suction mechanism 50 along the wire electrode 21. In the case of an embodiment in which a suction mechanism part for discharging sludge S and gas G is additionally attached in the vicinity of the upper guide part in a conventional manner, and in the case that the shape of the workpiece W is as shown in the Fig. 13 and Fig. 14 changes in the direction of the plate thickness, it is not possible to bring the suction mechanism part close to a portion of a small plate thickness, which is an EDM part, which is a portion that machines the workpiece W by means of the wire electrode.

[0053] On the other hand, in the present embodiment, since positioning of the suction part 51 of the suction mechanism 50 is performed by the robot 40, it is possible to bring the suction part 51 of the suction mechanism 50 close to the discharge part by changing the posture of the robot 40, even if the shape of the workpiece W varies in the direction of the plate thickness. For this reason, even if the shape of the workpiece W varies in the direction of the plate thickness during discharge machining, by moving the suction part 51 of the suction mechanism 50 along the wire electrode 21, the suction part 51 of the suction mechanism 50 is positioned near the discharge part (near the thin plate thickness portion of the workpiece W), thus enabling suction of slurry S and gas G from the discharge part.

[0054] Furthermore, the suction mechanism 50 includes the suction part 51 having a semicircular shape and sucks the sludge S and the gas G generated by the erosion. This makes it possible to arrange the suction part 51 in a positional relationship surrounding the wire electrode 21 and to arrange it at a position spaced apart from the wire electrode 21.

[0055] Furthermore, the suction part 51 is arranged relative to the wire electrode 21 on a side opposite to the machining direction of the workpiece W by the wire electrode 21. This makes it possible to suction the gas G and the sludge S, which are mainly generated on the side opposite to the machining direction of the workpiece W, with high efficiency through the suction part 51 of the suction mechanism 50.

[0056] In addition, the suction mechanism 50 has the coupling mechanism 45 which is arranged at the front wrist end 41 of the robot 40 and detachably couples the front wrist end 41 of the robot 40 and the base 42 of the robot 40.

[0057] In the case of a construction having a suction mechanism part additionally fixed near the upper guide part for discharging sludge S and gas G in a conventional manner, changing the shape of the additionally fixed suction mechanism part is very difficult, and in the case that the upper surface of the workpiece W is not smooth, suction of sludge S and gas G with good efficiency was impossible.

[0058] On the other hand, in the present embodiment, as long as it is detected that there is a portion of the workpiece W where the upper surface is not smooth, or a part of the upper surface is not smooth, it is possible, when preparing the front wrist end 41 of the robot 40 including the suction part 51 of the suction mechanism 50 which is previously adapted to a shape that is not smooth, to remove and change the front wrist end 41 of the robot 40 to adapt it to the shape of the upper surface of the workpiece W. This enables suction of sludge S and gas G with good efficiency.

[0059] Next, a wire electric discharge machine 1A in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Fig. 15. The wire electric discharge machine 1A according to the second embodiment differs from the wire electric discharge machine 1 according to the first embodiment in that the base 42 of the robot 40 is not fixed to the column 15 but is instead fixed to the workpiece placement table 17A. Accompanying this, the control of the robot controller 35 in the robot 40 also differs. Since other configurations are similar to those of the wire electric discharge machine 1 according to the first embodiment, the same reference numerals are applied to configurations similar to the respective configurations of the first embodiment, and explanations thereof will be omitted.

[0060] As in Fig. 15, the base 42 of the robot 40 is not fixed to the column 15, but is instead fixed to the workpiece placement table 17A. For this reason, the base 42 of the robot 40 moves relatively with respect to the wire electrode 21 together with the workpiece W and the workpiece placement table 17A supporting the workpiece W. The robot controller 35 as synchronization control means executes control to synchronize the suction part 51 of the front wrist end 41 of the robot 40 with the movement of the wire electrode 21, which moves relatively with respect to the workpiece W serving as the workpiece, and sets the positional relationship of the suction part 51 relative to the wire electrode 21 as shown in Fig. 14 shown here.

[0061] Even in the case where the base 42 of the robot 40 does not move integrally with respect to the EDM part, which is a portion of the wire electrode 21 that performs EDM on the workpiece W, with such a construction, the efficient suction of sludge S or gas G becomes possible by disposing the suction part 51 of the suction mechanism 50 at a suitable position near the wire electrode 21 during EDM.

[0062] Although embodiments of the present invention have been explained above, the present invention is not limited to the aforementioned embodiments. Furthermore, the effects described in the present embodiment merely enumerate the most preferable effects produced by the present invention, and the effects according to the present invention are not limited to those described in the present embodiment.

[0063] For example, the configurations of each part of the wire-cutting machine are not limited to the configurations of each part of the wire-cutting machine 1, 1A of the present embodiment. For example, in particular, the configuration of the suction mechanism is not limited to the suction mechanism 50 of the present embodiment. Furthermore, the portion of the robot 40 to which the base 42 is attached is not limited to the column 15 or the workpiece placement table 17. Furthermore, the configuration of the coupling mechanism is not limited to the configuration of the coupling mechanism 45 of the present embodiment. Furthermore, the clamping of the release rod 464 of the base 42 of the robot 40 by driving the pneumatic cylinder Cy and the clamping of the release rod 454 of the front wrist end 41 of the robot 40 by the hand H of the operator of the wire-cutting machine 1 are not limited to this.For example, the release rod 464 of the base 42 of the robot 40 may be tightened by the operator's hand H, or the release rod 454 of the front wrist end 41 of the robot 40 may be tightened by driving the pneumatic cylinder Cy. EXPLANATION OF REFERENCE SYMBOLS 1 wire EDM machine 15 Column (main body) 23 upper guide part 25 lower guide part 35 Robot control (synchronization control means) 40 robots (articulated robots) 41 front wrist end (front end part) 42 Base 45 Coupling mechanism 50 Suction mechanism 51 Suction part G Gas S Sludge (processing waste) W Workpiece (workpiece)

Claims

[1] A wire-cutting machine (1, 1A) that causes a wire electrode (21) and a workpiece (W) to move relative to each other and performs erosion on the workpiece (W), the wire-cutting machine (1, 1A) comprising: an articulated robot (40); and a suction mechanism (50) provided at a front end part (41) of the articulated robot (40) and sucking machining waste (S) and gas (G) generated by erosion, wherein the suction mechanism (50) comprises a coupling mechanism (40) which is arranged at the front end part (41) of the articulated robot (40) and which detachably couples the front end part (41) of the articulated robot (40) and a base (42) of the articulated robot (40). [2] A wire electric discharge machining machine (1, 1A) according to claim 1, further comprising synchronous control means (35) that synchronizes the articulated robot (40) with a movement of the wire electrode (21) moving relatively with respect to the workpiece (W). [3] A wire electric discharge machine (1, 1A) according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a main body (15) supporting the wire electrode (21), wherein the articulated robot (40) is supported by the main body (15). [4] Wire EDM machine (1, 1A) according to claim 1, in which the wire electrode (21) is supported by an upper guide part (23) and a lower guide part (25), and in which the articulated robot (40) can move the suction mechanism (50) relatively with respect to the upper guide part (23). [5] Wire EDM machine (1, 1A) according to claim 1, wherein the articulated robot (40) can move the suction mechanism (50) along the wire electrode (21). [6] Wire electrical discharge machining machine (1, 1A) according to claim 1, wherein the suction mechanism (50) has a suction part (51) with a semicircular ring shape, and which sucks machining waste (S) and gas (G) generated by wire electrical discharge machining. [7] Wire electrical discharge machining machine (1, 1A) according to claim 6, wherein the suction part (51) is arranged relative to the wire electrode (21) on a side opposite to a machining direction of the workpiece (W) by the wire electrode (21).

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