PUNCHING PRESS SYSTEM

Abstract

Punching press system comprising: a matrix that includes: an upper portion (104) including one or more first features; a lower portion (112) including one or more second features complementary to the first features; and optical sensors (312) designed to measure directions and distances of movement; Electric motors (120) designed to comprise at least one of: vertically lowering the upper section (104) towards the lower section (112); and vertically raising the lower section (112) towards the upper section (104); and a motor control module (124) configured to control the application of power to the electric motors (120), characterized in that the lower portion (112) includes openings at locations on outer edges of a substrate (304) to be punched, wherein the optical sensors (312) are each arranged within the openings of the lower section (112) and are designed to measure the movement directions and the movement distances inward of the outer edges of the substrate (304) at the locations during punching, wherein the punch press system further comprises an infeed module (512) configured to generate a card (516) based on the movement directions and / or the movement distances.

Description

INTRODUCTION

[0001] The invention relates to a punching press system.

[0002] The present disclosure relates to machine presses (punching presses) and dies, and more particularly to systems and methods for measuring material draw-in during punching.

[0003] Punch presses can be used in many different industries. For example, a punch press can be used in metalworking to form or cut metal by deforming the metal with the upper and lower parts of a die. The metal is positioned between the upper and lower parts of the die, which have female and male sections. One or both of the upper and lower parts of the die are moved toward each other to deform the metal into the shape of the upper and lower parts of the die.

[0004] A clamping platen can be mounted on top of a press table. A lower section of the die can be attached to the clamping platen. In this example, an upper section of the die is attached to a ram, with the upper section of the die moving toward the lower section and the lower section being fixed.

[0005] For example, the document DE 10 2011 110 597 A1 discloses a punching press system according to the preamble of claim 1. The document DE 10 2019 205 464 B3 discloses a similar system.

[0006] It is an object of the invention to provide a punch press system with which punched substrates with improved properties, such as aesthetic and structural properties, can be produced.

[0007] This object is achieved according to the invention by a punching press system having the features of claim 1. Advantageous further developments emerge from the subclaims. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0008] The present disclosure will become more fully understood from the detailed description and the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an exemplary punch press; Fig. Figure 2 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a portion of the upper and lower portions of the die of a punch press; Fig. 3 includes a cross-sectional view of a portion of the upper and lower portions of the die of a punch press; Fig. 4 is an exploded perspective view of an exemplary implementation of a feed sensor of a lower portion of a die; Fig. 5 includes a functional block diagram of an exemplary die alignment system; and Fig. 6 includes an exemplary collection card.

[0009] Reference symbols may be reused in the drawings to identify similar and / or identical elements. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0010] The upper and lower sections of a die used in a stamping press have complementary shapes. For example, the lower section of the die may have a male projection that extends upward toward the upper section of the die. The upper section of the die may have a female-shaped recess into which the male projection is intended to extend. The upper and lower sections of the die may be aligned in a costly and time-consuming process by a die manufacturer to prevent the lower section of the die from contacting the upper section of the die at one or more locations.

[0011] The present application involves the lower portion of the die (or the upper portion) incorporating feed sensors designed to determine the feed distances and directions of a substrate (e.g., a sheet metal) during punching. Adjustment of the upper and / or lower portion of the die can be automatically triggered based on balancing the measured feed values across the substrate. This results in the punched substrate having improved properties, such as aesthetic and structural characteristics.

[0012] Fig. 1 is a side perspective view of an exemplary punch press. An upper portion 104 of a die is mounted to an upper portion 108 of the punch press. A lower portion 112 of the die is mounted to a lower portion 116 of the punch press. In this example, the upper portion 108 of the punch press (and thus the upper portion 104 of the die) moves vertically up and down.

[0013] The upper and lower sections 104 and 112 of the die punch a substrate (e.g., sheet metal) into a shape of the upper and lower sections 104 and 112 of the die when the upper section 104 of the die is moved (vertically lowered) toward the lower section 112 of the die. Although the example of movement of the upper section 104 is provided, the lower section 112 may alternatively be vertically movable, or both the upper and lower sections 104 and 112 may be movable.

[0014] However, the upper and lower portions of the die 104 and 112 should not come into direct contact with each other through the substrate. The upper and lower portions 104 and 112 of the die are initially positioned so that a predetermined gap (e.g., the same distance) exists evenly across the surfaces between the upper and lower portions 104 and 112 of the die. However, over time, such as through stamping substrates, the upper and / or lower portions 104 and 112 may move. If the upper and lower portions 104 and 112 move to touch at one or more locations, bending and / or damage to one or more components, such as the die and / or the stamping press, may occur. Stamping the substrate causes the outer edges of the substrate to move inward (retract) while portions of the substrate are translated vertically up and / or down.

[0015] A plurality of electric motors 120 control the vertical movement. As discussed further below, the operation of the electric motors 120 can be controlled by a motor control module 124 based on compensating for substrate retraction during die-cutting of a substrate at multiple (e.g., all) locations above the upper and lower sections 104 and 112.

[0016] Fig. 2 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a portion of the upper and lower portions 104 and 112 of the die. The upper portion 104 may include one or more concave features, such as 204. The lower portion 112 may include one or more convex features, such as 208, each configured to extend into concave features of the upper portion 104. The upper portion 104 may include one or more convex features, such as 212. The lower portion 112 may include one or more concave features, such as 216, each configured to extend into convex features of the upper portion 104. Generally speaking, the upper portion 104 includes first features, and the lower portion 112 includes second features complementary to the first features.

[0017] However, if the upper and lower sections 104 and 112 are not properly aligned or move vertically faster in one location than in other locations, one or more sections of the upper section 104 may come into contact with one or more sections of the lower section 112, as in the example of Fig. 2. The feed distance and / or speed of the substrate during punching may also differ at one or more different locations.

[0018] Fig. 3 includes a top perspective view of a lower portion 112 of the die. An exemplary substrate 304 (e.g., sheet metal) to be punched is illustrated.

[0019] The substrate 304 includes outer edges 308 that form an outer perimeter of the substrate 304. The pull-in sensors 312 are disposed in the lower portion 112 of the die at locations below the outer edges 308 of the substrate. Although the example of four pull-in sensors disposed around the top and bottom outer edges of the substrate 304 and three pull-in sensors disposed around the right and left outer edges of the substrate 304 is provided, any other suitable number and / or arrangement of pull-in sensors may be used. Additionally, although the example of a rectangular substrate is provided, the present application is also applicable to substrates with other shapes. In various implementations, one or more pull-in sensors may be disposed around the outer edges of one or more openings in the substrate 304.Although the example of the feed sensors 312 disposed in the lower portion 112 of the die is discussed herein, some or all of the feed sensors 312 may be disposed in the upper portion 104 of the die.

[0020] Fig. Figure 4 is an exploded perspective view of an exemplary implementation of one of the feed sensors 312 (e.g., a sensor module). Each of the feed sensors 312 may be the same.

[0021] The retraction sensor 312 includes a female connector 404 and a wire 408 connected to electrically conductive pins of the female connector 404. A nut can connect the female connector 404 to a socket 416. A connector 420 includes first electrically conductive pins 424 that extend through the socket and contact the pins of the female connector 404.

[0022] The connector 420 also includes second electrically conductive pins 428, each electrically connected to electrical conductors of a circuit board 432, such as a printed circuit board (PCB). One or more signal processing modules and other types of modules may be implemented on the circuit board 432 and configured to determine, based on signals from an optical sensor 436, a direction of movement (inward) of the outer edge of the substrate at the feed sensor location, a distance of movement of the outer edge at the location, a speed of movement of the outer edge at the location, and an acceleration of the edge at the location. A distance and direction module may determine the direction and distance of movement based on the signals from the optical sensor 436.A velocity module can determine the speed of motion based on a change in distance over time, such as by determining a mathematical derivative of the distance or dividing two distances by a period between the measurements of the two distances. An acceleration module can determine the acceleration of motion based on a change in velocity over time, such as by determining a mathematical derivative of the velocity or dividing two velocities by a period between the two determined velocities.

[0023] The circuit board 432 and the modules on the circuit board 432 can be encased in a resin or other suitable type of material in various designs. The resin can dampen vibrations and perform one or more other functions. The optical sensor 436 can include an optical (e.g., laser) transmitter and an optical receiver. The optical receiver is configured to generate the signals based on the light reflected from the transmitter back to the optical receiver. A drive module on the circuit board 432 can drive the optical transmitter to output light.

[0024] The circuit board 432 may be disposed within a housing 444. The housing 444 may be secured to the vertically lower side of the lower portion 112 of the die via one or more fasteners 440, such as screws. One or more fasteners 448, such as screws, may secure the circuit board 432 and the optical sensor 436 to the housing 444.

[0025] The optical transmitter may transmit light through a lens 452, and the optical receiver may receive light through the lens 452. The lens 452 may be configured not to alter the light flux from the optical transmitter or to the optical receiver, and it may be transparent. A seal 456 may be disposed between the lens 452 and the optical sensor 436 and may prevent liquid and / or solids from coming into contact with the optical sensor 436.

[0026] A film 460 may protect an outer surface of the lens 452 from contact with, for example, liquid or solid materials. A film carrier 464 may be provided to support the film. The film 460 covers an opening 468 through a top plate 472 of the feed sensor 312. The light emitted by the optical transmitter passes through the lens 452, the film 460, and the opening 468. The light returns to the optical receiver through the opening 468, the film 460, and the lens 452.

[0027] An upper surface 476 is flush with an upper surface of the lower portion 112 of the die. One or more fasteners 480, such as one or more screws, secure the upper plate 472 of the feed sensor 312 to the upper surface of the lower portion 112.

[0028] An O-ring 484 or other suitable type of seal may be disposed between one end of the housing 444 and a shoulder of the socket 416, for example, to prevent fluid flow to the circuit board 432.

[0029] While an exemplary form factor of the retractable sensor and mount is provided, the present application is also applicable to other form factors and mounting to the lower portion 112. For example, the housing 444 may be cylindrical and include threads on an outer diameter of the housing 444. The threads on the outer diameter of the housing may engage the threads on the inner diameters of the cylindrical bores through the lower portion 112.

[0030] Fig. 5 includes a functional block diagram of an exemplary die alignment system. The lower portion 112 (and / or the upper portion) of the die includes a plurality of the feed sensors 312.

[0031] The punch press may include a communications module 504 that receives the feed measurements (e.g., distance, direction, speed, acceleration) 508 measured by the feed sensors 312. The communications module 504 transmits the feed measurements 508 to a feed module 512. For example, the communications module 504 may transmit the feed measurements 508 wirelessly via one or more antennas.

[0032] The feed module 512 may generate a feed map 516 based on one or more of the feed measurements 508 and the positions of the associated feed sensors 312. The feed map 516 may, for example, include the feed directions and distances 508 at the coordinates of the respective feed sensors 312. The feed module 512 may, for example, interpolate feed measurements between locations. An example map is provided in Fig. 6. In the example of Fig. 6, arrows can indicate the retraction directions. The length of the arrow can correspond to the retracted distance, which, for example, increases with increasing distance and vice versa.

[0033] One or more actions may be performed based on one or more of the retraction measurements 508 and / or the map 516. For example, the motor control module 124 may compare the retraction distances and control the application of power to one or more of the electric motors 120 based on adjusting the distances to be within a predetermined range of each other. This may include, for example, increasing the speed of an electric motor if a retraction distance near that motor is greater than one or more other of the retraction distances 508 during punching. As another example, the motor control module 124 may decrease the speed of an electric motor if a retraction distance near that motor is less than one or more other of the retraction distances 508 during punching.In other words, the motor control module 124 may control the electric motors 120 based on reaching the card having the same feed distances, speeds, and accelerations at each feed sensor.

[0034] As another example of an action, an error module 520 may identify the presence of an error based on the feed distances and / or the card 516. For example, the error module 520 may identify the presence of an error if one of the distances during punching is greater or less than the other distances (e.g., an average) by at least a predetermined amount. As another example, the error module 520 may indicate the presence of an error if the card includes a value (e.g., speed) at one or more locations that differs from the value (e.g., speed) at the other locations on the card 516 by at least a predetermined amount.

[0035] The fault module 520 may visually or audibly indicate the presence of a fault via one or more output devices 524, such as a display, a light / lamp, a speaker, or other suitable type of device that emits sound and / or light. The fault module 520 may additionally or alternatively indicate the presence of a fault to the motor control module 124. If a fault is present, the motor control module 124 may de-power the electric motors 120 (disable the electric motors 120) and stop the punching and vertical movement of the one or more sections of the die.

[0036] Although each of the embodiments described above includes certain features, one or more of those features described with respect to any embodiment of the disclosure may be implemented in any other embodiment and / or combined with features of any other embodiment, even if that combination is not explicitly described. In other words, the described embodiments are not mutually exclusive, and an exchange of one or more embodiments for one another remains within the scope of this disclosure.

[0037] Spatial and functional relationships between elements (e.g., between modules, circuit elements, semiconductor layers, etc.) are described using various terms, including "connected," "engaging," "coupled," "adjacent," "adjacent," "on top of," "above," "below," and "disposed." If a relationship between first and second elements is not explicitly described as "direct" in the above disclosure, that relationship may be a direct relationship, with no other intervening elements between the first and second elements, or an indirect relationship, with one or more intervening elements (either spatial or functional) between the first and second elements.As used herein, the term "A, B and / or C" should be construed as logical (A ORed with B ORed with C) using a non-exclusive logical OR and should not be understood as "at least one of A, at least one of B and at least one of C".

[0038] In the figures, the direction of an arrow, as indicated by the arrowhead, generally illustrates the flow of information (such as data or instructions) of interest to the illustration. For example, if element A and element B exchange a variety of information, but the information passed from element A to element B is relevant to the illustration, the arrow may point from element A to element B. This unidirectional arrow does not imply that no other information is passed from element B to element A. Furthermore, for information passed from element A to element B, element B may send requests or acknowledgments for the information to element A.

[0039] In this application, including the definitions below, the term "module" or the term "controller" may be replaced by the term "circuit".The term “module” may refer to, be a part of, or include an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC); a digital, analog, or mixed analog / digital discrete circuit; a digital, analog, or mixed analog / digital integrated circuit; a combinational logic circuit; a field-programmable gate array (FPGA); processor circuitry (shared, dedicated, or grouped) that executes code; memory circuitry (shared, dedicated, or grouped) that stores code executed by the processor; other suitable hardware components that provide the described functionality; or a combination of some or all of the foregoing, such as in a system on a chip.

[0040] The module may include one or more interface circuits. In some examples, the interface circuits may include wired or wireless interfaces connected to a local area network (LAN), the Internet, a wide area network (WAN), or combinations thereof. The functionality of any given module of the present disclosure may be distributed among multiple modules connected via interface circuits. For example, multiple modules may enable load balancing. In another example, a server module (also referred to as a remote or cloud module) may perform some functions on behalf of a client module.

[0041] The term code, as used above, may include software, firmware, and / or microcode and may refer to programs, routines, functions, classes, data structures, and / or objects. The term common processor circuit includes a single processor circuit that executes code from multiple modules, in part or in whole. The term group processor circuit includes a processor circuit that, in combination with additional processor circuits, executes code from one or more modules, in part or in whole. References to multiple processor circuits include multiple processor circuits on discrete chips, multiple processor circuits on a single chip, multiple cores of a single processor circuit, multiple threads of a single processor circuit, or a combination thereof. The term shared memory circuit includes a single memory circuit that stores code from multiple modules, in part or in whole.The term group memory circuit includes a memory circuit that, in combination with additional memories, stores code from one or more modules in part or in whole.

[0042] The term memory circuit is a subset of the term computer-readable medium. As used herein, the term computer-readable medium does not include transient electrical or electromagnetic signals propagating through a medium (e.g., on a carrier wave); the term computer-readable medium can therefore be considered tangible and non-transitory. Non-limiting examples of a non-transitory, tangible, computer-readable medium include non-volatile memory circuits (e.g., a flash memory circuit, an erasable programmable read-only memory circuit, or a mask read-only memory circuit), volatile memory circuits (e.g., a static random access memory circuit or a dynamic random access memory circuit), magnetic storage media (e.g., an analog or digital magnetic tape or a hard disk drive), and optical storage media (e.g., a CD, a DVD, or a Blu-ray Disc).

[0043] The devices and methods described in this application may be implemented in part or in full by a special-purpose computer created by configuring a general-purpose computer to perform one or more specific functions contained in computer programs. The functional blocks, flowchart components, and other elements described above serve as software specifications that can be translated into computer programs through the routine work of a skilled technician or programmer.

[0044] The computer programs include processor-executable instructions stored on at least one non-transitory, tangible, computer-readable medium. The computer programs may also include or be based on stored data. The computer programs may include a basic input / output system (BIOS) that interacts with the hardware of the special-purpose computer, device drivers that interact with particular devices of the special-purpose computer, one or more operating systems, user applications, background services, background applications, etc.

[0045] The computer programs may include: (i) descriptive text to be parsed, e.g. B. HTML (Hypertext Markup Language), XML (Extensible Markup Language) or JSON (JavaScript Object Notation), (ii) assembly code, (iii) object code generated from source code by a compiler, (iv) source code for execution by an interpreter, (v) source code for compilation and execution by a just-in-time compiler, etc. By way of example only, source code can be written using the syntax of languages including C, C++, C#, Objective-C, Swift, Haskell, Go, SQL, R, Lisp, Java®, Fortran, Perl, Pascal, Curl, OCaml, Javascript®, HTML5 (Hypertext Markup Language 5th Revision), Ada, ASP (Active Server Pages), PHP (PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor), Scala, Eiffel, Smalltalk, Erlang, Ruby, Flash®, Visual Basic®, Lua, MATLAB, SIMULINK and Python®.

Claims

[1] Punching press system comprising: a matrix that includes: an upper portion (104) including one or more first features; a lower portion (112) including one or more second features complementary to the first features; and optical sensors (312) designed to measure directions and distances of movement; Electric motors (120) designed to comprise at least one of: vertically lowering the upper section (104) towards the lower section (112); and vertically raising the lower section (112) towards the upper section (104); and a motor control module (124) configured to control the application of power to the electric motors (120), characterized by , that the lower portion (112) includes openings at locations on outer edges of a substrate (304) to be punched, wherein the optical sensors (312) are each arranged within the openings of the lower section (112) and are designed to measure the movement directions and the movement distances inward of the outer edges of the substrate (304) at the locations during punching, wherein the punch press system further comprises an infeed module (512) configured to generate a card (516) based on the movement directions and / or the movement distances. [2] The punch press system of claim 1, wherein the motor control module (124) is configured to control the application of power to the electric motors (120) during at least one of the vertical lowering and the vertical raising based on at least one of the directions of movement. [3] The punch press system of claim 2, wherein the motor control module (124) is configured to adjust the power applied to at least one of the electric motors (120) based on the adjustment of at least one of the travel distances to at least one other of the travel distances. [4] The punch press system of claim 1, wherein the motor control module (124) is configured to control the application of power to the electric motors (120) during at least one of the vertical lowering and the vertical raising based on at least two of the travel distances. [5] The punch press system of claim 1, wherein the optical sensors (312) are attached to the lower portion (112) via one or more attachment members (440, 448, 480). [6] The punch press system of claim 1, wherein the motor control module (124) is configured to control the application of power to the electric motors (120) during at least one of the vertical lowering and the vertical raising based on the map (516). [7] The punch press system of claim 1, wherein the optical sensors (312) each include a light transmitter and a light receiver. [8] The punch press system of claim 1, further comprising an error module (520) configured to selectively indicate the presence of an error based on at least one of the movement directions and the movement distances. [9] The punch press system of claim 8, wherein the error module (520) is configured to indicate, upon the presence of the error, the presence of the error via an output device (524) that outputs at least one of sound and light.

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