Cutting table and method for machining a sheet-like material on a cutting table

Abstract

Cutting device (1) with a cutting table (6), comprising: a processing unit (3) with a machine frame (4) arranged therein, which carries a cutting head (5) that is movable in the longitudinal and transverse direction of the cutting device in order to direct a cutting beam onto a plate-like material (8) arranged on the shuttle-like cutting table (6), which is feedable from a loading unit (2) and provided with support elements, wherein the cutting table (6) comprises a first table (12) and a second table (13), wherein the second table is arranged to be detachable from the first table, characterized in that the first table (12) and the second table (13) each comprise support elements (10, 11), and the second table (13) is arranged such that it can be detached from and reconnected to the first table during processing, whereby the second table is temporarily movable outside the processing area of ​​the processing unit (3).and the first table (12) and the second table (13) each have a number of support elements (10, 11) which, in the assembled, undivided state of the tables (12, 13), form a common support plane and are provided in the support plane in a number that considerably exceeds the number of support elements (10, 11) in the support plane in a state in which the second table is separated from the first table.

Description

Technical field The present invention relates to the device according to the preamble of claim 1. With such a processing device, it is possible to automatically cut out workpieces with different configurations from various sheet-like materials. The present invention also relates to a method for carrying out this processing according to the preamble of claim 9. State of the art The cutting of flat, plate-like materials, especially sheets of different thicknesses, particularly cutting systems, is well known. Such processing is carried out, for example, using laser technology, in which one or more cutting heads move longitudinally and transversely across the sheet-like material. To enable such processing, it is common to arrange a metal sheet on a transport base, which in this context is referred to as a cutting table. Such a cutting table comprises a grid formed by supporting substantially parallel flanges spaced 40 to 100 mm apart along its edge. The flanges are preferably connected to each other at their lower edges. This support element preferably has support points aligned in a sawtooth configuration in a substantially common plane with respect to the sheet-like material in order to minimize damage to the underlying support element during the cutting process.Such damage manifests itself partly in the form of incisions in the support element, but also in the formation of molten residue, known as slag, from the cutting work carried out over the support element. Despite this sawtooth configuration, damage to the support element occurs regularly, necessitating replacement. This work is tedious and expensive. This solution, in which the metal plate is mounted on relatively closely spaced support elements, also causes other problems. It is usually not difficult to cut workpieces that extend across two or more support elements. These can be cut as a whole and then typically picked up mechanically or removed manually from the cutting table after cutting. However, workpieces held by only one support element, or partially held by two, are difficult to cut. If a complete cut is made around the circumference of the workpiece, it is very likely that it will slip off the support element and fall between the parallel support elements, from where the workpiece is much more difficult to pick up. Therefore, a small material bridge is generally provided to connect these small workpieces to the base material.Therefore, the workpieces must be detached using a special manual procedure, after which the remaining bridge components must be removed. This is an unnecessary and costly additional task. Publication SU 795 788 A1 discloses a cutting table for a flame cutting machine, which has support elements that are attached to two table-like frames and can be moved vertically relative to each other, but the frames cannot be fed from a loading unit and cannot be separated from each other. In publications JP H09 - 323 187 A and DE 696 16 253 T2, movable cutting tables are disclosed, but no separable tables are shown that form a common support plane. Further prior art in the field of the present invention can be found in documents US 6 476 348 B1 , US 2004 / 0 016 731 A1 and JP H10 - 296 358 A . Description of the problem The present invention essentially avoids the problems of known solutions. This problem is solved by a cutting table which, according to the present invention, has the characteristic features defined in claim 1. The cutting table is further used according to the features defined in claim 9. The corresponding subsequent dependent claims disclose suitable further developments and variations of the invention that further improve its operation and design. The invention is based on the idea of ​​minimizing the number of support elements arranged under the plate-like material to be processed, thereby facilitating the removal of smaller cut-out sections and also preventing damage to the support elements as far as possible. In the present invention, the term "sheet-like material" refers to foils or sheets of metal of varying thicknesses. However, it can also refer to flat materials other than metal. Thus, the invention can be used equally for cutting wood, glass, and various mineral and plastic materials, as well as metal. The term cutting jet encompasses various forms of thermal or non-thermal processes used to process sheet-like materials. These processes include laser, plasma, and waterjet cutting. In the following description, the terms “top”, “bottom”, “above”, “below” and the like refer to directions in relation to the cutting table or its structural details, which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. The arrangement and method described in the present invention offer a multitude of significant advantages over the prior art. The present invention offers considerable advantages, particularly in cases where the workpieces are processed mechanically rather than manually. Further advantages and details of the present invention will become clear from the following description. Brief description of the drawings The invention will now be described in detail with reference to the drawings, where Fig. 1 shows a schematic side view of the cutting device when cutting has begun, Fig. 2 also shows a schematic top view of the cutting device according to Fig. 1 without the plate-like material of Fig. 1, Fig. 3 shows a schematic side view of the cutting device with a second table in a parked position outside the processing unit, Fig. 4 shows a top view of the cutting device according to Fig. 3 without the plate-like material in Fig. 3, Fig. 5 shows a schematic side view of a second embodiment of the cutting device when cutting has begun, Fig. 6 also shows a schematic top view of the cutting device according to Fig. 5 without the plate-like material in Fig. 5, and Fig. 7 shows a schematic side view of the cutting device according to Fig. 3.Fig. 5 shows a second table in a parked position outside the processing unit, Fig. 8 shows a top view of the cutting device according to Fig. 7 without the plate-like material in Fig. 7, Fig. 9 shows a schematic longitudinal cross-section of the cutting table of the invention with both the first table and the second table, Fig. 10 shows a cutting table according to Fig. 9 when the second table is detached from the first table, Fig. 11 shows a cutting table according to Fig. 9 when the second table is detached and transported away from the cutting device processing unit, Fig. 12 shows a schematic cross-section AA of the cutting table according to Fig. 1 or Fig. 5 with both the first table and the second table, Fig. 13 shows a schematic cross-section BB of the cutting table according to Fig. 3 or Fig. 7 with the second table in a parked position, Fig.Fig. 14 shows a top view of an assembled cutting table of Fig. 1, for example; Fig. 15 shows a side view of the assembled cutting table of Fig. 14; Fig. 16 shows a schematic cross-section CC of the assembled cutting table in Fig. 14; Fig. 17 shows a detailed view of a preferred embodiment of an actuator in its upper position; Fig. 18 shows a detailed view in which the actuator in Fig. 17 is in its lower position; Fig. 19 shows a detailed view of a preferred embodiment of a locking element arranged to connect the first table and the second table; Fig. 20 shows a top view of the first table; Fig. 21 shows a side view of the first table of Fig. 20; Fig. 22 shows a schematic cross-section DD of the first table of Fig. 20; Fig. 23 shows a top view of the second table.Figure 24 shows a side view of the second table of Fig. 23, and Figure 25 shows a schematic cross-section EE of the second table of Fig. 23. Preferred embodiment In the figures above, the cutting table is not shown to scale, but merely serves to illustrate structural solutions of the preferred embodiment and its operation. The structural parts shown in the figures and labeled with reference numerals correspond to the structural solutions described below, which are also designated by their reference numerals. Figures 1 and 2, as well as Figures 3 and 4, show schematic representations of the cutting device 1. In the preferred embodiment, such a cutting device comprises a horizontal loading unit 2, which is shown on the left side of the image plane. Adjacent to this is a processing unit 3 with a machine frame 4 arranged therein, which carries a cutting head 5 for directing a laser beam or a cutting beam onto a cutting table 6 arranged in the processing unit. In this embodiment, a side unit 7 is provided to the right of the processing unit in the image plane. In an alternative embodiment according to Fig. 5, Fig. 6, Fig. 7 to Fig. 8, on the other hand, a side unit 7 is provided which is designed as part of the loading unit 2. To separate the workpieces from the sheet-like material 8 arranged on the cutting table 6, the cutting head 5 is moved in a conventional manner across the sheet-like material in the longitudinal and transverse directions of the cutting device. The control of this cutting head is not the subject of this invention and is therefore not described further. The cutting device 1 is equipped with one or more drive devices for moving the cutting table 6 between the loading unit 2 and the processing unit 3. The drive device is not shown in the present figures. The drive device thus moves the cutting table in one direction essentially in accordance with the longitudinal axis of the cutting device. The cutting device further preferably comprises at least one conveying means 9 to remove both the excess material and the cut workpieces from the processing unit of the cutting device, as shown in Fig. 9 or Fig. 10. A cutting plate 6 according to the present embodiment has a shuttle-like configuration known per se and comprises support elements 10 and 11 for supporting metal sheets, metal plates, or the plate-like material 8 to be processed in the cutting device 1. In contrast to known solutions, however, the cutting table is designed in two stages and comprises an upper first table 12 and a lower second table 13, as shown, for example, in Figures 14 to 16 and 20 to 25. The second table is preferably at least partially surrounded by the first table, as shown, for example, in Figure 14. The second table is detachably attached to the first table. The second table can thus be separated from the first table by opening a locking mechanism, and the second table is lowered to a lower position below the first table, at which point the second table is completely detached from the first table.This is shown, for example, in the image sequence of Fig. 9, Fig. 10, and Fig. 11. In this lower position, the second table is freely movable in the longitudinal or transverse direction of the cutting device in order to be temporarily parked in a side unit 7 outside the machining unit. Such transport of the second table from the machining unit is carried out, for example, by special receiving devices. The transport of the second table to the side unit is also shown in Figures 1, 2, 3 to 4, and 5, 6, 7 to 8. In Figures 1 and 2, the first and second tables 12 and 13 are locked together, while in Figures 3 and 4, the second table has been removed and transported to the side unit 7. Similarly, in Figures 5 and 6, the first and second tables are locked together, while in Figures 7 and 8, the second table has been removed and transported to the side unit. In the assembled embodiment, shown, for example, in Figs. 9 and 14, the support elements 10 and 11 in the cutting table 6 are provided in a number considerably exceeding that in an embodiment where the second table 13 is separated from the first table 13 and transported to a temporary parking position in the side unit 7 (see, for example, Figs. 9 and 10). The first table thus has substantially parallel support elements 10 in the form of support rails, arranged in a direction substantially perpendicular to the transport direction of the cutting table in the cutting device 1. These support rails are distributed substantially uniformly over the length of the first table at intervals of 150 to 1000 mm. The spacing between the support rails therefore differs substantially from that typically used in conventional technology.The spacing of the support rails is primarily determined by the thickness of the sheet-like material 8 being processed. The second table 13, on the other hand, comprises support elements 11 in the form of flanges, which run essentially parallel to each other and to the support rails of the first table. The flanges are thus also aligned in a direction essentially perpendicular to the transport direction of the cutting table in the cutting device. These flanges rest on their edges and are spaced 30 to 100 mm apart. The flanges are distributed essentially uniformly over the length of the second table, except that the second table has no flanges at positions corresponding to the support rails of the first table. The support elements 10 and 11 of the cutting table 6 can have upper edges that are essentially linear, or they can also be sawtooth-shaped or wavy in a direction oriented towards the plate-like material 8 arranged on the cutting table. This sawtooth-shaped or wavy upper edge is designed to further minimize the contact area between the material being machined and the cutting table. In the assembled state, the upper edges or top surfaces of the support elements of the first and second tables of the cutting table are arranged in a common cutting plane, in which the support elements form a common support plane. The first table 12 and the second table 13 are arranged such that they are essentially rigidly locked together by means of separate locking devices 14. These can, for example, be contained in a frame 15 provided by the first table, as shown in Fig. 15, or they can be formed in the frame of the machining unit 3. These locking devices preferably comprise locking pins 16, which can be actuated mechanically, hydraulically, pneumatically, or by a combination thereof. Fig. 19 shows a preferred embodiment in which the locking pin can be moved between positions by actuating a spring-loaded lever 17, in which it either connects the two tables 12 and 13 together, as shown in the figure, or releases the second table from the first table.By locking the first or second table together, they assume a position in which the upper edges of the support elements are arranged in a common cutting plane. In this assembled configuration, the cutting table thus has the maximum number of support elements, 10 and 11, and can therefore support even relatively small workpieces. When the locking elements 14 release the first table and the second table 12 and 13 from each other, the second table can be lowered by special actuators 18, which can be moved vertically relative to the cutting table 6, as shown in Figures 17 and 18. The actuators are arranged so that they are guided towards the second table. Once they are at the second table 13, the actuators are designed to support the second table, for example by gripping it or by forming a contact surface beneath it. The locking elements 14 can then release the first and second tables from each other. The actuators now move the second table from its upper active position to a lower position below the first table without ever crossing the support plane, thus ensuring that the sheet-like material 8 is not affected.In the lower position, the second table is then moved into the horizontal plane without the risk of further contact with parts of the inner first table. When the second table reaches the lower position, the holding means are activated, engaging the second table and removing it from the processing unit 3 of the cutting device and bringing it into a passive position. Of course, the actuator and the holding means can be a single unit, but the process can also be carried out by two separate devices. The second table then assumes a parked position in the side unit 7, which, in the embodiment shown in Figures 1, 2, 3 to 4, is located on the right side of the processing unit, and in the embodiment shown in Figures 5, 6, 7, 8 to 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 19, 19, 11, 19, 11, 11, 12, 18, 19, 1 ...9 is located on the left side of the processing unit, which is assigned to the loading unit 2, but can just as well be located in any direction. To prevent any possible displacement of the plate-shaped material 8 arranged on the cutting table 6, the cutting table is preferably equipped with grippers 19, which have at least two fixing points for gripping the plate-like material arranged on the cutting table and which fix the material during its processing. Such grippers are preferably arranged on the cutting table on at least one longitudinal side parallel to the transport direction of the cutting table. Such grippers are shown schematically, for example, in Fig. 13. A sheet-like material is thus processed with the present cutting device 1 as follows. The sheet-like material 8 is arranged on the cutting table 6, which comprises the first table and the second tables 12 and 13, which are connected to each other. This loading takes place in the loading unit 2, which is arranged to the left of the processing unit 3, as shown in Fig. 1. Subsequently, the assembled cutting table is transported to the processing unit by a transport means, which is known per se. Once the cutting table is arranged in the processing unit, the second table 13 is separated from the first table 12 and brought into its passive position by the receiving means. This passive position can be a parking position in the side unit 7 of the cutting device, which is arranged to the right of the processing unit 3 in Fig. 3 and to the left of the processing unit in Fig. 7. In one embodiment according to Figures 5 to 6, the separate second table is transported to a passive position below a subsequent cutting table 6' in the loading unit 2, where it awaits transport to the processing unit. To allow the separate second table to be received, the subsequent plate-like material 8' on the cutting table 6', which is awaiting processing, is transported in a substantially vertical direction, thereby creating space for the second table 13. The material 8 to be processed is now located on the left side in the processing unit 3 and is supported only by the widely spaced support rails 10, which are provided by the first table 12. With the material on these support rails, a first cutting step is performed to remove residues and further excess material from the finished products. The excess material can fall through the large openings between the support rails in the main cutting table and is then conveyed away from the processing unit 3 by the conveyor 9 below. After the excess material has been removed, the cutting of the small parts begins, which, unlike in the previous solutions, are also completely cut from the material being processed. The cut-out small parts also fall through the large openings between the support rails in the main cutting table.The cut-out parts are then transported from processing unit 3 to subsequent removal via an underlying conveyor. Finally, the large pieces are also cut out. In contrast to the previous two cutting steps, a number of material bridges are left in positions where they do not intersect with the support elements 11 of the second table 13. If only the material bridges for the larger cutout sections remain, the second table 13 is reconnected to the first table 12 from its passive position. With the now denser distribution of the support elements, a final cutting pass is performed by removing the material bridges and completely separating the larger components from the workpiece material 8. The larger cutout parts now lie completely separated on the cutting table 6. Due to the denser distribution of the support elements, it is possible to achieve sufficient support for these larger workpieces while preventing excessive contamination of the support elements. After the cutting process is completed, the cutting table 6 is moved to unload the finished cut plate, with the first and second tables 12 and 13 being connected to each other. The above description and the accompanying figures serve only to illustrate the construction and operation of a cutting table according to the present solution. Thus, the present solution is not limited to the embodiments described above or the attached claims, but several variations or alternative embodiments within the idea described in the attached claims are possible.

Claims

Cutting device (1) with a cutting table (6), comprising: a processing unit (3) with a machine frame (4) arranged therein, which carries a cutting head (5) that is movable in the longitudinal and transverse direction of the cutting device in order to direct a cutting beam onto a plate-like material (8) arranged on the shuttle-like cutting table (6), which is feedable from a loading unit (2) and provided with support elements, wherein the cutting table (6) comprises a first table (12) and a second table (13), wherein the second table is arranged to be detachable from the first table, characterized in that the first table (12) and the second table (13) each comprise support elements (10, 11), and the second table (13) is arranged such that it can be detached from and reconnected to the first table during processing, whereby the second table is temporarily movable outside the processing area of ​​the processing unit (3).and the first table (12) and the second table (13) each have a number of support elements (10, 11) which, in the assembled, undivided state of the tables (12, 13), form a common support plane and are provided in the support plane in a number that considerably exceeds the number of support elements (10, 11) in the support plane in a state in which the second table is separated from the first table. Cutting table (6) according to claim 1, characterized in that the first table (12) comprises the support elements (10) in the form of substantially parallel support rails, which are arranged in a direction substantially perpendicular to the transport direction of the cutting table (6) in the cutting device (1), wherein the support rails are arranged substantially uniformly over the length of the first table at a distance of 150 to 1000 mm from each other. Cutting table (6) according to claims 1 and 2, characterized in that the second table (13) comprises the support elements (11) in the form of substantially parallel flanges in a direction substantially perpendicular to the transport direction of the cutting table (6) in the cutting device (1). Cutting table (6) according to claim 3, characterized in that the flanges of the second table (13) are arranged substantially uniformly over the length of the second table at a distance of 30 to 100 mm from each other. Cutting table (6) according to claim 4, characterized in that the second table (13) is arranged such that it does not have the support elements (11) in positions corresponding to the support rails (10) of the first table (12). Cutting table (6) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that in an assembled configuration of the cutting table (6) the first table (12) and the second table (13) have the support elements (10, 11) whose linear upper edges are arranged in a common cutting plane. Cutting table (6) according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that in an assembled configuration of the cutting table (6) the first table (12) and the second table (13) have the support elements (10, 11) with linear deviations from the upper edges, so that the upper surfaces of the upper edges of the support elements are arranged in a common cutting plane. Cutting table (6) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the cutting table (6) has at least one gripper (19) for gripping the plate-shaped material (8) which is arranged on the cutting table. Method for processing a plate-shaped material (8) by a cutting device (1) with a cutting table (6) according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the cutting device comprises a processing unit (3) with a machine frame (4) arranged therein, which carries a cutting head (5) so that a cutting beam is directed onto the plate-like material which is arranged on the shuttle-like cutting table (6) which can be fed by a loading unit (2) and is provided with support elements, characterized in that the cutting table (6) is divided into a first table (12) and a second table (13), wherein in its active position the second table (13) is connected to the first table (12) in such a mounted state that their support elements form a common support plane, and the second table is then separated from the first table and temporarily moved out of the processing area of ​​the processing unit (3) into a passive position.while excess material and small workpieces are cut from the sheet-like material (8), and the second table (13) is then reconnected to the first table (12) before the final cutting of large workpieces from the sheet-like material by the cutting head (5). Method for processing a plate-shaped material (8) according to claim 9, characterized in that the first table (12) and the second table (13) are connected to each other by locking devices (14) which are movable relative to the cutting device (1). Method for processing a plate-shaped material (8) according to claim 9 or 10, characterized in that the cutting device (1) has actuators (18) which are moved in the direction of the cutting table (6), whereby the second table (13) is released and received and lowered relative to the first table (12), wherein at least one receiving means grasps the second table and moves it away from the processing unit (3). Method for processing a plate-shaped material (8) according to claim 11, characterized in that the cutting table (6) is arranged in the processing unit (3) which occupies a position above a conveying means (9) which is arranged to transport cut-out workpieces and waste from the processing unit (3). Method for processing a plate-shaped material (8) according to one of claims 9 to 12, characterized in that at least one gripper (19) is provided in the cutting table (6) to fix the plate-like material (8) arranged thereon when the cutting of workpieces begins.

Images