SYSTEM FOR HANDLING A TAILGATE MOUNTED ON A MOTOR VEHICLE BODY AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING A VEHICLE USING SUCH A SYSTEM

Abstract

The invention relates to a handling system (7) for a tailgate (3) mounted on a vehicle body (1), said system (7) comprising a handling mechanism (9) configured to open and / or close said tailgate (3). Abstract figure: [Fig. 2]

Description

Title of the invention: SYSTEM FOR HANDLING A TAILGATE MOUNTED ON A MOTOR VEHICLE BODY AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING A VEHICLE USING SUCH A SYSTEM

[0001] The present invention relates to the general field of motor vehicle manufacturing. More specifically, the invention relates to the handling of a tailgate mounted on a motor vehicle body, generally when said body is on a vehicle manufacturing line, for example to cover said tailgate with paint.

[0002] As a reminder, motor vehicles generally comprise a body which forms the framework of the vehicle. [Fig.l] thus illustrates a very schematic and side view of a body 1, a part of which is fixed, on which openings are fixed, such as doors, a hood or a tailgate 3 which is a bodywork element located at the rear of the body (and of the motor vehicle). The tailgate 3 is for example a swing door which provides access to the trunk of the vehicle and which is fixed to the upper part of the body 1, generally the upper part of the trunk frame.

[0003] The tailgate 3 thus opens vertically according to a rotational movement of the hinges and the tailgate 3 around a substantially horizontal axis (axis defined by the hinges). The tailgate 3 may also comprise devices or mechanisms 5 for locking said tailgate 3 in the open position, such as gas springs or support springs.

[0004] Typically, a vehicle manufacturing line comprises several stations where various operations, assembly, fixing, painting, etc. of the different parts and / or bodywork elements are carried out. In this way, a vehicle body is positioned on a conveyor which transports said body from station to station, where human and / or robotic operators carry out the operations necessary for the manufacture of a vehicle in a predetermined order.

[0005] Thus, during the manufacture of a vehicle, it is necessary to handle the tailgate, for example when mounting it on the body and / or when painting said tailgate. It is therefore necessary, among other things, to open and / or close the tailgate, to provide a passage for a paint projector and / or to inspect the result of the various operations carried out on the tailgate (fixing of bodywork elements, interior trim, painting, etc.).

[0006] For this, after fixing a tailgate on a vehicle body, there is fixing, for example at the level of the sheet metal workshop, of a gripping tool, generally by screwing, on a lower part of the tailgate, this in order to allow an operator to grasp the gripping tool to lower the tailgate to a predefined lower stop and position the tailgate in a suitable position for subsequent operations on the vehicle production line.

[0007] Subsequently, during one of the stages of vehicle manufacturing, the tailgate is painted, then brought into the assembly workshop where the gripping tool screwed to said tailgate is removed, generally manually by an operator. Unfortunately, during the various manufacturing operations, the gripping tool ends up, at least partially, painted at the same time as said tailgate.

[0008] This way of proceeding, handling and painting the tailgate and the gripping tool, leads to the following problems, among others: - inefficient use of labor, as operators must attach the gripping tool to the tailgate and then remove it; - creation of a logistics flow in the factory hosting the production line, the gripping tools having to be transferred from the assembly workshop to the sheet metal workshop after use; - maintenance of said gripping tools, because it is necessary to strip the paint from the gripping tool at regular intervals, for example every twenty uses, in order to keep it functional.

[0009] Furthermore, during stripping operations, said gripping tool deteriorates due to thermal cycles experienced in ovens, which means that said tool must be repaired regularly, or even eventually replaced with a new tool.

[0010] Thus, the present invention proposes to remedy at least one of the aforementioned drawbacks by proposing a new type of system for handling a tailgate mounted on a vehicle body, said system comprising a handling mechanism configured to open and / or close said tailgate.

[0011] The system according to the invention therefore makes it possible to eliminate all or part of the drawbacks and problems mentioned above, in particular by eliminating the need to have a gripping tool to be assembled and disassembled manually, as well as all the associated consequences mentioned above (logistics flow, maintenance, etc.).

[0012] Furthermore, handling a tailgate comprising locking devices entails additional effort for the operator, the closing of such a tailgate requiring the application of sufficient force to the tailgate, either to overcome that generated by the locking devices to keep the tailgate in the open position, or to deactivate the locking operated by the locking devices. Automating this type of operation by means of said system according to the invention makes it possible, among other things, to prevent the occurrence of musculoskeletal disorders among operators.

[0013] According to a possible characteristic, said system is configured to be fixed tempo- rarely on a vehicle body. Advantageously, the attachment of the manipulation system to the vehicle makes it possible to activate said system according to the invention, i.e. to trigger the closing or opening of the tailgate by the system according to the invention.

[0014] According to another possible characteristic, said system comprises an indexing device configured to position said handling mechanism relative to said tailgate, said indexing device being indexed relative to a wheel arch of the vehicle body. Advantageously, said indexing device is activated or triggered when the system is attached to the vehicle, said indexing device allows the system to position itself correctly relative to the body of the vehicle, and therefore the tailgate, thus avoiding the addition of more complex detection means, such as sensors, cameras, etc.

[0015] According to another possible characteristic, said handling mechanism comprises a gripping member and a pneumatic mechanism comprising a plurality of cylinders. Advantageously, said handling mechanism of said system comprises a plurality of pneumatic cylinders, these being a simple, inexpensive, and robust solution. Said pneumatic cylinders, for example jacks, are therefore configured to handle a tailgate without human intervention (lifting the tailgate, pulling the tailgate, releasing tailgate locking devices, etc.).

[0016] The gripping member, for its part, is for example a finger or an element configured to come into contact with a motor vehicle tailgate, said member advantageously being made of a flexible material, for example rubber, adiprene, etc., a material which does not damage, by contact, the tailgate or other elements of a vehicle body.

[0017] Furthermore, it will be noted that the finger or gripping member is advantageously configured to come into contact with the tailgate at an internal zone of said tailgate (therefore an area not visible from the outside of the tailgate), for example by means of an opening provided in the tailgate allowing access to a volume internal to said tailgate. Said finger has, for example, substantially a cylinder shape, and may comprise a socket which is configured to cooperate mechanically with a complementary shape or an element of said tailgate (thus ensuring a temporary mechanical connection between the gripping member and the tailgate).

[0018] According to another possible characteristic, said pneumatic mechanism comprises a first cylinder, called “main cylinder”, on which a second and a third cylinder are fixed.

[0019] According to another possible characteristic, said system is configured to carry out at less the following actions: - move the gripping member into the position of interference with said tailgate; - bringing said gripping member into an interference position in contact with said tailgate; - moving, by means of said gripping member, said tailgate. It should be noted that "interference position" means that the gripping member is in a position, generally close to the tailgate, located on the path of a simple movement, for example a rectilinear translation, of the tailgate and / or the gripping member, which leads to contact between the gripping member and said tailgate.

[0020] According to another possible characteristic, said system is configured to open and close said tailgate by means of said gripping member. Advantageously, the gripping member is located at the distal end of one of said cylinders and makes it possible to move the tailgate upwards or downwards, and by extension to open or close said tailgate.

[0021] According to another possible characteristic, said system is configured to disengage said tailgate from a locking device locking the tailgate in a predetermined position, for example when the tailgate is in the open position. Advantageously, the gripping member (or finger) of the system is configured to lift the tailgate and disengage, or deactivate, the locking device holding the tailgate in the open position, before closing said tailgate.

[0022] According to another possible characteristic, said system is configured to be mobile. Said system comprises for example wheels or is mounted on a rail, in order to be able to move with the body of the vehicle (on which said system is fixed) on a production line.

[0023] Thus, the system according to the invention, once in cooperation with a vehicle body, accompanies the movement of the body (for example on a vehicle production line), while the indexing device correctly positions the system relative to the tailgate to allow the manipulation of said tailgate by said system according to the invention. Subsequently, for example once the tailgate is closed, the system is configured to return to an initial position until a new vehicle body presents itself (and the tailgate manipulation operation can be repeated).

[0024] The invention also relates to a method of manufacturing a motor vehicle, said vehicle comprising a body on which a tailgate is mounted, characterized in that said method comprises the use of a handling system as defined above.

[0025] The invention also relates to the use of a tailgate handling system as defined above in the manufacture of motor vehicles.

[0026] The invention will be better understood, and other aims, details, characteristics and advantages thereof will appear more clearly during the following description of a particular embodiment of the invention, given solely for illustrative and non-limiting purposes, with reference to the appended drawings, in which: - [Fig.l] illustrates a schematic and side view of a motor vehicle body; - [Fig.2] is a very schematic view of a tailgate handling system according to the invention and of the body of [Fig.l].

[0027] In the following description, the term "comprise" is synonymous with "include" and is not limiting in that it allows the presence of other elements in the vehicle, or the structure to which it relates. It is understood that the term "comprise" includes the terms "consist of".

[0028] In addition, an orthogonal reference frame XYZ is defined with respect to the vehicle, namely: - an X axis, defining a longitudinal and horizontal direction of the vehicle, - a Y axis, defining a transverse and horizontal direction, which with the X axis defines a horizontal XY plane, - a Z axis, defining a vertical direction, orthogonal to the horizontal XY plane, the Z axis with the X axis defining a vertical XZ plane.

[0029] [Fig.l] thus illustrates a very schematic side view of a handling system 7 according to the invention, said system 7 being configured to handle a tailgate 3 mounted on a motor vehicle body 1.

[0030] Said box 1 can be mounted on a conveyor, in order to move said box 1 from station to station on a motor vehicle production line. In addition, said box 1 comprises a tailgate 3 fixed to the rear of the box (and of the motor vehicle) by means of hinges (not shown).

[0031] The tailgate 3 is here a swing door which provides access to the trunk of the vehicle and which is fixed to the upper part of the body 1, such as the upper part of the trunk frame. The tailgate 3 thus opens vertically according to a rotational movement of the hinges and the tailgate 3 around a substantially horizontal axis (axis defined by the hinges).

[0032] The tailgate 3 further comprises devices or mechanisms 5 for locking said tailgate 3 in the open position, such as gas springs or support springs. Thus, to close the tailgate 3, it is necessary to exert a force (generally along the Z axis) on the tailgate 3 to overcome that generated by the locking devices 5 holding the tailgate 3 in the open position, or to exert a sufficient force (for example upwards) on the tailgate to deactivate the locking devices 5.

[0033] Said manipulation system 7 is thus configured to be: - temporarily fixed to a wheel arch of the vehicle body 1 and / or; - mobile, that is to say that the system 7 or at least part of it is configured to move at the same time as the box 1.

[0034] Said system 7 comprises for example wheels (not shown) or is mounted on a rail (not shown), in order to be able to move (at least temporarily) with the body 1 of the vehicle. In addition, the system 7 is for example fixed to the wheel arch by means of a stop (not shown) which comes into contact with the wheel arch (and allows the system 7 to be driven by the body 1).

[0035] Furthermore, said system 7 comprises: - a handling mechanism 9 configured to open and / or close said tailgate 3; - an indexing device 11 configured to position said handling mechanism 9 relative to said tailgate 3, said indexing device 11 advantageously indexing relative to a wheel arch of the body 1.

[0036] It will also be noted that the indexing device 11 and the stop, allowing the temporary fixing of the system 7 to the body (for example at the level of the wheel arch), can be the same element (they are therefore merged) or separate elements.

[0037] Said system 7 is thus configured to disengage said tailgate 3 from the locking device 5 locking the tailgate 3 in a predetermined position, for example when the tailgate 3 is in the open position, then to close said tailgate 3. Of course, depending on the need or the manufacturing stage of the vehicle, said system 7 can also be configured to open the tailgate 3 and position it in a predetermined position (for example in the open position).

[0038] Said handling mechanism 9 comprises, for its part, a gripping member 13, or finger, and a plurality of cylinders 15, 17 and 19, for example pneumatic cylinders, such as jacks, forming a pneumatic mechanism.

[0039] The pneumatic mechanism thus comprises: - a first cylinder 15, called the “main cylinder”, configured to be mobile and carry the other cylinders 17 and 19, the main cylinder 15 therefore being configured at least to move in a rectilinear translational movement; - a second cylinder 17 which is connected (for example directly) to the main cylinder 15 and which is configured to perform rotations and / or translations relative to said main cylinder 15, said gripping member 13 being fixed to said second cylinder 17; - a third cylinder 19 rotatably mounted on the main cylinder 15 and on which the indexing device 11 is fixed.

[0040] It will be noted that the mechanical connections between the different cylinders are, for example, connections of the slide, pivot, or ball joint type, and that these are, for example, fixed to each other by means of screwed plates.

[0041] The gripping member 13, for its part, is for example a finger or an element configured to come into contact with the tailgate 3. Said member 13 is advantageously made of a flexible material, for example rubber, adiprene, etc., a material which does not damage, by contact, the tailgate 3 or other elements of the vehicle body 1.

[0042] Said gripping member 13 or finger is furthermore configured to present at least two distinct translational movements in space (for example along a horizontal transverse axis or Y axis, and along a vertical axis or Z axis).

[0043] It will be noted that the gripping member 13 is advantageously configured to come into contact with the tailgate 3 at an internal zone of said tailgate 3, therefore an area not visible from the outside of the tailgate 3, for example by means of an opening provided in the tailgate 3 allowing access to a volume internal to said tailgate 3.

[0044] Said gripping member 13, or finger, has for example substantially a cylindrical shape, and may comprise a socket which is configured to cooperate mechanically with a complementary shape or an element of said tailgate 3.

[0045] Furthermore, the gripping member 13 is advantageously located at a distal end of the second cylinder 17 and is configured to move the tailgate 3 upwards or downwards, and by extension to open or close said tailgate 3.

[0046] Thus, when the vehicle body 1 arrives at a predetermined distance from the handling system 7, the indexing device 11 comes to cooperate with the wheel arch of the body 1 (for example, following a rotation of the third cylinder 19 positioning said indexing device 11, so that it cooperates with the wheel arch).

[0047] Furthermore, the mechanical cooperation of the stop with the body 1 makes it possible to temporarily fix the system 7 to said body 1, and for the system 7 to accompany said body 1 in movement.

[0048] The fixing of the handling system 7 and the cooperation of the indexing device 11 with the body 1 thus activate said system 7, and trigger the movement of the cylinders 15 and 17 and of the gripping member 13. Said indexing device 11 thus allows the system 7 to position itself correctly relative to the body 1 of the vehicle, and therefore of the tailgate 3, the movements, dimensions, etc. of the first and second cylinders 15 and 17 and of the gripping member 13 being for example defined relative to predetermined types of body and tailgate.

[0049] Said system 7, once activated and positioned, is also configured to carry out at least the following actions: - moving the gripping member 13 into the interference position with said tailgate 3, the movement of the gripping member 13 into the interference position being carried out by at least one rotation of the second cylinder 17; - bringing said gripping member 13 into the interference position in contact with said tailgate 3, for example by rotational and / or translational movements of the second cylinder 17 and / or of the gripping member 13; - move, by means of said gripping member 13, said tailgate 3.

[0050] It will be noted that the term “interference position” means that the gripping member 13 is in a position, generally close to the tailgate 3, located on the trajectory of a simple movement, for example one or more rectilinear translations, of the tailgate 3 and / or of the gripping member 13, which leads to contact between the gripping member 13 and said tailgate 3.

[0051] Furthermore, said system 7 is also configured to lift the tailgate 3 and disengage the locking device 5 which holds the tailgate 3 in the open position, this at least by means of the second cylinder 17 and the gripping member 13 which exert sufficient force to deactivate the locking operated by the locking device 5 on the tailgate 3.

[0052] After unlocking the tailgate 3, there is movement of the second cylinder 17 and / or of the gripping member 13, according to a rotational and / or translational movement, to bring the tailgate 3 into the closed position, then there is disengagement of the second cylinder 17 and / or of the gripping member 13 from the tailgate 3 (that is to say there is no longer contact and / or an interference positioning).

[0053] Once the tailgate 3 is in the closed position, there is disengagement of the third cylinder 19, and of the indexing device 11, for example by a rotational movement, then the system 7, and its handling mechanism 9, returns to the initial position, until a new vehicle body comes to cooperate again with said system 7.

[0054] It will also be noted that the system 7 according to the invention can be used in a method of manufacturing a motor vehicle, said vehicle comprising said body 1 on which the tailgate 3 is mounted.

Claims

Claims

1. Manipulation system (7) of a tailgate (3) mounted on a vehicle body (1), said system (7) comprising a manipulation mechanism (9) configured to open and / or close said tailgate (3).

2. System (7) according to the preceding claim, characterized in that said system (7) is configured to be temporarily fixed to a body (1) of the vehicle.

3. System (7) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said system (7) comprises an indexing device (11) configured to position said handling mechanism (9) relative to said tailgate, said indexing device (11) indexing relative to a wheel arch of the vehicle.

4. System (7) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said handling mechanism (9) comprises a gripping member (13) and a pneumatic mechanism comprising a plurality of cylinders (15, 17, 19).

5. System (7) according to the preceding claim, characterized in that said pneumatic mechanism comprises a first cylinder (15) on which a second and a third cylinder (17, 19) are fixed.

6. System (7) according to claim 4 or 5, characterized in that said system (7) is configured to perform at least the following actions: - move the gripping member (13) into the interference position with said tailgate (3); - bring said gripping member (13) into the interference position in contact with said tailgate (3); - move, by means of said gripping member (13), said tailgate (3).

7. System (7) according to any one of claims 4 to 6, characterized in that said system (7) is configured to open and / or close said tailgate (3) by means of said gripping member (13).

8. System (7) according to any one of claims 6 or 7, characterized in that said system (7) is configured to deactivate said tailgate (3) from a locking device (5) locking the tailgate in a predetermined position.

9. System (7) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said system (7) is configured to be mobile.

10. A method of manufacturing a motor vehicle, said vehicle comprising a body (1) on which a tailgate (3) is mounted, ca- characterized in that said method comprises the use of a manipulation system (7) according to any one of the preceding claims.

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