Upper / lower roll device with position adjustment mechanism

Abstract

To provide an upper / lower roll device with a position adjustment mechanism which enables position adjustment of upper and lower rolls to be performed without disassembling and assembling the device again even if the device is repetitively used and positions of the upper and lower rolls are shifted.SOLUTION: An upper / lower roll device 1 with a position adjustment mechanism comprises: an upper roll 3 and a lower roll 4 in a device body 2; an upper roll shaft 3a and a lower roll shaft 4a which are rotation axes of the upper roll 3 and the lower roll 4; an upper connection board 5 and a lower connection board 6 which are rotatably connected to the shafts 3a and 4a; a main plate 7 which is rotatably connected to the upper connection board 5 and the lower connection board 6; an upper link arm 8 and a lower link arm 9 which extend from the main plate 7; a block 11 which is connected to the upper link arm 8 and the lower link arm 9; and a turning unit 12 for turning the block 11.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an upper and lower roll device with a position adjustment mechanism, such as a die-cut roll and anvil roll, which are used in printing machines, punching machines, packaging material machines, sanitary product machines, and the like. [Background technology]

[0002] A cutting device consisting of a die-cut roll and anvil roll is used when cutting a workpiece such as paper or cloth sheet to produce a sheet-like product (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In addition to the cutting application described in Patent Document 1, an embossing roll that imparts an uneven shape to the surface of the workpiece and a base roll that receives the embossing roll are also known. There are various known mechanisms for sandwiching a sheet-like workpiece between these upper and lower rolls, sending it out, and processing it.

[0003] These upper and lower rolls need to rotate synchronously because each roll processes a specific area. Usually, the gears attached to the shafts of the rolls are rotated synchronously. Alternatively, there are some machines that use pulleys and belts to achieve the synchronous rotation of the upper and lower rolls. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2011-11284 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, the distance between the upper and lower rolls may change with use. When this happens, the gears in the gear mechanism will not mesh well, and they will no longer be able to rotate completely synchronously. In addition, with the pulley belt mechanism, the belt may break as the mechanism is used. In particular, changes in the meshing of the gears can cause the upper and lower rolls to shift out of position, and to correct this, it is necessary to remove the gears and the upper and lower rolls and adjust their positions. Even if such adjustments are made, the upper and lower rolls may shift out of position during assembly. This problem is the same with the pulley belt mechanism.

[0006] Furthermore, even in the case of a new device as shipped, the upper and lower rolls may become misaligned as the device is used due to errors caused by various factors (such as manufacturing dimensional accuracy and assembly accuracy). Wear of parts due to use is also considered to be a cause.

[0007] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned conventional technology, and aims to provide an upper and lower roll device with a position adjustment mechanism that can adjust the position of the upper and lower rolls without having to disassemble and reassemble the device, even if the position of the upper and lower rolls becomes misaligned due to repeated use. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides an upper and lower roll device with a position adjustment mechanism, comprising: upper roll and lower roll arranged in a vertical direction within the device body; an upper roll shaft and a lower roll shaft which are rotation axes of the upper roll and lower roll; an upper connecting plate and a lower connecting plate which are rotatably connected to the upper roll shaft and the lower roll shaft, respectively; a main plate which is rotatably connected to the upper connecting plate and the lower connecting plate; an upper link arm and a lower link arm extending outward from two points above and below at one end of the main plate; a block to which the ends of the upper link arm and the lower link arm extending from the main plate are connected; and a rotating unit which rotates the block to move the upper link arm or the lower link arm in a direction along the longitudinal direction.

[0009] Preferably, the housing further includes a stopper that abuts against the other end of the main plate.

[0010] Preferably, the pivoting unit is formed of a fulcrum axis extending from the device body perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the upper link arm and the lower link arm and inserted into the block, and an adjustment screw extending from the device body along the longitudinal direction of the upper link arm and the lower link arm and passing through and screwing into the block. Effect of the Invention

[0011] According to the present invention, the upper link arm or the lower link arm moves along its longitudinal direction by rotating the block using the rotating unit. As a result, the upper side or the lower side of the main plate is pulled (pushed) by the upper link arm or the lower link arm, so that the main plate rotates and tilts. This tilt of the main plate causes the axis of the upper roll shaft and the lower roll shaft to shift in the vertical direction via the upper connecting plate and the lower connecting plate. This vertical shift of the upper roll shaft and the lower roll shaft causes the positions of the upper roll and the lower roll to shift in the vertical direction. In this way, the positions of the upper roll and the lower roll can be adjusted simply by operating the rotating unit, so that even if the positions of the upper and lower rolls shift due to repeated use, the positions of the upper and lower rolls can be adjusted without disassembling and reassembling. This makes the adjustment easier, and the time required for position adjustment of the upper and lower rolls can be significantly reduced.

[0012] Furthermore, by providing a stopper, the position of the tilted main plate can be reliably fixed, and even if a screw or the like is loosened when tilting the main plate, the position of the main plate can be temporarily determined by this stopper, so that the main plate can be reliably fixed while maintaining the tilt angle of the main plate (at the position after the position adjustment). Furthermore, by returning the stopper to the vertical direction, the main plate can be easily brought into contact with it, and the main plate can also be returned to its initial vertical state (untilted state). This makes it easy to redo the position adjustment of the main plate, improving workability.

[0013] In addition, if the rotation unit is configured with a fulcrum shaft and an adjustment screw, the main plate can be rotated with a simple structure. In particular, the fact that the main plate can be tilted simply by manipulating the adjustment screw contributes greatly to improving workability. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0014] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic perspective view of an upper and lower roll device with a position adjustment mechanism according to the present invention; [Diagram 2] 2 is a schematic perspective view showing an upper and lower roll device with a position adjustment mechanism according to the present invention, viewed from an angle different from that of FIG. 1. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is an enlarged schematic view showing a side surface of the device main body. [Figure 4] FIG. 13 is a schematic side view showing a side surface of the device body for explaining movement of the block. [Diagram 5] FIG. 13 is a schematic side view showing a side surface of the device body for explaining movement of the block. [Figure 6] FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0015] As shown in Figures 1 and 2, an upper and lower roll device 1 with a position adjustment mechanism according to the present invention has a device body 2 formed of upper, lower, left and right frames. An upper roll 3 and a lower roll 4 are arranged vertically inside this device body 2 (in the space surrounded by the upper, lower, left and right frames). The upper roll 3 and the lower roll 4 are, for example, a die-cut roll and an anvil roll, both of which are formed in a substantially cylindrical shape.

[0016] The upper roll 3 and the lower roll 4 have a rotation axis and can rotate around this rotation axis. The rotation axis of the upper roll 3 is the upper roll axis 3a, and the rotation axis of the lower roll 4 is the lower roll axis 4a. The upper connecting plate 5 and the lower connecting plate 6 are rotatably connected to one end of the upper roll axis 3a and the lower roll axis 4a, respectively. Specifically, the upper roll axis 3a and the lower roll axis 4a pass through the upper connecting plate 5 and the lower connecting plate 6. The main plate 7 is rotatably connected to the upper connecting plate 5 and the lower connecting plate 6. Specifically, the upper connecting plate 5 and the main plate 7 have through holes, and a rotating shaft member is commonly inserted through these through holes. The lower connecting plate 6 and the main plate 7 are also rotatably connected in a similar configuration.

[0017] The main plate 7 is disposed on one side of the device body 2, and extends in the front-rear direction relative to the device body 2. At one end of the main plate 7 (the front end in FIG. 1), an upper link arm 8 and a lower link arm 9 extend outward (to the front) from two points, one above and one below. The upper link arm 8 and the lower link arm 9 may be formed of a single rod-shaped member, or may be formed by connecting two rod-shaped members with a connecting member 10 as shown in the figure. In this case, the connecting member 10 supports the upper link arm 8 and the lower link arm 9, which are made of two rod-shaped members, so that they can rotate relative to each other.

[0018] The ends of the upper link arm 8 and the lower link arm 9 that extend from the main plate 7 are rotatably connected to a block 11. Both the upper link arm 8 and the lower link arm 9 are connected to the block 11. Specifically, a support shaft is provided in the block 11, and the upper link arm 8 and the lower link arm 9 are provided with through holes through which the support shaft is inserted.

[0019] The block 11 has a rotating unit 12. This rotating unit 12 rotates the block 11 around a certain pivot. As shown in FIG. 3, the rotating unit 12 has a fulcrum shaft 12a. The fulcrum shaft 12a extends outward from one side surface of the device body 2. In other words, the fulcrum shaft 12a extends from the device body 2 in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the upper link arm 8 and the lower link arm 9, and is inserted into the block 11. In the example shown in the figure, a fixed piece 13 having a substantially rectangular prism shape is attached to the right side surface of the device body 2, and the fulcrum shaft 12a extends from this fixed piece 13 toward the outside of the right side surface of the device body 2. The block 11 has a flange 11a that abuts along this fixed piece 13, and is thereby positioned in the vertical direction relative to the device body 2. A through hole through which the fulcrum shaft 12a is inserted is formed in this flange 11a. The fixed piece 13 is attached so as to be in a secure position relative to the device body 2 so as not to be displaced by vibration or the like. This also ensures that the position of the fulcrum shaft 12a is securely fixed, thereby improving the precision of the final position adjustment of the upper and lower rolls 3 and 4.

[0020] On the other hand, the rotating unit 12 further has an adjustment screw 12b. The adjustment screw 12b extends from a fixed piece 13 fixed to the device body 2 to the front side of the device body 2 (along the longitudinal direction of the upper link arm 8 and the lower link arm 9). The adjustment screw 12b penetrates and is screwed into the block 11.

[0021] By rotating the adjustment screw 12b using the rotation unit 12 consisting of the fulcrum shaft 12a and the adjustment screw 12b as described above, the upper side of the block 11 moves forward relative to the device body 2. This movement causes the block 11 to rotate around the fulcrum shaft 12a. Note that in the figure, the fulcrum shaft 12a is disposed on the lower side of the block 11 and the adjustment screw 12b is disposed on the upper side of the block 11, but these may be reversed. When reversed, the lower side of the block 11 moves.

[0022] 4 and 5, an example in which the fulcrum shaft 12a is disposed on the lower side of the block 11 and the adjustment screw 12b is disposed on the upper side of the block 11 will be described. That is, by rotating the adjustment screw 12b, the upper side of the block 11 moves (pivots) forward, and accordingly the upper link arm 8 is also pulled and moves toward the front side of the device body 2. The lower link arm 9 is also pulled somewhat forward by the movement of the block 11, but the amount of movement is greater for the upper link arm 8 disposed on the side closer to the adjustment screw 12b (the upper side of the block 11). Due to this movement of the upper link arm 8, the upper side of the main plate 7 is also pulled and moves toward the front side of the device body 2. Due to this movement, the main plate 7 is tilted.

[0023] Due to this inclination of the main plate 7, the connection position between the upper connecting plate 5 and the main plate 7 also moves to the front side of the device body 2. Therefore, the connection position between the upper connecting plate 5 and the main plate 7 and the connection position between the lower connecting plate 6 and the main plate 7 are misaligned in the vertical direction. In response to this misalignment, the axis centers of the upper roll shaft 3a and the lower roll shaft 4b are also misaligned in the vertical direction (the upper roll shaft 3a has moved further forward with respect to the device body 2 than the lower roll shaft 4a).

[0024] Due to the vertical deviation of the upper roll shaft 3a and the lower roll shaft 4a, the positions of the upper roll 3 and the lower roll 4 are deviated in the vertical direction (the position of the upper roll 3 is positioned forward of the lower roll 4 with respect to the device body 2). As described above, the positions of the upper roll 3 and the lower roll 4 can be adjusted simply by operating the rotating unit 12. Therefore, even if the positions of the upper and lower rolls 3 and 4 are deviated due to repeated use, the positions of the upper and lower rolls 3 and 4 can be adjusted without disassembling and reassembling. This makes the adjustment easy, and the time required for position adjustment of the upper and lower rolls 3 and 4 can be significantly reduced. In particular, if the rotating unit 12 is configured with the fulcrum shaft 12a and the adjustment screw 12b, the main plate 7 can be rotated with a simple structure. In particular, the fact that the main plate 7 can be tilted simply by operating the adjustment screw 12b contributes greatly to improving workability. This is applicable not only to correcting the deviation of the upper and lower rolls 3 and 4 due to use, but also to cases where it is desired to adjust the positions of the upper and lower rolls 3 and 4 due to use. Therefore, such fine adjustment of the positions of the upper and lower rolls 3 and 4 can be performed without disassembling or assembling the device main body 2.

[0025] 4 and 5, the inclination angle of the main plate 7 is made larger than that in actual use in order to express the inclination. The upper and lower rolls 3 and 4 used for cutting or embossing a sheet-like workpiece made of a die-cut roll, an anvil roll, etc. to which the present invention is applied have a slight position adjustment (position adjustment in the front-rear direction of about 1 mm). Therefore, since the inclination of the block 11 is also slight, the through hole provided in the block 11 for rotating the adjustment screw 12b does not need to be a long hole, and since it is sufficient for the block 11 to move forward slightly, the problem of position adjustment in the technical field to which the present invention is applied can be achieved if the through hole is a normal screw hole (a screw hole with approximately the same diameter as the adjustment screw 12).

[0026] Here, a stopper 14 abuts against the other end of the main plate 7 (the end opposite to the end to which the upper link arm 8 and the lower link arm 9 are attached). As shown in FIG. 6, the stopper 14 has a fixing portion 14a for fixing to the device body 2, and is fixed to the device body 2 by a screw penetrating the fixing portion 14a. Furthermore, the stopper 14 has an abutting portion 14b, which abuts against the end side of the main plate 7. By providing such a stopper 14, the position of the tilted main plate 7 can be reliably fixed, and even if a screw or the like is loosened when tilting the main plate 7, the position of the main plate 7 can be provisionally determined by the stopper 14, so that the main plate 7 can be reliably fixed while maintaining the tilt angle of the main plate 7 (at the position after the position adjustment). Furthermore, by returning the stopper 14 to be along the vertical direction, the main plate 7 can be easily abutted against it, and the main plate 7 can also be returned to the initial vertical state (without tilt). Therefore, the position of the main plate 7 can be easily readjusted, improving workability.

[0027] The main body 2 shown in the drawings will be described in detail below. The upper roll shaft 3a and the lower roll shaft 4a also function as the rotation support shaft of the gear 15. The gear 15 is further arranged so as to mesh with the gear 16. A rotating shaft member that rotatably connects the main plate 7 to the upper connecting plate 5 and the lower connecting plate 6 is used as the rotation support shaft of the gear 16. The upper connecting plate 5 and the lower connecting plate 6 are configured as two plates so as to sandwich the gears 15 and 16. A mechanism in which a total of four gears 15, 16 are provided on the upper and lower rolls 3 and 4 in this way is called a four-gear mechanism. In the four-gear mechanism, an upper link arm 8 and a lower link arm 9 are required to reliably determine the position of the gear 16. The main plate 7 also has two plates so as to sandwich the gears 15 and 16, and these two plates are fixed to each other. Therefore, if the first plate moves, the second plate also moves in the same way. The contact portion 14b of the stopper 14 contacts the inner side of the main plate 7 (the device body 2 side).

[0028] The procedure for adjusting the positions of the upper and lower rolls 3 and 4 will be described with reference to Figures 4 and 5. The four screws 17 that fix the stopper 14 to the device body 2 are loosened to free the stopper 14 from the device body 2. Then, the three screws 18 that fix the flange 11a to the fixed piece 13 are loosened to allow the block 11 to move. Then, the adjustment screw 12b is rotated to rotate the block 11 around the fulcrum shaft 12a. As described above, this allows the positions of the upper and lower rolls 3 and 4 to be adjusted. After that, the screws 18 are tightened, and the abutment portion 14b of the stopper 14 is abutted against the main plate 7, and then the screws 17 are tightened. Since the stopper 14 and the block 11 are also inclined with respect to the device body 2, the holes for inserting the screws 17 and 18 are formed as elongated holes.

[0029] The present invention is particularly suitable for such a four-gear mechanism, and the inventor believes that the reason for this is as follows.

[0030] The phenomenon in which the phase position of the upper and lower rolls in the rotation direction shifts during continuous operation is caused by the fact that the distance between the shaft centers of the upper and lower shafts (3a, 4a) becomes greater, and when they return, the intermediate gear 16 does not return to its original position. In theory, there should be no structural misalignment, but there are errors accumulated due to various factors, such as the gap in the bearings (installed between the upper and lower roll shafts 3a, 4a and the upper connecting plate 5 and the lower connecting plate 6) that already exist in the new state, the strength, manufacturing dimensional accuracy, and assembly accuracy of the upper and lower link arms 8 and 9, and wear of the fixed parts that occurs with use, which led to the misalignment. It is impossible to eliminate the minute "play" required for moving parts, and there is a limit to how much strength can be increased, so it is not realistic to achieve a precision of plus or minus zero. After pondering how to return the intermediate gear 16 to its original position, we added a stopper 14 to the immovable frame support and fixed it so that it would come into close contact with the end face of the main plate 7 when the link mechanism returns to its original position. The stopper 14 forcibly corrects the intermediate gear 16, which has returned to the vicinity of its original position, to the original position, making it possible to eliminate the deviation.

[0031] By additionally fixing the stopper 14, it becomes possible to return the intermediate gear 16 to the same position every time, and the phase positions in the rotational direction of the upper and lower rolls 3 and 4 do not shift. This is because the ends of the links 8 and 9 follow the stopper 14 and settle in the same position every time. Conversely, if the stopper 14 is intentionally shifted, the ends of the links 8 and 9 will follow the shifted position, making it possible to generate an "intended shift." In other words, the phase positions in the rotational direction of the upper and lower rolls 3 and 4 can be adjusted as desired. This is how the position adjustment mechanism according to the present invention was devised.

[0032] In fact, the work of assembling the upper and lower rolls 3 and 4 into the frame constituting the main body 2 of the device and aligning the rotational phase position is very difficult and time-consuming. Even if the phase position is correct when adjusted by hand, the position may be slightly misaligned when rotating at the speed of the production line, and when the roll itself is heated and used, the position may be misaligned depending on the temperature, so it was often necessary to make a slight position adjustment after the manual adjustment. To adjust this, it was necessary to repeat the work of loosening the screws of the gears etc. that had been assembled with great care, adjusting the position by eye, and tightening the screws of the gears again to check. This adjustment was done by hand, so there was variation, and when the gears were refastened, the position would be misaligned depending on the work and the force applied, making it a problematic work. By using this position adjustment mechanism, anyone can easily adjust the position, which has led to a dramatic improvement in work efficiency. [Explanation of symbols]

[0033] 1: Upper and lower roll device with position adjustment mechanism, 2: device body, 3: upper roll, 3a: upper roll shaft, 4: lower roll, 4a: lower roll shaft, 5: upper connecting plate, 6: lower connecting plate, 7: main plate, 8: upper link arm, 9: lower link arm, 10: connecting member, 11: block, 11a: flange, 12: rotating unit, 12a: fulcrum shaft, 12b: adjustment screw, 13: fixed piece, 14: stopper, 14a: fixed portion, 14b: abutment portion, 15: gear, 16: gear, 17: screw, 18: screw,

Claims

1. An upper roll and a lower roll arranged vertically side by side in a main body of the device; An upper roll shaft and a lower roll shaft which are rotation axes of the upper roll and the lower roll; An upper connecting plate and a lower connecting plate rotatably connected to the upper roll shaft and the lower roll shaft, respectively; a main plate rotatably connected to the upper connecting plate and the lower connecting plate; an upper link arm and a lower link arm extending outward from two positions, upper and lower, at one end of the main plate; a block to which ends of the upper link arm and the lower link arm extending from the main plate are connected; and a rotation unit that rotates the block to move the upper link arm or the lower link arm in a direction along the longitudinal direction.

2. 2. The upper and lower roll device with position adjustment mechanism according to claim 1, further comprising a stopper that abuts against the other end of the main plate.

3. The upper and lower roll device with position adjustment mechanism as described in claim 1, characterized in that the rotating unit is formed by a fulcrum axis extending from the device main body in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the upper link arm and the lower link arm and inserted into the block, and an adjustment screw extending from the device main body along the longitudinal direction of the upper link arm and the lower link arm and passing through and screwing into the block.

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