Rod material supply device

Abstract

To provide a rod material supply device that can automatically calculate and display information required by a worker such as the remaining processable number and remaining processing time of rod materials supplied to a rod material processing device.SOLUTION: A rod material supply device includes: driving means for conveying rod materials; and conveying means that conveys the rod material in the longitudinal direction with driving force of the driving means and supplies the rod material to a rod material processing device arranged on one side in the longitudinal direction. The rod material supply device also includes: processing start information acquisition means which acquires processing start information of the rod material processing device; processing time measurement means which measures the processing time; conveyance length measurement means which measures the conveyance length of conveyance of the rod material in the processing time; remaining processable number calculation means which calculates the remaining processable number from the conveyance length; remaining time calculation means which calculates the remaining time from the remaining processable number and the processing time; and display means which displays the remaining time and remaining processable number.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a bar stock supplying device that automatically supplies bar stock, which is the workpiece, to a bar stock processing device such as a lathe, and in particular to a bar stock supplying device that can display information such as the remaining number of bars that can be processed and the remaining processing time. [Background technology]

[0002] The bar feeder holds long, thin bars and feeds them continuously to a bar processing device such as an automatic lathe, and also supports the bars while they rotate while the bar processing device is in operation. The bar processing device holds and rotates the bar with its main shaft and chuck, and cuts the bar with a blade.

[0003] As described above, this bar feeder is a device that feeds bar material to the bar processing device, and when the length of the bar material fed reaches a point where it is no longer possible to process a new member, the end of the bar material is gripped by the finger chuck and the remaining bar material is discharged. After that, a new bar material is fed and the new bar material is fed toward the bar processing device.

[0004] In this way, the bar supplying device supplies a predetermined length of bar to the bar processing device, which processes the supplied bar in accordance with the length of the workpiece to be processed, and uses the remaining bar to process the next workpiece, thereby continuously processing the workpieces.

[0005] Various types of such bar feeders are known, for example, the bar feeder described in Patent Document 1.

[0006] The bar supplying device described in Patent Document 1 comprises a drive means for transporting the bar stock, and a transport means for transporting the bar stock in its longitudinal direction by the driving force of the drive means, and the device transports the bar stock in its longitudinal direction and supplies it to a bar processing device arranged at one longitudinal end of the bar stock. The device also comprises a displacement detection means for converting a linear displacement amount of the transport means into an electrical signal and outputting it, a transport amount calculation means for calculating the transport amount of the bar stock from the electrical signal, a calculation means for calculating the remaining material length by subtracting the calculated transport amount from the initial length of the bar stock, and a millimeter conversion display means for converting the calculated remaining material length into millimeters and displaying it.

[0007] According to this type of bar stock supplying device, the displacement detection means detects the linear displacement of the conveying means, i.e., the amount of movement of the bar stock, and outputs it in the form of an electrical signal. The amount of conveying of the bar stock is calculated based on this electrical signal, so that the amount of movement of the bar stock can be accurately determined. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0008] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 2619877 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0009] However, with conventional bar supply devices, although it was possible to grasp the amount of movement of the bar, it was not possible to directly know specific numerical values ​​such as the remaining number of bars that could be processed currently being processed or the remaining processing time, and workers were required to obtain this information by performing calculations manually.

[0010] Normally, in addition to making these calculations, workers are required to perform multiple tasks, such as managing the timing of the next setup work and the time allocated to other work, and this has been pointed out as reducing productivity.In addition, with manual calculations, if the bar processing equipment is stopped for one cycle for a dimension check or if the processing program is changed midway, new calculations must be made, which places a burden on the workers.

[0011] The present invention aims to solve such problems and to provide a bar stock supplying device that can automatically calculate and display information required by an operator, such as the remaining number of bars supplied to the bar stock processing device that can be processed and the remaining processing time. [Means for solving the problem]

[0012] In order to solve the above problems, the bar stock supplying device of the present invention comprises a driving means for transporting the bar stock, and a conveying means for transporting the bar stock in the longitudinal direction by the driving force of the driving means, and is characterized in that, in the bar stock supplying device that supplies the bar stock to a bar stock processing device arranged at one end side in the longitudinal direction, the device comprises: a processing start information acquiring means for acquiring processing start information of the bar stock processing device, a processing time measuring means for measuring the processing time, a conveying length measuring means for measuring the conveying length of the bar stock conveyed within the processing time, a remaining processable number calculating means for calculating the remaining number of stock that can be processed from the conveying length, a remaining time calculating means for calculating the remaining time from the remaining processable number and the processing time, and a display means for displaying the remaining time and the remaining number that can be processed.

[0013] In the bar supplying device according to the present invention, it is preferable that the processing start information acquiring means receives a discrimination signal from the bar processing device.

[0014] In the bar feeder according to the present invention, it is preferable that the discrimination signal is a chuck open signal of the bar processing device.

[0015] In addition, the bar stock supplying device according to the present invention preferably further comprises total length acquiring means for acquiring the total length of the bar stock before it is processed.

[0016] In the bar supplying device according to the present invention, it is preferable that the remaining processable number calculation means calculates the remaining processable number by dividing the total length by the conveying length.

[0017] In the bar supplying device according to the present invention, it is preferable that the discrimination signal is a dedicated signal indicative of a timing for starting processing. Effect of the Invention

[0018] According to the present invention, the bar stock processing device is provided with a processing start information acquisition means for acquiring processing start information of the bar stock processing device, a processing time measurement means for measuring the processing time, a transport length measurement means for measuring the transport length of the bar stock transported within the processing time, a remaining number of pieces that can be processed calculated from the transport length, and a display means for displaying the remaining time and the remaining number of pieces that can be processed. This eliminates the need for the worker to manually calculate the remaining time and the remaining number of pieces that can be processed using a calculator or the like, thereby reducing the burden on the worker and leading to improved productivity. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0019] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram of a bar feeder according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 2] 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a structure of a bar supplying device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 3] FIG. 4 is a flow chart for explaining a control method of the bar feeder according to the embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0020] Preferred embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Note that the following embodiments do not limit the inventions according to the claims, and all of the combinations of features described in the embodiments are not necessarily essential to the solution of the invention.

[0021] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a bar stock supplying device according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating the structure of a bar stock supplying device according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a flow chart illustrating a control method of a bar stock supplying device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0022] As shown in FIG. 1, a bar supplying device 10 of this embodiment supplies material to a bar processing device 20, which is called a lathe as an example, and is disposed adjacent to the bar processing device 20.

[0023] The bar processing device 20 is, for example, an automatic lathe, and as shown in FIG. 2, is disposed at one longitudinal end of the bar supplying device 10 so that the central axis of its spindle 21 coincides with the extension of the central axis of the finger chuck and the bar 2 held by the finger chuck.

[0024] The bar supplying device 10 comprises a main body 5 which supplies the bar 2 as material to the bar processing device 20, and a base 7 which supports the main body 5 at a predetermined height. The main body 5 also comprises a control unit 4 which functions as a remaining processable number calculating means and a remaining time calculating means, which will be described later, and an operation panel 6 which functions as a display means.

[0025] As shown in FIG. 2, the main body 5 is equipped with a driving means 11 that provides a driving force for transporting the bar material 2 being supplied, a transporting means 12 that transports the bar material 2 pushed out by the driving means 11, and a support unit 13 that holds the central axis of the bar material 2 so as to coincide with the main axis 21 of the bar material processing device 20.

[0026] The driving means 11 includes a slider 11a that is movable along the longitudinal direction of the conveying means 12 by being provided with a driving force by a driving motor (not shown), a push rod 11b connected to the slider 11a, and a finger chuck 11c that is attached to the tip of the push rod 11b and grips the bar material 2.

[0027] The slider 11a is provided with a conveying length measuring means for measuring the conveying length of the bar 2. The conveying length measuring means may be any of various known mechanisms, but for example, an encoder is preferably used. Furthermore, the main body 5 is provided with a processing time measuring means for measuring the processing time of the bar processing device 20, and the processing time measurement starts when a discrimination signal, which will be described later, is received as being turned on, and after the discrimination signal is turned off, the slider 11a sends out one cycle output amount and measures one cycle time until the discrimination signal is turned on again.

[0028] The main body 5 also includes a total length acquisition means for acquiring the total length of the supplied bar 2 before processing, and the total length acquisition means may be configured to automatically measure the total length of the bar 2 when the bar 2 is supplied to the bar supplying device 10, or may be configured so that an operator operates the operation panel 6 to manually acquire the length of the bar 2. Furthermore, if the total length of the bar 2 is known in advance, the operator may manually input the total length.

[0029] The control unit 4 has, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), and a RAM (Random Access Memory), and the CPU reads out various programs stored in the ROM, RAM, etc., and functions as a remaining processable number calculation means and a remaining time calculation means, which will be described later.

[0030] The operation panel 6 may be a display constituted by a liquid crystal display element or an EL (Electro Luminescence) element, or any of various conventionally known operation panels having various operation buttons.

[0031] The main body 5 is provided with a bar supplying section (not shown) that appropriately supplies the bar 2 to the bar supplying device 10, but details thereof will be omitted since this is conventionally known.

[0032] On the other hand, the bar processing device 20 has a cylindrical main shaft 21 through which the bar 2 can pass, and this main shaft 21 is provided with a chuck 22 that grips the tip of the bar 2. The bar 2 is rotated while being gripped by the chuck 22, and is processed by a predetermined cutting tool (e.g., a cutting tool) not shown.

[0033] The bar processing device 20 also includes a discrimination signal transmitting means for issuing a chuck open signal when the chuck 22 is opened, and the chuck open signal issued by the discrimination signal transmitting means is transmitted to the control unit 4 of the bar supplying device 10. At this time, the chuck open signal may be transmitted wirelessly or via a wire.

[0034] Next, the operation of the bar supplying device 10 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 3. First, the operation panel 6 of the bar supplying device 10 is operated to start the operation of supplying the bar 2 to the bar processing device 20, thereby starting automatic operation (S101).

[0035] When the automatic operation starts, the measurement of the one-cycle delivery amount is started (S102). After that, when the chuck 22 of the bar processing device 20 opens, the bar processing device 20 transmits a chuck open signal from the discrimination signal transmitting means to the control unit 4 of the bar supply device 10 that the chuck open signal has been turned on (S103).

[0036] When the bar supplying device 10 receives the chuck open signal and determines that the discrimination signal is on, it starts measuring one cycle time (S104) and simultaneously sends out the bar 2 to a stopper (not shown) of the bar processing device 20. When sending out the bar 2 is completed, the bar supplying device 10 transmits a send-out completion signal to the bar processing device 20. Thereafter, when the bar processing device 20 receives the send-out completion signal and determines that the send-out completion signal is on, the bar processing device 20 closes the chuck 22. At this time, the bar processing device 20 transmits from the discrimination signal transmitting means that the chuck open signal has been turned off, and transmits to the bar supplying device 10 that the discrimination signal is off (S105).

[0037] When the discrimination signal is received that the bar material supplying device 10 is off, the bar material supplying device 10 ends the measurement of the one-cycle feed amount (S106). When the measurement of the one-cycle feed amount is completed, the measurement result S is stored in an arbitrary memory area (S107), the current value is reset (S108), and the measurement of the next one-cycle feed amount is started. At this time, since the chuck 22 of the bar material processing device 20 is closed, the feed amount is not counted and the device waits for the next chuck open signal (S108 to S102).

[0038] When the chuck 22 is closed, the bar processing device 20 starts processing the bar 2. After that, when processing is completed, the bar processing device 20 cuts through the processed product and starts the next cycle. At this time, the chuck 22 of the bar processing device 20 opens again and transmits a chuck open signal to the bar supplying device 10 (S109). When the bar supplying device 10 receives the chuck open signal again, it ends the measurement of one cycle time (S110), stores the measurement result A of one cycle time in an arbitrary memory area (S111), resets the current value (S112), and starts measuring the next one cycle time (S104), and at the same time, sends the bar 2 to the stopper (not shown) of the bar processing device 20 again. This series of operations in the bar processing device 20 and the bar supplying device 10 is repeated until the current position of the slider 11a reaches the bar end, which is the set value of the bar supplying device 10. Here, the bar end is defined as the length obtained by subtracting the length to be discharged as a remaining material from the entire length of the bar 2. Also, the remaining material length is defined as the length obtained by subtracting the current position of the slider 11a from the bar end.

[0039] A remaining machineable number calculation means (S114) is executed to calculate the remaining number of pieces that can be machined based on the measurement result S of the one-cycle feed amount. The remaining machineable number calculation step (S114) calculates the remaining number of pieces that can be machined B by dividing the remaining material length by the measurement result S of the one-cycle feed amount. Here, since the number that can be machined is a natural number, the integer part of the remaining number of pieces that can be machined B is stored as the remaining number of pieces that can be machined B. The remaining material length is saved in an arbitrary memory area.

[0040] Furthermore, a remaining time calculation means (S113) is executed to calculate a remaining time C based on the measurement result A of one cycle time. The remaining time calculation means (S113) multiplies the remaining number of processable parts B by the measurement result A of one cycle time to calculate the remaining time C required to process the bar 2 up to the bar end.

[0041] Thereafter, one cycle time A, the remaining number of workpieces that can be machined B, and the remaining time C until the bar end are completed are displayed on the operation panel 6 (S115).

[0042] In this way, according to the bar supplying device 10 of this embodiment, the remaining number B of bars 2 that can be processed and the remaining time C can be automatically calculated and displayed, thereby reducing the workload of the worker and contributing to improved productivity.

[0043] In the above-described embodiment of the bar material supplying device 10, a chuck open signal is used as the discrimination signal for the processing start information received from the bar material processing device 20. However, by using the chuck open signal that the bar material processing device 20 normally has as the discrimination signal, the bar material supplying device 10 of the embodiment can be applied without making major modifications to the bar material processing device 20, making it possible to provide the bar material supplying device 10 of the embodiment at low cost.

[0044] Furthermore, the processing start information used as the discrimination signal is not limited to the chuck open signal, and for example, if the bar processing device 20 can output a dedicated signal indicating the timing of processing start, the dedicated signal may be used. Furthermore, although the processing time and one-cycle feed amount have been described as being calculated from the operation of the bar supplying device 10, if these values ​​are known in advance, they may be configured to be input manually. It is clear from the claims that such modified or improved forms are also included within the technical scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0045] 10 bar material supply device, 11 drive means, 12 conveying means, 13 support unit, 20 bar material processing device, 21 spindle, 22 chuck.

Claims

1. A drive means for conveying the bar material; and a conveying means for conveying the bar in a longitudinal direction by a driving force of the driving means, A bar material supplying device that supplies the bar material to a bar material processing device disposed at one end side in the longitudinal direction, A processing start information acquisition means for acquiring processing start information of the bar processing device; A processing time measuring means for measuring a processing time; a conveying length measuring means for measuring a conveying length of the bar material conveyed within the processing time; a remaining processable number calculation means for calculating a remaining processable number from the conveying length; a remaining time calculation means for calculating a remaining time from the remaining number of processable parts and the processing time; and a display means for displaying the remaining time and the remaining number of bars that can be processed.

2. 2. The bar feeder according to claim 1, The bar stock supplying device according to claim 1, wherein the processing start information acquiring means receives a discrimination signal from the bar stock processing device.

3. 3. The bar material supplying device according to claim 2, The bar material supplying device according to claim 1, wherein the discrimination signal is a chuck open signal of the bar material processing device.

4. 2. The bar feeder according to claim 1, A bar stock supplying device comprising: an overall length acquiring means for acquiring the overall length of the bar stock before it is processed.

5. 5. The bar feeder according to claim 4, The bar supplying device according to claim 1, wherein the remaining processable number calculation means calculates the remaining processable number by dividing the total length by the conveying length.

6. 3. The bar material supplying device according to claim 2, A bar supplying device according to claim 1, wherein the discrimination signal is a dedicated signal indicating a timing for starting processing.

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