Linear guide

Abstract

To provide a linear guide including a dust-proof cover covering the end of a guide rail and the end of a slider while actualizing smooth and easy attaching / detaching work for the dust-proof cover in a simple construction.SOLUTION: The linear guide includes the guide rail having a raceway surface along the longitudinal direction, the slider for slidably engaging with the guide rail while straddling it, and the dust-proof cover arranged between the axial end of the slider and the end face of the guide rail and adapted to be expanded / shrunk in the axial direction according to the sliding position of the slider. Herein, an attaching / detaching mechanism is provided for attaching / detaching a mounting member mounted at the axial end of the slider to / from a mounted body mounted at the axial end of the dust-proof cover.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a linear guide equipped with a dust cover. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, a linear guide includes a guide rail extending in the axial direction and a slider mounted on the guide rail so as to be movable relative to the guide rail, and the slider moves relative to the guide rail in the axial direction via a plurality of rolling elements circulating between rolling element rolling grooves formed in the guide rail and the slider. In particular, a linear guide incorporated in a machine tool may be used in an environment where foreign matter such as cutting chips and welding spatters is generated, and therefore a dust cover is provided on the guide rail to prevent foreign matter such as dust, cutting chips, and cutting oil from adhering thereto.

[0003] Patent document 1 discloses a linear motion table device which includes guide rails attached to both the left and right ends of a housing, a slider mounted on the pair of guide rails so as to be able to move back and forth on the pair of guide rails, a table connected to the slider, and a cover which covers the top of the housing, so that the inside of the housing is not exposed by the cover even when the slider moves on the guide rails. Patent Document 2 discloses a linear guide device equipped with a dust cover having a first mounting plate that is removably fixed to the end face of a guide rail, a second mounting plate that is screwed in a state overlapping a side seal attached to the end of a slider, and a cover body that covers the space between one end of the guide rail and the end of the slider. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2013-167345 A [Patent Document 2] Patent No. 6557993 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The aim of Patent Document 1 is to reduce the intrusion of foreign matter onto a pair of guide rails by providing a bellows that covers a housing having a pair of left and right guide rails. However, because the entire housing including the pair of guide rails is covered with the bellows, there are problems in that it is time-consuming to install the bellows and the manufacturing costs are high.

[0006] In Patent Document 2, in order to fix the cover body to the slider side, it is necessary to remove the screw that fixes the side seal to the slider, pass the cover body through the guide rail, and then fasten the second mounting plate on the cover body side and the side seal together to the end cap at the end of the slider. This causes a problem that the installation work of the dust cover on the slider takes time and effort. In addition, there is a problem that the screw that fixes the end cap to the slider may be removed by mistake when removing the dust cover from the slider.

[0007] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is to provide a linear guide equipped with a dust cover covering the end of the guide rail and the end of the slider, which has a simple configuration that allows the dust cover to be attached and removed smoothly and easily. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The above object of the present invention can be achieved by the following configuration. (1) a guide rail having a track surface along a longitudinal direction; a slider that slidably engages with the guide rail so as to straddle the guide rail; a dust cover that is disposed between an axial end of the slider and an end face of the guide rail and expands and contracts in the axial direction according to a sliding position of the slider, a detachment mechanism including a mounting member attached to an axial end of the slider and a mounting body attached to an axial end of the dust cover and detachably attached to the mounting member; Linear guide. Effect of the Invention

[0009] According to the present invention, the simple configuration enables the attachment and detachment of the dust cover to be smooth and easy. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a side view of a linear guide according to the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a front view of the linear guide according to the present invention. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3(A) is a front view of the mounting member, and FIG. 3(B) is a side view of the mounting member. [Figure 4] FIG. 4(A) is a front view of the mounting body, and FIG. 4(B) is a side view of the mounting body. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a side view showing a manner in which the mounting member is attached to the slider. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a side view showing a manner in which the dust cover is attached to the attachment member. [Figure 7] FIG. 7(A) is a front view of the mounting member of the second embodiment, and FIG. 7(B) is a side view of the mounting member of the second embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 8(A) is a front view of the mounting target body of the second embodiment, and FIG. 8(B) is a side view of the mounting target body of the second embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a side view of a main part showing the attached state of the attachment member and the attached body of the second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] Hereinafter, the linear guide (linear guiding device) according to each embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the vertical direction, width direction, and axial direction of the slider respectively represent the directions in a state where the slider is assembled to a guide rail arranged with the longitudinal direction horizontal, the width direction of the slider is a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the guide rail and the vertical direction of the slider, and is also called the left-right direction, and the axial direction of the slider is a direction along the longitudinal direction of the guide rail, and is also called the front-rear direction.

[0012] (First embodiment) The configuration of the linear guide will be described with reference to Figs. 1 to 4. Fig. 1 is a side view of the linear guide according to the present invention, Fig. 2 is a front view of the linear guide according to the present invention, Fig. 3(A) is a front view of a mounting member, Fig. 3(B) is a side view of the mounting member, Fig. 4(A) is a front view of a mounting target body, and Fig. 4(B) is a side view of the mounting target body. As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the linear guide 10 of the first embodiment includes a linear guide rail 20, a slider 30 assembled so as to straddle the guide rail 20 and slidably engaged with the guide rail 20 via a plurality of rolling elements, and a dust cover 40 covering the guide rail 20.

[0013] A first rail-side track surface 21 having a substantially semicircular or gothic arch-shaped cross section is formed in the axial direction on both side surfaces 23 of the guide rail 20. A clearance groove 21a for arranging a retaining wire is formed in the first rail-side track surface 21 toward the inside on the left and right sides along the axial direction. A second rail-side raceway surface 22 having a cross section of a substantially quarter-circular arc is formed in the axial direction at the ridge where the top surface 24 and both side surfaces 23 of the guide rail 20 intersect. This configuration can be seen in FIG.

[0014] The slider 30 comprises a slider body 31, end caps 32 attached to both axial ends of the slider body 31, and side seals 33 attached to the axial ends of each end cap 32.

[0015] The slider body 31 is formed in a substantially U-shape, and has slider-side raceway surfaces (not shown) that face the rail-side raceway surfaces 21, 22 of the guide rail 20 on the inner surfaces of both sleeves, as well as a rolling element return path. The end cap 32, which is formed in a substantially U-shape, has a curved path (not shown) that connects the slider-side raceway surfaces of the slider body 31 and the rolling element return path, and the rail-side raceway surfaces 21, 22, the slider-side raceway surfaces, the rolling element return path, and the curved paths at both ends form a rolling element circulating path. A plurality of balls are loaded in the rolling element circulating path so as to be able to roll freely.

[0016] The side seal 33 is a generally U-shaped steel plate that matches the outer shape of the end cap 32, and through holes 34 for mounting screws are formed in both sleeves. The side seal 33 and the guide rail 20 are not in contact with each other, and an elastic body (not shown), such as nitrile rubber or polyurethane rubber containing grease, is provided on the inside of the generally U-shaped steel plate to seal the gap between the slider 30 and the guide rail 20.

[0017] The dustproof cover 40 has a cover body 41 , a rail mounting body 42 , a mounting body 50 , and a mounting member 60 . A rail mounting body 42 is attached to one end of the cover body 41, and a mounting body 50 is attached to the other end of the cover body 41. The rail mounting body 42 is detachably attached to the axial end of the guide rail 20. The mounting body 50 is detachably attached to a mounting member 60 fixed to the slider 30 side. This configuration can be seen in Figure 1.

[0018] The cover body 41 is a bellows formed in a U-shape in front view so as to cover the upper surface of the guide rail 20 and at least the upper half of the side surface of the guide rail 20 including the rail-side raceway surface 21, and expands and contracts in the axial direction. Note that the cover body 41 is not limited to a bellows as long as it is a member that is expandable and contractable in the axial direction.

[0019] The rail mounting body 42 is attached and fixed to the axial end of the cover body 41 and has a locking body 44 that is locked to the rail-side track surface 21, and a mounting plate 45 that is a plate-like member that abuts against the axial end of the guide rail 20. The locking body 44 and the mounting plate 45 are connected by a fixing screw 46.

[0020] The locking body 44 has a locking portion 44a and a plate fixing portion 44b. The locking portion 44a is a plate-like member formed in a U-shape with an open lower portion so as to cover the upper surface 24 and the upper portions of both side surfaces 23, 23 of the guide rail 20. The lower end side of the locking portion 44a is bent in an L-shape from the left and right outer sides toward the left and right inner sides of the first rail-side track surface 21, so as to be disposed within the escape groove 21a. This configuration may be seen in FIG. 2. The plate fixing portion 44b is a plate-like portion formed by bending the axial end portion of the locking body 44 upward into an L-shape, and can be arranged on the same plane as the end portion of the guide rail 20. A pair of left and right fixing holes 47 into which fixing screws 46 are fastened are formed in the plate fixing portion 44b. This configuration can be seen in Figures 1 and 2.

[0021] The mounting plate 45 is a plate-like member that is attached to the axial end of the cover body 41 via the locking body 44 and abuts against the axial end of the guide rail 20. The mounting plate 45 is formed with a pair of left and right fixing holes 48, 48 through which fixing screws 46 are inserted, and is detachably attached and fixed to the locking body 44 by the fixing screws 46.

[0022] The mounting member 60 has a sleeve portion 61 , a connecting portion 62 , and an arm portion 63 . The mounting member 60 is a plate-like member (spacer) formed in a generally U-shape when viewed from the front to match the outer shapes of the end cap 32 and the side seal 33, and is made of an elastically deformable material. The mounting member 60 is detachably attached to the axial end of the side seal 33 using fixing screws 35. This configuration can be seen in Figures 3(A) and 3(B).

[0023] The sleeve portion 61 extends in the vertical direction along both side surfaces 23, 23 of the guide rail 20. Fixing holes 64 for fastening the mounting member 60 to the side seal 33 using fixing screws 35 are formed in both sleeve portions 61, 61. The fixing holes 64 are formed with countersunk holes 64a for accommodating the heads of the fixing screws 35.

[0024] The arm portion 63 has a first portion 63a extending from the lower end of the sleeve portion 61 in the axial direction away from the slider 30, and a second portion 63b extending upward from the end of the first portion 63a. As a result, the arm portion 63 is formed in an L-shape in a side view by folding back the lower end of each sleeve portion 61 upward. The pair of arm portions 63, 63 are formed so that the width in the left-right direction is approximately the same as that of the sleeve portion 61 in a front view, and the length in the up-down direction extends from the lower end of the sleeve portion 61 to the upper side of the fixing hole 64 in a front view. The upper end side of the arm portion 63 is formed in a trapezoidal shape. As a result, an insertion portion 69 is formed between the arm portion 63 and the sleeve portion 61 for fitting and supporting the attachment target 50 by inserting the attachment target 50 from above.

[0025] Further, a first locking piece 65 and an insertion hole 66 are formed in the second portion 63b of the arm portion 63. The first locking pieces 65 protrude from the upper ends of the second parts 63b of the pair of arm parts 63 along the axial direction in a direction approaching the slider 30. The amount of protrusion of the first locking pieces 65 is formed shorter than the axial length of the first parts 63a of the arm parts 63. Therefore, a gap in the front-rear direction is formed between the first locking pieces 65 at the upper ends of the arm parts 63 and the sleeve parts 61 so that the sleeve parts 51 of the attachment target body 50 can be inserted into the insertion parts 69. This configuration can be seen in FIG. 3(B). The insertion hole 66 is an axial through hole drilled in the arm portion 63 at a position overlapping with the fixing hole 64 of the sleeve portion 61 in a front view. The insertion hole 66 is large enough to allow at least the fixing screw 35 to be inserted therethrough, and in the illustrated example, a hole of approximately the same diameter as the counterbore 64a of the fixing hole 64 is formed.

[0026] The connecting portion 62 extends in the left-right direction along the upper surface 24 of the guide rail 20 and is formed so as to connect the upper portions of the pair of sleeve portions 61, 61 to each other. A second locking piece 67 is formed on the upper edge of the connecting portion 62, protruding in the axial direction away from the slider 30.

[0027] The second locking piece 67 is formed over the entire upper edge of the mounting member 60 in the left-right direction, and the amount of protrusion in the axial direction is shorter than the front-to-rear length of the arm portion 63. This configuration can be seen in Figures 3(A) and 3(B).

[0028] The mounting body 50 has a pair of sleeve portions 51, 51, a connecting portion 52, and a locking hole 53. The mounting body 50 is a plate-like member formed in a generally U-shape when viewed from the front to match the shape of the mounting member 60. The mounting body 50 is attached and fixed to the end of the cover body 41 on the slider 30 side. This configuration can be seen in Figures 4(A) and 4(B).

[0029] The sleeve portion 51 extends in the up-down direction along both side surfaces 23, 23 of the guide rail 20. The left-right directions of both sleeve portions 51, 51 of the attachment target body 50 are each formed to have the same length as the sleeve portion 61 of the attachment member 60. The lower end of the sleeve portion 51 of the attachment target body 50 is formed shorter than the sleeve portion 61 of the attachment member 60 by the amount of the first portion 63a of the arm portion 63. The connecting portion 52 extends in the left-right direction along the upper surface 24 of the guide rail 20, and is formed so as to connect the upper portions of the pair of sleeve portions 51, 51. The left-right direction of the connecting portion 52 of the attachment target body 50 is formed to have the same length as the connecting portion 62 of the attachment member 60. The upper end of the connecting portion 52 of the attachment target body 50 is formed shorter than the connecting portion 62 of the attachment member 60 by the amount of the second locking piece 67. In other words, the object 50 attached to the mounting member 60 is fitted between the first part 63a of the arm portion 63 and the second locking piece 67 in the up-down direction, and is clamped between the second part 63b of the arm portion 63 and the sleeve portion 61 in the front-to-back direction.

[0030] The locking holes 53 are provided on the left and right sides at the upper side of the sleeve portion 51 of the attachment target body 50, in other words, at the center side of the attachment target body 50 in the up-down direction. The locking hole 53 is a through hole that penetrates in the axial direction or a recess that is recessed in the axial direction, and a first locking piece 65 of the mounting member 60 is locked (fitted) therein.

[0031] As described above, the mounting member 60 and the substrate 50 have an attachment / detachment mechanism for smoothly attaching and detaching the dust cover 40 to and from the slider 30. To be more specific, the attachment / detachment mechanism functions between the arm portion 63 (the insertion portion 69 formed by the arm portion 63) of the mounting member 60 and the sleeve portion 51 of the substrate 50 inserted (clamped) into the arm portion 63, between the first locking piece 65 of the mounting member 60 and the locking hole 53 of the substrate 50 to which the first locking piece 65 is locked, and between the second locking piece 67 of the mounting member 60 and the upper edge of the connecting portion 52 of the substrate 50 which is held down by contact with the second locking piece 67.

[0032] A method of attaching the dustproof cover 40 to the slider 30 will be described with reference to Fig. 5 and Fig. 6. Fig. 5 is a side view showing how the attachment member is attached to the slider, and Fig. 6 is a side view showing how the dustproof cover is attached to the attachment member.

[0033] First, the mounting member 60 is attached and fixed to the axial end of the slider 30, in other words, to the side seal 33 side. More specifically, the fixing screw 35 is inserted through the fixing hole 64 formed in the sleeve portion 61 of the mounting member 60 and the through hole 34 of the side seal 33, thereby fastening the mounting member 60 and the side seal 33 together to the end cap 32 (the axial end of the slider 30). At this time, the attachment work of fastening the attachment member 60 to the slider 30 can be smoothly performed by inserting the fixing screw 35 and a tool for fastening the fixing screw 35 into the insertion hole 66 formed in the arm portion 63. This configuration may be seen in FIG. 5. When a lubrication unit (not shown) that supplies lubricant to the guide rail is attached to the end of the slider 30, a mounting member 60 is attached to the lubrication unit.

[0034] Next, the cover body 41 is placed on the guide rail 20, and the cover body 41 is slid toward the slider 30. As a result, the locking portion 44a of the locking body 44 provided at the end of the cover body 41 is locked to the guide rail 20 (see FIG. 1). Specifically, both ends of the locking portion 44a are inserted into the corresponding clearance grooves 21a of the rail-side track surface 21. Next, the mounting plate 45 is fastened to the plate fixing portion 44 b of the locking body 44 using the fixing screw 46 , and the mounting plate 45 is brought into contact with the axial end of the guide rail 20 . As a result, the rail mounting body 42 is locked by the locking body 44 so as to grip the upper surface 24 and the rail-side track surfaces 21 of both side surfaces 23, 23 of the guide rail 20, restricting the vertical and horizontal movement of the end of the cover body 41. At the same time, the mounting plate 45 restricts the cover body 41 from slipping out of the end of the guide rail 20 in the longitudinal (front-rear) direction. That is, one end of the dust cover 40 can be easily attached and detached to the end of the guide rail 20. This configuration can be seen in Figs.

[0035] Next, the object 50 provided on the slider 30 side end of the cover body 41 is lifted from above the guide rail 20, and the lower part of the sleeve 51 of the object 50 is inserted into the insertion part 69 of the mounting member 60. At this time, the first locking piece 65 at the upper end of the arm 63, which is curved by the elastic force of the mounting member 60, is naturally locked into the locking hole 53 of the object 50, so that the object 50 and the mounting member 60 are smoothly attached and fixed.

[0036] That is, by fastening the attachment member 60 to the slider 30 in advance, the dust cover 40 can be easily attached and detached to the slider 30. This configuration can be seen in Figs. At this time, by the above-mentioned attachment / detachment mechanism, both sleeves 51, 51 of the attachment target 50 are clamped within the insertion portion 69 of the attachment member 60 and placed on the first portion 63a of the arm portion 63, and the upper edge of the connecting portion 52 of the attachment target 50 abuts (in line contact) against the second locking piece 67 of the attachment member 60, and the first locking piece 65 of the attachment member 60 is locked in the locking hole 53. Therefore, the attachment target 50 is attached to the attachment member 60 side without any rattling.

[0037] As described above, the dust cover 40 has one axial end engaged with the guide rail 20 and the other axial end attached to the slider 30, so that it expands and contracts in response to the movement of the slider 30 on the guide rail 20, and can always cover the space between the end of the slider 30 and the end of the guide rail 20. This makes it possible to prevent dust from accumulating on the guide rail 20 and interfering with the movement of the slider 30.

[0038] Second embodiment 7(A) is a front view of the mounting member of the second embodiment, FIG. 7(B) is a side view of the mounting member of the second embodiment, FIG. 8(A) is a front view of the body to which the mounting member is attached of the second embodiment, and FIG. 8(B) is a side view of the body to which the mounting member is attached of the second embodiment.

[0039] The mounting member 60A has a sleeve portion 61, a connecting portion 62, and a locking piece 71. A fixing hole 64 is formed in each of the sleeves 61, 61 for fastening the mounting member 60A to the side seal 33 using a fixing screw 35. The fixing hole 64 is formed with a counterbore 64a for receiving the head of the fixing screw 35. A pair of locking pieces 71, 71 are formed on both the left and right sides of the connecting portion 62, in other words, on the upper side of the sleeve portion 61.

[0040] The locking piece 71 has a first portion 71a extending from the mounting member 60A along the axial direction in a direction away from the slider 30, and a second portion 71b extending upward from an end of the first portion 71a. That is, the locking piece 71 is an L-shaped protrusion bent upward in a side view.

[0041] The mounting target body 50A has a pair of sleeve portions 51, 51, a connecting portion 52, and a locking hole 53A. The left and right sleeves 51, 51 are formed to have the same length as the sleeve 61 of the mounting member 60A. The bottom ends of the sleeves 51, 51 in the up-down direction extend to the same position as the bottom end of the sleeve 61 of the mounting member 60A. The connecting portion 52 has the same length in the left-right direction as the connecting portion 62 of the mounting member 60A. The upper edge of the connecting portion 52 is shorter in the up-down direction than the connecting portion 62 of the mounting member 60A by the length of the second locking piece 67.

[0042] The locking holes 53A are provided in a pair on the left and right sides on the upper side of the sleeve portion 51 of the attachment target 50, in other words, on the upper side in the up-down direction of the attachment target 50A. The locking hole 53A is a through-hole that penetrates in the axial direction, and the locking piece 71 of the mounting member 60A is inserted therethrough so as to be hooked thereon.

[0043] According to this configuration, the attachment target 50 of the dust cover 40 is restricted from moving in the front-rear direction, left-right direction, and downward direction by inserting (engaging) the locking piece 71 into the locking hole 53A, and the attachment target 50 is restricted from moving upward by the upper edge of the connecting part 52 of the attachment target 50A coming into contact (in line contact) with the second locking piece 67 of the attachment member 60, so that the dust cover 40 is attached to the attachment member 60 of the slider 30 without rattling. This configuration can be seen in FIG. 9. This allows the shape of the mounting member 60 to be simpler and more compact, thereby keeping manufacturing costs low.

[0044] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be modified and improved as appropriate.

[0045] As described above, the present specification discloses the following: (1) a guide rail having a track surface along a longitudinal direction; a slider that slidably engages with the guide rail so as to straddle the guide rail; a dust cover that is disposed between an axial end of the slider and an end face of the guide rail and expands and contracts in the axial direction according to a sliding position of the slider, a detachment mechanism including a mounting member attached to an axial end of the slider and a mounting body attached to an axial end of the dust cover and detachably attached to the mounting member; Linear guide. According to this configuration, the dust cover can be attached and detached smoothly and easily with a simple structure.

[0046] (2) The mounting member has a first locking piece that locks into a locking hole provided in the mounting body. The linear guide described in (1). According to this configuration, the attachment / detachment mechanism can be formed simply and at low cost, and the dust cover can be attached and detached easily.

[0047] (3) The mounting member has a second locking piece that holds down the upper end of the mounting body. A linear guide as described in (1) or (2). According to this configuration, the dust cover will not come off even if the upside-down direction is reversed. [Explanation of symbols]

[0048] 10 Linear guide 20 Guide rail 21 First rail side raceway surface 21a Relief groove 22 Second rail side raceway surface 23 Both sides 24 Top side 30 Slider 31 Slider body 32 End cap 33 Side seal 35 Fixing screw 40 Dust cover 41 Cover body 42 Rail mounting body 44 Locking body 44a Locking part 44b Plate fixing part 45 Mounting plate 46 Fixing screw 47 Fixing hole 48 Fixed hole 50,50A Mounting body 51 Sleeves 52 Connecting part 53,53A Locking hole 60,60A mounting parts 61 Sleeves 62 Connecting part 63 Arm section 63a Part 1 63b Part 2 64 Fixed hole 65 1st locking piece 66 Insertion hole 67 Second locking piece 69 Insertion part 71 Locking piece 71a Part 1 71b Part 2

Claims

1. A guide rail having a track surface along a longitudinal direction; a slider that slidably engages with the guide rail so as to straddle the guide rail; a dust cover that is disposed between an axial end of the slider and an end face of the guide rail and expands and contracts in the axial direction according to a sliding position of the slider, a detachment mechanism including a mounting member attached to an axial end of the slider and a mounting body attached to an axial end of the dust cover and detachably attached to the mounting member; Linear guide.

2. The mounting member has a first engaging piece that engages with an engaging hole provided in the mounting body. The linear guide according to claim 1 .

3. The mounting member has a second engaging piece that holds down an upper end of the mounting target. The linear guide according to claim 1 .

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