Surface broach machine

Abstract

To provide a surface broach machine capable of automatically determining the type of a rotary table and improving workability.SOLUTION: A surface broach machine 100 includes: a column 106 and a base 108 that are fixed to a main body 104; a ram 110 that is supported by the column and capable of reciprocating in the vertical direction; at least one row of broach tools 102a, 102b, 102c that is fixed to the ram; a rotary table 116 that supports a workpiece; a front-back table 112 that moves the rotary table in the front-back direction with respect to the front of the device; a left-right table 114 that moves the rotary table in the left-right direction with respect to the front of the device; a control unit 126 that controls the operation of each table; and a sensor 128 that detects the outer periphery 138 of the rotary table. The control unit moves the left-right table or the front-back table so that the sensor detects the outer periphery of the rotary table, thereby detecting the size of the rotary table and determining the type of the rotary table on the basis of the size of the rotary table.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a surface broaching machine for processing a workpiece with a broach tool.

Background Art

[0002] A surface broaching machine includes a broach tool having a plurality of blades attached to a rod-shaped shaft, and broaches a workpiece with the broach tool (for example, Patent Document 1).

[0003] The surface broaching machine of Patent Document 1 includes a column and a base fixed to a machine body, a ram supported by the column so as to be reciprocally movable, at least one row of broach tools fixed to the ram, and front and rear tables, left and right tables, and a rotary table supported on the base and sequentially stacked on the base. Further, a workpiece to be processed by the broach tool is placed on the rotary table.

[0004] Furthermore, in the surface broaching machine of Patent Document 1, a pair of displacement sensors are fixed to the left and right front surfaces of the column or the left and right front ends of the front and rear tables, and a pair of reference surfaces that the pair of displacement sensors hit are respectively attached at positions having the same height as the workpiece.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0005]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0006] However, in a surface broaching machine, the diameter of the workpiece that can be processed varies for each rotary table. Therefore, it is necessary to replace the rotary table according to the size of the workpiece. When the sizes of the rotary tables are different, the control amount (the ratio of the rotation amount to the number of pulses) for driving the rotary table is different, so it is necessary to change the NC parameters when replacing the rotary table.

[0007] For this reason, the operator manually sets the NC parameters when replacing the rotary table. Furthermore, by manually operating the rotary table until it reaches the alignment mark (position-designating mark), the origin of the rotary table is reset.

[0008] Although the surface broaching machine of Patent Document 1 can reduce the labor of the operator during the processing of the workpiece, it does not consider reducing the labor of the operator associated with the replacement of the rotary table.

[0009] In view of such problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a surface broaching machine that can automatically discriminate the type of rotary table and improve workability.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0010] In order to solve the above problems, a typical configuration of the surface broaching machine according to the present invention is a surface broaching machine that processes a workpiece with a broaching tool, and includes a column and a base fixed to the surface broaching machine body, a ram supported by the column and reciprocally movable in the vertical direction, at least one row of broaching tools fixed to the ram, a rotary table that supports the workpiece, a front-rear table that moves the rotary table in the front-rear direction with respect to the front of the apparatus, a left-right table that moves the rotary table in the left-right direction with respect to the front of the apparatus, a control unit that controls the operation of each table, and a sensor that detects the outer circumference of the rotary table. The control unit is characterized in that it detects the size of the rotary table by moving the left-right table or the front-rear table so that the sensor detects the outer circumference of the rotary table, and discriminates the type of the rotary table based on the size of the rotary table.

[0011] On the outer periphery of the above-described rotary table, a dog having a shape protruding from the outer periphery of the rotary table is provided. After the control unit detects the outer periphery of the rotary table with a sensor, the control unit separates the rotary table from the sensor until the sensor no longer detects the rotary table, and while rotating the rotary table, the control unit preferably establishes the origin of the rotary table by detecting the dog with the sensor.

Advantages of the Invention

[0012] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a surface broaching machine that can automatically discriminate the type of a rotary table and improve workability.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0013]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0014] With reference to the accompanying drawings, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below. Dimensions, materials, and other specific numerical values shown in such embodiments are merely examples for facilitating understanding of the invention, and do not limit the present invention unless otherwise specified. In this specification and the drawings, elements having substantially the same functions and configurations are denoted by the same reference numerals to avoid redundant description, and elements not directly related to the present invention are not shown.

[0015] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of a surface broaching machine 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a main part of the surface broaching machine 100 in FIG. 1. In the following description, the left - right direction with respect to the front of the apparatus is the X - axis, the up - down direction is the Y - axis, and the front - rear direction (depth direction) with respect to the front of the apparatus is the Z - axis.

[0016] The surface broaching machine 100 includes at least one row (here, three rows) of broaching tools 102a, 102b, 102c having a plurality of blades attached to a rod - shaped shaft. These broaching tools 102a, 102b, 102c are for rough machining, semi - finishing machining, and finishing machining, respectively.

[0017] The surface broaching machine 100 has a column 106 and a base 108 fixed to the surface broaching machine body 104, a ram 110 supported by the column 106, a rotary table 116 for supporting a workpiece (not shown), and a front - rear table 112 and a left - right table 114 for moving the rotary table 116 in the horizontal direction (XZ direction).

[0018] The ram 110 is supported by the column 106 and is reciprocally movable in the up - down direction (Y - axis direction). The broaching tools 102a, 102b, 102c are fixed to the ram 110. In the surface broaching machine 100, broaching of the workpiece is performed for each row of the three rows of broaching tools 102a, 102b, 102c including rough machining, semi - finishing machining, and finishing machining.

[0019] The base 108 is provided with guide rails 132a and 132b, and the left and right tables 114 can move in the left and right direction (X-axis direction). Guide rails 130a and 130b are provided on the left and right tables 114, and the front and rear table 112 can move in the front and rear direction (Z-axis direction). A rotary table 116 is detachably attached to the front and rear table 112. A workpiece to be machined by the broach tools 102a, 102b, and 102c is placed on the rotary table 116.

[0020] The rotary table 116 is provided with a servo motor 117 and can rotate around the B-axis (rotation direction centered on the Y-axis). A dog 140 serving as an index of the rotation angle is provided on the outer periphery 138 of the rotary table 116. The dog 140 has a shape protruding from the outer periphery 138 of the rotary table 116. Further, an arm 127 is attached to the base 108 (fixed part), and a sensor 128 is arranged at the tip of the arm 127. The sensor 128 detects the outer periphery 138 of the rotary table and the dog 140, and for example, a magnetic proximity sensor can be used.

[0021] The surface broaching machine 100 further includes a servo motor 118 for starting the ram 110, a reduction gear 120 for driving the ram, a servo motor 122 for shifting the front and rear table 112, and a servo motor 124 for shifting the left and right tables 114. The control unit 126 drives each servo motor to control the operations of the ram 110 and each table.

[0022] Here, in the surface broaching machine 100, since the diameter of the workpiece that can be machined for each rotary table 116 is different, it is necessary to replace the rotary table 116 according to the size of the workpiece. Therefore, the surface broaching machine 100 according to the present embodiment adopts a configuration that can automatically discriminate the type of the rotary table 116 to improve workability.

[0023] That is, the control unit 126 automatically discriminates the type of the rotary table 116 or automatically establishes the origin of the rotary table 116 (described later) by controlling the operations of the front-rear table 112, the left-right table 114, and the rotary table 116.

[0024] FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of the surface broaching machine 100 of FIG. 1. Here, the operation of automatically discriminating the type of the replaced rotary table 116 and automatically establishing the origin of the rotary table 116 will be described.

[0025] First, when the operator replaces the rotary table 116 (step S100), the harness of the servo motor of the rotary table 116 is unplugged and plugged in due to the replacement, so the origin established for the rotary table before replacement is reset. Then, an NC alarm is generated (step S102), and the control unit 126 is required to discriminate the type of the replaced rotary table 116.

[0026] Next, when the operator presses a predetermined button, the detection operation of the rotary table 116 by the control unit 126 is started (step S104). Hereinafter, it will be described with reference to FIG. 4. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the operation when automatically discriminating the rotary table 116 in the surface broaching machine 100 of FIG. 1.

[0027] First, as shown in FIG. 4(a), the control unit 126 moves the front-rear table 112 (Z-axis) to the center, that is, the intermediate position (step S106). Thereby, the position of the center of the rotary table 116 in the Z-axis direction is made to coincide with the sensor 128.

[0028] Next, the control unit 126 moves the left-right table 114 to the origin of the X-axis (the left end in the figure) set in the left-right table 114 (step S108), and separates the left-right table 114 from the sensor 128. As a result, the sensor 128 is turned off.

[0029] Subsequently, as shown in Fig. 4(b), the control unit 126 moves the left and right tables 114 toward the sensor 128 until the outer periphery 138 of the rotary table 116 is detected by the sensor 128 (until the sensor 128 turns ON) (step S110).

[0030] Thereby, the control unit 126 obtains the coordinate value X1 of the X-axis of the center of the rotary table 116 when the outer periphery 138 of the rotary table 116 is detected by the sensor 128. Then, the control unit 126 detects the size of the rotary table 116 based on the coordinate value X1 (step S112).

[0031] Fig. 4(c) shows a case where a rotary table 116A smaller than the rotary table 116 is detected in step S112. The coordinate value X2 of the X-axis of the center of the rotary table 116A when the outer periphery 138A of the rotary table 116A is detected by the sensor 128 is larger than the coordinate value X1 of the rotary table 116 in Fig. 4(b). Thus, the coordinate values X1 and X2 become smaller as the rotary tables 116 and 116A are larger, and become larger as the rotary tables 116 and 116A are smaller.

[0032] The control unit 126 can calculate the difference (X0 - X1 or X0 - X2) between the coordinate value of the X-axis of the sensor 128 and the coordinate value X1 of the X-axis of the center of the rotary table 116 as the radius of the rotary table 116 by previously storing the coordinate value X0 of the X-axis of the sensor 128, for example. Therefore, the control unit 126 can detect the size of the rotary table 116 and discriminate the type of the rotary table 116 based on the size of the rotary table 116.

[0033] Subsequently, the control unit 126 determines whether or not the types of the rotary table 116 detected in step S112 and the rotary table before replacement match (step S114). On the other hand, if they match in step S114 (Yes), the control unit 126 performs the process of step S122 described later.

[0034] On the other hand, if they do not match in step S114 (No), the control unit 126 automatically inputs the detected parameters (such as diameter) of the rotary table 116 to the NC control unit (step S116). Since the parameters have been changed, it is necessary to restart the surface broaching machine 100. Here, the restart is automatically performed by software without waiting for the operator's operation (step S118).

[0035] Next, the control unit 126 generates an NC alarm (step S120) and prepares to establish the origin of the rotary table 116. The following will be described with reference to FIG. 5. FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining the operation when establishing the origin of the rotary table 116 in the surface broaching machine 100 of FIG. 1.

[0036] From the state where the sensor 128 detects the outer periphery 138 of the rotary table 116 shown in FIG. 5(a), the control unit 126 separates the rotary table 116 from the sensor 128 until the sensor 128 no longer detects the rotary table 116 as shown in FIG. 5(b) (step S122). That is, in step S122, when the rotary table 116 is rotated, the outer periphery 138 is not detected, but the left and right tables 114 are released so as to move away from the sensor 128 to such an extent that the dog 140 can be detected.

[0037] Subsequently, the control unit 126 rotates the B axis of the rotary table 116 as shown in FIG. 5(c), and when the dog 140 is detected by the sensor 128, the rotation is stopped at that position (step S124). In this way, when the rotary table is rotated until the sensor 128 detects the dog 140, that position becomes the origin of the rotary table 116.

[0038] Then, the control unit 126 automatically establishes the origin of the rotary table 116 (step S126). That is, instead of the operator manually aligning the alignment marks, the origin is automatically established by software. Since the origin has been established (changed), it is necessary to restart the surface broaching machine 100. The restart is automatically performed by software without waiting for the operator's operation (step S128).

[0039] Next, the control unit 126 performs an operation check by rotating the rotary table 116 slightly (step S130). Then, it determines whether or not the rotation amount (command value) in control and the current value detected by the rotary encoder (the amount by which the rotary table 116 actually rotated) match (step S132).

[0040] If in step S132 the command value and the current value match (Yes), the control unit 126 starts machining (step S134). If the two do not match (No), an NC alarm is generated (step S136) and the operator's processing is awaited.

[0041] As described above, according to the surface broaching machine 100 according to the present embodiment, when the rotary table 116 is replaced, the type of the rotary table 116 can be automatically discriminated, and further the origin of the rotary table 116 can be automatically established. Therefore, the labor of the operator associated with the replacement of the rotary table 116 can be reduced. In particular, since the parameter input and the origin establishment are automated, it becomes possible to automate up to the restart associated therewith, so that it is possible to dramatically reduce the labor.

[0042] FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the operation of the surface broaching machine of the comparative example. In the comparative example, it is different from the above-described surface broaching machine 100 in that the type of the rotary table 116 is not automatically discriminated and the origin of the rotary table 116 is not automatically established, but is manually performed by the operator.

[0043] In the comparative example, the operator replaces the rotary table 116 (step S200). When an N alarm occurs (step S202), after manually inputting the NC parameters of the replaced rotary table 116 (step S204), a manual restart is performed (step S206).

[0044] Next, the operator manually rotates the rotary table 116, aligns it with the alignment mark (positioning mark) (step S208), manually inputs the origin of the rotary table 116, and after establishing the origin (step S210), performs a manual restart (step S212).

[0045] Thus, in the comparative example, since the type of the rotary table 116 is manually input with parameters, waiting for a restart, manually establishing the origin of the rotary table 116, and waiting for another restart, it takes a lot of labor for the operator in connection with the replacement of the rotary table 116.

[0046] Note that after the manual restart in step S212, in the comparative example, an operation check is performed (step S214), it is determined whether the command value and the current value match (step S216), and if they do not match (No), the manual input process in step S204 is performed again. Also, when they match in step S216 (Yes), machining is started (step S218).

[0047] As described above, the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described with reference to the accompanying drawings, but it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to such examples. It is obvious that those skilled in the art can conceive of various modification examples or correction examples within the scope described in the claims, and it is naturally understood that they also belong to the technical scope of the present invention.

[0048] For example, in the above embodiment, it has been described that the sensor 128 is attached to the base 108, but it may be attached to the column 106. Also, although the arm 127 is arranged to detect the rotary table 116 in the traveling direction of the left and right tables 114, it may be arranged on the front side of the apparatus so as to detect the rotary table 116 in the traveling direction of the front and rear tables 112.

Industrial Applicability

[0049] The present invention is applicable to a surface broaching machine that machines a workpiece with a broaching tool.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0050] 100… surface broaching machine, 102a, 102b, 102c… broaching tools, 104… surface broaching machine body, 106… column, 108… base, 110… ram, 112… front and rear tables, 114… left and right tables, 116, 116A… rotary tables, 117… servo motor, 118… servo motor for ram activation, 120… speed reducer for ram drive, 122… servo motor for front and rear table shift, 124… servo motor for left and right table shift, 126… control unit, 127… arm, 128… sensor, 130a, 130b, 132a, 132b… guide rails, 138, 138A… outer periphery of the rotary table, 140… dog

Claims

1. A surface broaching machine for machining a workpiece with a broaching tool, comprising: a column and a base fixed to the surface broaching machine body; a ram supported by the column and reciprocally movable in the vertical direction; at least one row of the broaching tools fixed to the ram; a rotary table for supporting the workpiece; a front-back table for moving the rotary table in the front-back direction with respect to the front of the apparatus; a left-right table for moving the rotary table in the left-right direction with respect to the front of the apparatus; a control unit for controlling the operations of the respective tables; a sensor for detecting the outer periphery of the rotary table; and the control unit detects the size of the rotary table by moving the left-right table or the front-back table so that the sensor detects the outer periphery of the rotary table, and discriminates the type of the rotary table based on the size of the rotary table. A surface broaching machine characterized by this.

2. A dog having a shape protruding from the outer periphery of the rotary table is provided on the outer periphery of the rotary table, and the control unit after detecting the outer periphery of the rotary table with the sensor, separates the rotary table from the sensor until the sensor no longer detects the rotary table, and while rotating the rotary table, establishes the origin of the rotary table by detecting the dog with the sensor. The surface broaching machine according to claim 1, characterized by this.

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