Non-circulation linear guide

Abstract

To provide a non-circulation linear guide capable of easily imparting desired positional relation between a slider and a cage while imparting an appropriate preload between a guide rail, a rolling element and the slider, and capable of shortening an assembly time.SOLUTION: In a non-circulation linear guide 10, a coupling part 31 of a slider 30 has a slit 35 formed along a longitudinal direction of a guide rail 20, and an adjustment bolt 41 is provided that is inserted into the slit 35 from an outer surface of the slider 30 and changes a width of the slit 35 to elastically deform the coupling part 31, thereby adjusting the spacing between a pair of sleeve portions 32.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a non-circulating linear guide in which a slider does not have a rolling element circulation path. [Background technology]

[0002] A known linear guide device is used in various machines such as manufacturing equipment, processing machines, and measuring devices to guide movable parts such as feed tables in the direction of movement.The non-circulating linear guide has a rolling element cage that holds a large number of rolling elements on a rail-side raceway surface formed on the left and right side portions of the guide rail, while the slider does not have a rolling element circulation path.

[0003] For example, in the non-circulating linear guide described in Patent Document 1, the cage is equipped with a rolling element holding member having a number of rolling element accommodating pockets arranged at a constant pitch along the longitudinal direction of the guide rail, a plurality of support members that support the rolling element holding member between the rail side raceway surface and the slider side raceway surface, and a plurality of fastening members that fasten the rolling element holding member to the support members, and it is described that the arrangement phase of the rolling elements is adjusted as necessary to suppress the occurrence of rolling element passing vibration. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2009-115210 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, in a non-circulating linear guide, a preload is applied between the guide rail, rolling elements, and slider, so once each part is assembled to the guide rail, it is difficult to change the positional relationship between the slider and cage. For this reason, when assembling the slider and cage to the guide rail, the positional relationship must be calculated in advance, and if there is any deviation from the expected positional relationship, the assembly must be restarted from the beginning, which is inefficient and required improvement.

[0006] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and its object is to provide a non-circulating linear guide that can easily achieve a desired positional relationship between the slider and the cage while applying an appropriate preload between the guide rail, rolling elements, and slider, thereby reducing assembly time. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] Therefore, the above object of the present invention is achieved by the following configuration [1] relating to a non-circulating linear guide. [1] A guide rail having at least one pair of rail-side track surfaces formed on the left and right side surfaces along the longitudinal direction; a slider having a pair of sleeves having at least a pair of slider-side raceway surfaces on its inner surface corresponding to the rail-side raceway surfaces, and a connecting portion connecting the pair of sleeves together, the slider being formed with a substantially U-shaped cross section, the slider being mounted across the guide rail and movable along the guide rail; a number of rolling elements that roll on the rail-side raceway surface and the slider-side raceway surface; a cage that straddles the guide rail so as to be positioned between the guide rail and the slider, and that rotatably holds the large number of rolling elements on the rail-side raceway surface; A non-circulating linear guide comprising: A slit is formed in the connecting portion of the slider along the longitudinal direction of the guide rail, A non-circulating linear guide provided with an adjustment bolt that is inserted into the slit from the outer surface of the slider and that can adjust the spacing between the pair of sleeve portions by changing the width of the slit and elastically deforming the connecting portion. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the non-circulating linear guide of the present invention, it is possible to easily achieve the desired positional relationship between the slider and the cage while applying an appropriate preload between the guide rail, rolling elements, and slider, thereby reducing assembly time. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a front view of a non-circulating linear guide according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a side view of the non-circulating linear guide shown in FIG. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a front view of the slider shown in FIG. 2. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a side view of a non-circulating linear guide according to a second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a front view of the slider shown in FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] Hereinafter, embodiments of the non-circulating linear guide according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0011] (First embodiment) As shown in Figures 1 to 3, the non-circulating linear guide 10 of the first embodiment comprises a guide rail 20, a slider 30 that straddles the guide rail 20 and is movable along the longitudinal direction of the guide rail 20, a number of rolling elements 40 that are interposed between the guide rail 20 and the slider 30, and a cage 50 that holds the number of rolling elements 40 in a rotatable manner.

[0012] The guide rail 20 is formed linearly, and has at least a pair of rail-side track surfaces 21 formed along the longitudinal direction on the left and right side surfaces. In this embodiment, the guide rail 20 has a pair of upper track surfaces 21a provided on the upper ends of the left and right side surfaces of the guide rail 20 (i.e., the edges between the left and right side surfaces and the upper surface of the guide rail 20), and a pair of lower track surfaces 21b provided in the vertical middle of the left and right side surfaces.

[0013] The slider 30 has a connecting portion 31 and a pair of sleeve portions 32 extending from the connecting portion 31 at a distance in the width direction, and is formed with a generally U-shaped cross section. The slider 30 straddles the guide rail 20 and is movable in the length direction of the guide rail 20.

[0014] The pair of sleeve portions 32 are disposed opposite the left and right side surfaces of the guide rail 20. At least a pair of slider-side track surfaces 33 are provided on the inner surfaces of the sleeve portions 32 facing the left and right side surfaces of the guide rail 20, corresponding to the rail-side track surfaces 21 of the left and right side surfaces. The slider-side track surfaces 33 extend from one end to the other end in the movement direction of the slider 30.

[0015] In this embodiment, the slider 30 has a pair of upper track surfaces 33a provided at the upper end of the inner surface of the sleeve portion 32 (i.e., the corner between the inner surface of the sleeve portion 32 and the lower surface of the connecting portion 31), and a pair of lower track surfaces 33b provided at the lower end of the inner surface of the sleeve portion 32. The upper track surfaces 33a of the slider 30 face the upper track surface 21a of the guide rail 20, and the lower track surfaces 33b of the slider 30 face the lower track surface 21b of the guide rail 20. The connecting portion 31 is also provided with a pair of female screws 34 for fixing to another mechanical device or the like.

[0016] A plurality of rolling elements 40 are arranged between the opposing rail-side raceway surface 21 and slider-side raceway surface 33, and roll between the rail-side raceway surface 21 and the slider-side raceway surface 33 when the slider 30 moves along the guide rail 20. In this embodiment, the rolling elements 40 are arranged between the upper raceway surfaces 21 a, 33 a on one side in the width direction, between the upper raceway surfaces 21 a, 33 a on the other side in the width direction, between the lower raceway surfaces 21 b, 33 b on one side in the width direction, and between the lower raceway surfaces 21 b, 33 b on the other side in the width direction. Therefore, a total of four rows of rolling elements 40 are interposed between the guide rail 20 and the slider 30.

[0017] The cage 50 has a plurality of rolling element pockets that rotatably hold the rolling elements 40, and is formed in a linear shape with a generally U-shaped cross section. The cage 50 straddles the guide rail 20 so as to be positioned between the guide rail 20 and the slider 30, and covers the top surface and the left and right side surfaces of the guide rail 20.

[0018] In addition, the slider 30, cage 50, and guide rail 20 are assembled in the desired positional relationship so that their axial centers are aligned (see Figure 1), and an appropriate preload is applied between the guide rail 20, rolling element 40, and slider 30. In this case, the length of the cage 50 is formed longer than that of the slider 30 and is designed shorter than that of the guide rail 20, so that the cage 50 extends on both longitudinal sides from both longitudinal ends of the slider 30, and the guide rails 20 extend on both longitudinal sides from both longitudinal ends of the cage 50.

[0019] Furthermore, the slider 30 has a slit 35 formed on the inner surface (the lower surface in FIG. 2) of the connecting portion 31, which is aligned with the longitudinal direction of the guide rail 20 and penetrates to both ends of the slider 30. The slider 30 also has a female thread 36 formed on the outer surface (the right end surface in FIG. 2) that penetrates to the slit 35 and extends perpendicular to the slit 35. An adjustment bolt 41 is threadedly engaged with the female thread 36, and its tip 41a abuts against a surface 35a that faces outward from the slit 35 in the vertical direction. The non-circulating linear guide 10 of this embodiment has two female threads 36, i.e., two adjustment bolts 41, provided at equal positions in the longitudinal direction of the slider 30.

[0020] As mentioned above, in a typical non-circulating linear guide 10 in which a slider 30, a cage 50 (rolling element 40), and a guide rail 20 are assembled, a preload is applied between the slider 30, the rolling element 40, and the guide rail 20, making it difficult to change the relative positions of the slider 30, the cage 50, and the guide rail 20.

[0021] On the other hand, in the non-circulating linear guide 10 of this embodiment, when changing the relative positions of the slider 30, the cage 50, and the guide rail 20, first, the adjustment bolt 41 threaded into the female thread 36 is rotated, and the tip 41a of the bolt is pressed against the surface 35a facing outward of the slit 35.

[0022] As a result, pressing force and reaction force from the adjustment bolt 41 act on one side and the other side of the connecting portion 31 with the slit 35 as the boundary, causing slight elastic deformation of the connecting portion 31, widening the width of the slit 35 and increasing the gap between the pair of sleeve portions 32. Note that the gap between the pair of sleeve portions 32 here refers to the widthwise distance S between the pair of slider-side raceway surfaces 33 with which the rolling elements 40 come into contact.

[0023] This eliminates or reduces the preload applied between the slider 30, the rolling elements 40 and the guide rail 20, making it possible to change the relative positions of the slider 30 and the cage 50 with respect to the guide rail 20.

[0024] After adjusting the relative positions of the slider 30, cage 50, and guide rail 20 to the desired positions, the adjustment bolt 41 is rotated in the opposite direction to the previous one to release the pressure on the outward-facing surface 35a of the slit 35, and the initially set preload is applied between the slider 30, rolling body 40, and guide rail 20.

[0025] As described above, according to the non-circulating linear guide 10 of this embodiment, the relative positions of the guide rail 20, cage 50, and slider 30 can be changed to easily achieve the desired positional relationship simply by rotating the adjustment bolt 41. This also eliminates the need for reassembly work that was previously required, significantly reducing the assembly time.

[0026] (Second embodiment) Next, a non-circulating linear guide 10 according to a second embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 4 and 5. The non-circulating linear guide 10 according to the second embodiment differs mainly in the structure for changing the position and width of the slits, and other configurations are the same as those of the non-circulating linear guide 10 according to the first embodiment. In Figure 4, the right-side female thread 34 is not shown.

[0027] 4 and 5, in the slider 30 of this embodiment, a slit 35 is formed on the outer surface (top surface in FIG. 4) of the connecting portion 31, along the longitudinal direction of the guide rail 20, penetrating to both ends of the slider 30. The slider 30 is provided with an insertion hole 37 formed so as to penetrate from the outer surface (right side surface in FIG. 4) of the slider 30 to the slit 35, and a female screw 38 formed coaxially with the insertion hole 37 on the opposite side of the slit 35 from the insertion hole 37.

[0028] The adjustment bolt 41 is inserted through the insertion hole 37 and attached to the slider 30 with its tip portion screwed into the female thread 38 .

[0029] When changing the relative positions of the guide rail 20, cage 50, and slider 30, the adjustment bolt 41 is rotated and screwed into the female thread 38. As shown in Figure 4, the head of the adjustment bolt 41 abuts against the outer surface of the slider 30, and the connecting portion 31 is elastically deformed so that the right side of the slit 35 is pressed and the width of the slit 35 is narrowed, thereby widening the gap between the pair of sleeve portions 32.

[0030] This eliminates or reduces the preload acting between the slider 30, the rolling elements 40 and the guide rail 20, making it possible to change the positions of the slider 30 and the cage 50 relative to the guide rail 20.

[0031] Then, after adjusting the relative positions of the slider 30, cage 50, and guide rail 20 to the desired positions, the adjustment bolt 41 is rotated in the opposite direction to the previous direction to release the tightening force of the adjustment bolt 41, and the initially set preload is applied between the slider 30, rolling body 40, and guide rail 20.

[0032] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and modifications and improvements are possible as appropriate. For example, although the rolling elements are balls in the above embodiments, they may be rollers. Also, while two rows of rail-side raceway surfaces and slider-side raceway surfaces are provided on one side, they may be provided in one row, or in three or more rows. Although two adjustment bolts are provided on one side of the slider, they may be provided in three or more locations. Furthermore, the slits 35 and adjustment bolts 41 may be provided symmetrically on both sides of the slider 30 in the width direction.

[0033] As described above, the present specification discloses the following: (1) A guide rail having at least one pair of rail-side raceway surfaces formed on the left and right side surfaces along the longitudinal direction; a slider having a pair of sleeves having at least a pair of slider-side raceway surfaces on its inner surface corresponding to the rail-side raceway surfaces, and a connecting portion connecting the pair of sleeves together, the slider being formed with a substantially U-shaped cross section, the slider being mounted across the guide rail and movable along the guide rail; a number of rolling elements that roll on the rail-side raceway surface and the slider-side raceway surface; a cage that straddles the guide rail so as to be positioned between the guide rail and the slider, and that rotatably holds the large number of rolling elements on the rail-side raceway surface; A non-circulating linear guide comprising: A slit is formed in the connecting portion of the slider along the longitudinal direction of the guide rail, A non-circulating linear guide provided with an adjustment bolt that is inserted into the slit from the outer surface of the slider and that can adjust the spacing between the pair of sleeve portions by changing the width of the slit and elastically deforming the connecting portion. According to this configuration, it is possible to easily provide a desired positional relationship between the slider and cage while applying an appropriate preload between the guide rail, rolling elements, and slider, thereby significantly reducing assembly time.

[0034] (2) The slider is provided with the slit formed on the inner surface of the connecting portion, and a female screw formed to penetrate from the outer surface of the slider toward the slit and extend in a direction perpendicular to the slit, The adjustment bolt is screwed into the female thread, and a tip thereof abuts against a surface of the slit facing outward. The non-circulating linear guide described in (1). According to this configuration, a desired positional relationship between the slider and the cage can be easily achieved using a simple and inexpensive mechanism.

[0035] (3) The slider is provided with the slit formed on the outer surface of the connecting portion, an insertion hole formed from the outer surface of the slider to penetrate the slider toward the slit and extending perpendicularly to the slit, and a female screw formed coaxially with the insertion hole on the opposite side of the slit from the insertion hole in the width direction of the slider, The adjustment bolt is inserted into the insertion hole and threadedly engaged with the female screw. The non-circulating linear guide described in (1). According to this configuration, a desired positional relationship between the slider and the cage can be easily achieved using a simple and inexpensive mechanism. [Explanation of symbols]

[0036] 10 Non-circulating linear guide 20 Guide rail 21 Rail side track surface 30 sliders 31 Connecting part 32 Sleeves 33 Slider side raceway surface 35 Slit 36, 38 female thread 35a Outward facing surface 37 Insertion hole 40 rolling elements 41 Adjustment bolt 41a Tip 50 cages S Distance (spacing between sleeves)

Claims

1. a guide rail having at least one pair of rail-side track surfaces formed on left and right side surfaces along the longitudinal direction; a slider having a pair of sleeves having at least a pair of slider-side raceway surfaces on its inner surface corresponding to the rail-side raceway surfaces, and a connecting portion connecting the pair of sleeves together, the slider being formed with a substantially U-shaped cross section, the slider being mounted across the guide rail and movable along the guide rail; a number of rolling elements that roll on the rail-side raceway surface and the slider-side raceway surface; a cage that straddles the guide rail so as to be positioned between the guide rail and the slider, and that rotatably holds the large number of rolling elements on the rail-side raceway surface; A non-circulating linear guide comprising: A slit is formed in the connecting portion of the slider along the longitudinal direction of the guide rail, A non-circulating linear guide provided with an adjustment bolt that is inserted into the slit from the outer surface of the slider and that can adjust the spacing between the pair of sleeve portions by changing the width of the slit and elastically deforming the connecting portion.

2. The slider is provided with the slit formed on the inner surface of the connecting portion, and a female screw formed to penetrate from the outer surface of the slider toward the slit and extend in a direction perpendicular to the slit, The adjustment bolt is screwed into the female thread, and a tip thereof abuts against a surface of the slit facing outward. The non-recirculating linear guide according to claim 1 .

3. the slider is provided with the slit formed on the outer surface of the connecting portion, an insertion hole formed to penetrate from the outer surface of the slider toward the slit and extend in a direction perpendicular to the slit, and a female screw formed coaxially with the insertion hole on the opposite side of the slit from the insertion hole in the width direction of the slider, The adjustment bolt is inserted into the insertion hole and threadedly engaged with the female screw. The non-recirculating linear guide according to claim 1 .

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