Tank unit

Abstract

To provide a tank unit capable of suppressing mixing of air into a liquid.SOLUTION: The tank unit 9 includes the tank portion 40 having the storage chamber 41 capable of storing the liquid 101, the pipe portion 50 capable of discharging the liquid 101 stored in the storage chamber 41 to the outside, and the cap portion 60 attached to the end portion of the pipe portion 50 disposed inside the storage chamber 41. The cap part 60 includes a recessed part 66 capable of storing the liquid 101 and an opening part 68 communicating the recessed part 66 with the inside of the storage chamber 41, and is attached to the end part of the pipe part 50 so that the opening end 51a of the pipe part 50 is positioned in the groove of the recessed part 66.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 11

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a tank unit comprising a tank portion having a storage chamber capable of storing a liquid, a piping portion capable of discharging the liquid stored in the storage chamber to the outside, and a cap portion attached to the end of the piping portion inside the storage chamber. [Background technology]

[0002] BACKGROUND ART Conventionally, it has been proposed to store a liquid such as a liquid resin in a tank and supply the liquid to an application device or the like through a pipe connected to the tank (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-324052 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the tank described above, the open end of the pipe is typically located in the liquid contained in the tank (i.e., below the liquid surface). In this state, the liquid is sucked into the pipe from the open end of the pipe using a pump or the like. When the liquid contained in the tank is used up, the tank is typically refilled with liquid or replaced with a new tank. If the open end of the pipe is exposed to the liquid, the remaining liquid may be expelled from the pipe and air may enter the pipe. In this case, if the open end of the pipe is reinserted into the liquid after refilling and the liquid is sucked out from the open end of the pipe, air may become mixed into the liquid supplied through the pipe. Such air mixing can cause malfunctions in the coating device. Therefore, it is desirable to prevent air from entering the liquid.

[0005] One object of the present invention is to provide a tank unit that can prevent air from being mixed into the liquid. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the tank unit according to the present invention has the following features.

[0007] a tank portion having a storage chamber capable of storing a liquid; a piping section capable of discharging the liquid contained in the containing chamber to the outside; a cap portion attached to an end of the piping portion inside the storage chamber, The cap portion is a recess capable of storing the liquid and an opening communicating the recess with the interior of the storage chamber, and the pipe is attached to an end of the pipe so that the open end of the pipe is positioned within a groove of the recess; It is a tank unit. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the tank unit of the present invention, a cap is attached to the end of a piping section inside a storage chamber of the tank. The cap has a recess capable of storing liquid and an opening that connects the recess to the interior of the storage chamber, and is attached to the end of the piping section so that the open end of the piping section is positioned within the groove of the recess. As a result, when a sufficient amount of liquid is stored in the tank section, liquid flows into the recess from the opening of the cap and flows out from the recess into the piping section. Furthermore, even when the piping section is pulled out of the storage chamber of the tank section for purposes such as replacing the tank section, the open end of the piping section remains immersed in the liquid stored in the recess of the cap. This prevents air from entering the piping section. Therefore, a tank unit of this configuration can prevent air from mixing into the liquid.

[0009] The present invention has been briefly described above. The details of the present invention will become clearer by reading the detailed description of the invention below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a corrosion prevention treatment device incorporating an application device of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a rear view of the conveying section shown in FIG. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a top view of the transport unit shown in FIG. [Figure 4] 4(a) to 4(d) are diagrams for explaining the flow of processing when the corrosion prevention processing device shown in FIG. 1 performs corrosion prevention processing on an electric wire with a terminal. [Figure 5] 5 is a perspective view showing a tank unit belonging to the application section shown in FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a view corresponding to FIG. 5, showing a state in which the lid and nozzle have been removed from the tank unit for replacing the tank cartridge. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing the state in which the lid and nozzle removed from the tank are placed in a temporary storage area. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing the nozzle cap shown in FIG. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a rear view of the nozzle cap shown in FIG. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a view corresponding to FIG. 10, showing the state in which the open end of the nozzle is immersed in the liquid coating material even when the lid and nozzle are removed from the tank portion. [Figure 12] FIG. 12 is a view corresponding to FIG. 10, showing a state in which the nozzle is slightly tilted from the state shown in FIG. 11, but the open end of the nozzle is still immersed in the liquid coating material. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] <Embodiment> Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. For convenience of explanation, "front," "rear," "left," "right," "upper," and "lower" will be defined as shown in Fig. 1 etc. The "front-rear direction," "left-right direction," and "upper-lower direction" are mutually orthogonal.

[0012] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a corrosion prevention treatment device 1 incorporating an application device (application unit 5) of the present invention. The corrosion prevention treatment device 1 shown in FIG. 1 is a device that applies a coating agent (corrosion prevention agent) 101 made of an ultraviolet-curable resin (UV-curable resin) to an end of a terminal-attached electric wire 100 (a so-called workpiece; see also FIG. 4). As shown in FIG. 4(a), the terminal-attached electric wire 100 includes an electric wire 102 and a terminal 103 attached to the end of the electric wire 102. The electric wire 102 has a coating 102A stripped from the end to expose a conductor core wire 102B. The terminal 103 is crimped to the coating 102A exposed at the end and the conductor core wire 102B. The corrosion prevention treatment device 1 covers a connection point between the conductor core wire 102B and the terminal 103 with the coating agent 101, thereby preventing corrosion at the connection point between the conductor core wire 102B and the terminal 103.

[0013] The corrosion prevention treatment device 1 includes a conveying unit 2, an electric wire supplying unit 3 that sets the electric wire with terminal 100 on the conveying unit 2, an imaging unit 4 that images the electric wire with terminal 100 conveyed by the conveying unit 2, an application unit 5 (see also Figure 4(b)) that applies an application agent 101 to the end of the electric wire with terminal 100 conveyed by the conveying unit 2, a UV irradiation unit 6 (see also Figure 4(c)) that irradiates the applied application agent 101 with ultraviolet light 104, a control unit 7 that controls each of these units, and a display unit 8.

[0014] The above-mentioned electric wire supply unit 3, imaging unit 4, coating unit 5, and UV irradiation unit 6 are arranged side by side in the left-right direction. From right to left, the electric wire supply unit 3, imaging unit 4, coating unit 5, and UV irradiation unit 6 are arranged in this order.

[0015] The configuration of the transfer unit 2 will be described. As shown in Figs. 2 and 3, the transfer unit 2 has four rear electric wire chucks 21 and four front electric wire chucks 22. The four rear electric wire chucks 21 are arranged side by side at equal intervals in the left-right direction. The four rear electric wire chucks 21 are provided so as to be movable in the left-right direction between a first position and a second position.

[0016] 2 and 3 , at the first position, the four rear electric wire chucks 21 face the electric wire supply unit 3, the imaging unit 4, the coating unit 5, and the UV irradiation unit 6 in the front-rear direction. At the second position, the rightmost rear electric wire chuck 21 faces the imaging unit 4 in the front-rear direction, the second rightmost rear electric wire chuck 21 faces the coating unit 5 in the front-rear direction, the second leftmost rear electric wire chuck 21 faces the UV irradiation unit 6 in the front-rear direction, and the leftmost rear electric wire chuck 21 is located to the left of the UV irradiation unit 6.

[0017] 3, the four front electric wire chucks 22 are arranged further forward in the front-rear direction than the four rear electric wire chucks 21 (on the side of the electric wire supply unit 3, the imaging unit 4, the coating unit 5, and the UV irradiation unit 6). The four front electric wire chucks 22 are arranged side by side at equal intervals in the left-right direction, and face the electric wire supply unit 3, the imaging unit 4, the coating unit 5, and the UV irradiation unit 6 in the front-rear direction. The four front electric wire chucks 22 do not move in the left-right direction.

[0018] Next, we will explain the configurations of the rear electric wire chuck 21 and the front electric wire chuck 22. The four rear electric wire chucks 21 have the same configuration. The rear electric wire chuck 21 has a cubic main body 23 and a pair of chucks 24, 24 that are attached to the main body 23 so as to be able to open and close freely and that clamp and hold the terminal-fitted electric wire 100 from the left and right directions.

[0019] The chuck portion 24 has an arm 24A attached to the main body 23 so that a first end thereof is rotatable about an axis along the front-rear direction, and chuck claws 24B attached to a second end of the arm 24A. When the second ends of the pair of arms 24A are rotated so that they protrude in the left-right direction from the main body 23, the pair of chuck claws 24B open, releasing the hold of the terminal-fitted electric wire 100. When the second ends of the pair of arms 24A are rotated so that they protrude upward from the main body 23, the pair of chuck claws 24B close, allowing the terminal-fitted electric wire 100 to be clamped and held from the left-right direction.

[0020] The front electric wire chuck 22 has a similar configuration to the rear electric wire chuck 21, and therefore a detailed description of the front electric wire chuck 22 will be omitted here. The main body 23 of the rear electric wire chuck 21 is attached to a slider (not shown) that moves in the left-right direction.

[0021] The conveying operation of the conveying unit 2 configured as described above will be described. The electric wire with terminals 100 is set (held in the correct position) in the rightmost rear electric wire chuck 21 and front electric wire chuck 22 by the electric wire supplying unit 3. Next, the front electric wire chuck 22 is opened, and the rear electric wire chuck 21 is moved from the first position to the second position. As a result, the electric wire with terminals 100 is conveyed to the imaging unit 4, and can be held by the front electric wire chuck 22, which is the second from the right and arranged opposite the imaging unit 4. Thereafter, the rear electric wire chuck 21 is opened and returned from the second position to the first position, and the electric wire with terminals 100 can be held by the rear electric wire chuck 21, which is the second from the right. By repeating this process, the electric wire with terminals 100 can be conveyed in order to the electric wire supplying unit 3, the imaging unit 4, the coating unit 5, and the UV irradiation unit 6.

[0022] The electric wire supply unit 3 has a work setting jig (not shown). When an operator inserts an end of the terminal-fitted electric wire 100 into the work setting jig and the end abuts against a positioning wall inside the work setting jig, the front electric wire chuck 22 closes. This allows the terminal 103 of the terminal-fitted electric wire 100 to be positioned in the front-rear direction.

[0023] The imaging unit 4 has a camera (not shown) and a ring-shaped illumination unit (not shown) arranged below the camera. The camera is attached facing downward. When the electric wire with terminal 100 is transported to the imaging unit 4 and held by the front electric wire chuck 22 facing the imaging unit 4 in the front-rear direction, the terminal 103 comes within the imaging range of the camera.

[0024] The applicator 5 includes a nozzle 30 (see FIG. 4(b)) that dispenses the coating agent 101 toward a coating target (terminal-attached electric wire 100), a tank 40 (see FIG. 5) that stores the coating agent 101, and a piping 50 (see FIG. 5) that connects the tank 40 and the nozzle 30. The liquid coating agent 101 stored in the tank 40 is supplied to the nozzle 30 through the piping 50 and dispensed from the nozzle 30. The nozzle 30 is movable in the left-right and front-rear directions by left-right cylinders (not shown) and front-rear cylinders (not shown). The terminal-attached electric wire 100 is transported to the applicator 5 and held by the front electric wire chuck 22 that faces the applicator 5 in the front-rear direction. When the terminal-attached electric wire 100 is conveyed to the applicator 5 and held by the front electric wire chuck 22, which faces the applicator 5 in the front-rear direction, the terminal 103 enters the dispensing range of the nozzle 30. The applicator 5 may further include an ultraviolet light source (not shown) that temporarily irradiates ultraviolet light. If the coating material 101 cannot be transported to the UV irradiation unit 6 within a predetermined time after the coating material 101 is discharged onto the terminal-fitted electric wire 100, ultraviolet rays may be temporarily irradiated from an ultraviolet source to prevent the coating material 101 from dripping.

[0025] The UV irradiation unit 6 has an ultraviolet light source (not shown) that irradiates ultraviolet light 104 (see FIG. 4(c)). When the terminal-fitted wire 100 is transported to the UV irradiation unit 6 and held by the front wire chuck 22 that faces the UV irradiation unit 6 in the front-rear direction, the terminal 103 comes within the irradiation range of the ultraviolet light source.

[0026] The control unit 7 is composed of a microcomputer that operates according to a program stored in the memory unit and controls the entire corrosion prevention treatment device 1. The control unit 7 transports the terminal-attached electric wire 100 through the electric wire supply unit 3, the imaging unit 4, the coating unit 5, and the UV irradiation unit 6 in this order, and sequentially sets the terminal-attached electric wire 100 (see FIG. 4(a)), applies the coating agent 101 (see FIG. 4(b)), and irradiates with ultraviolet light (see FIG. 4(c)). The coating agent 101, which is made of a UV-curable resin, is cured by the irradiation with ultraviolet light. The control unit 7 measures the terminal position from an image of the terminal 103 captured by the imaging unit 4, determines the application position of the coating agent 101 based on the measured terminal position, and controls the movement of the nozzle unit 30 of the applicator 5 to apply the coating agent 101 to the determined application position (i.e., the position that covers the exposed conductor core wire 102B). The display unit 8 sequentially displays the control status of the corrosion prevention treatment device 1 by the control unit 7 on a monitor or the like (not shown).

[0027] Next, the tank unit 40 belonging to the application unit 5 will be described in more detail with reference to Fig. 5 etc. As shown in Fig. 5 and Fig. 6, the tank unit 40 mainly includes a tank cartridge 41 that contains (retains) the application agent 101, a tank holding unit 42 that detachably holds the tank cartridge 41, and a plate-shaped lid 43 that is detachably attached to the top of the tank holding unit 42.

[0028] A nozzle 51 extending in a rod shape in the vertical direction and constituting the end of the piping unit 50 on the tank unit 40 side is inserted from above into a through-hole (not shown) provided near the center of the lid 43 in the plate thickness direction (vertical direction), and the nozzle 51 is fixed integrally to the through-hole at approximately the center in the vertical direction (see FIG. 6). A nozzle cap 60 is attached to the tip (lower end) of the nozzle 51. The configuration of the nozzle cap 60 and the effect of providing the nozzle cap 60 will be described later. The tank unit 40, the piping unit 50, and the nozzle cap 60 constitute the tank unit 9 (see FIG. 5).

[0029] To set the tank unit 40 to the usage state (see FIG. 5), first, the tank cartridge 41, which stores the liquid coating agent 101 and has its top lid 41a (see FIG. 6) removed so that its top opening (not shown) is open, is attached to and held in the tank holding unit 42. Next, the lid 43, which is fixed integrally to the nozzle 51, is attached to the tank unit 40 so that the tip of the nozzle 51 of the piping unit 50 (i.e., the nozzle cap 60) is inserted into the hollow portion of the tank cartridge 41 through the top opening of the tank cartridge 41. This places the tank unit 40 in the usage state shown in FIG. 5. When the tank unit 40 is in the usage state, the tip of the nozzle 51 of the piping unit 50 (i.e., the nozzle cap 60) is located near the bottom of the hollow portion of the tank cartridge 41 and is immersed in the liquid coating agent 101 stored in the tank cartridge 41.

[0030] The liquid coating agent 101 stored in the tank cartridge 41 is sequentially supplied to the piping unit 50 and the nozzle unit 30 via the nozzle 51 and then discharged from the nozzle unit 30 (see FIG. 4(b)). As the discharge of the coating agent 101 from the nozzle unit 30 progresses, the amount of the liquid coating agent 101 stored in the tank cartridge 41 gradually decreases. When the amount of the liquid coating agent 101 stored in the tank cartridge 41 decreases to a predetermined amount indicating the time to replace the tank cartridge 41, the tank cartridge 41 is replaced with a new tank cartridge 41 storing the liquid coating agent 101. To replace the tank cartridge 41 with a new one, as shown in FIG. 6, first, the lid 43 is removed from the tank unit 40, and the lid 43 and the nozzle 51 are moved upward to remove the nozzle 51 (i.e., the nozzle cap 60) from the tank cartridge 41. Next, the used tank cartridge 41 is removed from the tank holding unit 42. Then, by using a new tank cartridge 41 containing liquid coating material 101 and again carrying out the above-described procedure for putting the tank portion 40 into a usable state, the tank portion 40 is put into a usable state again.

[0031] The tank unit 9 of this embodiment prevents air from entering the nozzle 51 even if the opening end of the nozzle 51 is outside the liquid coating material 101 when replacing the tank cartridge 41 in this manner, and also prevents air from mixing into the coating material 101 when the liquid coating material 101 is subsequently ejected.

[0032] Specifically, in the tank unit 9 according to this embodiment, a nozzle cap 60 shown in FIGS. 8 to 10 is attached to the tip (lower end) of the nozzle 51. The nozzle cap 60 has a fixing portion 61 fastened to the outer peripheral surface of the tip of the nozzle 51 and a storage portion 62 supported by the fixing portion 61 so as to be aligned below the fixing portion 61. As shown in FIG. 8, the fixing portion 61 has a generally cylindrical shape extending in the vertical direction and having a generally circular central hole 63 penetrating therethrough. The tip of the nozzle 51 is inserted into the central hole 63 from above. A slit 64 extending radially across the fixing portion 61 is formed in the fixing portion 61. The fixing portion 61 is elastically deformable so that the width of the slit 64 increases or decreases. The width of the slit 64 is adjustable by a bolt 65. By adjusting the width of the slit 64, the clamping force on the tip of the nozzle 51 inserted into the central hole 63 can be adjusted.

[0033] The reservoir 62 has a generally cylindrical shape that is open at the top and closed at the bottom, extending in the vertical direction. A recess 66 that is open at the top and recessed downward is formed inside the reservoir 62 (see FIGS. 8 and 10). The reservoir 62 is fastened to the fixing part 61 with two bolts 69 so as to be aligned with the lower side of the fixing part 61. Two notches 67 are formed at the top end of the reservoir 62, facing each other in the left-right direction (see FIGS. 8 and 9). As a result, openings 68 that communicate between the recess 66 and the outside of the nozzle cap 60 are formed at the positions of the two notches 67 (see FIGS. 8 and 10). The open end (lower end) 51a of the nozzle 51 inserted into the center hole 63 of the fixing part 61 is positioned within the groove of the recess 66 (see FIG. 11).

[0034] When the tank unit 40 is in use (see FIG. 5 ), the nozzle cap 60 attached to the tip of the nozzle 51 is immersed in the liquid coating agent 101 stored in the tank cartridge 41. In this state, the liquid coating agent 101 is stored in the recess 66, and the two openings 68 connect the recess 66 to the interior of the tank cartridge 41. Because the openings 68 are provided in two locations, when the coating agent 101 is discharged from the nozzle unit 30, the liquid coating agent 101 stored in the tank cartridge 41 can smoothly flow from the two openings 68 through the recess 66 into the nozzle 51 (piping unit 50). Therefore, even if the nozzle cap 60 is provided on the tip of the nozzle 51, the original performance of the tank unit 40 (i.e., discharging liquid from the piping unit 50) is not impaired.

[0035] Furthermore, when replacing the tank cartridge 41, the lid 43 and nozzle 51 are moved upward, so that even when the nozzle 51 (i.e., the nozzle cap 60) is removed from the tank cartridge 41, the open end 51a of the nozzle 51 remains immersed in the liquid coating material 101 stored in the recess 66 of the nozzle cap 60, as shown in FIG. 11 . Even when the nozzle 51 is slightly tilted from the state shown in FIG. 11 to that shown in FIG. 12 , the open end 51a of the nozzle 51 remains immersed in the liquid coating material 101. This prevents air from entering the nozzle 51 (piping unit 50). In other words, air is prevented from being mixed into the liquid coating material 101. The lid 43 and nozzle 51 removed from the tank unit 40 are temporarily stored in a temporary storage area 71 provided in a case 70 that houses the tank unit 40, as shown in FIG. 7 , with the nozzle 51 facing up or down (the state shown in FIG. 11 ). This prevents the liquid coating material 101 stored in the recess 66 from leaking from the opening 68.

[0036] <Other aspects> It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be adopted within the scope of the present invention. For example, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and modifications, improvements, etc. are possible as appropriate. Furthermore, the material, shape, dimensions, number, location, etc. of each component in the above-described embodiments are arbitrary as long as they can achieve the present invention, and are not limited thereto.

[0037] Here, the features of the above-described embodiment of the tank unit 9 according to the present invention will be briefly summarized and listed below in [1] to [3].

[0038] [1] a tank portion (40) having a storage chamber (41) capable of storing a liquid (101); a piping section (50) capable of discharging the liquid (101) contained in the containing chamber (41) to the outside; a cap portion (60) attached to an end of the piping portion (50) inside the storage chamber (41), The cap portion (60) is the nozzle includes a recess (66) capable of storing the liquid (101) and an opening (68) communicating the recess (66) with the interior of the storage chamber (41), and is attached to the end of the piping section (50) so that an open end (51 a) of the piping section (50) is positioned within the groove of the recess (66). Tank unit (9).

[0039] According to the tank unit having the configuration [1] above, a cap is attached to the end of the piping within the storage chamber of the tank. The cap has a recess capable of storing liquid and an opening that connects the recess to the interior of the storage chamber. The cap is attached to the end of the piping so that the open end of the piping is positioned within the groove of the recess. As a result, when a sufficient amount of liquid is stored in the tank, liquid flows into the recess from the opening of the cap and flows out of the recess into the piping. Furthermore, even when the piping is pulled out of the storage chamber of the tank for purposes such as replacing the tank, the open end of the piping remains immersed in the liquid stored in the recess of the cap. This prevents air from entering the piping. Therefore, the tank unit having this configuration can prevent air from mixing into the liquid.

[0040] [2] In the tank unit (9) described in [1] above, The cap portion (60) is having a plurality of said openings (68); Tank unit (9).

[0041] According to the tank unit having the configuration [2] above, the cap portion has multiple openings. This allows the liquid contained in the storage chamber to smoothly flow from the multiple openings in the cap portion through the recess into the pipe of the pipe when the tank unit is used to discharge liquid to the outside through the pipe. This reduces the impact that providing a cap portion at the end of the pipe portion has on the original performance of the tank unit (i.e., the magnitude of pressure loss, the ability to discharge liquid from the pipe, etc.).

[0042] [3] In the tank unit (9) described in [1] above, The cap portion (60) is a fixing portion (61) fastened to an outer peripheral surface of the piping portion (50); and a storage portion (62) supported by the fixing portion (61) and having the recess (66). Tank unit (9).

[0043] According to the tank unit having the configuration [3] above, the cap has a fixing part that is fastened to the outer peripheral surface of the piping, and a reservoir part that is supported by the fixing part and has a recess, which makes it possible to easily fix the cap to piping of various outer diameters. [Explanation of symbols]

[0044] 9 Tank Unit 40 Tank section 41 Tank Cartridge (Containment Room) 50 Piping section 51a Open end 60 Nozzle cap (cap part) 61 Fixed part 62 Storage section 66 Recess 68 Opening 101 Liniment (liquid)

Claims

1. a tank portion having a storage chamber capable of storing a liquid; a piping section capable of discharging the liquid contained in the containing chamber to the outside; a cap portion attached to an end of the piping portion inside the storage chamber, The cap portion is a recess capable of storing the liquid and an opening communicating the recess with the interior of the storage chamber, and the pipe is attached to an end of the pipe so that the open end of the pipe is positioned within a groove of the recess; Tank unit.

2. The tank unit according to claim 1, The cap portion is having a plurality of said openings; Tank unit.

3. The tank unit according to claim 1, The cap portion is The device has a fixing portion that is fastened to an outer peripheral surface of the piping portion, and a storage portion that is supported by the fixing portion and has the recess. Tank unit.

Images