Workpiece Magazine workpiece pallets and computer-aided pallet mounting

Abstract

To enable the loading of workpiece magazines into workpiece pallets quickly, easily, with extreme accuracy, and with high reproducibility. [Solution] The workpiece blank 2 is loaded in an optimized state into a workpiece pallet of a workpiece magazine in front of a mechanical processing device. This is achieved by applying a method to which the surface of a support plate 1 has a plurality of equally spaced and equal-dimensioned openings 3 arranged in a regular matrix and a plurality of workpiece spacers 4 to 7 provided with locking bodies extending downward from the bottom surface into each opening 3, and the plurality of workpiece spacers 4 to 7 have an upwardly oriented mounting surface with respect to the partially upright surface on the corner or edge side of the workpiece blank 2, and further have spacing blocks or edge blocks that extend vertically between them and each has a lateral positioning surface with respect to the workpiece blank.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a workpiece pallet for a workpiece magazine of a mechanical processing device in which a workpiece blank is manually loaded onto a support plate as described in the superordinate concept of claim 1, and a method for pallet attachment by computer assistance as described in the superordinate concept of claim 13.

[0002] A method and a device for batch supply to a machine tool in a semi-automated state are known from German Patent Invention No. 102004054247. In this document, after the workpiece is loaded onto the conveying device, the workpiece is conveyed to the workpiece receiving position, then gripped by a workpiece gripper, and moved from there to the working area of the processing machine, and accordingly, the workpiece is processed there.

[0003] The disadvantage in this case lies in the mechanical costs for conveying the workpiece blank to the processing machine.

[0004] The object of the present invention is to enable the use of a workpiece blank loaded in an optimized state in front of the processing machine, and at this time, to perform the loading of the workpiece blank onto the workpiece pallet of the workpiece magazine quickly, simply, and extremely accurately, and with high reproducibility under the highest possible functional reliability, and further, to optimally distribute the maximum number of workpiece blanks and securely arrange them on the workpiece pallet.

[0005] The solution to the above problem is obtained by, following the features of the broader concept of Claim 1 and Claim 13, and relating to the features of the feature portion of the present invention, by having a surface of a support plate for a workpiece pallet having a plurality of openings arranged in a regular matrix at equal intervals and of equal dimensions, and a plurality of workpiece spacers provided with locking bodies extending downward from the bottom surface into each opening, and by having a spacing block or edge block having a lateral positioning surface with respect to the partially upright surface on the corner or edge side of the workpiece blank, and further having a lateral positioning surface with respect to the workpiece blank that extends vertically between them. The workpiece spacer, together with the support plate of the workpiece pallet, forms a plug-in mechanism, allowing multiple workpiece blanks to be machined to be positioned on the workpiece pallet at pre-selected intervals in the simplest way possible, while maintaining precise spacing between the blanks. This enables the robot arm to continuously grip these workpiece blanks and feed them into the machining process, for example, into a milling process where the workpiece blanks are clamped to a milling machine's bench vise for machining. Subsequently, the machined workpiece blanks can be returned to the workpiece pallet by the robot arm or further fed from the milling machine by other means. The partial upright position of the workpiece blanks on the workpiece spacer is advantageous because the workpiece blanks are secured by their own weight, in addition to being locked into the opening of the workpiece pallet.

[0006] Another advantageous configuration of the present invention can be obtained by each dependent claim and by combining multiple dependent claims.

[0007] According to a particularly preferred embodiment of the present invention, the positioning surface is followed by an upward mounting slope, which significantly simplifies the process when multiple workpiece blanks are manually mounted on and between workpiece spacers on the support plate of the workpiece pallet, especially when the workpiece blanks are relatively heavy and therefore immediately positioned correctly on the support plate of the workpiece pallet.

[0008] To reliably guide, for example, the outer corner of a workpiece blank, the workpiece spacer has two opposing positioning surfaces, where the inner corner between each positioning surface forming a predetermined angle preferably corresponds to the angle of the outer corner of the workpiece blank, thereby allowing the workpiece blank to be held in place without play. Preferably, a partially circular notch is further provided between the two positioning surfaces forming a predetermined angle of the workpiece spacer to receive the corner edge of the outer corner of the workpiece blank, so that the blank is held over a large area on the side of the corner rather than at the corner itself, thus preventing large point or line loads from being placed on the workpiece spacer and workpiece blank, and only small surface pressure being applied.

[0009] The workpiece spacer has a mounting surface oriented upward relative to the workpiece blank, which is advantageous because the weight of the workpiece blank is used to hold the workpiece spacer in the opening using a locking mechanism, thus eliminating the need for a separate, cumbersome mechanical locking mechanism. Additionally, especially when the corner holder is small, a through-opening can be provided through which a screw passes to secure the workpiece spacer to the surface of the support plate via the screw threads.

[0010] Advantageously, the workpiece spacers are formed in various modified forms, for example, as single corner holders, double side holders, triple intermediate holders, quadruple intermediate holders, or multiple intermediate holders, thereby allowing the spacing of workpiece blanks to be arbitrarily predetermined on the workpiece pallet so that they are aligned and in a sequential order.

[0011] Preferably, the spacing block or edge block of the workpiece spacer has a height of up to half the height dimension of the workpiece blank, so that the spacing block or edge block does not tilt even when the acceleration of the robot arm that receives the workpiece pallet and moves it to a predetermined space in the workpiece magazine is high.

[0012] According to a preferred configuration of the present invention, all workpiece spacers having the same or similar dimensional range on the upright surface of a workpiece blank are colored in a single color, distinct from the holder groups of workpiece spacers having the same or similar dimensional range but different from the dimensional range of those spacers. This allows a person to very easily space out, identify, and process workpiece spacers to be placed on a workpiece pallet without error.

[0013] In this case, the locking body of the workpiece spacer is preferably formed in a cylindrical shape, and each opening is formed as a circular blind hole or through hole having the same diameter as the locking body. Herein, variations of the workpiece magazine using openings formed as cross-shaped slits and locking bodies formed in a cross shape, or other variations using a different insertion system, can also be used.

[0014] Advantageously, the locking body is formed as a single unit, but it can also be formed from multiple members, with or without locking projections for openings with or without undercuts, thereby enabling the support plate of the workpiece pallet according to the present invention to be adapted to a wide range of requirements.

[0015] Particularly preferred is an embodiment of a support plate for a workpiece pallet equipped with a workpiece spacer manufactured from a 3D printed material, which allows a new workpiece spacer to be quickly and easily adapted to a new shape of the workpiece blank, and ensures that the workpiece blank is always placed on the workpiece pallet in the correct position.

[0016] Advantageously, the workpiece spacer has an access notch on the underside of each workpiece holder that serves as an attachment or removal aid, and also contributes to material saving.

[0017] In a novel computer-assisted method for attaching workpiece pallets according to the present invention, which provides a means to solve the aforementioned technical problems by technical means via software, the dimensions of the support plate and multiple openings are stored in programmable memory in their respective internal arrangements, and similarly, the form and shape of each locking body, each different holder group's spacing block and edge block workpiece spacer, as well as the possible dimensions of the workpiece blank to be processed, are also stored in programmable memory. Thus, only the width and depth dimensions of the identical workpiece blank to be processed are input via a computer input device, and accordingly, the computer program determines the optimal number of workpiece blanks per support plate, and similarly, the selection and arrangement of holder groups and each different workpiece spacer within those holder groups are determined, and the results are displayed on a technical information display means and / or on a display, and according to these results, the workpiece spacers of the holder groups, which have been appropriately calculated by human hands, are attached to the support plate in the set spaces, and then the workpiece blanks are attached.

[0018] For machining relatively tall workpiece blanks with height dimensions greater than their width and depth dimensions, the height dimension of the workpiece blank is additionally input via an input device, and accordingly, the computer program selects and displays a separate group of holders, which advantageously include relatively tall edge blocks and spacing blocks. This prevents the workpiece blank from tilting on the workpiece pallet, even if the lateral acceleration of the robot arm increases during subsequent use on the workpiece pallet.

[0019] By a computer program, preferably, an arrangement of workpiece spacers symmetrically assigned to the central axis of the support plate and the basic row of the support plate facing the robot arm is selected. This is because the robot arm is coupled to the support plate from the side in the direction of the central axis, and the pallet for the workpiece after the attachment is completed is moved and stored in the workpiece magazine, so that the subsequent pallet is processed after the processing of the previous workpiece pallet. With the selected arrangement, the lever moments and bending moments generated around one axis of the robot arm and occurring laterally with respect to this are minimized.

[0020] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0021] Explanation of reference signs 1 Support plate 2 Workpiece blank 3 Opening 4 Workpiece spacer 5 Workpiece spacer 6 Workpiece spacer 7 Workpiece spacer 8 Bottom surface 9 Locking body 10 Mounting surface 11 Mounting surface 12 Mounting surface 13 Mounting surface 14 Positioning surface 15 Positioning surface 16 Positioning surface 17 Positioning surface 18 Positioning surface 19 Positioning surface 20 Positioning surface 21 Partial circular notch 22 Mounting slope 23 Mounting slope 24 Mounting slope 25 Mounting slope 26 Mounting slope 27 Mounting slope 28 Mounting slope 29 Through notch 30 Edge block 31 Spacer block 32 Spacer block 33 Spacer block 34 Spacer block 35 Thread 36 Outer corner part 37 Access notch 38 Central axis line 39 Basic row.

Brief description of the drawings

[0022] [Figure 1] It is a perspective view showing a support plate of a workpiece pallet on which a workpiece blank is placed. [Figure 2] It is a view showing a workpiece magazine similar to FIG. 1 without a workpiece blank. [Figure 3] It is a perspective view showing a single corner holder. [Figure 4] It is a plan view of the single corner holder of FIG. 3 seen from above. [Figure 5] It is a perspective view of a double side holder seen obliquely from above. [Figure 6] It is a plan view of the double side holder of FIG. 5 seen from above. [Figure 7] It is a perspective view of a second double side holder seen obliquely from the front. [Figure 8] It is a plan view of the second double side holder of FIG. 7 seen from above. [Figure 9] It is a 3D side view showing a quadruple intermediate holder. [Figure 10] It is a plan view of the quadruple intermediate holder of FIG. 9 seen from above.

[0023] The workpiece pallet for the workpiece magazine, as shown in Figure 2, consists of a support plate 1 having a plurality of openings 3 formed as blind holes or through holes arranged in a regular matrix on its surface at equal intervals and of equal dimensions, where, in the four corner regions of the support plate 1, screw threads 35 for fixing workpiece spacers 4-7 can be arranged between the openings 3, and through openings 29 can be provided in the screw threads 35.

[0024] Since the workpiece spacers 4-7 are formed in various embodiments, for example, as single corner holders, double side holders, or quadruple intermediate holders, the workpiece blank 2 placed between them is reliably and uniformly spaced apart from each other, as shown in Figure 1, via the corner or edge regions of each partial upright surface. The spacing blocks (31-34) or edge blocks (30) of the workpiece spacers (4-7) may extend up to half the height dimension of the workpiece blank (2), but may be formed to be more, selectively or as needed, and each may have different height dimensions.

[0025] The workpiece spacers (4-7) of the workpiece blank (2), which have the same or similar dimensional range for their upright surface and, if applicable, other height dimensions, are each divided into separate holder groups, and each holder group is colored in a different color, although this is not shown in the illustration.

[0026] Each workpiece spacer 4-7 has a locking body 9 extending downward from its lower surface 8 into the opening 3, which is cylindrical in shape as shown in Figures 3, 7, and 9, and in this case, at least two such locking bodies 9 are provided on the lower surface 8 of each workpiece spacer. Additionally, the lower surface 8 may be provided with an access notch 37 as shown in Figures 7 and 9, which is used as an aid for removal and also for material saving.

[0027] The workpiece spacers 4-7 further have upwardly oriented mounting surfaces 10-13 with respect to the partially upright corner or edge surfaces of the workpiece blank 2, thereby fixing the workpiece blank 2 to the workpiece spacers 4-7 by their own weight. The patent also claims possible configurations of the locking body 9, which consists of multiple members with or without locking projections for openings 3 that have or do not have undercuts.

[0028] Between the lateral mounting surfaces 10 to 13 for the workpiece blank 2, spacing blocks 31 to 34 or edge blocks 30 are provided, each having lateral positioning surfaces 14 to 20 for the workpiece blank 2. Here, the workpiece spacers 5 and 6, formed as double side holders, and the spacing blocks 31 and 32 have parallel positioning surfaces 14 to 20 with lateral spacings A and B corresponding to the equally spaced positions A and B of the positioning surfaces 14 to 20 of the workpiece spacer 7, formed as a quadruple intermediate holder. As a result, the workpiece blanks 2 can be arranged on the workpiece pallet in a matrix arrangement, parallel to each other and at equal intervals.

[0029] The positioning surfaces 14-20 of the workpiece spacers 4-7 are followed by upwardly oriented mounting slopes 22-28 to facilitate the insertion of the workpiece blank 2 between the workpiece spacers 4-7.

[0030] A partially circular notch 21 is provided in the inner corner portion between two positioning surfaces 4-20 that form a predetermined angle with respect to the outer corner portion 36 of the workpiece blank 2, in order to receive the corner edge of the outer corner portion 36 of the workpiece blank 2. As a result, the blank 2 is supported not by its outer corner portion 36, but directly to the side of the said corner portion, thereby reducing the mechanical load on the workpiece blank and workpiece spacers 4-7.

[0031] Workpiece spacers 4-7 are manufactured from 3D printed materials, particularly plastic, and can be quickly and advantageously adapted to different geometries of the workpiece blank 2 and can be newly printed. In this case, the intermediate holder may have, for example, fewer than four or more mounting surfaces.

[0032] In this case, the workpiece blank 2 is arranged on the support plate 1 symmetrically with respect to the central axis 38, and starting from the basic row 39 of the opening 3 that is closest to the robot arm.

Claims

1. In a workpiece pallet for a workpiece magazine of a mechanical processing device, where workpiece blanks (2) are manually loaded onto a support plate (1), The surface of the support plate (1) has a plurality of equally spaced and equal-sized openings (3) arranged in a regular matrix, and a plurality of workpiece spacers (4-7) provided with locking bodies (9) extending downward from the bottom surface (8) into each opening (3). The workpiece spacers (4-7) have upwardly oriented mounting surfaces (10-13) with respect to the partially upright surfaces on the corner or edge side of the workpiece blank (2), and further have spacing blocks (31-34) or edge blocks (30) that extend vertically between them, each having a lateral positioning surface (14-20) with respect to the workpiece blank (2). A workpiece pallet for workpiece magazines, characterized by the following features.

2. The workpiece pallet for a workpiece magazine according to claim 1, wherein upward-facing mounting slopes (22-28) are provided for the positioning surfaces (14-20).

3. A workpiece pallet for a workpiece magazine according to claim 1 or 2, wherein two positioning surfaces (14-20) corresponding to the outer corner portions (36) of the workpiece blank (2) are aligned so as to form a predetermined angle with respect to each other.

4. A workpiece pallet for a workpiece magazine according to claim 3, wherein a partially circular notch (21) is provided in the inner corner portion between two positioning surfaces (14-20) that form a predetermined angle, for receiving the corner edge of the outer corner portion (36) of the workpiece blank (2).

5. The workpiece spacers (4-7) are each formed differently as a single corner holder (4), a double side holder (5, 6), a triple intermediate holder, or a multi-intermediate holder (7), as described in any one of claims 1 to 4, for a workpiece pallet for a workpiece magazine.

6. The workpiece pallet for a workpiece magazine according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the spacing blocks (31 to 34) or edge blocks (30) of the workpiece spacers (4 to 7) have a height of up to half the height dimension of the workpiece blank (2).

7. A workpiece pallet for a workpiece magazine according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein all workpiece spacers (4 to 7) of the workpiece blank (2) having the same or similar dimensional range on the upright surface are colored in one color as a separate group of holders different from the workpiece spacers (4 to 7) of the workpiece blank (2) having the same or similar dimensional range but different from the above.

8. The locking body (9) is formed in a cylindrical shape, and the plurality of openings (3) are formed as circular blind holes or through holes of the same diameter, as a workpiece pallet for a workpiece magazine according to any one of claims 1 to 7.

9. The workpiece pallet for a workpiece magazine according to claim 8, wherein the locking body (9) is formed from one or more members having or not having locking projections for an opening (3) which may or may not have an undercut.

10. The workpiece spacers (4-7) have through-holes (29) for screws, The workpiece pallet (1) has screw threads (35) on its surface for attaching the workpiece spacers (4-7). A workpiece pallet for a workpiece magazine according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

11. The workpiece spacers (4-7) are manufactured from 3D printed material, the workpiece pallet for a workpiece magazine according to any one of claims 1 to 10.

12. A workpiece pallet for a workpiece magazine according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein an access notch (37) is provided on the flat lower surface (8) of the workpiece spacer (4 to 7) of the workpiece holder.

13. A method for attaching a workpiece pallet according to any one of claims 1 to 12 using computer assistance, The dimensions of the support plate (1) and the opening (3) are stored in the programmable memory in their respective internal arrangements, and similarly, the form and shape of the workpiece spacers (4-7) having their respective locking bodies (9), spacing blocks (31-34) and edge blocks (30) for different holder groups, and similarly, the possible dimensions of the workpiece blank (2) to be machined are stored in the programmable memory. Only the dimensions of the identical workpiece blanks (2) to be actually processed are input via the input device, and accordingly, the computer program determines the optimal number of workpiece blanks (2) per support plate (1), and similarly determines the selection and arrangement of the holder groups and the different workpiece spacers (4-7). The results are displayed on a technical information display means and / or on a display, and according to those results, the workpiece spacers (4, 7) of the holder group, which have been appropriately calculated by hand, are attached to the support plate (1) in the designated space, and then the workpiece blank (2) is attached. A method characterized by the following features.

14. For machining a tall workpiece blank (2) having a height dimension greater than its width and depth dimensions, the height of the workpiece blank is additionally input via the input device. The computer program selects and displays a group of holders having relatively high edge blocks (30) and spacing blocks (31). The method according to claim 13.

15. The method according to claim 14 or 15, wherein the arrangement of workpiece spacers (4-7) is selected by the computer program to be symmetrically assigned with respect to the central axis (38) of the support plate (1) and the basic row (39) of the support plate (1) facing the robot arm.

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