Product Painting System

Abstract

To provide a product-painting system capable of improving a coating productivity even for large-sized heavy products in wide-variety small-lot production while maintaining the coating quality of the products.SOLUTION: A product-painting system 1 comprises: a plurality of painting workplaces 3A, 3B for painting products; a plurality of preparatory workplaces 2A, 2B for preparing the products before painting; a plurality of drying workplaces 4A, 4B for drying the painted products; a traverser 5 traveling on travel rails 6 extending in one direction; and a dolly 7 having the product mounted thereon and mounted on the traverser 5. The workplaces 2A, 2B, 3A, 3B, 4A, 4B are arranged at both sides of the traveling rails 6 along a traveling direction of the traverser 5, and the dolly 7 moves as the traverser 5 moves so as to convey the products to the respective workplaces 2A, 2B, 3A, 3B, 4A, 4B.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a coating system for products, and more particularly to a coating system for large, heavy products produced in small quantities and in a wide variety of types. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, the market has placed importance on the appearance quality of products, and high paint quality is required during product production. For example, paint quality on par with that of passenger cars is now required for the painting of machine tool parts used in factories. However, since the product cannot be touched after painting until the paint has dried, it is generally difficult to improve the efficiency of painting work.

[0003] Conventionally, for lightweight products such as covers and small parts, or mass-produced products such as automobile bodies, a system has been generally used in which the painted products are hung from a hanger rail or transported by a conveyor belt to a drying chamber (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

[0004] On the other hand, in the case of large heavy products such as machine tool parts that weigh more than 10 tons, it is not realistic to hang the products on a hanger rail, and since they are produced in small quantities, even if a conveyor transport device like a large automobile factory is installed, the investment effect is not expected and it is not profitable. Therefore, in the past, the painted products were left on the spot and lit up to speed up the drying process. However, since the product cannot be touched for a while after painting until the paint dries, it is necessary to leave it until the paint dries. In particular, in winter, the drying time may be longer than the working time, so this method is poor in productivity in terms of time and work space, and there is room for improvement in terms of work efficiency. In addition, when painting another product while a specific product is drying, there is a concern that if the paint color is different, the paint color of the other product will adhere to the product being dried, resulting in a decrease in painting quality. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] JP 2006-159093 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and aims to provide a product painting system that can improve painting productivity while maintaining painting quality, even for large, heavy products produced in small quantities in a wide variety of products. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The product painting system of the present invention is a product painting system that has a plurality of painting work areas where products are painted, preparation work areas where the products are prepared before painting, and drying work areas where the painted products are dried, and is characterized in that the painting system has a traverser that runs on a running rail extending in one direction, and a cart on which the product is placed and which is placed on the traverser, the work areas being arranged on both sides of the running rail and along the running direction of the traverser, and the product is transported to each work area by the cart moving via the travers.

[0008] The preparation work area is disposed opposite to the painting work area across the traveling rail.

[0009] The two drying work areas are arranged opposite each other across the traveling rail.

[0010] A carriage rail is laid in the work area in a direction perpendicular to the traveling direction of the traverser, and the product is transported to each work area by the carriage moving on the carriage rail.

[0011] The traverser has a drive device for running on the running rail and a cart moving device for moving the cart to each work site, and the cart moving device is characterized in that it moves the cart by pushing it with an arm extending toward each work site.

[0012] The painting workshop is a workshop in which a downflow air current is generated toward the floor, and is characterized in that a mesh member is provided at the upper part of the work space. Effect of the Invention

[0013] The product painting system of the present invention has a plurality of painting work areas, preparation work areas, and drying work areas, as well as a travers and a cart, and the work areas are arranged on both sides of a traveling rail and along the traveling direction of the travers. The cart moves via the travers to transport the product to each work area, so that the efficiency of transport to each work area can be improved while dividing the work areas for each process when painting the product. In addition, since there are a plurality of painting work areas, preparation work areas, and drying work areas, the same work process can be carried out simultaneously. This makes it possible to improve painting productivity while maintaining painting quality, even for large, heavy products produced in small quantities in a wide variety of products.

[0014] Since the preparation work area is located opposite the painting work area across the traveling rail, for example, after preparation work, the product can be transported to the opposite painting work area without running a traverser, making it easy to streamline the movement of carts and traversers.

[0015] In addition, the two drying workshops are located opposite each other, separated by a traveling rail, which helps ensure the safety of workers.

[0016] In the above-mentioned work area, a carriage rail is laid in a direction perpendicular to the traveling direction of the traverser, and the carriage moves on the carriage rail to transport the product to each work area, so that the position of the carriage in the work area can be fixed, and the work efficiency and the space efficiency of the work area can be improved. Furthermore, the traverser has a drive device for traveling on the traveling rail and a carriage moving device for moving the carriage to each work area, and the carriage moving device moves the carriage by pushing it with an arm extending toward each work area, so that the transportation can be automated.

[0017] The painting work area is a work area where a downflow air current occurs toward the bottom, and since a mesh member is provided at the top of the work space, the downflow air current is less likely to be disturbed, and paint can be prevented from flying up during painting work. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0018] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic plan view showing an example of a coating system of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a carriage in the painting system of the present invention. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a traverser in the coating system of the present invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing the air flow in a painting workshop. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view showing another example of the coating system of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0019] An example of a product painting system of the present invention will be described with reference to Fig. 1. Fig. 1 is a schematic plan view of the system. As shown in Fig. 1, the painting system 1 is disposed in a corner of a factory building 20, for example.

[0020] The painting system of the present invention is mainly composed of a plurality of work areas divided according to process, and a transport means for transporting products to each work area. Specifically, the painting system 1 has, as work areas, painting work areas 3A, 3B where products are painted, preparation work areas 2A, 2B where products are prepared before painting, and drying work areas 4A, 4B where painted products are dried. The painting system 1 also has, as transport means, a traverser 5 and a plurality of (four in FIG. 1) carts 7. The traverser 5 is a device that translates an object placed thereon in the horizontal direction, and travels on a pair of traveling rails 6 in the Y-axis direction.

[0021] 1, the Y-axis direction is the running direction of the traverser 5, and the X-axis direction is the direction perpendicular to the running direction. In this specification, the Y-axis direction is also called the vertical direction, and the X-axis direction is also called the horizontal direction.

[0022] As shown in Fig. 1, a cart 7 on which a product (not shown) is placed is placed on the traverser 5. The cart 7 moves via the traverser 5, so that the product is transported to each of the work sites 2A, 2B, 3A, 3B, 4A, and 4B. In this case, the product is transported to each work site together with the cart 7 from the side facing the traveling rail 6.

[0023] In the coating system 1 according to the present invention, the work areas are arranged on both sides of the traveling rail 6 and along the traveling direction of the traverser 5. In the configuration of FIG. 1, the preparation work area 2A, the preparation work area 2B, and the drying work area 4A are arranged adjacent to each other on the left side of the traveling rail 6, and the painting work area 3A, the painting work area 3B, and the drying work area 4B are arranged adjacent to each other on the right side of the traveling rail 6. Note that a space such as an aisle may be provided between each work area in the Y-axis direction as necessary. In the configuration of FIG. 1, the six work areas are arranged in two vertical rows and three horizontal rows with the traveling rail 6 between them, thereby making it possible to make the entire coating system compact and increasing the efficiency of transporting products to each work area.

[0024] In particular, in the configuration of FIG. 1, the preparation work areas 2A and 2B are arranged opposite the painting work areas 3A and 3B across the traveling rail 6. By arranging them in this way, after the preparation work, the product can be transported to the opposite painting work area 3A (or 3B) without running the traverser 5. Also, in the configuration of FIG. 1, at one end side of the traveling direction of the traverser 5, the two drying work areas 4A and 4B are arranged opposite each other across the traveling rail 6. The drying work areas 4A and 4B dry the products using a drying device, so the temperature inside the areas becomes high. Here, while the preparation work area and the painting work area are mainly performed by workers, the drying work area does not require any work by workers because the drying work is performed automatically. Therefore, by arranging the drying work areas opposite each other, when the drying work area is opened, there is no worker in the range where the hot air reaches (for example, on the opposite side), which leads to improved safety.

[0025] In the state shown in Fig. 1, the carts 7 are arranged in the painting work area 3A, the preparation work area 2B, the drying work area 4B, and on the traverser 5. The number of carts 7 is not particularly limited, but three or more is preferable so that multiple processes can be performed simultaneously. The number of carts is set to a number less than the total number of work areas, and is set to five or less in the configuration shown in Fig. 1.

[0026] As shown in Fig. 1, the cart 7 has a rectangular shape in a plan view. The cart 7 is arranged in the painting system 1 such that the short side direction is parallel to the X-axis direction and the long side direction is parallel to the Y-axis direction. The cart 7 has a horizontal dimension of, for example, 1m to 5m and a vertical dimension of, for example, 5m to 10m. Each of the work areas 2A, 2B, 3A, 3B, 4A, and 4B has a rectangular shape in a plan view that is approximately similar to the planar shape of the cart 7.

[0027] The details of the dolly will be described with reference to the perspective view of FIG. 2. As shown in FIG. 2, the dolly 7 has a metal base portion 7a, wheels 7b, and an axle portion (not shown). The dolly 7 has the strength to withstand the weight of large heavy parts and the like. Here, the preparation work area, painting work area, and drying work area where the dolly 7 enters and exits are environments where dust flies around and where it is exposed to high temperatures, which are harsh environments for driving devices such as motors. For this reason, the dolly 7 does not have a driving device and has a simple configuration in which it moves by being pushed by another device or the like.

[0028] Moreover, the cart 7 is made of mesh-shaped steel plates except for a part of the upper surface of the base plate portion 7a (the part of the wheels 7b and the axle portion). The area of ​​the mesh-shaped steel plates is preferably 60% or more, more preferably 70% or more, of the entire area (vertical dimension x horizontal dimension) of the upper surface of the base plate portion 7a. By using a large amount of mesh-shaped steel plates, air can easily pass through the cart 7, and the air flow in the painting work area and the drying work area is less likely to be obstructed. As a result, this leads to suppression of paint from flying up and improvement of drying efficiency. Furthermore, by using mesh-shaped steel plates, when a worker works on the cart 7 in the preparation work area or the painting work area, the paint attached to the cart 7 naturally falls down, making it easy to collect the paint.

[0029] The cart 7 can move in the X-axis direction (horizontal direction) by rotating the wheels 7b. On the other hand, the cart 7 itself cannot move in the Y-axis direction (vertical direction), but moves indirectly when the cart 7 is placed on the traverser 5 and the traverser 5 travels in the Y-axis direction (see FIG. 1).

[0030] Next, the details of the traverser will be described based on the perspective view of FIG. 3. As shown in FIG. 3, the traverser 5 has a main body 5a on which the carriage is placed, and a bumper 5i. The traverser 5 also has the strength to withstand the weight of large heavy parts. The main body 5a is formed by connecting a plurality of metal plates or bars, and various devices are installed therein. In the main body 5a, rotatably provided support rollers 5b are fixed to the front and rear sides in the running direction of the traverser 5. The axle parts of the carriage are supported by the support rollers 5b. The support rollers 5b rotate when the carriage is moved in the X-axis direction. The bumpers 5i are provided as a safety measure, and are provided protruding from the main body 5a to the front and rear sides in the running direction.

[0031] The main body 5a is provided with a servo motor 5c as its own drive device. By driving a rack installed on a traveling rail with a pinion using the servo motor 5c, the wheel part 5d rotates and the traverser 5 travels in the Y-axis direction.

[0032] In addition, a pair of carriage moving devices 5e for moving the carriage to and from each work area is provided in the approximate center of the main body 5a. One carriage moving device 5e is a device for moving the carriage to one side in the X-axis direction, and the other carriage moving device 5e is a device for moving the carriage to the other side in the X-axis direction. Each device 5e has a chain 5f stretched in the X-axis direction, a servo motor 5g for rotating the chain 5f, and an arm 5h that expands and contracts in the X-axis direction by the rotation of the chain 5f. The arm 5h is configured so that the back side of the base plate part of the carriage is hooked. When moving the carriage to each work area, the arm 5h is extended in the X-axis direction to push the carriage, thereby moving the carriage. Since the stroke of the arm 5h in the X-axis direction requires an overhang that extends beyond the traverser 5, in FIG. 3, a double feed mechanism using a chain is used, driven by the servo motor 5g.

[0033] A series of steps in painting a product will be described below with reference to Figure 1. In the following, an example is shown in which the product is transported to preparation work area 2A, painting work area 3A, drying work area 4A, and preparation work area 2A in that order, but the product may be transported to preparation work area 2B, painting work area 3B, and drying work area 4B as appropriate. Note that transport to the preparation work area may be omitted.

[0034] First, the cart 7 is moved to the preparation work area 2A, and the product 15 (see FIG. 4) to be painted is placed on the cart 7. The product is not particularly limited, but in the present invention, large, heavy machine parts (e.g., machine tool parts) produced in small quantities are particularly suitable. Note that multiple products may be placed on one cart.

[0035] Preparation work in the preparation work area 2A includes preparation of the surface to be painted. The preparation work area 2A is also used as a waiting area for products after painting and drying work. In that case, paint recovery work and the like is carried out in the preparation work area. The preparation work area 2A has a simple structure with a pair of cart rails 8 embedded in a flat floor. This makes it easy to recover paint and clean the floor. The preparation work area 2A is not an enclosed work area, and is not partitioned by the interior space of the factory building 20 or walls. This makes it easy to load and unload products onto the carts 7 in the preparation work area 2A.

[0036] After preparation work has been completed, the product is temporarily collected on the trolley 7 onto the traverser 5, and then transported to the painting workshop 3A. At this time, as described above, the pair of trolley movement devices (see FIG. 3) are driven to extend and retract the arms, thereby moving the trolley 7 in and out of each workshop 2A, 3A.

[0037] In the painting workshop 3A, paint is sprayed by hand or by a painting robot. In the case of large, heavy products produced in small quantities with a wide variety of products, it is preferable for the paint to be sprayed by hand. The outline of this painting workshop will be explained with reference to Figure 4.

[0038] FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a painting workshop. In FIG. 4, the air flow is indicated by white arrows. As shown in FIG. 4, the painting workshop 3A is a downflow type in which air entering from the ceiling flows toward the floor. The ceiling is structured to be openable to the outside world and the space of the factory building, so that air can be taken into the painting workshop. Air in the painting workshop is sucked in through an intake port 10 in the floor and exhausted to the outside from an external exhaust device 9 through a pit 12 dug in the ground. In addition, paint can be collected by installing a filter 11 in the intake port 10 in the floor. In this configuration, since the intake port 10 is installed on the floor, the filter 11 can also be easily replaced.

[0039] In the painting workshop 3A, as shown in Fig. 4, it is preferable to provide a mesh member 13 at the top of the work space S. A mesh net or the like can be used as the mesh member 13. By stretching the net at the top, the air introduced from the ceiling is straightened and not turbulent when passing through the net. This makes it difficult for paint to fly up when spraying the paint, leading to an improved work environment.

[0040] In addition, an opening / closing member 14 is provided at the opening of the painting workshop 3A, and painting work is performed with the opening / closing member 14 closed. As the opening / closing member 14, a general opening / closing member can be used, and is appropriately selected depending on the size of the opening. For example, if the opening is large, a shutter can be used in which a square pipe is passed horizontally and moved up and down by hoists on both sides, and a vinyl sheet is stretched up and down in response to the up and down movement of the square pipe to open and close.

[0041] Returning to FIG. 1, the product on which the painting work has been performed is temporarily collected on the traverser 5 together with the dolly 7, and then transported to the drying workshop 4A. The drying workshop 4A is a workshop where the paint is dried using a drying device. For example, an LNG hot air generator can be installed on the ceiling of the drying workshop 4A, and the hot air can be blown out from the lower part of the side wall. The drying temperature in the drying workshop 4A is not particularly limited, and is set to a temperature of, for example, 50°C to 200°C. For example, when powder coating, which requires high-temperature drying, is performed, it is preferable to use a heat-insulating member for the opening and closing member, and to use a rack and pinion or a hoist on both sides to open and close the shutter by moving it up and down. On the other hand, when using a general room temperature drying paint, a commercially available shutter can be used because the drying temperature is only required to be about 50°C.

[0042] After the drying process, the products are temporarily collected on the cart 7 onto the traverser 5, and then transported to the preparation work area 2A. Here, the products are loaded and unloaded from the cart 7. In this way, the coating system of the present invention allows the products to be transported to the required work areas in order, and thus the coated products are obtained.

[0043] The configuration of the coating system of the present invention is not limited to the configuration of Figs. 1 to 4. For example, the coating system may have a separate pretreatment chamber located away from the preparation work area, the painting work area, and the drying work area. In this pretreatment chamber, plating, pickling, sandblasting, etc. are performed on the product before painting. In particular, sandblasting is preferable when pretreatment is performed on the complex shapes of heavy and large products produced in small quantities. When sandblasting large parts, high-speed dust scatters, and it is difficult to suck up the dust mixed with sand and metal that scatters at high speed without leaking outside the room. Therefore, by installing the sandblasting chamber at a location away from the preparation work area, the painting work area, and the drying work area (for example, in a building separate from the factory building in which the above-mentioned work areas are installed), the impact of dust generated by sandblasting on the coating can be reduced. It is preferable that the sandblasting chamber is configured so that sandblasting sand can be collected from under the floor.

[0044] Another configuration of the coating system of the present invention is shown in Fig. 5. The coating system 1' shown in Fig. 5(a) has preparation work areas 2A, 2B, coating work areas 3A, 3B, and drying work areas 4A, 4B as work areas. These work areas are arranged on both sides of the traveling rail 6 and along the traveling direction of the traverser 5. Specifically, two preparation work areas, two coating work areas, and two drying work areas are arranged facing each other across the traveling rail 6.

[0045] Moreover, the painting system 1'' shown in FIG. 5(b) has, as the work areas, preparation work areas 2A, 2B, 2C, painting work areas 3A, 3B, 3C, and drying work areas 4A, 4B. In the configuration of FIG. 5(b), eight work areas are arranged in two vertical rows and four horizontal rows with a traveling rail 6 in between. Specifically, the preparation work areas 2A, 2B, 2C are arranged opposite the painting work areas 3A, 3B, 3C across the traveling rail 6. In addition, at one end of the traveling direction, two drying work areas are arranged opposite each other across the traveling rail 6. With the configuration of FIG. 5, the entire painting system can be made compact and the efficiency of transporting products to each work area can be improved. [Industrial Applicability]

[0046] The product painting system of the present invention can improve painting productivity while maintaining painting quality, even for large, heavy products produced in small quantities and in a wide variety of products, and is therefore particularly useful as a painting system for painting machine tool parts, etc. [Explanation of symbols]

[0047] 1,1',1'' Painting System 2A, 2B, 2C Preparation workshop 3A, 3B, 3C Painting workshop 4A, 4B Drying Workshop 5 Traversa 6 Running rail 7 Trolley 8. Truck rails 9. Exhaust system 10 Intake port 11 Filters 12 Pit 13 Mesh members 14 Opening and closing members 15 products 20 Factory Building S Work Space

Claims

1. A product painting system including a plurality of work areas, each of which includes a painting work area where a product is painted, a preparation work area where the product is prepared before painting, and a drying work area where the painted product is dried, The coating system includes a traverser that runs on a running rail extending in one direction, and a cart on which the product is placed and which is placed on the traverser; A product painting system characterized in that the work areas are arranged on both sides of the traveling rail and along the traveling direction of the traverser, and the products are transported to each work area by the cart moving via the traverser.

2. 2. The product painting system according to claim 1, wherein the preparation work area is disposed opposite the painting work area across the traveling rail.

3. 3. A product coating system according to claim 1, wherein two of said drying work areas are disposed opposite each other across said travel rail.

4. A painting system for a product described in any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that cart rails are laid in the painting work area, the preparation work area, and the drying work area in a direction perpendicular to the traveling direction of the traverser, and the product is transported to each work area by the cart moving on the cart rails.

5. The traverser has a drive device for traveling on the traveling rail and a carriage moving device for moving the carriage to each work site, 5. The product painting system according to claim 4, wherein the carriage moving device moves the carriage by pushing the carriage with an arm extending toward each work area.

6. The product painting system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the painting work area is a work area in which a downflow airflow toward the floor occurs, and a mesh member is provided at the top of the work space.

Images