Coating film cutting device

Abstract

To provide a coating film cutting device capable of realizing cutting treatment with a large exposure of a base material and performing uniform cutting treatment with high reproducibility and stability on a coating film. [Solution] The device performs a cutting process on a test piece TP on which a coating film is formed, and includes a test piece holder 2 that holds the test piece TP and a tool unit 3 that performs the cutting process. The test piece holder 2 is provided on an apparatus base 20 so as to be movable in the X-axis, Y-axis, and θ-axis directions. The tool unit 3 is attached to a second stage 73 that is suspended via a load cell from a first stage 71 that is provided so as to be movable in the Z-axis direction. The coating film is cut by attaching a handheld cutting device 40 having a power source to the tool unit 3, and moving the cutting device in the Z-axis direction while moving the test piece holder 2 in the X-axis, Y-axis, and θ-axis directions to perform a cutting process of the desired depth, length, and direction.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a coating film cutting device, and more particularly to a device for performing a predetermined cutting process on a test piece having a coating film formed on a substrate. [Background technology]

[0002] There are various general test methods for paints, including tests that involve making a specified cut in the paint film. Examples include the cross-cut method (JIS-K5600-5-6) for evaluating the adhesion of paint films, the cyclic corrosion test method (JIS-K5600-7-9) for evaluating the long-term durability of paint films, the salt spray test method (JIS-Z2371), the outdoor exposure weather resistance test method (JIS-K5600-7-6), and Paint and varnishes-Corrosion Protection of steel structures by protective paint systems (ISO12944).

[0003] In such tests, a test specimen having a coating film formed on a substrate is used. The coating film of the test specimen is cut with a cutter knife to a desired size before or during the test. For example, in the cross-cut method, a right-angled grid pattern (25 squares) is manually cut into the coating film of the test specimen with a cutter knife as a preparation before the test (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In cyclic corrosion tests and outdoor weathering tests, the coating film of the test specimen is manually cut with a cutter knife before the test, and then a corrosion cycle of salt spray, drying, and wetting is repeatedly performed, or an outdoor weathering test is performed. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2012-85725 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, such conventional methods have the following problems, and improvements thereto are desired.

[0006] That is, when cutting into the coating film using a cutter knife as in the past, the substrate tends to be less exposed as a result of the cutting. Therefore, for example, in tests on the durability of the coating film, such as cyclic corrosion tests, salt spray tests, and outdoor exposure weathering tests, it takes a long time for the corrosion of the substrate to cause rust, swelling of the coating film, peeling of the coating film, etc. to occur, and there is a problem that the tests take a long time. In addition, the depth and angle of the cut into the coating film, as well as the degree of penetration into the substrate, greatly affect the test results, and when the cutting process is done manually as in the past, the reproducibility and stability of the cuts are poor due to artificial bias, making it difficult to make uniform cuts in the coating film.

[0007] The present invention has been made in consideration of these problems, and its object is to provide a coating cutting device that can realize cutting processing that exposes a large amount of the base material, and can perform uniform cutting processing on the coating film with high reproducibility and stability. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the coating cutting device of the present invention is a device for performing a predetermined cutting process on a test piece having a coating formed on its surface, comprising a test piece holder for holding the test piece, and a tool unit equipped with a tool for performing a predetermined cutting process on the test piece held in the test piece holder, wherein the test piece holder is provided on an apparatus base so as to be movable in the X-axis, Y-axis and θ-axis directions, and the tool unit has a handheld cutting device having a power source and a tool holding section for detachably holding the cutting device, and the tool holding section is attached to a second stage suspended via a load cell from a first stage provided on the apparatus base so as to be movable in the Z-axis direction.

[0009] The present invention has the following features as its preferred embodiments. (1) The cutting device has a linear device main body and a cutting tool that is removably attached to the tip of the device main body, and the tool holding portion is characterized in that it has a structure that holds the cutting device in an upright position along the Z-axis direction.

[0010] (2) The tool holding portion is characterized by having a tip side fixing portion that fixes the tip side of the cutting device, and a base side fixing portion that is located on the base side of the tip side fixing portion and fixes the device main body of the cutting device.

[0011] (3) The tip side fixing portion has a support hole penetrating in the Z-axis direction, and is characterized in that the tip side of the cutting device is inserted into and supported by this support hole.

[0012] (4) The cutting device is characterized in that it is composed of an electric micro grinder.

[0013] (5) The tool unit is characterized in that it has a suction port of a suction mechanism for sucking up chips generated during cutting, at a position facing the cutting tool.

[0014] (6) The suction mechanism comprises a suction passage communicating with a suction device and a suction nozzle communicating with the suction passage, and the suction nozzle has a cylindrical portion surrounding the outer periphery near the tip of the cutting tool, and an annular opening formed on the outer periphery of the cutting tool by the cylindrical portion serves as the suction port.

[0015] (7) The test piece holder is characterized by having a lifting stage that can be raised and lowered in the Z-axis direction, a clamping frame that cooperates with the lifting stage to clamp and hold the peripheral edge of the test piece, and a chip prevention tray that catches chips that fall outside the clamping frame.

[0016] (8) The apparatus base is characterized by comprising an X-axis drive mechanism for driving the test specimen holder in an X-axis direction, a Y-axis drive mechanism for driving the test specimen holder in a Y-axis direction, a θ-axis drive mechanism for driving and rotating the test specimen holder around the θ-axis, a Z-axis drive mechanism for driving the first stage in a Z-axis direction, and a control means for controlling the drive of each of these drive mechanisms. Effect of the Invention

[0017] According to the present invention, the test piece holder for holding the test piece on which the coating film is formed is configured to be movable in the X-axis, Y-axis, and θ-axis directions on the device base, and the tool unit for cutting into the coating film is attached to the second stage suspended via a load cell on the first stage provided on the device base to be movable in the Z-axis direction, so that, for example, the tool unit with the cutting tool not rotating is lowered to the position of the test piece, the position where the specified load value is detected by the load cell is set as the origin of the Z axis, the cutting tool is rotated from there and lowered to the specified cutting depth, and the test piece is moved in the X-axis direction or the like while maintaining the position where the specified depth is reached, and the coating film of the test piece can be cut, and a uniform cut can be made in the coating film with high reproducibility and stability. Therefore, by using the coating film cutting device according to the present invention, a test for evaluating the mechanical properties of the coating film can be performed accurately without variation.

[0018] In addition, the tool unit is equipped with a handheld cutting device having a power source, so that, for example, by using an end mill as a cutting tool applied to the cutting device, in the incision processing of the coating film of the test piece, a large incision equivalent to the diameter of the attached end mill can be formed in terms of the exposure of the base material. As a result, in the test on the durability of the coating film, the period until the occurrence of rust due to corrosion of the base material, swelling of the coating film, peeling of the coating film, etc. can be shortened, and the time required for the test can be shortened. In addition, since the coating film and the base material can be cut with a constant width and depth, and a uniform incision processing with high reproducibility and stability can be performed on the coating film, stable results can be obtained in tests on the durability of the coating film such as cyclic corrosion tests, salt spray tests, and outdoor exposure weathering tests. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0019] [Figure 1] 1 is a front perspective view showing an example of the external configuration of a coating film cutting device according to the present invention; [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a rear perspective view showing an example of the external configuration of the coating film cutting device. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a perspective view partially showing the internal structure of the coating film cutting device. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an example of the external configuration of a tool unit of the coating film cutting device. [Diagram 5] 11 is an exploded perspective view showing the attachment and procedure of a cutting device to the tool unit. FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 4 is a partial cross-sectional view of the tool unit, illustrating a chip suction mechanism in the tool unit. [Figure 7] 7A and 7B are perspective views showing an example of the external configuration of a test piece holder of a coating cutting device according to the present invention, in which FIG. 7(a) shows a state in which the lifting stage has been raised to hold a test piece, and FIG. 7(b) shows a state in which the lifting stage has been lowered to remove the test piece. [Figure 8] FIG. 4 is a partial cross-sectional view of a tool unit and a test piece holder, illustrating a state in which the test piece is cut by the coating cutting device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0020] Hereinafter, an embodiment of a coating film cutting device according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In this specification and the drawings, components having substantially the same functional configurations are denoted by the same reference numerals, and duplicated explanations will be omitted.

[0021] The coating cutting device 1 is an apparatus for performing a predetermined cutting process on a test piece TP having a coating formed on its surface, and comprises as its main parts a test piece holder 2 for holding the test piece TP, and a tool unit 3 for holding a tool (cutting device 40) for performing the predetermined cutting process on the test piece TP.

[0022] Here, the test piece TP is a plate-like or film-like sample in which a coating film for evaluating mechanical properties is formed on a base material made of metal or resin. Examples of the base material include metals (iron, carbon steel, weathering steel, zinc, copper, aluminum, stainless steel, etc.), synthetic resins such as plastics, concrete, rubber, glass, etc. Examples of the coating film include coating films formed by applying or printing paint (acrylic resin-based, silicone resin-based, fluororesin-based paint, etc.). In this embodiment, the test piece TP is exemplified by a test piece TP formed by forming a coating film on a thin metal plate as shown in FIG. 8, but it is also possible to use a test piece TP formed by forming a coating film on a thick base material (for example, a concrete piece) as shown in FIG. 7(a).

[0023] The coating film cutting device 1 is housed in a casing 4 as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2. The casing 4 is composed of a casing body 4a that covers the entire device, and an openable / closable lid 4b that is attached to the casing body 4a via a hinge 5 so as to be openable / closable. By closing the openable / closable lid 4b, the entire device including the test piece holder 2 and the tool unit 3 can be housed in a closed space. Therefore, when performing a cutting process on the test piece TP, by closing the openable / closable lid 4b, it is possible to prevent cutting chips such as cutting chips of the coating film from scattering outside the device. In this embodiment, the casing 4 is formed by assembling aluminum frames 4c, 4c, ... in a three-dimensional (box-shaped) shape, and a predetermined panel is attached within the frame 4c to form a closed space. The reference symbol 4d in the figure indicates a transparent window panel provided on the frame 4c that constitutes the openable / closable lid 4b, and the state of the cutting process can be visually observed from outside the casing 4 through the window panel 4d. Also, reference numeral 4e in the drawing denotes a metallic decorative panel provided on the frame 4c constituting the casing main body 4a.

[0024] The test specimen holder 2 is a holder for fixedly holding the test specimen TP, and as shown in Figures 7 and 8, its main parts are a lifting stage 6 that is configured to be able to move up and down in the vertical direction (Z-axis direction), a pressure frame 7 that cooperates with the lifting stage 6 to clamp and hold the test specimen TP, and a chip drop prevention tray 17 that catches chips that fall outside the pressure frame 7.

[0025] Specifically, the test piece holder 2 includes a base plate 8, a support 9 erected on the base plate 8, a presser frame 7 arranged on the support 9, a lifting stage 6 arranged below the presser frame 7, and a lifting mechanism 10 for the lifting stage 6. The base plate 8 is made of a plate-like member having a substantially rectangular shape, and supports 9, 9, ... are erected at its four corners. The presser frame 7 is a member that abuts against the outer edge of the test piece TP when the lifting stage 6 on which the test piece TP is placed is elevated, and sandwiches and holds the test piece TP between the presser frame 7 and the lifting stage 6, and is made of a frame body with an opening in the center, and its four corners are attached on the support 9. In addition, an elastic body (for example, a rubber plate) (not shown) is arranged on the surface (lower surface) of the presser frame 7 that faces the lifting stage 6. This prevents the test piece TP from being displaced by friction with the elastic body. In addition, in this type of test piece TP, the paint constituting the coating film may be applied excessively to the outer periphery of the test piece TP in order to seal the end of the test piece TP, which may cause the outer periphery of the test piece TP to bulge. However, even if the outer periphery of the test piece TP is bulged in this way, by placing an elastic body on the holding frame 7, the test piece TP can be securely held.

[0026] The lifting stage 6 is composed of a plate-like member having a substantially rectangular shape arranged inside the four support columns 9, 9, .... The lifting mechanism 10 has a cam 18 acting on the lower surface of the lifting stage 6, a lifting knob 11 connected to a rotation shaft 19 of the cam, and a linear shaft 12 and a linear bush 13 that guide the lifting stage 6 to move up and down. The rotation shaft 19 rotates with the rotation of the lifting knob 11, and the cam 18 acts on the lifting stage 6 to lift and lower the lifting stage 6. Reference numeral 14 in the figure denotes a rotation stopper that limits the rotation of the lifting knob 11 when the lifting stage 6 is at the fully lowered position. In addition, the lifting stage 6 shown in FIG. 7 has a groove 16 formed on the outer periphery of the stage that is lower than the center. This groove 16 is a groove for accommodating the bulging outer peripheral portion of the test piece TP with the bulging outer peripheral edge described above, and by accommodating the outer peripheral edge in this groove, the test piece TP can be stably placed on the lifting stage 6.

[0027] The chip drop prevention tray 17 is a member for preventing chips generated by the cutting process of the test piece TP from falling to the side of the device base 20 described later, and is disposed below the lift stage 6. In this embodiment, the chip drop prevention tray 17 is composed of a dish-shaped member having a substantially rectangular shape similar to the lift stage 6 and the holding frame 7, and its outer periphery protrudes outward beyond the outer periphery of the lift stage 6 and the holding frame 7. The chip drop prevention tray 17 is also attached to the lower surface of the lift stage 6 so that it can move up and down together with the lift stage 6. This makes it possible to prevent chips (such as cutting chips of the coating film or base material) generated by the cutting process of the test piece TP from spilling outward from the holding frame 7 and falling below the test piece holder 2 (specifically, onto the XY stage 29 or base plate 21 described later).

[0028] When using the test piece holder 2 thus configured, first, the lifting stage 6 is lowered to the set position of the test piece TP, and the test piece TP is placed on the lifting stage 6 at that position. At this time, if the test piece TP is thin, a spacer SP for adjusting the height position of the surface of the test piece TP is appropriately placed under the test piece TP as shown in FIG. 8 (FIG. 8 shows a state in which two spacers SP are placed). After the test piece TP has been placed, the lifting knob 11 is operated to lift the lifting stage 6. By lifting the lifting stage 6, the test piece TP is sandwiched between the lifting stage 6 and the holding frame 7, and the test piece TP is held between the lifting stage 6 and the holding frame 7.

[0029] In the coating film cutting device 1 of the present invention, the test piece holder 2 having such a configuration is arranged on the device base 20 of the coating film cutting device 1 so as to be movable in the X-axis direction (left-right direction), Y-axis direction (front-back direction) and θ-axis direction (circumferential direction).

[0030] Here, the device base 20 of the coating film cutting device 1 will be described with reference to FIG. In the coating film cutting device 1 shown in this embodiment, an electrical equipment area EA is formed on the underside of a base plate 21 that constitutes the device base 20, and the electrical equipment area EA accommodates electrical equipment such as a display unit 90, an operating unit 91, a microcomputer and a power supply unit (not shown), and the like. On the upper side of the base plate 21, a test piece holder area HA is formed, which accommodates a test piece holder 2 and its driving mechanism, and above that, a tool unit area TA is formed, which accommodates a tool unit 3 and its driving mechanism.

[0031] The test specimen holder 2 is disposed on a base plate 21. The base plate 21 is supported at a predetermined height within the casing 4 by a frame structure formed by the frames 4c, 4c, ... of the casing 4, and an electrical equipment area EA is formed between a bottom plate (not shown) of the casing 4 and the base plate 21. The base plate 21 is provided with a Y-axis drive mechanism 25 that moves the test specimen holder 2 in the Y-axis direction, an X-axis drive mechanism 26 that moves the test specimen holder 2 in the X-axis direction, and a θ-axis drive mechanism 27 that rotates the test specimen holder 2 around the θ-axis.

[0032] The Y-axis drive mechanism 25 includes a pair of Y-axis rails 28 disposed in the Y-axis direction on the base plate 21, an XY stage 29 disposed so as to be movable in the Y-axis direction on the Y-axis rails 28, and a Y-axis motor (not shown) that drives the XY stage 29 in the Y-axis direction. The Y-axis motor is connected to a control unit 100, which will be described later, and the control unit 100 can control the position of the XY stage 29 in the Y-axis direction.

[0033] The X-axis drive mechanism 26 includes a pair of X-axis rails 31 arranged in the X-axis direction on the XY stage 29, a first θ stage 32 arranged so as to be movable in the X-axis direction on the X-axis rails 31, and an X-axis motor 33 that drives the first θ stage 32 in the X-axis direction. The X-axis motor 33 is connected to a control unit 100, which will be described later, so that the control unit 100 can control the position of the first θ stage 32 in the X-axis direction. Support columns 38 are erected at the four corners of the first θ stage 32, and a second θ stage 34 is arranged on the support columns 38. That is, the θ stage arranged on the X-axis rails 31 has a two-layer structure consisting of a first and second θ stage.

[0034] The θ-axis drive mechanism 27 includes a ring-shaped θ-axis rail (not shown) arranged on the second θ-stage 34, a test piece holder mounting plate 36 arranged on the θ-axis rail so as to be rotatable around the θ-axis, and a θ-axis motor (not shown) that rotates and drives a θ-axis body (not shown) connected to the test piece holder mounting plate 36. The θ-axis motor is connected to a control unit 100 (described later) so that the rotation angle of the test piece holder mounting plate 36 can be controlled by the control unit 100. The θ-axis body is connected to an electromagnetic brake (not shown) that passes through the second θ-stage 34 and is arranged on the first θ-stage 32, so that the rotation of the θ-axis body can be stopped by the electromagnetic brake. This makes it possible to stop and fix the rotation of the test piece holder 2 attached to the test piece holder mounting plate 36, and prevents the test piece holder 2 from shifting in position during the cutting process into the test piece TP.

[0035] The base plate 8 of the test specimen holder 2 is attached onto the test specimen holder attachment plate 36 of the θ-axis drive mechanism 27. This allows the test specimen holder 2 to be rotationally driven together with the rotation of the test specimen holder attachment plate 36.

[0036] In this embodiment, a stacked structure is adopted in which the Y-axis drive mechanism 25, the X-axis drive mechanism 26 and the θ-axis drive mechanism 27 of the test specimen holder 2 are arranged at staggered height positions in the vertical direction. This allows the drive means of the test specimen holder 2 to be arranged in a narrow space (a narrow space when viewed in a plane), and the coating film cutting device 1 can be configured compactly.

[0037] On the other hand, the tool unit 3 is a unit for performing a predetermined cutting process on the test piece TP held by the test piece holder 2, and as shown in Figures 4 to 6, the tool unit 3 mainly comprises a cutting device 40 for performing the cutting process on the test piece TP, and a tool holding part 50 for detachably holding the cutting device 40. In this embodiment, the tool unit 3 is also provided with a suction mechanism 60 for suctioning chips generated during the cutting process.

[0038] The cutting device 40 is a handheld cutting device having a power source, and includes a linear (so-called pencil-shaped) device main body 41 shaped to be held by one hand, and a cutting tool 42 detachably attached to the tip of the device main body 41. In this embodiment, the cutting device 40 is configured as an electric device having an electric motor (not shown) as a power source. The cutting device 40 includes an electric motor in the device main body 41 that rotates and drives the cutting tool 42, and a motor control device (not shown) disposed outside the casing 4 is wired to the electric motor via a control cable 43. The motor control device is a device that supplies power to the electric motor and controls the drive of the electric motor, and receives power from an external commercial power source (not shown) to supply power to the electric motor, and controls the ON / OFF control and rotation speed of the electric motor built into the device main body 41.

[0039] The tip of the device main body 41 is provided with a chucking mechanism 44 for removably mounting the cutting tool 42. The chucking mechanism 44 is configured so that the cutting tool 42 can be attached and detached by manual operation. In this embodiment, an end mill is attached to the chucking mechanism 44 as a tool for cutting into the coating film of the test piece TP. The end mill can form a wider cut in the coating film than the cut by a cutter knife. In this embodiment, an end mill is preferably used as the cutting tool 42, but it is also possible to use a tool other than an end mill, such as a slot drill or a cobalt slot drill, as long as the tool can make a wider cut in the coating film in accordance with the rotation of the electric motor.

[0040] In this embodiment, a commercially available micro grinder (for example, EV410-100 / EV410-230 manufactured by Nakanishi Corporation) is used as the cutting device 40. By using a commercially available device as the cutting device 40 in this manner, the manufacturing cost and maintenance cost of the tool unit 3 can be kept low.

[0041] The tool holding unit 50 detachably holds the cutting device 40, and has a structure for holding the cutting device 40 in an upright state along the Z-axis direction. Specifically, the tool holding unit 50 has a tip-side fixing part 51 for fixing the tip side of the cutting device 40, a base-side fixing part 52 located on the base-side side of the tip-side fixing part 51 for fixing the device main body part 41 of the cutting device 40, and a connecting part 53 for connecting the tip-side fixing part 51 and the base-side fixing part 52.

[0042] The tip-side fixing part 51 is composed of a substantially rectangular plate-like member arranged horizontally. One end of the plate-like member in the longitudinal direction is fixed to the lower end of the connecting part 53, and a support hole 54 penetrating in the Z-axis direction is formed on the other end side in the longitudinal direction. The support hole 54 is a hole for inserting the tip side of the cutting device 40, and as shown in FIG. 6, by inserting the tip side of the cutting device 40 into the support hole 54, the tip side of the cutting device 40 is positioned and supported by the periphery of the support hole 54. That is, the tip-side fixing part 51 has a structure for supporting the tip side of the cutting device 40 by receiving the cutting device 40 using the support hole 54 having an opening diameter narrower than the widened body diameter by utilizing a part of the cutting device 40 whose body diameter becomes wider from the tip side to the base end side. Therefore, the cutting device 40 whose tip side is supported by the support hole 54 is stably held without the cutting tool 42 provided at its tip being shaken in the front-back and left-right (X- and Y-axis directions).

[0043] The base end fixing part 52 has a structure for sandwiching and fixing the device main body part 41 of the cutting device 40, and includes a main body part 55 fixed to the connecting part 53, and a pressing piece part 56 for pressing and fixing the cutting device 40 to the main body part 55 side. The main body part 55 is made of a block-shaped member having a thickness in the Z-axis direction, and one end in the longitudinal direction is fixed to the upper end of the connecting part 53, and a mounting groove 58 penetrating in the Z-axis direction is formed on the end face of the other end in the longitudinal direction (see FIG. 5). The mounting groove 58 is formed of a concave groove corresponding to the outer peripheral shape of the device main body part 41 of the cutting device 40. The pressing piece part 56 has a second mounting groove 59 penetrating in the Z-axis direction formed on the end face on the side facing the main body part 55 (see FIG. 5). The second mounting groove 59 is formed of a concave groove corresponding to the outer peripheral shape of the device main body part 41 of the cutting device 40, like the mounting groove 58. Then, by butting the pressing piece 56 against the end face on the other end side of the main body 55, a holding space for the cutting device 40 is formed between the second mounting groove 59 and the mounting groove 58, and the device main body 41 of the cutting device 40 is sandwiched and held in this holding space. The pressing piece 56 is detachably attached to the main body 55 by a screw 57, whereby the device main body 41 of the cutting device 40 is detachably fixed to the main body 55.

[0044] When using the tool holding part 50 configured as above, first, the tip side of the cutting device 40 is inserted into the support hole 54 of the tip side fixing part 51 to position the tip side of the cutting device 40. Then, the device body part 41 of the cutting device 40 is sandwiched between the mounting groove 58 and the second mounting groove 59 of the base end side fixing part 52, and in this state, the pressing piece part 56 is attached and fixed to the body part 55. As a result, the cutting device 40 is held in an upright state along the Z-axis direction with the cutting tool 42 facing downward. At this time, the cutting device 40 is sandwiched all around by the two surfaces formed by the mounting groove 58 and the second mounting groove 59 of the base end side fixing part 52, so that the device body part 41 is stably held by these surfaces. Therefore, it is possible to suppress wobbling of the cutting device 40 due to the influence of cutting resistance and load during cutting processing into the test piece TP, and to realize stable cutting processing.

[0045] The suction mechanism 60 is a device for sucking and removing chips generated during cutting processing by the cutting device 40, and mainly comprises a suction device 61 (not shown), a suction passage 62 communicating with the suction device 61, and a suction nozzle 63 communicating with the suction passage 62.

[0046] The suction device 61 is a device for sucking chips such as the coating film and cutting chips of the base material of the test piece TP, and is arranged outside the casing 4 in this embodiment. For example, a commercial or household vacuum cleaner is preferably used as the suction device 61. The suction nozzle 63 is a component that arranges a chip suction port 64 at a position facing the cutting tool 42 (see FIG. 6), and in this embodiment, it is arranged on the lower surface of the tip side fixing part 51 of the tool holding part 50. This suction nozzle 63 has a cylindrical part 63a that surrounds the outer periphery near the tip of the cutting tool 42, and the annular opening formed on the outer periphery of the cutting tool 42 by this cylindrical part 63a is the suction port 64. By configuring the suction port 64 in an annular shape in this way, the suction port 64 is formed around the cutting tool 42, and the chips can be efficiently sucked. In addition, when forming the suction port 64, as shown in FIG. 6, the tip of the cutting tool 42 is configured to protrude from the lower end surface of the suction nozzle 63. This is to prevent the lower end face of the suction nozzle 63 from contacting and interfering with the surface of the test piece TP during the cutting process by the cutting tool 42. For example, when the cutting depth into the test piece TP is 2 mm, the protrusion amount L1 of the cutting tool 42 is set to a value (e.g., 3 mm) longer than the cutting depth.

[0047] Further, a pipe joint 65 is attached to the cylindrical portion 63a, one end of which penetrates the side wall of the cylindrical portion 63a. One end of a flexible suction tube 66 is attached to the other end of the pipe joint 65. The flexible suction tube 66 is made of a tube having flexibility that can accommodate the lifting and lowering operation of the tool unit 3 described later, and the other end is connected to one end of a suction pipe line 67. The suction pipe line 67 is a pipe for connecting the other end of the flexible suction tube 66 to a suction port (not shown) of the suction device 61, and as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, the other end is drawn out to the outside of the casing 4 and finally connected to the suction port of the suction device 61. That is, the suction device 61 and the suction nozzle 63 are connected to communicate with each other via the suction pipe line 67, the flexible suction tube 66, and the pipe joint 65, and these constitute a suction passage 62 for chips.

[0048] The tool unit 3 configured in this manner is provided with a mounting plate 35 on the back side of the connecting portion 53 of the tool holding part 50 (the surface opposite to the surface on which the tip end fixing part 51 and the base end fixing part 52 are provided) for supporting the tool unit 3 so that the tool unit 3 can be moved in the Z-axis direction (up and down direction), and is removably attached to the second stage 72 described later via this mounting plate 35.

[0049] Next, a structure for configuring the tool unit 3 to be movable in the Z-axis direction will be described. In the coating film cutting device 1 shown in this embodiment, the tool unit 3 is attached to a second stage 72 suspended via a load cell (not shown) from a first stage 71 that is arranged to be movable in the Z-axis direction on the device base 20, as shown in Figure 3.

[0050] The first stage 71 is attached to a Z-axis base plate 70 for Z-axis movement that is provided upright on the base plate 21. A pair of Z-axis rails 73 are arranged on the Z-axis base plate 70 in the Z-axis direction, and the first stage 71 is slidably mounted on the Z-axis rails 73. The Z-axis base plate 70 is provided with a Z-axis drive mechanism (not shown) for driving the first stage 71 in the Z-axis direction. The Z-axis drive mechanism includes a Z-axis rail and a Z-axis motor (not shown) for driving the first stage 71 in the Z-axis direction, and the first stage 71 is connected to the Z-axis motor, thereby driving the first stage 71 in the Z-axis direction. The Z-axis motor is connected to a control unit 100 described later, and the Z-axis position of the first stage 71, and therefore the tool unit 3, can be controlled through the control unit 100.

[0051] The load cell is a sensor that measures the load applied to the tool unit 3, and has one end connected to the first stage 71 and the other end connected to the second stage 72. As a result, the second stage 72 is suspended from the first stage 71 via the load cell.

[0052] When the tool unit 3 is attached to the second stage 72 suspended in this manner, the load cell is put into a tension state due to the weight of the tool unit 3, and the second stage 72 is lowered. Here, assuming that the weight of the tool unit 3 is 1 kg and the deflection of the load cell per 1 kg is 4 μm, when the first stage 71 is lowered in this state and the tip of the cutting tool 42 of the cutting device 40 held by the tool unit 3 is brought into contact with the test piece TP, the deflection of the load cell, which was in a tension state of 4 μm before the contact, gradually returns to its original state. If the return amount at this time is 4 μm or less, it means that a load of less than its own weight (1 kg) is being applied. When the first stage 71 is further lowered and a deflection in the compression direction is applied to the load cell, it means that a load of more than its own weight is being applied. All of these loads are set by the thrust of the Z-axis motor of the Z-axis drive mechanism. The load cell is connected to the control unit 100, and the control unit 100 is capable of measuring the load applied to the tool unit 3.

[0053] The second stage 72 is a portion on which the tool unit 3 is attached, and is made of a substantially plate-shaped member. In this embodiment, the second stage 72 is attached to a pair of guide rails (not shown) disposed in the Z-axis direction on the surface of the first stage 71, and is configured to be slidable in the Z-axis direction along the guide rails.

[0054] In this way, in the coating cutting device 1 shown in this embodiment, by moving the first stage 71 in the Z-axis direction, the tool unit 3 attached to the second stage 72 can be moved in the Z-axis direction, thereby making it possible to perform a predetermined cutting process on the test piece TP held in the test piece holder 2 using the cutting tool 42 of the cutting device 40 held by the tool unit 3.

[0055] The control unit 100 is a control device that controls the Y-axis drive mechanism 25 (Y-axis motor), the X-axis drive mechanism 26 (X-axis motor 33), the θ-axis drive mechanism 27 (θ-axis motor), the Z-axis drive mechanism (Z-axis motor), etc., and in this embodiment, it is configured with a microcomputer (not shown) equipped with a control program that performs drive control of each of these drive mechanisms and display control of the display unit 90, etc., and is housed in the electrical equipment area EA of the apparatus base 20. Particularly in this embodiment, the control unit 100 is configured to execute a cutting process into the coating film, which will be described later, through drive control of each of these drive mechanisms.

[0056] In addition, the reference numeral 90 in the figure indicates a display unit of the coating film cutting device 1. In this embodiment, the display unit 90 is configured, for example, as a touch panel that also serves as an operation unit 91. Also, the reference numeral 91 in the figure indicates an operation unit configured with physical switches other than a touch panel. A user of the coating film cutting device 1 can input various instructions to the control unit 100 by operating the physical switches or touch panel while checking the display on the display unit 90.

[0057] Next, the coating film cutting process of the test piece TP by the coating film cutting device 1 will be described. The coating process is generally carried out in the following manner.

[0058] (1) Mounting the test specimen TP on the test specimen holder 2 As a preliminary preparation for the coating film cutting process, the test piece TP having the coating film formed on its surface is attached to the test piece holder 2. As described above, this attachment is performed by sandwiching and holding the test piece TP between the lifting stage 6 and the holding frame 7.

[0059] (2) Attaching the cutting device 40 to the tool unit 3 In parallel with the mounting of the test piece TP to the test piece holder 2, the cutting device 40 is mounted to the tool unit 3. This mounting is performed by removing the pressing piece 56 of the base end fixing part 52. Specifically, with the pressing piece 56 removed, the tip of the cutting device 40 is inserted into the support hole 54 of the tip end fixing part 51 to position the tip side, while fitting the device body 41 of the cutting device 40 into the mounting groove 58 of the base end fixing part 52, and then the pressing piece 56 is mounted on top and fixed with screws, thereby completing the mounting of the cutting device 40. Note that this operation can be omitted by using the tool unit 3 to which the cutting device 40 is previously mounted.

[0060] (3) Cutting After the mounting of the cutting device 40 is completed, the cutting process for the test piece TP is then performed. The cutting process for the test piece TP may be performed manually by the user operating each of the Y-axis drive mechanism 25, the X-axis drive mechanism 26, the θ-axis drive mechanism 27, and the Z-axis drive mechanism via the operation unit 91, but in this embodiment, all or some of the steps of the cutting process are automatically performed by automatic control by the control unit 100. That is, the user inputs data required for automatic control of the cutting process for the test piece TP, and the control unit 100 drives and controls each of the Y-axis drive mechanism 25, the X-axis drive mechanism 26, the θ-axis drive mechanism 27, and the Z-axis drive mechanism based on the input data to automatically perform the cutting process. In this embodiment, the cutting device 40 and the suction device 61 are not linked to the control unit 100, so these devices are manually operated by the user.

[0061] An example of the cutting process performed by the control unit 100 will now be described. A: Cutting with load specified (I) In this cutting process, the control unit 100 first drives the Z-axis drive mechanism to lower the cutting tool 42. At this time, the cutting device 40 and the suction device 61 are in a stopped state. (II) During the descent of the cutting tool 42, the control unit 100 monitors the load detected by the load cell, and when the detected load reaches a predetermined load (load set by the user), stops the descent of the cutting tool 42. At this timing, the user manually operates the cutting device 40 and the suction device 61. (III) After stopping the descent of cutting tool 42, control unit 100 maintains the stopped state of the Z-axis drive mechanism (the position of first stage 71 in the Z-axis direction) and appropriately drives and controls Y-axis drive mechanism 25, X-axis drive mechanism 26 and θ-axis drive mechanism 27 based on previously input data, causing cutting tool 42 to make a cut into test piece TP.

[0062] At this time, by driving the Y-axis drive mechanism 25 or the X-axis drive mechanism 26, the test piece TP can be cut in the Y-axis direction or the X-axis direction. Furthermore, by combining this with the lifting and lowering operation of the tool unit 3 by the Z-axis drive mechanism, multiple rows of cuts can be made into the test piece TP. Furthermore, by combining this with the rotation of the test piece holder 2 by the θ-axis drive mechanism 27, orthogonal cuts can be made into the test piece TP. In addition, by controlling the Y-axis drive mechanism 25 and the X-axis drive mechanism 26, for example, the cutting speed can be kept constant.

[0063] B: Cutting process with specified cutting depth (I) In this cutting process, the control unit 100 first drives the Z-axis drive mechanism to lower the cutting tool 42. At this time, the cutting device 40 and the suction device 61 are in a stopped state. (II) During the descent of the cutting tool 42, the control unit 100 monitors the load detected by the load cell, and when the detected load reaches a predetermined load (load set by the user), it stops the descent of the cutting tool 42 at that point and stores the position in the Z-axis direction at this point as the origin for measuring the cutting depth. At this timing, the user manually operates the cutting device 40 and the suction device 61. (III) The control unit 100 drives the Z-axis drive mechanism until a predetermined cutting depth (a cutting depth set by the user) is reached using the origin for cutting depth measurement as a reference, and stops the Z-axis drive mechanism when the predetermined cutting depth is reached. Then, while maintaining this stopped state (the position of the first stage 71 in the Z-axis direction), the control unit 100 appropriately drives and controls the Y-axis drive mechanism 25, the X-axis drive mechanism 26, and the θ-axis drive mechanism 27 based on previously input data, and cuts the test piece TP with the cutting tool 42.

[0064] In the coating cutting device 1 according to this embodiment, chips generated during the cutting process are sucked up by the suction device 61 and discharged / removed outside the device, and chips that fall from the test piece holder 2 are received by the chip prevention tray 17, thereby effectively preventing the Y-axis drive mechanism 25, X-axis drive mechanism 26, θ-axis drive mechanism 27, etc. from malfunctioning due to chips that have fallen.

[0065] In this way, the coating film cutting device 1 according to the present invention can execute a cutting process specifying the load and cutting depth acting on the test piece TP (coating film), so that a uniform cut can be made in the coating film with high reproducibility and stability. Therefore, by using the coating film cutting device 1 according to the present invention, a test for evaluating the mechanical properties of the coating film can be performed accurately and without variation.

[0066] Furthermore, when cutting into the test piece TP, an end mill or the like can be selected as the cutting tool 42 attached to the cutting device 40 of the tool unit 3, so that a cut that exposes a large amount of the base material can be formed in the coating of the test piece TP. As a result, the period until deterioration of the base material or the like appears in a test regarding the durability of the coating can be shortened, and the time required for the test can be shortened.

[0067] It should be noted that the above-described embodiments are merely preferred embodiments of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to these, and various design modifications are possible within the scope of the present invention.

[0068] For example, in the above-described embodiment, the lifting stage 6 of the test specimen holder 2 is manually raised and lowered, but it is also possible to configure the lifting stage 6 to be raised and lowered electrically, for example by arranging an electric motor on the test specimen holder 2.

[0069] In addition, in the above-described embodiment, an electric cutting device powered by an external power source is used as the cutting device 40, but it is also possible to use a battery-powered cutting device powered by an internal power source, or it is also possible to use a cutting device that uses a power source other than electricity, such as an air motor that uses compressed air.

[0070] In the above-described embodiment, the tool holding unit 50 holds the cutting device 40 using two fixing parts, the tip side fixing part 51 and the base side fixing part 52, but the cutting device 40 may be held using a single fixing part or three or more fixing parts. Furthermore, each fixing part constituting the tool holding unit 50 may have a structure capable of detachably holding the cutting device 40, and is not limited to the structure shown in the above-described embodiment and may be appropriately modified in design.

[0071] In the above embodiment, the suction device 61 of the suction mechanism 60 is disposed outside the casing 4, but the suction device 61 may be housed inside the casing 4. The suction port 64 of the suction nozzle 63 may have any shape and arrangement as long as it is capable of suctioning chips generated by the cutting process. [Explanation of symbols]

[0072] 1 Coating film cutting device 2 Specimen holder 3 Tool Unit 4 Casing 6. Lifting Stage 7 Presser frame 10 Lifting mechanism 17 Tray to prevent chips from falling 20 Equipment base 21 Base plate 25 Y-axis drive mechanism 26 X-axis drive mechanism 27 θ-axis drive mechanism 29 XY Stage 32 1st θ stage 34 2nd θ stage 40 Cutting equipment 41 Device main body 42 Cutting tools 44 Chucking mechanism 50 Tool holding part 51 Tip side fixing part 52 Proximal fixation part 53 Connecting part 54 Support hole 60 Suction mechanism 61 Suction device 62 Suction passage 63 Suction nozzle 64 Intake port 71 1st Stage 72 Second Stage 90 Display section 91 Operation section 100 Control section TP test specimen

Claims

1. An apparatus for performing a predetermined cutting process on a test piece having a coating film formed on its surface, A test piece holder for holding the test piece; a tool unit including a tool for performing a predetermined cutting process on the test piece held by the test piece holder, The test piece holder is provided on an apparatus base so as to be movable in an X-axis direction, a Y-axis direction, and a θ-axis direction; The tool unit has a handheld cutting device having a power source and a tool holder that detachably holds the cutting device, and the tool holder is attached to a second stage that is suspended via a load cell from a first stage that is provided on the device base so as to be movable in the Z-axis direction. A coating film cutting device characterized by the above.

2. The cutting device has a linear device body and a cutting tool detachably attached to a tip of the device body, The tool holder has a structure for holding the cutting device in an upright position along the Z-axis direction. The coating film cutting device according to claim 1 .

3. The tool holder has a tip-side fixing part that fixes the tip side of the cutting device, and a base-side fixing part that is located on the base-side side of the tip-side fixing part and fixes a device body part of the cutting device. The coating film cutting device according to claim 2 .

4. The tip-side fixing portion has a support hole penetrating in the Z-axis direction, and has a structure in which the tip side of the cutting device is inserted and supported by the support hole.

4. The coating film cutting device according to claim 3.

5. The cutting device is an electric micro grinder.

5. The coating film cutting device according to claim 4.

6. The tool unit has a suction port of a suction mechanism for sucking chips generated during cutting at a position facing the cutting tool. The coating film cutting device according to claim 2 .

7. The suction mechanism includes a suction passage communicating with a suction device and a suction nozzle communicating with the suction passage, The suction nozzle has a cylindrical portion surrounding the outer periphery of the cutting tool near the tip, and an annular opening formed on the outer periphery of the cutting tool by the cylindrical portion serves as the suction port. The coating film cutting device according to claim 6 .

8. The test piece holder includes a lift stage that can be raised and lowered in the Z-axis direction, a press frame that cooperates with the lift stage to clamp and hold the periphery of the test piece, and a chip drop prevention tray that catches chips that fall outside the press frame. The coating film cutting device according to claim 1 .

9. The device base includes an X-axis drive mechanism for driving the test piece holder in the X-axis direction, a Y-axis drive mechanism for driving the test piece holder in the Y-axis direction, a θ-axis drive mechanism for rotating the test piece holder around the θ-axis, a Z-axis drive mechanism for driving the first stage in the Z-axis direction, and a control means for controlling the drive of each of these drive mechanisms.

9. The coating film cutting device according to claim 1,

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