Device for transporting wire from a wire processing machine to a discharge point

Abstract

The invention relates to an apparatus for transporting a wire (100) from an automatic wire processing machine (200) to a discharge point (300), the apparatus comprising an automatic wire processing machine (200) and a pneumatic conveying system (1), a wire transport interface (2) between the automatic wire processing machine (200) and the pneumatic conveying system (1) comprising a wire receiving unit (3) arranged in an access area of ​​the automatic wire processing machine (200) and a wire outlet (4) opening into at least one conveying line (5) of the pneumatic conveying system (1) guided between the wire transport interface (2) and the discharge point (300).

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an apparatus for transporting wire processing machines to a discharge point for manual, partially automated or fully automated wiring in the construction of switchgear and control devices. Such an apparatus can be used in particular in cases where all process steps need to be performed on-site, preferably substantially simultaneously, in order to achieve a maximum vertical manufacturing range from wire production to the wiring of switchgear and / or control systems. [Background technology]

[0002] In the construction of switchgear and control systems, the wiring process is one of the central and most time-consuming tasks and is still often carried out entirely manually. Not only is the work process very complex, but it also requires the complete elimination of errors, which places great demands on those involved in the construction of switchgear and control systems.

[0003] To optimize the wiring process, various technical aids with different levels of support are known. These range from hand tools and / or semi-automatic machines for wire assembly to fully automatic systems that completely pre-assemble the individual wires, for example by cutting to length, stripping the insulation, applying and crimping the ferrules on the wire ends, and then make them available as loose individual wires, as a wire chain of continuously interconnected pre-assembled individual wires, or in the form of a wire magazine with a continuous line of individual wires.

[0004] However, no technical solution is known so far for an interface to pick up and handle pre-assembled wires with a robot for an automated wiring process. In particular, separating pre-made wires provided as wire bundles or wire rows for handling with a robot has proven to be particularly complex, which is linked in particular to the fact that wires are flexible components. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The object of the invention is therefore to propose an apparatus of the above mentioned type, which allows the receipt and handling of premade wires by a discharge point for the partially or fully automated wiring of switchgear or control systems. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] This object is solved by a device having the features of claim 1. The dependent claims each relate to advantageous embodiments of the invention.

[0007] Thus, the apparatus is defined to comprise an automatic wire processing machine and a pneumatic conveying system, wherein a wire transport interface between the automatic wire processing machine and the pneumatic conveying system comprises a wire receiving portion arranged in an access area of ​​the automatic wire processing machine and further comprises a wire outlet opening into at least one conveying line of the pneumatic conveying system, the at least one conveying line being guided between the wire transport interface and the discharge point. Effect of the Invention

[0008] With the device according to the invention, instead of premade wire bundles consisting of a large number of premade individual wires which have to be separated again for the automatic wiring, each premade wire to be wired can be produced immediately before wiring by an automatic wire processing machine and fed as an individual wire via a pneumatic conveying system to a discharge point, for example to an articulated arm robot, and the premade wire to be wired can be produced immediately before wiring using an automatic wire fabricating machine and fed as a single wire via a pneumatic conveying system to a discharge point, for example to an articulated arm robot, whereby separation of wire bundles or wire rows and, if necessary, identification of the individual wires of the bundle or row are omitted.

[0009] As the pre-made wire passes through the conveyor line, it is usually a flexible component, which is fed to the pick-up station in a directed manner, which ensures that the wire with the wire end treatment, e.g., wire end sleeve, reaches the pick-up station, e.g., an end effector of an articulated arm robot, first, thereby enabling the robot to reliably grip the wire at the wire end treatment, e.g., wire end sleeve.

[0010] If the discharge point has an articulated-arm robot, the conveying line can open directly into the end effector of the articulated-arm robot. The articulated-arm robot can have a conventional wire-passing brake consisting of two counter-rotating rollers, belts or straps forming a nip, with the aid of which the individual wires fed to the end effector can be fed at a defined feed rate, for example to the gripper of the end effector at a feed rate resulting from the rotation speed of the rollers, belts or straps. Instead of a separate wire-passing brake, a pair of rollers, belts or straps provided for wire conveyance at the end effector can be used to brake the wire rushing along the conveying line to a defined feed rate. A suitable end effector is known from DE 10 2019 106 710 A1.

[0011] The pick-up station may be a workstation for semi-automatic wiring, as described in WO 2019 / 211 460 A1. DE 10 2018 133 319 A1 describes a pick-up station for fully automatic wiring by means of an articulated arm robot.

[0012] The wire transport interface may comprise an overpressure chamber pressurised by a pressure source having a fluid pressure, e.g. air pressure, for transporting the premade wire introduced into the wire transport interface via the wire receiving section through the conveying line in the direction of the wire output to the discharge point. The discharge point may comprise a wire brake of the above mentioned type, e.g. with two counter-rotating rollers, a belt or a belt forming a nip, which just fits the diameter of the wire. Such wire passing brakes are known from the prior art. A similar wire passing brake is also described in EP 0654436 A1.

[0013] In one embodiment, the discharge point comprises a robot, such as an articulated robot with a multifunctional end effector, which may comprise a supply hose for the wire, for example a hose made of polytetrafluoroethylene. The supply tube may be a conveying line that runs to the wire transport interface. In this way, a substantially closed system can be built up that allows the application of compressed air and allows the pre-made wire, fed into the system via the wire transport interface, to be conveyed at high speed through the conveying line to the end effector of the robot, for example to the gripper of the end effector. To feed the wire to the gripper, conveying rollers, rolls or belts may be provided immediately upstream of the gripper. These conveying rollers may be used, for example, to slow down the pre-made wire, fed at high speed through the conveying line, to a speed suitable for acceptance by the gripper of the end effector, according to the principle of the wire passing brake described above. For example, the cross-sectional area of ​​the pre-made wire may be between 0.5 and 6 mm. 2 The wires can be provided with or without wire end treatments (partially drawn, wire end sleeves, etc.).

[0014] Due to the relatively high cycle speed of the wire processing machines of the prior art, the device can have several discharge points to which pre-harnessed wire is fed from the same wire processing machine. A wire switch can be used to allow the pre-made wire to be fed individually to the discharge points. The wire switch can be part of the wire transport interface or can be integrated in at least one conveying line downstream of the wire feed direction of the wire transport interface. In an embodiment, in the best case, only a single conveying line can be provided in the wire feed direction to the switch, or two conveying lines can be provided for different wire cross-sectional area ranges, while in the feed direction of the switch, any number of conveying lines can be provided downstream of the number of discharge points to be fed, each conveying line feeding one of several discharge points, for example a robot and / or a manual workstation. Considering the cycle rates that can be achieved with an automatic wire processing machine compared to the cycle rates of automatic, semi-automatic or manual wiring, the automatic wire processing machine can be used for about 10 or more pick-up stations, whereby the switch can have a corresponding number of pick-up conveying lines at the output side.

[0015] The wire transport interface may have an overpressure chamber leading to the conveying line and to the wire receiving unit. The fluid transition between the overpressure chamber and the wire receiving unit can be opened or closed by an adjustable closure member of the wire transport interface. When the closure member is open, a premade wire provided by an automatic wire making machine can be introduced through the wire receiving unit to the overpressure chamber, for which purpose, for example, suitable conveying means for the wire, for example a pair of counter-rotating conveying rollers, can be provided upstream of or within the overpressure chamber.

[0016] After the premade wire has passed through the wire inlet over its entire length, i.e. after its rear end in the feed direction has reached the overpressure chamber, the adjustable closure member can fluidically seal the overpressure chamber against the wire inlet. The overpressure chamber can be permanently open against the wire outlet. The overpressure chamber can be connected to an overpressure source, such as a compressor. Via a valve, a fluid, e.g. air, can be supplied from the overpressure source into the overpressure chamber through a meter at a certain pressure and / or volumetric flow rate, so that the fluid leaves the overpressure chamber through a conveying line and conveys the wire through the conveying line in the direction of the discharge point by winding or pushing the premade wire arranged in the overpressure chamber.

[0017] The adjustable closure member may comprise a slide, preferably a flat slide, adjustable by a linear actuator, e.g. a pneumatic piston, between an open position in which the fluid transition is open and a closed position in which the fluid transition is closed.

[0018] The slide may have a through hole and an annular sealing element spaced therefrom, and in the open position of the adjustable closure member, the through hole connects the wire inlet channel of the wire receiver to the overpressure chamber, and in the closed position, the annular sealing element sealingly surrounds the wire inlet channel.

[0019] The closure member may have a control flap that is adjustable between an open position in which it opens the wire entry opening of the wire receiving unit and a closed position in which the control flap is positioned outside the wire transport interface to close the wire entry opening.

[0020] The control flap is adjustable about a pivot axis between an open position and a closed position and can be driven by a linear drive, for example by a pneumatic piston. A pneumatic lever can drive a toggle mechanism, which completely removes the control flap from the line of the wire inlet opening in the open position, so that the wire inlet opening is freely accessible for feeding the wire, for example by using a transfer tube. The transfer tube can be aligned with the wire inlet opening by a few millimeters, somewhat less than 10 mm, and can be positioned in front of the wire inlet opening in order to feed the pre-made wire produced on an automatic wire processing machine to the wire inlet opening in a directed manner. The transfer tube can in particular be or have a straight tube section, so that the pre-made wire, which can be a flexible component, leaves the transfer tube as a substantially straight wire and also retains this shape. This is because after exiting the transport tube, the wire only needs to pass a few millimeters, preferably less than 10 millimeters, before entering the wire entry opening where it is further guided by the geometry of the wire entry opening or the wire entry channel adjacent to the wire entry opening, thereby remaining as an essentially straight conductor.

[0021] The adjustable closure member may have a closure piston rotatable about its longitudinal axis with a through hole extending perpendicular to the longitudinal axis, and in an open position of the adjustable closure member connects the wire inlet channel of the wire intake to the overpressure chamber to establish fluid transfer, and in a rotated closed position relative thereto closes the wire inlet channel.

[0022] The wire receiving unit may have a wire transport means upstream of its wire inlet opening, by which the wire pre-made by the automatic wire making machine is fed to the wire inlet opening of the wire receiving unit. The wire transport means may include, for example, a pair of counter-rotating rollers or a belt. A nip may be formed between the rollers or rims, through which the wire is transported and fed to the wire inlet opening of the wire transport interface when the pair of counter-rotating rollers or belts is outside the overpressure chamber, or is drawn out of the wire inlet opening and fed to a channel opening into the wire outlet when the pair of counter-rotating rollers or belts is located inside the overpressure chamber.

[0023] The nip, such as a roll nip, can have an adjustable width, and in the transport position of the roll or belt, the width of the nip corresponds substantially to the diameter of the transported wire. In the non-use position of the roll or belt, the width of the nip may be equal to or greater than the dimension of the wire inlet opening, in order to allow at least unobstructed entry of the wire into the access area of ​​the roll or belt, and, if necessary, to allow movement, in particular pivoting, of an adjustable closure member, for example a control flap, between the open and closed positions, so that the control flap moves between the rollers or belt of the wire transport means in the non-operating position when it is pivoted out of alignment with the wire inlet opening in the open position, so that when it is pivoted out of the closed position into the open position, it moves between the rollers or belt of the wire transport means in the non-operating position.

[0024] A piston may be disposed in front of the wire entry opening outside the wire transport interface which is linearly adjustable along the longitudinal axis and in a retracted position is fully retracted from the wire entry opening and in an extended position passes through the wire entry opening into the wire transport interface.

[0025] In the extended position, the piston, linearly adjustable along the longitudinal axis, can penetrate the wire-transport interface through the wire inlet opening at least to the extent that its free end passes through the adjustable closure member, preferably through a through-hole in a linearly adjustable slide or through a through-hole in a closure piston rotatable about the longitudinal axis, when the adjustable closure member opens the fluid transition. In particular, the linearly adjustable plunger can be used to push a pre-made wire introduced into the wire-transport interface via the wire inlet port beyond the effective range of the adjustable closure member into the over-pressure chamber, thereby fluidly isolating the over-pressure chamber for transporting the wire from the over-pressure chamber to a transport line on the opposite side of the wire-receiving unit.

[0026] In addition to the axial adjustability, the linearly adjustable piston may have further adjustability in which the linearly adjustable piston is positioned in a swing-in position with its longitudinal axis perpendicular to and aligned with the wire entry opening. In the swing-out position, the linearly adjustable piston may be positioned completely out of line with the wire entry opening, allowing unhindered feeding of pre-made wire, for example, using the transfer tube described above.

[0027] The automatic wire processing machine may include a conveyor head from which the pre-harnessed wire produced by the automatic wire processing machine is fed into a straight transfer tube that may be aligned with the wire entry opening through which the wire may be fed as aligned wire to a wire transport means.

[0028] The wire transport interface can include a presence sensor configured to detect the presence of a wire in the wire transport interface or the exit of a wire from the wire transport interface.

[0029] To allow the automatic wire processing machine to accommodate multiple discharge points, the pneumatic conveying system can be equipped with a wire diverter. The wire switch has one wire inlet and multiple wire outlets. The pre-ended wire may be fed from the wire transport interface to the wire inlet. The wire outputs may each be connected to one of the pick-up stations via a conveying line. The wire switch can have an actuator that feeds the pre-made wire fed through the wire inlet to one of the conveying lines that is connected to a target discharge point among the pre-made wire discharge points. By allowing the automatic wire processing machine to accommodate multiple discharge points using the wire switch, the wire switch can be used to increase the utilization rate of the automatic wire processing machine, which is a substantial investment. Research has shown that the cycle rate of an automatic wire processing machine is about 10 times higher than that of manual, semi-automatic or automatic wiring, and therefore a typical automatic wire processing machine using the above-mentioned wire diverter with pre-assembled wires can accommodate about 10 discharge systems. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0030] Further details of the invention will now be described with reference to the following figures, which show: [Figure 1] 1 shows a schematic diagram of an exemplary embodiment of an arrangement according to the invention; [Diagram 2] 1 is a cross-sectional view of an exemplary embodiment of a wire transport interface. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a slide of the closure member of the wire transport interface according to FIG. 2; [Figure 4] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the wire transport interface according to FIG. 2; [Diagram 5] FIG. 13 is a side view of another exemplary embodiment of a wire transport interface. [Figure 6] FIG. 13 is a top view of another exemplary embodiment of a wire transport interface with the transport means in an operative position. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is an embodiment and view according to FIG. 6 with the transport means in the inoperative position. [Figure 8] 13 is a perspective view of a further embodiment of a wire transport interface according to the present invention; FIG. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the closure piston of the embodiment according to FIG. [Figure 10] 13 is a cross-sectional view of another embodiment of a wire transport interface. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the closure piston of the embodiment according to FIG. [Figure 12] 13 is a perspective view of a further embodiment of a wire transport interface. FIG. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view of the embodiment according to FIG. 12, in which the linearly adjustable piston is in a retracted position. [Figure 14] FIG. 13 is an embodiment and view according to FIG. 12 in which the linearly adjustable piston is placed in the extended position. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0031] FIG. 1 shows a schematic diagram of an exemplary embodiment of the device according to the invention for transporting wire from an automatic wire processing machine 200 to a discharge point 300. In particular, the automatic wire processing machine 200 corresponds to two different discharge points 300, one discharge point for robot-assisted wiring of a control or switchgear system and one workstation for manual or partially automated wiring. The automatic wire processing machine 200 is set up and controlled to provide the premade wire required for the wiring step just in time to the two pick-up points 300 according to a predefined cycle rate and parts list. After the automatic wire processing machine 200 generates the premade wire 100, it can be fed from the automatic wire processing machine 200 to the pneumatic conveying system 1 using a wire transfer interface. After the premade wire 100 is transferred to the pneumatic conveying system 1 via the wire transfer interface 2, the wire passes through a wire diverter 27, which introduces the wire into the conveying line 5 associated to the relevant receiving point depending on the intended receiving point. The conveying line may be a hose having a friction-reducing coating at least on the inner wall. Alternatively, the hose may be made of a strong material with a low coefficient of friction. For example, the hose may have a coating of or be made of polytetrafluoroethylene. The hose may be made of multiple sections and hose fittings may be used to connect the sections of the hose together to form the conveying line 5.

[0032] When the wire 100 reaches its intended discharge point 300 along the conveying line 5, it can be braked there by means of a wire brake and made available for manual discharge at the discharge point 300 designed as a workstation or for feeding the wire 100 to an end effector at a robot-assisted discharge point 300. Suitable wire-passing brakes are described, for example, in EP 0654436 A1. In the case of articulated arm robots, a pair of rollers or rolls, which are necessarily present for the wire feeding in the end effector, can be used as wire-passing brakes, so that the rollers or rolls have a double function. Suitable end effectors are described in DE 10 2019 106 710 A1.

[0033] Because the automatic wire processing machine 200 can produce wire 100 to be routed much faster than it can be further processed at the discharge points 300, i.e., because the automatic wire processing machine 200 has a much higher cycle rate than the discharge points 300, the automatic wire processing machine 200 can accommodate a large number of discharge points 300, particularly more than the two shown. Experiments have shown that at least about ten discharge points 300 can be handled by an automatic wire processing machine 200 typical of the prior art.

[0034] In particular, a buffer store for preassembled wires is not necessarily required, since the arrangement according to the invention allows the wires to be manufactured just in time and made available at the receiving point. However, in order to increase the utilization rate of the automatic wire processing machine 200, a buffer store (not shown) for harnessed wires can be provided. This can be arranged, for example, in the conveying line 5 between the wire transport interface 2 and the discharge point 300. Furthermore, it is no longer necessary to prepare an arrangement of wires, for example in the form of wire bundles, which would significantly increase the processing effort compared to the device according to the invention, since the wires would have to be separated and identified before wiring.

[0035] 2 to 4 show an exemplary embodiment of a wire transport interface 2 according to the invention. The wire transport interface 2 comprises a wire receiving unit 3 and a wire exit unit 4. Pre-assembled wires are fed from an automatic wire assembly machine via the wire receiving unit 3 to the wire transport interface 2. To ensure a reliable and directional wire feed, especially for wires with small conductor cross-sections and therefore large bending slack, a transport tube 25 can be provided, which is aligned with a point of the wire receiving unit so that the pre-made wire only has to traverse a few millimeters after leaving the automatic wire processing machine to reach the opening 3.

[0036] After the wire has entered the wire transport interface 2 through the wire receiving unit 3, it passes through a fluid transition 7, in which a closure member 8 is arranged. The closure member 8 is arranged to selectively fluidically isolate or release the wire receiving unit 3 with respect to the overpressure chamber 6 of the wire transport interface 2. To introduce the wire into the wire transport interface 2, preferably into the overpressure chamber 6, the wire can pass through the through hole 11 of the flat slide 9 in the open position of the closure member 8. After the wire has completely passed through the slide 9, in particular the through hole 11, i.e. in particular after it has also reached the overpressure chamber 6 with the wire end at its rear in the feed direction, the closure member 8 can be put into a closed position. For this purpose, the slide 9 can be moved linearly, i.e. in the embodiment according to Figs. 1 to 3, it can be pushed further into the housing of the wire transport interface 2 until the annular sealing element 12, arranged on the closed side of the slide 9 facing the overpressure chamber 6, fluidically seals the fluid transition 7 between the overpressure chamber 6 and the wire inlet channel 13. The slide 9 can be adjusted between open and closed positions by a linear actuator 10, for example a pneumatic piston.

[0037] After the pre-made wire has arrived at the wire transport interface 2 and the closure member 8 has been placed in the closed position, a fluid pressure, in particular air pressure, can be applied to the over-pressure chamber 6 via the pressure port 31. The compressed air entering the wire transport interface 2 via the pressure port 31 can only leave the wire transport interface 2 via the wire outlet 4, where the compressed air entrains or pushes the wire placed in the over-pressure chamber 6 and introduces it into a conveying line 5, for example a polytetrafluoroethylene hose, connected to the wire outlet 4.

[0038] 5 shows an alternative embodiment of the wire transfer interface 2 according to the invention, in which, deviating from the embodiment according to FIGS. 3 to 4, the closure member 8 is designed as a control flap 14 which pivots via a linear drive 17 and a toggle lever drive 24 and is pivotable about a pivot axis 16. In the open position shown in FIG. 5, the control flap 14 is pivoted completely out of alignment with the front wire inlet opening 15 of the wire receiving unit 3, so that the wire can enter the wire transfer interface 2 unhindered via the wire inlet opening 15, for which purpose the transfer tube 25 can be brought within a few millimeters of the wire inlet opening 15, for example, as explained with reference to FIG. 2. After at least the majority of the wire has arrived at the wire transfer interface 2 and at most still protrudes from the wire receiving part 3 with its rear end above the wire inlet opening 15, the control flap 14 can be pivoted from the open position shown in FIG. 5 to a closed position in which the control flap 14 abuts against the outside of the wire transfer interface 2 and closes the wire inlet opening 15. In the course of pivoting the control flap 14 to the above-mentioned closed position, the end of the wire still protruding beyond the wire inlet opening 15 can also be pushed completely into the wire transport interface 2. On its side facing the wire inlet opening 15, the control flap 14 has a sealing element, for example an annular sealing element, which in the closed position surrounds the wire inlet opening 15, so that the wire receiving unit 3 and consequently the overpressure chamber fluidly connected thereto is fluidically closed inside the wire transport interface 2 with respect to the wire receiving unit 3, and the overpressure introduced in the overpressure chamber (compare Fig. 3 to Fig. 4) can only be counteracted via the wire outlet 4, thus resulting in a fluid flow exiting the wire transport interface 2 via the wire outlet 4, in the process entraining or pushing the premade wire received in the wire transport interface 2 in the manner already described and introducing it into the conveying line 5 of the pneumatic conveying system connected to the wire outlet 4.

[0039] In an extension of the embodiment according to Fig. 5, the embodiments according to Fig. 6 and Fig. 7 comprise wire conveying means 19 consisting of two rollers 20 driven in opposite directions and having an adjustable roller nip 21 between them. In particular, the rollers 20 can assume a conveying position according to Fig. 6 and a non-operating position according to Fig. 7. In the conveying position according to Fig. 6, the roller nip 21 only has a width which can substantially correspond to the width of the wire to be conveyed. In the non-operating position shown in Fig. 7, the roller nip 21 has a sufficient width to allow the control flap 14 (compare Fig. 5) to be able to pivot between the open and closed positions between the rollers 20 without interference.

[0040] In the embodiment according to Fig. 8 to Fig. 9, which deviates from the embodiment according to Fig. 2 to Fig. 4, the closure member 8 is designed as a closure piston 18 rotatable in a bush, has a through hole 11 perpendicular to the longitudinal axis and has sealing elements 12 respectively above and below the through hole 11 in order to seal the closure piston 18 or the hole 11 against the bush. In the open position, the through hole 11 is aligned with the wire-receiving unit 3 or the wire inlet channel 13 (compare Fig. 2), so that the wire can be inserted unhindered through the closure piston 18 into the overpressure chamber of the wire-transport interface 2. After the wire has completely passed through the closure piston, i.e. also with its rear end in the feed direction, in particular after it has completely entered the overpressure chamber through the through hole 11, the closure piston 18 can be rotated, for example by 90°, to the closed position, whereby the overpressure chamber is sealed with respect to the wire-receiving unit 3.

[0041] In the embodiment according to figures 10 and 11, the wire conveying means 19 with two counter-rotating rollers 20 is arranged inside the over-pressure chamber 6. A closure member, in particular a closing piston 18, is arranged in the channel section connecting the over-pressure chamber 6 with the wire-receiving unit 3. The closing piston 18 can be adjusted in the manner already described with reference to figures 8 and 9 between an open position and a closed position in order to achieve, on the one hand, the introduction of the wire into the over-pressure chamber 6 and, on the other hand, a fluid seal of the wire-receiving unit 3 with respect to the over-pressure chamber 6. Compared to the embodiment shown in the previous figures, the embodiment according to figures 11 and 12 has the advantage that, due to the arrangement of the wire conveying means 19 inside the over-pressure chamber 6, the wire introduced via the wire-receiving unit 3 can be completely drawn into the over-pressure chamber 6 without the need for further technical measures, in particular until the wire end lying backward in the feed direction has also completely passed through the closure member, in particular the closing piston 18, so that the closing piston 18 can be adjusted unhindered between the open and closed positions.

[0042] The embodiment shown in figures 12 to 14 combines many of the features described with reference to the previous figures, and furthermore the control flap 14 is provided with a piston 23 linearly adjustable along the longitudinal direction, which, when the control flap 14 is in the closed position, is fully retracted from the wire inlet opening 15 in the retracted position and passes through the wire inlet opening 15 into the wire transport interface 2 in the extended position. This allows, for example, a wire previously inserted by a transport tube 25 (compare figure 2) to be pushed by the piston 23 into the overpressure chamber 6 to such an extent that the end of the wire lying backward in the feed direction also passes completely through the closing piston 18 of the closing member, which can therefore be rotated from the open position to the closed position by a rotation of 90° about its longitudinal axis without hindrance and without risking destruction of the wire, in order to fluidically seal the overpressure chamber 6 with respect to the wire inlet 3. In this embodiment, unlike the embodiment according to figure 5, the control flap 14 therefore does not have a sealing function.

[0043] The features of the invention disclosed in the foregoing description, in the drawings and in the claims may be essential both individually and in any combination for realizing the invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0044] 1 Pneumatic conveying system 2-Wire Transfer Interface 3 Wire Receiving Unit 4 Wire Exit 5. Conveyor Line 6 Overpressure Chamber 7 Transition 8 Closure 9 Slides 10 Linear Actuator 11 Through hole 12 Sealing elements 13 Wire Entry Channel 14 Control Flaps 15 Wire Entry Opening 16 Swivel Axis 17 Linear Drive 18 Closed piston 19 Wire transport means 20. Laura 21 Roller Nip 22 Channels 23 Piston 24 Toggle lever drive device 25 Transfer tube 26 Presence Sensor 27 Wire Switch 28 Wire inlet 29 Wire Exit 30 Control section 31 Pressure port

Claims

1. An apparatus for transporting a wire (100) from an automatic wire processing machine (200) to a discharge point (300), comprising an automatic wire processing machine (200) and a pneumatic transport system (1), a wire transport interface (2) between the automatic wire processing machine (200) and the pneumatic transport system (1) comprising a wire receiving unit (3) arranged in an access area of ​​the automatic wire processing machine (200) and a wire outlet (4) opening into at least one transport line (5) of the pneumatic transport system (1) guided between the wire transport interface (2) and the discharge point (300), the wire transport interface (2) being arranged in a transport area of ​​the automatic wire processing machine (200) and a pneumatic transport system (1) having a wire receiving unit (3) arranged in an access area of ​​the automatic wire processing machine (200) and a wire outlet (4) opening into at least one transport line (5) of the pneumatic transport system (1) guided between the wire transport interface (2) and the discharge point (300), 1. A device comprising an overpressure chamber (6) opening into a feed line (5) and into a wire receiving unit (3), the fluid transition (7) between the overpressure chamber (6) and the wire receiving unit (3) being openable and closable via an adjustable closure member (8) of the wire transport interface, characterized in that a linearly adjustable piston (23) is arranged upstream of a wire inlet opening (15) outside the wire transport interface (2), which in a retracted position is fully retracted from the wire inlet opening (15) and in an extended position passes through the wire inlet opening (15) into the wire transport interface (2).

2. 2. The device according to claim 1, wherein the adjustable closure member (8) comprises a slide (9) adjustable via a linear actuator (10), such as a pneumatic piston, between an open position in which the fluid transition portion (7) is opened and a closed position in which the fluid transition portion (7) is closed.

3. 3. The device according to claim 2, wherein the slide (9) comprises a through hole (11) and an annular sealing element (12) spaced from the through hole (11), such that in the open position of the adjustable closure member (8) the through hole (11) connects the wire inlet channel (13) of the wire-receiving unit (3) to the overpressure chamber (6) and in the closed position the annular sealing element (12) hermetically surrounds the wire inlet channel (13).

4. 4. The device according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the closure member (8) comprises a control flap (14) adjustable between an open position in which the control flap (14) opens the wire inlet opening (15) of the wire receiving unit (3) and a closed position in which the control flap (14) is placed outside the wire transport interface (2) and closes the wire inlet opening (15).

5. 5. The device according to claim 4, wherein the control flap (14) is adjustable about a pivot axis (16) between an open position and a closed position and is driven by a linear drive (17), such as a pneumatic piston.

6. 2. The device according to claim 1, wherein the adjustable closure member (8) comprises a closure piston (18) rotatable about a longitudinal axis and having a through hole (11) extending perpendicular to the longitudinal axis, and in an open position of the adjustable closure member (8) connects the wire inlet channel (13) of the wire-receiving unit (3) to the overpressure chamber (6) to establish a fluid transition (7), and in a rotated closed position closes the wire inlet channel (13).

7. 7. Apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the wire receiving unit (3) has, upstream of the wire inlet opening (15), wire conveying means (19) for feeding a wire pre-made by an automatic wire processing machine (200) into the wire inlet opening (15) of the wire receiving unit (3).

8. 8. The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the wire conveying means (19) comprises a pair of counter-rotating belts, straps or rollers (20) with a nip (21) formed therebetween, and when the pair of counter-rotating belts, straps or rollers (20) is located outside the over-pressure chamber (6), the wire (100) is conveyed through the nip (21) and fed into the wire inlet opening (15) of the wire-transport interface (2), and when the pair of counter-rotating belts, straps or rollers (20) is located inside the over-pressure chamber (6), the wire (100) is drawn through the nip (21) from the wire inlet opening (15) and fed into a channel (22) leading to the wire outlet (4).

9. 9. The device according to claim 8, wherein the nip (21) has an adjustable width, and in the conveying position of the belt, strap or roller (20), the width of the nip (21) is substantially equal to the diameter of the wire (100) to be conveyed, and in the non-operating position of the belt, strap or roller (20), the width of the nip (21) is equal to or greater than the dimension of the wire inlet opening (15).

10. 2. The device according to claim 1, wherein when the adjustable closure member (8) opens the fluid transition (7), the linearly adjustable piston (23) in the extended position penetrates through the wire inlet opening (15) into the wire-transport interface (2) at least sufficiently far that the free end of the piston (23) passes through the adjustable closure member (8), and preferably the adjustable closure member (8) is an adjustable slide (9) or a closure piston (18) rotatable about a longitudinal axis and having a through hole (11).

11. 11. The device according to claim 1 or 10, wherein the linearly adjustable piston (23) has an adjustability in addition to the adjustability along the axial direction, and wherein in the swing-in position the linearly adjustable piston (23) is arranged with its longitudinal axis perpendicular to and aligned with the wire entry opening (15), and in the swing-out position the linearly adjustable piston (23) is arranged completely outside the alignment of the wire entry opening (15).

12. 8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the automatic wire processing machine (200) comprises a conveyor head from which the wire (100) produced by the automatic wire processing machine (200) is fed into a straight transfer tube (25) aligned with the wire inlet opening (15), and through which the wire (100) is fed into a wire transport means (19) as aligned wire (100).

13. 13. Apparatus according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the wire transport interface (2) comprises a presence sensor (26) adapted to detect the presence of a wire (100) in the wire transport interface (2).

14. 14. Apparatus according to any of claims 1 to 13, wherein the pneumatic conveying system (1) comprises a wire switch (27) having a wire inlet (28) and a number of wire outlets (29), wherein premade wires (100) are fed from the wire transport interface (2) to the wire inlets (28), each wire outlet (29) being connected to one discharge point (300) via one conveying line (5), and wherein the wire switch (27) comprises an actuator (30) by which the premade wires (100) fed via the wire inlets (28) are fed to one conveying line (5) which is connected to a desired one of the discharge points (300) of the premade wires (100).

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