Coating system

Abstract

To provide a coating system capable of shortening a coating booth length in simultaneously coating and conveying a coating object material.SOLUTION: A coating system 10 for coating a body 100 while conveying the body 100 along a prescribed conveyance route includes: a gate mechanism 30 arranged over the conveyance route; a plurality of spray mechanisms 50 in which a plurality of spray nozzles 52 are arranged; and a plurality of shaft mechanisms 40 arranged in the gate mechanism 30 and individually supporting the spray mechanisms 50. Each of the shaft mechanisms 40 is constituted so as to adjust a coating distance of the spray mechanism 50 supported thereby to an outside plate coated surface, and is constituted in a way that each of the spray mechanisms 50 can be arranged so that the whole or a part of the outside plate coated surface can be coated, when the gate mechanism 30 is viewed along the conveyance route.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a painting system that paints the outer panel painted surface of an object to be painted while transporting the object to be painted along a predetermined transport path.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, in a painting system for painting an object to be painted such as an automobile, a railway vehicle, or an aircraft, while transporting the object to be painted along a predetermined transport path in a painting chamber, a plurality of robot arms arranged along the transport path are each supported by a spray mechanism to paint the object to be painted.

[0003] As the spray mechanism, a rotary atomizing nozzle or the like is used, and as the robot arm, an orthogonal two-axis type, an orthogonal three-axis type, or an articulated six-axis type robot arm is used (see Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] However, in such a conventional painting system, a space is required to freely move the spray mechanism supported by the robot arm along the outer panel painted surface of the object to be painted. Furthermore, in the conventional painting system, since a plurality of robot arms are installed along the transport path, the length of the painting booth tends to be long.

[0006] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a painting system capable of shortening the length of the painting booth when painting while transporting an object to be painted.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0007] A characteristic configuration of a painting system according to the present invention for achieving the above object is a painting system that paints an outer plate painted surface of an object to be painted while transporting the object to be painted along a predetermined transport path, the painting system including: a pair of column portions disposed at positions straddling the transport path, and a through portion provided across the column portions, a gate mechanism having the through portion; a plurality of spray mechanisms in which a plurality of spray nozzles are arranged in parallel; and a plurality of shaft mechanisms that are aligned and arranged at each of the column portions and the through portion and individually support the respective spray mechanisms. Each of the shaft mechanisms is configured to be able to adjust a painting distance with respect to the outer plate painted surface of the spray mechanism that it supports, and is configured to be arranged such that when the gate mechanism is viewed along the transport path, each of the spray mechanisms can paint the entire surface or a part of the outer plate painted surface. , each of the shaft mechanisms has the columns in the column part and the columns in the through part shifted in the front-rear direction of the conveyance path That is the point.

[0008] In order to achieve a uniform coating film thickness, it is necessary to position the spray mechanism at an appropriate painting distance from the outer plate painted surface. For example, when the outer plate painted surface of the object to be painted has a complex shape, it is necessary to change the position of the spray mechanism in accordance with the shape change of the outer plate painted surface passing through the gate mechanism.

[0009] According to the above configuration, each spray mechanism is arranged such that when the gate mechanism is viewed along the transport path, it can paint the entire surface or a part of the outer plate painted surface from an appropriate painting distance with good coating efficiency. Therefore, by passing the object to be painted through the gate mechanism only once, the entire surface or a part can be painted with high quality, and thus the transport distance required for painting can be shortened.

[0010] According to the present invention, compared with a painting system configured to perform painting by a rotary atomizing nozzle supported by a robot arm as in the prior art, the transport distance required for painting can be shortened to a maximum of 1 / 15.

[0011] When the conveyance direction of the object to be coated is the X direction, in the X direction and the direction orthogonal to the X direction, the larger the number of spray nozzles arranged, the fewer the number of spray mechanisms and shaft mechanisms can be. On the other hand, in the X direction and the direction orthogonal to the X direction, when the number of spray nozzles arranged is large and the coated surface of the outer panel has a curved surface or an inclined surface, the distance between each spray nozzle and the coated surface of the outer panel becomes non-uniform. Therefore, it is difficult to maintain the coating quality from the viewpoints of coating film thickness and smoothness. For this reason, the number of spray nozzles arranged is determined based on the target coating film thickness, the conveyance speed of the object to be coated, and the coating ability of the spray nozzles so that the coating quality corresponding to the shape of the coated surface of the outer panel can be ensured.

[0012] Each spray mechanism may have the same configuration or different configurations. For example, when each spray mechanism has a different configuration, it is conceivable to vary the number of spray nozzles arranged and the arrangement pattern of each spray mechanism.

[0013] For example, when the object to be coated is an automobile body, in the spray mechanism corresponding to the region with a small curvature (for example, the hood or the roof) on the coated surface of the outer panel, the number of spray nozzles arranged is configured to be large, and in the spray mechanism corresponding to the region with a large curvature (for example, the fender), it is conceivable to configure the number of spray nozzles arranged to be small.

[0014] That is, when the coated surface of the outer panel is a curved surface or an inclined surface, if the number of spray nozzles arranged is too large, all the spray nozzles cannot maintain the optimum coating distance from the coated surface of the outer panel at the same time. Therefore, in such a spray mechanism, the coating quality can be ensured by setting the number of spray nozzles arranged to be small in the direction along the conveyance direction.

[0015] In the present invention, the gate mechanism includes a pair of column portions disposed on both sides of the conveyance path and a through portion provided across the pair of column portions. Each of the shaft mechanisms is arranged in alignment at each of the column portions and the through portion, and it is preferable that the columns in the column portions coincide with the columns in the through portion or are shifted in the front-rear direction of the conveyance path.

[0016] For example, when the shaft mechanism is arranged in a single row, the dimension of the gate mechanism in the conveyance direction of the object to be coated can be made compact.

[0017] When the shaft mechanism is arranged in a plurality of rows in the front-rear direction of the conveyance path, the entire surface or a part can be coated a plurality of times by passing the object to be coated through the gate mechanism only once.

[0018] When the rows of the shaft mechanisms in the column portions and the rows of the shaft mechanisms in the through portion are shifted in the front-rear direction of the conveyance path, the possibility of contact between the spray mechanism of the shaft mechanism in the column portion and the spray mechanism of the shaft mechanism in the through portion can be avoided.

[0019] In the present invention, it is preferable that the shaft mechanism supports the spray mechanism so as to be rotatable at least around an axis along the conveyance path, rotatable around an axis orthogonal to the conveyance path, or swingable along the coated surface of the outer plate.

[0020] In order to achieve a uniform coating film thickness, it is necessary to make the spray mechanism face the coated surface of the outer plate. For example, when the coated surface of the outer plate of the object to be coated has a complicated shape, it is necessary to change the posture of the spray mechanism in accordance with the shape change of the coated surface of the outer plate passing through the gate mechanism. According to the above-described configuration, in the spray mechanism where the shaft mechanism is not facing the coated surface of the outer plate, the shaft mechanism can rotate the spray mechanism around an axis along the conveyance path or around an axis orthogonal to the conveyance path, thereby ensuring the coating quality.

[0021] Further, by swinging the spray mechanism along the coated surface of the outer plate by the shaft mechanism, it is possible to paint between adjacent spray nozzles arranged in the spray mechanism. Therefore, the swing width of the spray mechanism by the shaft mechanism only needs to be larger than the pitch of the spray nozzles. Note that by swinging, the painting range can be widened in the swinging direction, or the overlap of the painting ranges of adjacent spray mechanisms can be adjusted or avoided.

[0022] In the present invention, it is preferable that each of the shaft mechanisms supports adjacent spray mechanisms so as to be swingable in the same phase.

[0023] According to the above configuration, since there is no risk of adjacent spray mechanisms contacting each other, the spray mechanisms can be arranged with a narrow interval therebetween.

[0024] In the present invention, it is preferable that the gate mechanism is configured to be movable at least along the conveyance direction or the posture with respect to the coated surface of the outer plate can be changed.

[0025] When the object to be painted is, for example, an automobile body, it is necessary to paint the front and rear. Even if the movable range for the rotation or swing of the spray mechanism by the shaft mechanism is not configured to be large, by changing the position of the gate mechanism with respect to the conveyance path or the posture of the gate mechanism itself, the spray mechanism can be set to an appropriate painting distance and painting posture.

[0026] In the present invention, it is preferable that the spray mechanism is an air atomizing spray mechanism in which the spray nozzles are composed of air atomizing nozzles.

[0027] The air atomization spray mechanism has an optimal painting distance from the painted surface of the outer panel of 30 to 100 mm. To achieve a uniform paint film thickness, it is necessary to position the air atomization spray mechanism at an appropriate painting distance from the painted surface of the outer panel. However, as described above, each shaft mechanism can move each air atomization spray mechanism closer to or farther from the painted surface of the outer panel. Therefore, each air atomization spray mechanism can perform painting from an appropriate painting distance with good coating efficiency.

[0028] By the way, since the air atomization nozzles of the air atomization spray mechanism have a small number of small-particle paint mists and it is difficult for the paint to scatter, for example, the coating efficiency is better than that of spray nozzles such as rotary atomization nozzles. However, since the air atomization nozzles have a small paint injection amount per unit time, it takes a long time for painting.

[0029] When performing painting by supporting such an air atomization spray mechanism on a robot arm, it is necessary to reduce the conveyance speed of the object to be painted or install a plurality of robot arms along the conveyance direction. Therefore, the time required for painting and the conveyance distance become long.

[0030] As in the above-described configuration, by arranging a plurality of air atomization spray mechanisms in the gate mechanism so as to correspond to the entire surface or a part of the painted surface of the outer panel of the object to be painted when viewing the gate mechanism along the conveyance path, it is possible to paint the entire surface or a part with high quality by simply passing the painted object through the gate mechanism once. Therefore, the conveyance distance required for painting can be shortened.

[0031] In addition, the air atomization nozzles of the air atomization spray mechanism have a good coating efficiency of about 90%, and since the painting booth length can be shortened, the supply and exhaust air volume required for the painting can be reduced to a maximum of 1 / 45 of the supply and exhaust air volume required for painting performed by attaching a rotary atomization nozzle to a multi-joint robot. Therefore, in order to discharge the paint mist that did not adhere to the object to be painted from the painting chamber, it is possible to simplify the large-scale supply and exhaust equipment that was necessary in the conventional painting system and the recovery equipment for recovering the discharged paint mist.

[0032] In the present invention, a control mechanism for controlling the painting system is provided. The control mechanism is preferably configured to be able to individually control each of the shaft mechanisms based on the shape data of the outer panel painted surface of the object to be painted at the time of design of the object to be painted, the shape data of the outer panel painted surface of the object to be painted measured before transporting the object to be painted, or the shape data of the outer panel painted surface of the object to be painted measured immediately before painting while transporting the object to be painted.

[0033] Depending on the shape of the outer panel painted surface of the object to be painted, even adjacent spray mechanisms have different optimal painting distances and painting postures. Therefore, the control mechanism can position each spray mechanism individually at the optimal painting distance from the outer panel painted surface or set the optimal painting posture with respect to the outer panel painted surface as described above, and can maintain the painting quality.

[0034] Note that the control of each shaft mechanism may be performed for each shaft mechanism, or may be performed for each group of a predetermined number of adjacent shaft mechanisms.

[0035] In the present invention, a control mechanism for controlling the painting system is provided. The control mechanism is preferably configured to be able to control the spraying of paint from each spray nozzle or each spray mechanism based on the shape data of the outer panel painted surface of the object to be painted at the time of design of the object to be painted, the shape data of the outer panel painted surface of the object to be painted measured before transporting the object to be painted, or the shape data of the outer panel painted surface of the object to be painted measured immediately before painting while transporting the object to be painted.

[0036] Each spray nozzle and each spray mechanism can control spraying, and can also switch between the spraying state and the non-spraying state. Therefore, the coating thickness can be made uniform or non-uniform, and the spray pattern can be freely changed.

[0037] For example, when the spray mechanism is rotated or when the shape of the painted surface of the outer panel is not flat, the painting ranges of adjacent spray mechanisms may overlap. If the injection amount of paint from adjacent spray mechanisms is constant, the paint film will become thick at the overlapping part of the painting ranges. In both spray mechanisms where the painting ranges overlap, by reducing or making non-injecting the injection amount of paint from at least one of the spray nozzles or spray mechanisms, the paint film thickness can be made uniform even at the overlapping part of the painting ranges, so that the painting quality can be maintained.

[0038] Also, if the injection amount of paint from the spray nozzle or spray mechanism is constant, the paint film thickness will be thin when the conveyance speed of the object to be painted is fast, and the paint film thickness will be thick when the conveyance speed of the object to be painted is slow. By controlling the injection amount of paint from the spray nozzle or spray mechanism according to the conveyance speed of the object to be painted, a desired paint film thickness can be obtained. In addition, in order to obtain the required paint film thickness, in this painting range, multiple rows of spray nozzles may be arranged in the spray mechanism, or multiple rows of spray mechanisms may be provided.

[0039] Also, when the painted surface of the outer panel is a curved surface or an inclined surface, the actual painted area is larger than the projected painted area, that is, the painting ability per unit time in appearance is relatively low. Therefore, in such a spray mechanism, by increasing the injection amount of paint from the spray nozzle or spray mechanism in the direction along the conveyance direction, the painting quality can be ensured.

[0040] At the end of the painted surface of the outer panel of the object to be painted, there may be a case where there is no painted surface of the outer panel that the spray nozzle or spray mechanism should paint. In such a case, by making the spray nozzle or spray mechanism in a non-injecting state, wasteful consumption of paint can be avoided.

[0041] In addition, the control of the paint injection from the spray nozzles or the spray mechanism may be performed for each spray nozzle or each spray mechanism, or for example, for each group of a predetermined number of adjacent spray nozzles or for each group of a predetermined number of adjacent spray mechanisms. Further, for example, when a plurality of rows of spray nozzles are arranged in the spray mechanism, it may be for each row of the spray nozzles, or when a plurality of rows of spray mechanisms are arranged, it may be for each row of the spray mechanisms.

[0042] In the present invention, it is preferable that a control mechanism for controlling the painting system is provided, and the control mechanism is configured to be able to specify the position and orientation of the object to be painted on the transport path based on the characteristic points of the outer plate painted surface of the object to be painted and the reference points defined on the transport path.

[0043] According to the above configuration, since the actual position and orientation of the object to be painted in the transport path can be specified, the shaft mechanism can be controlled accurately.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0044]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Figure 8

Figure 9

Figure 10

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0045] An embodiment of the painting system according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIGS. 1, 2, 3, and 4 show a painting system 10 for painting a body 100 of an automobile as an object to be painted. In FIGS. 1, 2, 3, and 4, the conveyance direction of the body 100 is defined as the X direction, the direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the body 100 in the horizontal plane is defined as the Y direction, and the direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the body 100 in the vertical plane is defined as the Z direction.

[0046] The painting system 10 includes a conveyor mechanism 20 for conveying the body 100 along a predetermined conveyance path inside a painting booth, a gate mechanism 30 disposed across the body 100 conveyed by the conveyor mechanism 20, a plurality of shaft mechanisms 40 disposed in the gate mechanism 30, a plurality of spray mechanisms 50 supported by each shaft mechanism 40, and a control mechanism (not shown) for controlling the painting system 10, etc.

[0047] The gate mechanism 30 includes a pair of column portions 31 disposed on both sides of the conveyance path by the conveyor mechanism 20, and a through portion 32 provided across the column portions 31, and is movable along the conveyance path by the conveyor mechanism 20 by a moving mechanism (not shown). Note that the gate mechanism 30 may be configured to be rotatable about the lower end of the column portion 31, or the through portion 32 may be configured to be movable up and down along the column portion 31.

[0048] Each shaft mechanism 40 is configured to be able to adjust the painting distance of the spray mechanism 50 supported by each with respect to the painted surface of the outer plate of the body 100, and is configured to be arranged so that each spray mechanism 50 can paint the entire surface or a part of the outer plate painted surface when viewed from the gate mechanism 30 along the conveyance path by the conveyor mechanism 20.

[0049] In this embodiment, a plurality of shaft mechanisms 40 are arranged in a row along the Z direction in the column portion 31, and a plurality of shaft mechanisms 40 are arranged in a row along the Y direction in the through portion 32. The row of shaft mechanisms 40 in the column portion 31 and the row of shaft mechanisms 40 in the through portion 32 are shifted back and forth along the X direction. Thereby, the possibility that the spray mechanism 50 of the shaft mechanism 40 in the column portion 31 comes into contact with the spray mechanism 50 of the shaft mechanism 40 in the through portion 32 can be avoided. Each spray mechanism 50 is arranged at a pitch of, for example, about 400 to 500 mm.

[0050] The shaft mechanism 40 is composed of a double-acting actuator having a cylinder 41 and a rod 42 that is electromagnetically advanced and retracted with respect to the cylinder 41. However, the shaft mechanism 40 may be composed of a double-acting actuator having a cylinder 41 and a rod 42 that is advanced and retracted with respect to the cylinder 41 by hydraulic pressure or pneumatic pressure.

[0051] With respect to each shaft mechanism 40, as the rod 42 advances and retracts with respect to the cylinder 41, the spray mechanism 50 supported at the tip of the rod 42 can be moved closer to or farther away from the outer plate painting surface of the body 100.

[0052] Thereby, each spray mechanism 50 can perform painting from an appropriate painting distance with good painting efficiency, for example, from a position 30 to 100 mm from the outer plate painting surface.

[0053] Furthermore, the shaft mechanism 40 is provided with a support mechanism 43 at the tip of the rod 42, and the spray mechanism 50 is supported by the shaft mechanism 40 via the support mechanism 43.

[0054] The support mechanism 43 has an electrically controlled servo motor or the like, and supports the spray mechanism 50 so that it can rotate around the axis along the X direction (see FIG. 5), can rotate around the axis along the Y direction or the Z direction (see FIG. 6), and can swing in the Y direction or the Z direction along the outer plate painted surface of the body 100 (see FIG. 7). The support mechanism 43 supports adjacent spray mechanisms 50 so that they can swing in the same phase. Note that the rotatable angle is ±90 degrees or more centered on the advancing and retreating direction of the support mechanism 43. Also, the swingable distance is 50 mm. However, the rotatable angle and the swingable distance are not limited to this. Furthermore, the support mechanism 43 may support adjacent spray mechanisms 50 so that they can swing with a phase shift.

[0055] Thereby, the shaft mechanism 40 can make the spray mechanism 50 have an appropriate painting posture with respect to the outer plate painted surface of the body 100. For example, in the spray mechanism 50 that is not facing the outer plate painted surface of the body 100 when viewed from the X direction, by rotating the spray mechanism 50, it can be made to face the outer plate painted surface.

[0056] Furthermore, the shaft mechanism 40 can rotate the spray mechanism 50 around the axis along the X direction or rotate and support it around the axis along the Y direction or the Z direction, so as to paint the same location on the outer plate painted surface of the body 100 being conveyed, or to paint even when the shape of the outer plate painted surface is not flat, thus ensuring the painting quality.

[0057] Also, by swinging the spray mechanism 50 along the outer plate painted surface by the shaft mechanism 40, the painting range can be widened in the swinging direction, or the overlap of the painting ranges of adjacent spray mechanisms 50 can be adjusted or avoided.

[0058] In this embodiment, each spray mechanism 50 is composed of an air atomizing spray mechanism. The air atomizing spray mechanism includes a nozzle head 51, a plurality of air atomizing nozzles 52 arranged linearly in parallel with the nozzle head 51, a paint supply mechanism for supplying paint to each air atomizing nozzle 52, an air supply mechanism for supplying air to each air atomizing nozzle 52, and a switching mechanism for switching between the paint injection state and the non-injection state of each air atomizing nozzle 52, etc.

[0059] As shown in FIG. 8, in the spray mechanism 50 supported by the shaft mechanism 40 provided on the column portion 31 along the Y direction and in the spray mechanism 50 supported by the shaft mechanism 40 provided on the through portion 32 with a pitch of 30 mm between adjacent ones, ten air atomizing nozzles 52 are linearly arranged in parallel. The paint injection amount from the spray mechanism 50 is set to 100 cc / min. Since the air atomizing nozzle 52 has few small-particle paint mists, the paint is less likely to scatter, and as a result, the coating efficiency is good.

[0060] Note that the arrangement of each air atomizing nozzle 52 in the nozzle head 51 is not limited to the above-described configuration. In the nozzle head 51, each air atomizing nozzle 52 may be arranged not only in the Y direction or the Z direction but also in the X direction so as to form a rectangular or circular spray pattern as a whole. At this time, as shown in FIG. 9, the arrangement of the air atomizing nozzles 52 may be in a dot matrix shape or in a densest state. These can be appropriately changed according to the shape of the outer plate coating surface of the body 100, the painting specifications, etc.

[0061] The paint supply mechanism is configured to include a storage tank for storing paint, a supply pump for supplying the paint in the storage tank, a supply hose for supplying the paint from the storage tank to the air atomizing nozzle 52, etc. The paint in the storage tank is supplied to the air atomizing nozzle 52 through the supply hose by the supply pump.

[0062] The air supply mechanism includes a compressor, an air hose, and the like. The compressed air by the compressor is supplied to the air atomizing nozzle 52 through the air hose, so that the paint supplied to the air atomizing nozzle 52 by the paint supply mechanism is atomized and sprayed.

[0063] The amount of air supplied to the air atomizing nozzle 52 is preferably 20 to 30 L / min. In a conventional painting machine, the atomized paint particle size has a certain distribution width. In particular, paint particles with a small particle size are difficult to adhere to the object to be painted and ride on the surrounding air flow to become overspray, so there is a limit to the improvement of the adhesion rate. On the contrary, since the amount of air is relatively small, the particle size distribution width of the discharged paint becomes smaller. As a result, the amount of paint particles with a small particle size decreases, and almost no overspray occurs.

[0064] Regarding the compressed air, it is preferably configured to blow out in a spiral shape from the air atomizing nozzle 52. Thereby, since the momentum of the air is weakened, the painting efficiency of the paint is further improved.

[0065] The switching mechanism is composed of a flow control valve and is used to adjust the injection amount of the paint from each spray mechanism 50. In addition, each air atomizing nozzle 52 can be individually switched between an injection state and a non-injection state. Thereby, the coating film thickness can be made uniform or non-uniform, and the spray pattern can be freely changed. In addition, the injection amount of the paint from each air atomizing nozzle 52 may be configured to be adjustable.

[0066] The control mechanism is composed of a control panel and the like. Based on the shape data of the outer plate painted surface of the body 100 measured by so-called three-dimensional measurement before the body 100 is conveyed, the control of the conveyance and conveyance speed of the body 100 by the conveyor mechanism 20, the control of the movement of the gate mechanism 30, the control of the advance and retreat of the rod 42 of the shaft mechanism 40, the control of the rotation and swing of the support mechanism 43, and the control of the paint supply mechanism, the air supply mechanism, and the switching mechanism of the spray mechanism 50 are configured to be performed.

[0067] In three-dimensional measurement, it is possible to measure the feature points on the outer panel coating surface of the body 100 and the reference points defined on the conveying path, and the control mechanism is configured to be able to specify the position and orientation of the body 100 on the conveying path based on the feature points and the reference points. Thereby, since the actual position and orientation of the body 100 on the conveying path can be specified, the shaft mechanism 40 can be accurately controlled. However, the measurement of the shape data of the outer panel coating surface of the body 100 may be performed by other measurement methods instead of the above measurement method.

[0068] For example, as shown in FIG. 5, when the spray mechanism 50 is rotated or when the shape of the outer panel coating surface is not flat, the coating ranges of adjacent spray mechanisms 50 may overlap. In the portion where the coating ranges of adjacent spray mechanisms 50 overlap, the coating film becomes thick. Therefore, in both spray mechanisms 50 where the coating ranges overlap, at least one of the air atomizing nozzles 52 of the spray mechanism 50 that sprays paint onto the overlapping portion of the coating range is, for example, set to a non-injection state, or the injection amount of paint from the spray mechanism 50 having the air atomizing nozzle 52 or the swing width of the spray mechanism 50 is controlled so that the coating film thickness is uniform as a whole. By doing so, the coating quality can be maintained.

[0069] Also, at the end of the outer panel coating surface of the body 100, there may be a case where there is no outer panel coating surface to be coated among the air atomizing nozzles 52 of the spray mechanism 50. In such a case, by setting the air atomizing nozzle 52 to a non-injection state, wasteful consumption of paint can be avoided.

[0070] Also, when viewed from the conveying direction of the object to be coated, when the outer panel coating surface is a curved surface or an inclined surface, the actual coating area is larger than the projected coating area. That is, the coating ability per unit time of appearance is relatively low. Therefore, by increasing the injection amount of paint from such a spray mechanism 50, a desired coating film thickness can be obtained.

[0071] Incidentally, the control mechanism may be configured to perform the above-described control based on the shape data of the outer panel coating surface measured immediately before painting while transporting the body 100. The control mechanism may be configured to perform the above-described control based on the shape data of the outer panel coating surface of the body 100 at the time of design.

[0072] Further, the control mechanism may perform each control for each shaft mechanism 40 or for each air atomizing nozzle 52, or may perform each control for each group of a predetermined number of adjacent shaft mechanisms 40 or for each group of air atomizing nozzles 52. Furthermore, when, for example, a plurality of rows of air atomizing nozzles 52 are arranged in the spray mechanism 50, the control mechanism may be for each row of the air atomizing nozzles 52, or when a plurality of rows of spray mechanisms 50 are arranged, the control mechanism may perform each control for each row of the spray mechanisms 50.

[0073] In the above-described embodiment, a plurality of shaft mechanisms 40 are arranged in a row along the Z direction in the column portion 31, a plurality of shaft mechanisms 40 are arranged in a row along the Y direction in the through portion 32, and the row of shaft mechanisms 40 in the column portion 31 and the row of shaft mechanisms 40 in the through portion 32 are arranged so as to be displaced in the X direction, but this is not the only case. For example, in the column portion 31, a plurality of shaft mechanisms 40 may be arranged in two rows that move back and forth in the X direction along the Z direction, and in the through portion 32, a plurality of shaft mechanisms 40 may be arranged in two rows that move back and forth in the X direction along the Y direction, and the row of shaft mechanisms 40 in the column portion 31 and the row of shaft mechanisms 40 in the through portion 32 may be arranged so as to be displaced in the X direction. Note that the row of shaft mechanisms 40 in the column portion 31 and the row of shaft mechanisms 40 in the through portion 32 may be arranged to coincide with each other.

[0074] As shown in FIG. 10, when the shaft mechanisms 40 are arranged in a plurality of rows that move back and forth in the X direction, it becomes possible to perform painting a plurality of times on the same outer panel coating surface.

[0075] In the above-described embodiments, each spray mechanism 50 has been described as having the same configuration, but this is not the case. Each spray mechanism 50 may have a different configuration. For example, the number of air atomizing nozzles 52 arranged and the arrangement pattern of each spray mechanism 50 may be different.

[0076] For example, in the spray mechanism 50 that paints the hood, roof, etc., which are outer panel surfaces to be painted with a small curvature in the body 100, it is conceivable to configure a large number of air atomizing nozzles 52, and in the spray mechanism 50 that paints the fender, etc., which are outer panel surfaces to be painted with a large curvature in the body 100, to configure a small number of air atomizing nozzles 52.

[0077] When the outer panel surface to be painted is a curved surface or an inclined surface as viewed from the conveyance direction of the body 100, the actual painted area is large with respect to the projected painted area, that is, the painting ability per unit time appears to be relatively low. Therefore, in such a spray mechanism 50, the number of spray nozzles arranged in the direction along the conveyance direction is set to be large. Alternatively, a plurality of rows of spray mechanisms 50 are arranged along the conveyance direction in the gate mechanism 30.

[0078] In the above-described embodiments, the spray mechanism 50 has been described as including the air atomizing nozzle 52 as a spray nozzle, but it is not limited to this. The spray nozzle may be of other configurations. In that case, a spray nozzle with high coating efficiency but a small paint spray amount is preferable.

[0079] Although the present invention has been described with reference to the drawings as described above, the present invention is not limited to the configurations of the drawings. Needless to say, the present invention can be implemented in various modes without departing from the gist of the present invention.

Industrial Applicability

[0080] The painting system according to the present invention can be particularly preferably used in technical fields for painting bodies such as automobiles, railway vehicles, and aircraft, and in general industries.

Description of Symbols

[0081] 10: Painting system 20: Conveyor mechanism 30: Gate mechanism 31: Column part 32: Penetrating part 40: Shaft mechanism 41: Cylinder 42: Rod 43: Support mechanism 50: Spray mechanism 51: Nozzle head 52: Air atomizing nozzle (spray nozzle) 100: Body (object to be painted)

Claims

1. A painting system for painting an outer panel painted surface of a workpiece while conveying the workpiece along a predetermined conveying path, comprising: a gate mechanism having a pair of column portions disposed at positions straddling the conveying path and a through portion provided across the column portions; a plurality of spray mechanisms in which a plurality of spray nozzles are arranged in parallel; a plurality of shaft mechanisms that are aligned and arranged in each of the column portions and the through portion and individually support the respective spray mechanisms; each of the shaft mechanisms is configured to be able to adjust the painting distance of the spray mechanism supported thereby with respect to the outer panel painted surface, and is configured to be arranged so that when the gate mechanism is viewed along the conveying path, each of the spray mechanisms can paint the entire surface or a part of the outer panel painted surface; each of the shaft mechanisms is characterized in that the column row in the column portion and the row in the through portion are shifted in the front-rear direction of the conveying path.

2. The painting system according to claim 1, wherein the shaft mechanism supports the spray mechanism so as to be rotatable about at least an axis along the conveying path, rotatable about an axis orthogonal to the conveying path, or swingable along the outer panel painted surface.

3. The painting system according to claim 2, wherein each of the shaft mechanisms supports adjacent spray mechanisms so as to be swingable in the same phase.

4. The painting system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the gate mechanism is configured to be movable at least along the conveying path or to be able to change its posture with respect to the outer panel painted surface.

5. The painting system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the spray mechanism is an air atomizing spray mechanism in which the spray nozzles are composed of air atomizing nozzles.

6. A control mechanism for controlling the painting system is provided, the control mechanism is configured to be able to individually control each of the shaft mechanisms based on the shape data of the outer panel painted surface at the time of design of the workpiece, the shape data of the outer panel painted surface of the workpiece measured before conveying the workpiece, or the shape data of the outer panel painted surface of the workpiece measured immediately before painting while conveying the workpiece.

7. A control mechanism for controlling the painting system is provided, The control mechanism is configured to be able to control the spraying of paint from each spray nozzle or each spray mechanism based on the shape data of the outer panel painting surface of the object to be painted at the time of design of the object to be painted, the shape data of the outer panel painting surface of the object to be painted measured before transporting the object to be painted, or the shape data of the outer panel painting surface of the object to be painted measured immediately before painting while transporting the object to be painted. The painting system according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that.

8. A control mechanism for controlling the painting system is provided. The control mechanism is configured to be able to specify the position and orientation of the object to be painted on the transport path based on the feature points of the outer panel painting surface of the object to be painted and the reference points defined on the transport path. The painting system according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that.

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