Parts alignment and supply device and part supply method using the same

Abstract

To prevent supply of overlapping parts even if the parts are relatively thin.SOLUTION: A vibratory part feeder comprises: a vibratory conveyance body 24 which has a conveying passage 25 formed thereon and moves a part 14 made of a conductive material placed on the conveying passage 25 by vibrating; detection means 27 for detecting a state of the part 14 moving on the conveying passage 25; and discharge means 30 for removing the part 14 from the conveying passage 25 based on a detection output of the detection means 27. The detection means is a magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27 which is provided in the vibratory conveyance body 24 and detects an impedance change due to separation / contact of the part 14 moving on the conveying passage 25. The discharge means 30 is constituted so as to remove the part 14 from the conveying passage 25 when the detection output of the detection means 27 exceeds a predetermined threshold value L. The magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27 is provided to be buried in the conveying passage 25 so that a detection surface 27b is flush with the conveying passage 25.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention conveys parts made of conductive material. Parts alignment and supply device More specifically, when parts are made of conductive metal or the like, it is possible to prevent the parts from being supplied in an overlapping state. Parts alignment and supply device and part supply method using the same It is related to. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, bowl-type vibratory parts feeders and linear vibratory parts feeders have been used as means for aligning and supplying parts. In bowl-type vibratory parts feeders, multiple parts are placed in a bowl that constitutes a moving part, and the bowl vibrates in a circumferential direction, aligning the multiple parts placed in the bowl and transporting them in the direction of the vibration to supply them.

[0003] When the parts supply path is long, a linear vibratory parts feeder with a straight transport path is used, and it is known that parts aligned by a bowl-type vibratory parts feeder are transported in a straight line, for example, horizontally.

[0004] Typically, these vibratory part feeders use a detection means such as an optical sensor to measure the distance to the part, and use the detection output to detect whether the parts are overlapping. If the parts are overlapping, they are either ejected or a physical shutter is used to remove the overlapping parts, thereby preventing the parts from being fed in an overlapping state (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 10-81410 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] However, as a means of transporting parts using bowl-type vibratory parts feeders or linear-type vibratory parts feeders, the parts are transported while vibrating, so when measuring the distance to the parts using a detection means such as an optical sensor, overlapping parts may not be detected if the vibration amplitude of the vibratory parts feeder exceeds the thickness of the parts.

[0007] That is, when detecting the state of parts using an optical sensor, the vibration of the vibrating parts feeder must be taken into consideration and the position of the part must be measured beyond the vibration amplitude. However, if the thickness of the part to be detected is thinner than the vibration amplitude, it is rare for the part to exceed the vibration amplitude, making it difficult to detect the overlap with a high probability.

[0008] For example, if the vibration amplitude of a vibrating parts feeder is 0.1 mm or more, and the thickness of the parts is less than that, say 0.03 mm, even if the relatively thin parts are overlapping, the increase in thickness due to the overlapping will be within the range of the vibration amplitude, and the overlapping will not be able to be determined, resulting in a problem where the overlapping cannot be eliminated.

[0009] The object of the present invention is to prevent the feeding of overlapping parts, even relatively thin parts. Parts alignment and supply device and part supply method using the same The purpose is to provide [Means for solving the problem]

[0010] The present invention provides Straight A vibration conveyor that moves parts made of conductive material placed on the conveyor path by vibrating them. a bowl-type vibrating parts feeder that sequentially supplies parts to the end of the conveying path; and a return vibrating parts feeder that is provided adjacent to the linear-type vibrating parts feeder and returns parts that have deviated from the conveying path to the bowl-type vibrating parts feeder. This is an improvement over the previous version.

[0011] Its distinctive configuration is the conveying path is formed at an incline so as to descend toward the return vibration parts feeder and has a back surface support surface portion for supporting the back surface of the parts, the linear type vibratory parts feeder is equipped with a detection means for detecting the state of the parts moving along the conveying path, and an ejection means for removing the parts from the conveying path based on the detection output of the detection means, The detection means Buried in the back support surfacea magnetic induction type non-contact sensor for detecting a change in impedance due to contact or separation of a part moving on a conveying path, and the discharge means is The magnetic induction type non-contact sensor is formed on the rear support surface downstream thereof, When the detection output of the detection means exceeds a predetermined threshold By blowing air Remove the part from the transport path Equipped with blow-out holes It's right there.

[0012] The magnetic induction type non-contact sensor has a detection surface Back support surface It is preferable that the surface of the conveying path be embedded in the conveying path so as to be flush with the surface of the conveying path.

[0013] The device may further include a controller that compares the detection output of the magnetic induction type non-contact sensor with a threshold value, and drives the exhaust means to blow air out of the blowout holes when the detection output exceeds the threshold value.

[0014] Another The present invention provides A method for supplying parts using the above-mentioned parts alignment and supply device, in which parts are sequentially supplied by a bowl-type vibration parts feeder Vibration conveyor that vibrates parts made of conductive material The inclined rear support surface supports the rear surface. A method of supplying parts that are moved along a conveyor path is.

[0015] Its distinctive feature is that Embedded in the back support surface A magnetic induction non-contact sensor is used to detect changes in impedance caused by the contact and separation of parts moving along the conveyance path, and when the detection output of the magnetic induction non-contact sensor exceeds a predetermined threshold, Air is blown out from the blowout holes formed on the back support surface downstream of the magnetic induction type non-contact sensor. Remove parts from the transport path The parts that have fallen off the conveyor path are returned to the bowl-type vibratory parts feeder. It's right there. [Effects of the Invention]

[0016] The present invention Parts alignment and supply device and part supply method using the same In the system, the state of the parts is detected by a magnetic induction non-contact sensor, so even if the thickness of the parts to be detected is thinner than the vibration amplitude, it is possible to detect overlapping parts with a high probability, and if the detection output is used by the discharge means to remove the parts from the conveying path, it is possible to reliably prevent overlapping parts from being fed, even if the parts are relatively thin. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0017] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a top view of the part aligning and supplying device according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 1, showing the detecting means. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in FIG. 1, showing the discharge means. [Figure 5] 10A and 10B are diagrams showing a time series of a state in which a single part is conveyed along the conveying path. [Figure 6] 6 is a diagram corresponding to FIG. 5, showing a state in which a plurality of parts are conveyed overlapping one another on the conveying path in time series. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0018] Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0019] 1 and 2 show a parts aligning and supplying device 9 according to the present invention. This parts aligning and supplying device 9 comprises a linear vibratory parts feeder 20 having a vibrating conveying body 24 on which a straight conveying path 25 is formed, a bowl-shaped vibratory parts feeder 10 which sequentially supplies parts 14 to the starting end of conveying path 25 in the linear vibratory parts feeder 20, and a return vibratory parts feeder 40 which returns parts 14 that have fallen off conveying path 25 in the linear vibratory parts feeder 20 to the bowl-shaped vibratory parts feeder 10.

[0020] Bowl-type vibratory parts feeder 10 comprises bowl 11 into which parts 14 are fed and vibrator 12 (Fig. 2) that vibrates bowl 11 in a circumferential direction. As shown in Fig. 1, a spiral conveying path 13 is formed on the inner periphery of bowl 11, and bowl-type vibratory parts feeder 10 is configured to convey parts 14 fed into bowl 11 along spiral conveying path 13 formed on the inner periphery by vibrating bowl 11 in a circumferential direction using vibrator 12.

[0021] Examples of vibrator 12 include an electromagnet and a piezoelectric element. However, vibrator 12 may be a so-called mechanical type that electrically drives a mechanical mechanism such as a cam or link to vibrate bowl 11, or a so-called pneumatic type that uses air to vibrate bowl 11. Here, reference numeral 12a in Fig. 2 denotes vibration-isolating rubber 12a that absorbs vibrations from vibrator 12 that vibrates bowl 11 and reduces the amount transmitted to installation location 8.

[0022] As shown in Figure 1, bowl 11 has a circular bottom 11a and a peripheral wall 11b that rises from the periphery to form a cone, and spiral conveying path 13 is formed so as to spirally rise from the periphery of bottom 11a to the inner surface of peripheral wall 11b. When bowl 11 is vibrated by vibrator 12 (Figure 2), bowl 11 vibrates in the circumferential direction, causing multiple parts 14 placed in bowl 11 to be conveyed along spiral conveying path 13.

[0023] The peripheral wall 11b is formed with a notch 11c into which the starting end of the vibrating conveyor 24 of the linear vibrating parts feeder 20 fits, and the spiral conveying path 13 extends up to this notch 11c. That is, the end of the spiral conveying path 13 formed in this notch 11c is configured to be the parts discharge opening 11d of the bowl-type vibrating parts feeder 10.

[0024] In this embodiment, the parts 14 are thin, rectangular plates made of conductive metal. As shown in FIG. 1, the bowl-type vibratory parts feeder 10 is configured to align multiple parts 14 placed in the bowl 11 while vibrating them in the circumferential direction, and then sequentially discharge the aligned multiple parts 14 from the parts discharge port 11d provided on the outer periphery.

[0025] The linear vibratory parts feeder 20 connected to such a bowl-type vibratory parts feeder 10 transports the parts 14 aligned and dispensed by the bowl-type vibratory parts feeder 10 in a straight horizontal direction. As shown in Figure 2, it has a base 21 installed at the installation location 8 with a vibrator 22 mounted on top, and a linear vibratory base 23 that vibrates back and forth in the longitudinal direction by the vibrator 22.

[0026] The base 21 is placed at the installation location 8, and examples of the vibrator 22 include an electromagnet and a piezoelectric element. However, similar to the bowl-type vibratory parts feeder 10, the vibrator 22 may be a so-called mechanical type that electrically drives a mechanical mechanism such as a cam or link to vibrate the linear vibration base 23, or a so-called pneumatic type that uses air to vibrate the linear vibration base 23.

[0027] A vibrating conveyor 24 is provided on the linear vibrating base 23, vibrating together with the linear vibrating base 23 to convey the parts 14 placed on it in the longitudinal direction. The vibrating conveyor 24 in this linear vibrating parts feeder 20 is a relatively long rod-shaped member extending in the conveying direction, and a linear conveying path 25 along which the parts 14 are conveyed is formed on the upper surface of the vibrating conveyor 24 and extends in the longitudinal direction.

[0028] As shown in Figures 1 and 2, this linear vibratory parts feeder 20 is installed at installation location 8 so that its base 21 is connected to bowl-type vibratory parts feeder 10, with the starting end of its vibratory conveying body 24 inserted into notch 11c of bowl 11 of bowl-type vibratory parts feeder 10.

[0029] That is, the linear vibratory parts feeder 20 is installed adjacent to the bowl-type vibratory parts feeder 10 so that the parts 14 discharged from the parts discharge outlet 11d of the bowl-type vibratory parts feeder 10 are loaded at the beginning of the linear conveying path 25 extending horizontally of the linear vibratory parts feeder 20.

[0030] As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the linear conveying path 25 in the vibrating conveying body 24 is formed with a back support surface portion 25a that supports the back surface of the rectangular part 14 in an inclined state, and a long side support surface portion 25b that is perpendicular to the back support surface portion 25a and supports the long side of the part 14.

[0031] Therefore, the part 14 guided from the bowl-type vibratory parts feeder 10 to the linear conveying path 25 of the linear vibratory parts feeder 20 is configured to be conveyed longitudinally along the linear conveying path 25 of the linear vibratory parts feeder 20 with its back surface supported by the back support surface portion 25a and its long side perpendicular to the back surface inclined so that it is supported by the long side support surface portion 25b.

[0032] As shown in Figures 1 and 2, this vibrating conveyor 24 is provided with a detection means 27 that detects the state of the parts 14 being conveyed on the linear conveying path 25, and a discharge means 30 that removes the target parts 14 from the linear conveying path 25 based on the detection output of the detection means 27.

[0033] A distinctive feature of the present invention is that the detection means is a non-contact sensor 27 provided on the vibrating conveyor 24 to detect the contact and separation of the parts 14 being conveyed along the linear conveying path 25, and the ejection means 30 is configured to remove the parts 14 from the linear conveying path 25 when the detection output of the detection means 27 exceeds a predetermined threshold value L (Figures 5 and 6).

[0034] Here, the non-contact sensor 27 may be, for example, a high frequency oscillation type that uses electromagnetic induction, a magnetic type that uses a magnet, or a capacitance type that uses changes in electrostatic capacitance. In this embodiment, in which the parts 14 made of conductive metal are to be transported, a magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27 is used as the non-contact sensor 27, which detects changes in impedance due to the contact and separation of the parts 14 transported on the linear transport path 25.

[0035] 3, the magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27 used in this embodiment has a detection coil (not shown) required for electromagnetic induction at the tip of a cylindrical main body 27a, and the tip edge of the main body 27a serves as a detection surface 27b. The magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27 is embedded in the linear conveying path 25 so that the detection surface 27b is flush with the linear conveying path 25.

[0036] Specifically, an insertion hole 24a having an inner diameter slightly larger than the outer diameter of the non-contact sensor 27 is formed in the vibrating conveying body 24 so as to be perpendicular to the back support surface portion 25a, and the cylindrical main body portion 27a of the magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27 is inserted into this insertion hole 24a, and the main body portion 27a is fixed to the insertion hole 24a so that the detection surface 27b at the tip thereof is flush with the back support surface portion 25a of the linear conveying path 25.

[0037] The detection output of the detection means 27 thus provided is connected to the control input of the controller 31, and the controller 31 is configured to control the discharge means 30 (FIG. 1) based on the detection output of the detection means 27.

[0038] In this embodiment, the ejection means 30 uses air pressure to remove the target part 14 from the linear conveying path 25. As shown in Figures 5 and 6, the vibrating conveying body 24 has an air outlet 24b formed adjacent to the downstream side of the insertion hole 24a, so as to be perpendicular to the back support surface portion 25a on the linear conveying path 25. As shown in Figure 4, an air supply pipe 33 from a compressor 32 (not shown) is connected to this air outlet 24b.

[0039] A normally closed valve 34 is provided in this air supply pipe 33, and a control output from the controller 31 is connected to this valve 34. When the detection output of the magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27, which serves as the detection means, exceeds a predetermined threshold L (FIGS. 5 and 6), the controller 31 opens this valve 34 for a short time, causing the compressor 32 to eject compressed air from the air supply pipe 33 through the blow-out hole 24b, as shown by the dashed line in FIG. 4 and in FIG. 6(c), and blows away any part 14 that moves along the linear conveying path 25 and is positioned so as to block the blow-out hole 24b, as shown by the solid arrow in FIG. 4 and in FIG. 6(d), thereby removing the part 14 from the linear conveying path 25.

[0040] As shown in Figures 1 and 2, this linear vibratory parts feeder 20 is adjacent to a return vibratory parts feeder 40 that receives parts 14 removed from the linear conveying path 25 and returns them to the bowl-type vibratory parts feeder 10.

[0041] This return vibration parts feeder 40 has the same structure as the linear vibratory parts feeder 20 except for the shape of the vibratory conveying body 44. As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the entire upper surface of the vibratory conveying body 44 is formed flat to form a conveying path 45. The return vibration parts feeder 40 is adjacent to the linear vibratory parts feeder 20 so that parts 14 removed from the straight conveying path 25 of the linear vibratory parts feeder 20 can fall onto the conveying path 45 and be loaded onto it, and the discharge end of the conveying path 45 reaches the bowl 11 of the bowl-type vibratory parts feeder 10 (Figure 1).

[0042] The rest of the configuration of this return vibration parts feeder 40, excluding the shape of the vibrating conveying body 44, is identical to that of the linear vibrating parts feeder 20, except that it is mounted so that the conveying direction faces the bowl-type vibrating parts feeder 10. For this reason, the reference numerals of the components of the return vibration parts feeder 40 are indicated by adding 20 to the reference numerals of the corresponding components of the linear vibrating parts feeder 20, and further explanation will be omitted.

[0043] Next, the operation of the parts aligning and supplying device configured as above will be described.

[0044] As shown in Figure 1, parts 14 to be aligned and fed by this parts alignment and feeding device 9 are placed into bowl 11 of bowl-type vibratory parts feeder 10. Then, bowl-type vibratory parts feeder 10 is operated to vibrate bowl 11 circumferentially with vibrator 12, thereby aligning and conveying the multiple parts 14 placed in bowl 11 circumferentially on spiral conveying path 13.

[0045] In addition, in the linear vibratory parts feeder 20, the bowl-shaped vibratory parts feeder 10 is operated, and at the same time, its vibrator 22 vibrates the linear vibratory base 23. As shown in Figure 1, the vibration of this linear vibratory base 23 transports the parts 14 aligned by the bowl-shaped vibratory parts feeder 10, which have been moved from the parts discharge outlet 11d to the linear transport path 25 of the vibratory transport body 24 of the linear vibratory parts feeder 20, in a straight line in the horizontal direction.

[0046] As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the linear conveying path 25 of the vibrating conveying body 24 of the linear vibrating parts feeder 20 has a back support surface portion 25a that supports the back surface of the rectangular part 14 in an inclined state, and a long side support surface portion 25b that supports the long sides of the part 14 perpendicular to the back support surface portion 25a.Therefore, the part 14 guided along the linear conveying path 25 is conveyed in the longitudinal direction in an inclined state so that its back surface is supported by the back support surface portion 25a and its long side perpendicular to the back surface is supported by the long side support surface portion 25b.

[0047] As shown in FIG. 1, the vibrating conveying body 24 of the linear vibrating parts feeder 20 is provided with a non-contact sensor 27 that detects the state of the parts 14 being conveyed on the linear conveying path 25, and is equipped with a discharge means 30 that removes the parts 14 from the linear conveying path 25 based on the detection output of the non-contact sensor 27. When the detection output of the non-contact sensor 27 exceeds a predetermined threshold value L (FIGS. 5 and 6), the discharge means 30 removes the parts 14 from the linear conveying path 25.

[0048] Here, the detection means in this embodiment is a magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27 that detects changes in impedance as the metal parts 14 come into contact with or separate from each other. Since the parts 14 are thin steel plates, when the parts 14 move along the linear conveying path 25, they approach the magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27, pass nearby, and then move away, and the detection output of the magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27 changes as the parts 14 come into contact with or separate from each other.

[0049] That is, as shown in FIG. 5(a), when the part 14 moves along the linear conveying path 25 and approaches the magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27, its detection output, i.e., the value of the detected impedance, increases, and as shown in FIG. 5(b), it reaches a maximum value when the part 14 passes the magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27, and as shown in FIG. 5(c), when the part 14 moves away from the magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27, its detection output decreases.

[0050] The value detected by this magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27 is the change in impedance that accompanies the contact and separation of the part 14, and so long as the part 14 is made of a conductive material, it will not change depending on whether or not the vibrating conveyor 24 is vibrating. Therefore, when a part 14 passes through, this fact can be detected reliably.

[0051] On the other hand, this magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27 detects magnetic loss due to eddy currents that occur on the surface of the conductive parts 14 due to the influence of the magnetic field generated by a detection coil (not shown) required for electromagnetic induction. Therefore, as shown in Figure 6, when parts 14 made of conductive material overlap, the detected impedance also increases.

[0052] That is, as shown in FIG. 6(a), when multiple overlapping parts 14 move along the linear conveying path 25 and approach the magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27, the impedance value detected by the magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27 becomes larger than when a single part 14 moves without overlapping and approaches.

[0053] As shown in FIG. 6(b), the detection output will reach a maximum value when the part 14 passes the magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27, but even at this maximum value, it will be larger than the maximum value that occurs when a single non-overlapping part 14 passes by, and as shown in FIG. 6(c), when the part 14 subsequently moves away from the magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27, the detection output will decrease.

[0054] Therefore, as shown in FIG. 5, the detection output detected when a single non-overlapping part 14 passes does not reach a predetermined threshold L, but as shown in FIG. 6, the detection output detected when multiple overlapping parts 14 move along the linear conveying path 25 and approach and pass by the magnetic induction non-contact sensor 27 is exceeded. When the detection output of the magnetic induction non-contact sensor 27 exceeds this predetermined threshold L, the ejection means 30 is driven to remove the part 14 from the linear conveying path 25.

[0055] That is, this threshold value L is stored in memory 31a of controller 31, and controller 31 compares the detection output of magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27 with this threshold value L, and drives removal means 30 when the detection output exceeds this predetermined threshold value L. Therefore, as shown in Figure 5(c), when a single part 14 passes, the detection output of magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27 does not reach predetermined threshold value L, so removal means 30 is not driven, and the single part 14 continues to move along linear conveyance path 25 and is supplied as shown in Figure 5(d).

[0056] On the other hand, when multiple parts 14 are conveyed in an overlapping state and the detection output of the magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27, which is the detection means, exceeds a predetermined threshold L, the controller 31 opens the valve 34 for a short time to blow out compressed air supplied from the compressor 32 via the air supply pipe 33 from the blow-out hole 24b, and as shown by the dashed line in Figure 4 and Figure 6(c), blows away any part 14 that has passed through the magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27 and is positioned so as to block the blow-out hole 24b, as shown by the solid arrow in Figure 4 and Figure 6(d), and controls the part 14 to be removed from the linear conveying path 25.

[0057] The return vibrating parts feeder 40 in this parts alignment and supply device 9 operates at the same time as the linear vibrating parts feeder 20, and as shown in Figure 4, parts 14 that fall off the linear conveying path 25 of the linear vibrating parts feeder 20 are received by the return conveying path 45 of the vibrating conveying body 44, and returned to the bowl-type vibrating parts feeder 10 shown in Figure 1.

[0058] In this way, in the present invention, the state of the parts 14 is detected by the non-contact sensor 27 instead of the optical sensor that has been used conventionally, so even if the thickness of the parts 14 to be detected is thinner than the vibration amplitude, it is possible to detect overlapping of the parts 14 with a high probability.

[0059] Therefore, when the detection output exceeds a predetermined threshold L, indicating that parts 14 are overlapping, the ejection means 30 removes the parts 14 from the linear conveying path 25, thereby achieving the object of the present invention of reliably preventing the supply of overlapping parts 14, even if the parts 14 are relatively thin.

[0060] Here, when the detection means is a magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27 that detects changes in impedance, the change in impedance increases even when parts 14 moving along the linear conveyance path 25 do not overlap but move very close to each other. For this reason, it is necessary to move multiple parts 14 sequentially along the linear conveyance path 25 of the vibrating conveyor 24 in the linear vibratory parts feeder 20, maintaining a spacing that does not affect the change in impedance detected by the magnetic induction type non-contact sensor 27.

[0061] However, this parts alignment and supply device 9 moves and loads parts 14 aligned by bowl-type vibratory parts feeder 10 from its discharge outlet 11d onto linear conveying path 25 of linear vibratory parts feeder 20. Therefore, by controlling bowl-type vibratory parts feeder 10 to sequentially load multiple parts 14 onto linear conveying path 25 of linear vibratory parts feeder 20 while maintaining a predetermined distance between them, it is possible to prevent parts 14 from moving along linear conveying path 25 in close proximity to each other.

[0062] Furthermore, this parts alignment and supply device 9 is provided with a return vibrating parts feeder 40 that receives parts 14 removed from the linear conveying path 25 of the linear vibrating parts feeder 20 and returns them to the bowl-type vibrating parts feeder 10, so that parts 14 removed from the linear conveying path 25 are supplied again from the bowl-type vibrating parts feeder 10 to the linear vibrating parts feeder 20, and the removed parts 14 are not wasted.

[0063] In the above-described embodiment, the blow-out hole 24b constituting the discharge means 30 is formed adjacent to the downstream side of the non-contact sensor 27, and compressed air from the compressor 32 is blown out from there. However, the discharge means 30 is not limited to compressed air, and may be a mechanical means for removing the parts 14 from the conveying path 25, as long as it can remove the parts 14.

[0064] Furthermore, even when compressed air is used, as long as the part 14 can be removed from the conveying path 25, the blow-out hole 24b may be formed near the non-contact sensor 27 or at a distance downstream rather than adjacent to it, and compressed air stored in an air tank may be blown out instead of from the compressor 32. [Explanation of symbols]

[0065] 9 Parts alignment and supply device 10 Bowl-type vibratory parts feeder 14 parts 20 Linear vibration parts feeder 25 Straight conveying path (conveying path) 24 Vibrating carrier 27 Magnetic induction type non-contact sensor (detection means) 30 Means of discharge 40 Return vibration parts feeder

Claims

1. A parts alignment and supply device comprising: a linear vibratory parts feeder (20) having a straight conveying path (25) formed thereon and a vibrating conveying body (24) that vibrates and moves parts (14) made of conductive material placed on said conveying path (25); a bowl-shaped vibratory parts feeder (10) that sequentially supplies parts (14) to an end of said conveying path (25); and a return vibratory parts feeder (40) that is provided adjacent to said linear vibratory parts feeder (20) and returns parts (14) that have come off said conveying path (25) to said bowl-shaped vibratory parts feeder (10), the conveying path (25) has a back surface support surface portion (25a) formed to be inclined downward toward the return vibration parts feeder (40) side and to support the back surface of the parts (14); The linear vibratory parts feeder (20) comprises a detection means (27) for detecting the state of the parts (14) moving along the conveying path (25), and a discharge means (30) for removing the parts (14) from the conveying path (25) based on the detection output of the detection means (27), the detecting means is a magnetic induction type non-contact sensor (27) that is embedded in the back support surface portion (25a) and detects a change in impedance caused by contact with or separation of the part (14) moving along the conveying path (25), The ejection means (30) is formed on the back surface support surface portion (25a) downstream of the magnetic induction type non-contact sensor (27), and includes a blowout hole (24b) that blows out air to remove the part (14) from the conveyance path (25) when the detection output of the detection means (27) exceeds a predetermined threshold (L). A parts alignment and supply device characterized by the above.

2. 2. The parts aligning and feeding device according to claim 1, wherein the magnetic induction type non-contact sensor (27) is embedded in the conveying path (25) so that the detection surface (27b) is flush with the back support surface portion (25a).

3. A parts alignment and supply device as described in claim 1 or 2, further comprising a controller (31) that compares the detection output of the magnetic induction type non-contact sensor (27) with a threshold value (L), and when the detection output exceeds the threshold value (L), drives the discharge means (30) to blow air out of the blowing hole (24b).

4. A method for supplying parts using the part alignment and supply device according to claim 1, comprising: The parts (14) made of conductive material sequentially fed by the bowl-type vibrating parts feeder (10) are placed on the conveying path (25) so that the inclined back surface support surface (25a) of the vibrating conveying body (24) supports the back surface of the parts (14), and are moved. a magnetic induction type non-contact sensor (27) embedded in the back support surface portion (25a) is used to detect a change in impedance caused by contact and separation of the part (14) moving along the conveying path (25); When the detection output of the magnetic induction type non-contact sensor (27) exceeds a predetermined threshold value (L), air is blown out from a blowout hole (24b) formed in the back support surface portion (25a) downstream of the magnetic induction type non-contact sensor (27) to remove the part (14) from the conveying path (25); The parts (14) that have come off the conveying path (25) are returned to the bowl-type vibratory parts feeder (10) by a return vibratory parts feeder (40). A parts supply method comprising:

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