Cutting Processing System

Abstract

To suppress wasteful disposal of a cut material when cutting a long workpiece while successively conveying the workpiece.SOLUTION: In a cutting system 1, a control device 12 controls a conveyance mechanism 3 and a cutting mechanism 4 to repeatedly execute cutting. The control device controls to accelerate conveyance speed of a workpiece W in the conveyance mechanism from speed 0 up to constant speed S at a machining start command time, subsequently continuously execute control at the constant speed and decelerate from the constant speed up to the speed 0 at a machining finishing commend time. The control device has a quality determination section 12a which determines at least cut materials on which cutting is performed at an acceleration switching timing for switching the conveyance speed from acceleration to the constant speed and at a deceleration switching timing for switching from the constant speed to deceleration as defective products deviated from a product standard and determines the cut materials other than the cut materials determined as the defective products as non-defective products, of the cut materials on which cutting is performed during an acceleration period and a deceleration period of the conveyance speed.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a cutting system that repeatedly performs cutting to cut a long workpiece into a set length. [Background technology]

[0002] One example of this type of cutting system is a manufacturing system for manufacturing flat metal tubes, which are components of heat exchangers for vehicles. This type of manufacturing system includes a forming mechanism that rolls a long, strip-shaped metal sheet material, such as aluminum, in the width direction to form a flat tube, and a cutting mechanism that cuts the formed tube to a predetermined length to obtain a cut product (see, for example, Patent Document 1). A rotary cutter is used as the cutting mechanism, and the long tube formed by the forming mechanism is continuously fed at a constant speed by a conveying mechanism to the cutting mechanism, where it is cut by the rotary cutter.

[0003] In this case, the rotary cutter is configured to have a cutting blade at one location on the outer periphery, and the cutting mechanism is configured to synchronize and follow the rotation of the rotary cutter with the feed speed of the tube, so that the tube is always cut at a constant length at high speed. In addition, a defective product sorting mechanism is provided downstream of the cutting mechanism, and cut products whose cut length does not meet the standard are rejected, and only non-defective products are sent to the next process. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-62632 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] Incidentally, the conveying speed at which the tube is conveyed by the conveying mechanism to the cutting mechanism is controlled in a so-called trapezoidal pattern, as shown in the conventional example graph on the left side of Figure 2. At the start of processing when the system starts up (time t0), the speed gradually accelerates from 0, and when it reaches a constant speed S (time t1), the constant speed S is maintained. At the end of processing when the system is stopped (time t2), the speed decelerates from the constant speed S to 0 (time t3). In this case, conventionally, cut products cut in the constant speed S section were judged to be non-defective (OK), while cut products cut in the acceleration and deceleration sections were judged to be non-defective (NG) and discarded because their dimensional accuracy was insufficient.

[0006] However, even though some of the cut pieces processed in the acceleration and deceleration sections were within the length specifications, all of the cut pieces were rejected as defective, as described above, which resulted in a decrease in the non-defective product rate and an unnecessarily large number of cut pieces being discarded.

[0007] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and its purpose is to provide a cutting processing system that cuts long workpieces while transporting them in a progressive manner, and that can prevent the cut workpieces from being wasted. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In order to achieve the above object, the cutting system (1) of the present invention includes a control device (12) that controls the conveying mechanism (3) and the cutting mechanism (4) to repeatedly perform cutting, and controls the conveying speed of the workpiece (W) in the conveying mechanism to accelerate from 0 to a constant speed (S) when a processing start command is issued, and then continues to control the constant speed, and to decelerate from the constant speed to 0 when a processing end command is issued.The control device (12) also includes a quality judgment unit (12a) that judges, among the cut pieces that have been cut during the acceleration period and deceleration period of the conveying speed, at least those that have been cut at the acceleration switch time when the conveying speed is switched from accelerated to constant speed and the deceleration switch time when the conveying speed is switched from constant speed to decelerated, as defective products that do not meet product standards, and judges the cut pieces other than those judged as defective products as good products.

[0009] When the conveying speed of the conveying mechanism to convey the workpiece to the cutting mechanism is controlled to have a so-called trapezoidal pattern, conventionally, all cut pieces cut in the acceleration section and the deceleration section are judged to be defective. In contrast, the present inventors have confirmed that the length variations of the cut pieces become large when the conveying speed is switched from an acceleration speed to a constant speed and when the conveying speed is switched from a constant speed to a deceleration speed. Therefore, in the acceleration section except for the acceleration switch, and in the deceleration section except for the deceleration switch, it is possible to obtain a sufficient number of non-defective cut pieces whose length dimensions are within the standard.

[0010] According to the above configuration, the quality determination unit of the control device determines, among the cut pieces cut during the acceleration and deceleration periods of the workpiece conveyance speed by the conveying mechanism, at least those cut at the acceleration switching time and the deceleration switching time as defective products that do not meet product specifications, and determines the other cut pieces as non-defective. Therefore, cut pieces whose length dimensions fall within the specifications outside the acceleration switching time and the deceleration switching time can be determined as non-defective. As a result, when cutting long workpieces while conveying them progressively, there is an excellent effect of preventing the cut pieces from being wasted. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram illustrating an embodiment of a tube manufacturing system. [Figure 2] 1 is a diagram showing the relationship between time and conveying speed for a conventional example (left) and an embodiment (right). [Figure 3] Flowchart (part 1) showing the processing procedure executed by the machine controller to judge the quality of each cut piece. [Figure 4] Flowchart (part 2) showing the processing procedure executed by the machine controller to judge the quality of each cut piece. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] Hereinafter, an embodiment of a cutting system applied to equipment for manufacturing flat metal tubes, which are components of heat exchangers for vehicles, will be described with reference to the drawings. Fig. 1 shows a schematic diagram of the overall configuration of a cutting system 1 in this embodiment. The cutting system 1 includes a conveying path 2 for conveying workpieces W and cut pieces P from left to right in the drawing, i.e., in the direction of arrow F. Along the conveying path 2, there are also provided a material supply mechanism, a forming mechanism 3, a cutting mechanism 4, a speed-up conveying mechanism 5, a defective product ejection mechanism 6, a non-defective product accumulation mechanism 7, and the like, all of which are not shown.

[0013] The material supply mechanism supplies a long, strip-shaped metal material, such as aluminum, from a coil along a conveying path 2 to the forming mechanism 3. The forming mechanism 3 is configured with a plurality of forming rollers 8, and by passing the metal material through these forming rollers 8, the material is continuously formed into flat, tubular workpieces W while being fed in the direction of arrow F at a constant speed S. The forming rollers 8 are driven by an actuator 9 including a motor, etc. The actuator 9 is driven and controlled by a servo amplifier 10.

[0014] At this time, the forming mechanism 3 progressively transports the formed long workpiece W in the direction of arrow F toward the cutting mechanism 4 at a constant speed S, and sends it out toward the cutting mechanism 4, and thus also functions as a transport mechanism. The forming mechanism 3 is provided with a contact roller that rotates without slipping while in contact with the sent-out workpiece W, and the rotation of this contact roller is detected by a rotary encoder 11. The rotation signal detected by the rotary encoder 11, i.e., the transport speed signal, is input to a machine controller 12 serving as a control device. The machine controller 12 is configured to have an operation unit (not shown).

[0015] The cutting mechanism 4 cuts the long workpiece W sent from the forming mechanism 3 to a set length to obtain a cut piece P. In this embodiment, a rotary cutter 13 is used. As is well known, the rotary cutter 13 is continuously rotated by an actuator 14 such as a motor. For example, the rotary cutter 13 has a cutting blade at one location on the outer periphery, and repeatedly cuts the workpiece W when the cutting blade reaches a predetermined phase after one rotation. In this case, the actuator 14 is driven and controlled by a servo amplifier 15. The rotation of the rotary cutter 13 is synchronized with and follows the conveying speed of the workpiece W from the forming mechanism 3 based on the conveying speed signal detected by the rotary encoder 11, so that cutting is always performed at a position where the workpiece W has been fed by the set length.

[0016] The speed-increasing conveying mechanism 5 includes a conveying belt 16 and an actuator 17 such as a motor that drives the conveying belt 16, and is configured to convey the individual cut pieces P cut off from the workpiece W in the cutting mechanism 4 along the conveying path 2 in the direction of arrow F toward the defective product discharge mechanism 6 at an increased speed, for example, about 1.5 times faster. The actuator 17 is controlled by a servo amplifier 18.

[0017] Although not shown in detail, the defective product discharge mechanism 6 has a defective product discharge lane that branches off from the conveying path 2, and is equipped with a branching switch that switches the destination of the cut products P sent from the speed-increasing conveying mechanism 5 to either the conveying path 2 side, i.e., the non-defective product accumulation mechanism 7 side, or the defective product discharge lane side. This branching switch is driven by an actuator 19 such as a cylinder or solenoid, and the actuator 19 is driven and controlled by a servo amplifier 20. As will be described later, cut products P that are determined to be defective are sorted to the defective product discharge lane side, discharged, and discarded.

[0018] The non-defective product accumulation mechanism 7 receives cut pieces P that have been determined to be non-defective, aligns them, and accumulates them, and is driven by an actuator 21 including a motor, a solenoid, etc. The actuator 21 is controlled by a servo amplifier 22. When a predetermined number of non-defective cut pieces P have accumulated, the cut pieces P are sent to the next process, for example, the process of assembling a heat exchanger.

[0019] The machine controller 12 is mainly configured with a computer, and outputs command signals to the servo amplifiers 10, 15, 18, 20, and 22 according to a preset operation program, causing the actuators 9, 14, 17, 19, and 21 to perform operations. In this way, the cutting system 1 performs the steps of forming the workpiece W by the forming mechanism 3, sending the formed workpiece W toward the cutting mechanism 4, and cutting the workpiece W to a set length dimension in the cutting mechanism 4.

[0020] At this time, as described above, the rotary cutter 13 of the cutting mechanism 4 is controlled to synchronize with and follow the conveying speed of the workpiece W based on the conveying speed signal detected by the rotary encoder 11. As a result, the workpiece W sent to the cutting mechanism 4 is always cut to the set dimensions. Then, the cut pieces P cut to the set dimensions are accelerated by the speed-increasing conveying mechanism 5 and sent to the defective product discharge mechanism 6. In the defective product discharge mechanism 6, cut pieces P determined to be defective are sent to the defective product discharge lane side, and cut pieces P determined to be non-defective are sent to the non-defective product accumulation mechanism 7 to be accumulated and sent to the next process. In the cutting mechanism 4, for example, several to ten or so pieces are cut per second.

[0021] The machine controller 12 starts a machining operation based on, for example, a machining start command input by an operator on an operation unit, and ends the machining operation based on a machining end command input. At this time, as shown in the graph of the embodiment on the right side of Fig. 2, when a machining start command is input, the machine controller 12 accelerates the conveying speed of the workpiece W from speed 0 to a constant speed S, for example, at a constant acceleration, and then continues to control the constant speed S, and performs the cutting process of the workpiece W in the cutting mechanism 4 while conveying the workpiece W at the constant speed S by the conveying mechanism. Furthermore, when a machining end command is input, the conveying speed of the workpiece W is controlled to decelerate, for example, at a constant acceleration, from the constant speed S to speed 0.

[0022] The machine controller 12 also functions as a quality determination unit 12a. As will be described in the following operational description, this quality determination unit 12a determines that, among the cut pieces P cut during the acceleration period and the deceleration period, at least a predetermined number of cut pieces P, for example, several (five) pieces, cut at an acceleration switching time NG2 when the conveying speed is switched from acceleration to a constant speed S, are defective because they do not meet the product standards. At the same time, it determines that a predetermined number of cut pieces P, for example, several (five) pieces, cut at a deceleration switching time NG3 when the conveying speed is switched from the constant speed S to deceleration, are defective because they do not meet the product standards.

[0023] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the quality determining unit 12a determines as defective a predetermined number of cut pieces P, for example, two or three cut pieces P, that have been cut at a start time NG1 when the acceleration of the conveying speed begins, and determines as defective a predetermined number of cut pieces P, for example, two or three cut pieces P, that have been cut at an end time NG4 when the deceleration ends. The quality determining unit 12a also determines as non-defective cut pieces P other than those determined as defective. As described above, cut pieces P determined as defective are discharged by the defective product discharge mechanism 6.

[0024] Next, the operation of the above configuration will be described with reference to Figures 3 and 4. As described above, the machine controller 12 of the cutting system 1 controls the forming mechanism 3, cutting mechanism 4, speed-increasing conveying mechanism 5, defective product discharge mechanism 6, and non-defective product accumulation mechanism 7 to perform processes such as forming the workpiece W, cutting, and discharging defective products from among the cut products P. The flowcharts in Figures 3 and 4 show the processing procedure executed by the machine controller 12 for assigning pass / fail data to each cut product P. In this case, the machine controller 12 assigns pass / fail data, i.e., data on whether the product is defective, to each cut product P on a piece-by-piece basis, based on the conveying speed signal in the forming mechanism 3, the cutting completion signal in the cutting mechanism 4, information on the number of cut products, etc.

[0025] Here, as shown in the graph of the embodiment on the right side of Fig. 2, when a command to start processing is issued, the conveying speed of the workpiece W is accelerated at a constant acceleration from speed 0 to a constant speed S, and then the cutting process is carried out while continuing to control at the constant speed S, and when a command to end processing is issued, the conveying speed of the workpiece W is decelerated at a constant acceleration from the constant speed S to speed 0. In this embodiment, NG data is assigned to a preset number of cut pieces P of the cut pieces P at each of the timings NG1, NG2, NG3, and NG4.

[0026] In this case, at start time NG1, the number of cuts A (e.g., 3) for which NG data will be given is set in advance, and the number of cuts B (e.g., several tens of cuts) from the start of processing to acceleration switch time NG2 is set in advance by calculation, etc., and the number of cuts C (e.g., B + 5 cuts) from the start of processing to the end of acceleration switch time NG2 is set in advance. Also, at deceleration switch time NG3, the number of cuts D (e.g., 5 cuts) for which NG data will be given is set in advance, and the number of cuts E (e.g., several tens of cuts) from the processing end command to end time NG4 is set in advance by calculation, etc. The period from time NG1 to time NG4 is the period of OK1 to OK3 during which good products can be obtained.

[0027] Although not shown in detail, the memory of the machine controller 12 is provided with n data areas, numbered 1 to n, for storing pass / fail data corresponding to the respective positions of the cut pieces P on the conveying path 2. Each time a cutting operation is performed and the cut pieces P are fed by one pitch, new pass / fail data is written in the first data area, and the previously written pass / fail data is shifted sequentially within the data area. As the pass / fail data, for example, NG data is assigned to a defective product. The pass / fail data is sent to the position of the defective product discharge mechanism 6, and the machine controller 12 switches the discharge lane of the defective product discharge mechanism 6 according to the pass / fail data.

[0028] The flowchart in Fig. 3 shows the procedure for assigning pass / fail data to and discarding each cut object P, which is executed by the machine controller 12 from the start of processing until the end of the acceleration switching time NG2. That is, when processing starts based on a processing start command, in step S1 the discharge lane in the defective product discharge mechanism 6 is switched to the defective product (NG) side. Steps S2 to S6 are for processing the cut object P at the start time NG1, and first in step S2 NG data is written as pass / fail data in the first unit data area, and in step S3 the pass / fail data is sent to the next position.

[0029] In the next step S4, it is determined whether the number of cut pieces has reached the set number A, and if not (No in step S4), the process from step S2 is repeated for the next cut piece P. In this way, NG data is assigned to the cut pieces P that have been cut for the set number A since the start of processing. If the number of cut pieces has reached the set number A (Yes in step S4), the process proceeds to step S5, where the pass / fail data is sent to the next position. In step S6, it is determined whether the process for each cut piece P cut at the start time NG1 has been completed, and if completed (Yes in step S6), the process proceeds to step S7.

[0030] Steps S7 to S11 are processes related to the cut object P during period OK1 during the acceleration period in which good products are obtained. In step S7, it is determined whether it is possible to switch the discharge lane, and if it is possible (Yes in step S7), the discharge lane is switched to the good product side in step S8. In step S9, the discharge lane is maintained on the good product side, and in the next step S10, it is determined whether the conveying speed is a constant speed S. If the conveying speed has reached the constant speed S (Yes in step S10), it is determined in step S11 whether the number of cut pieces since the start of processing has reached the set number B.

[0031] For each cut piece P during period OK1, which is the period until the set number B is reached, no NG data is written, and pass / fail data (OK data) is sent as is, and the cut piece P passes through the defective product discharge mechanism 6 without being discharged, and is transported to the good product accumulation mechanism 7. If the number of cut pieces since the start of processing reaches the set number B (Yes in step S11), proceed to step S12.

[0032] Steps S12 to S16 are processes at the acceleration switching time NG2, where NG data is written as pass / fail data in the unit data area in step S12, and the pass / fail data is sent to the next position in step S13. In the next step S14, it is determined whether the number of cut pieces has reached the set number C, and if not (No in step S14), the processes from step S12 onwards are repeated. In this way, NG data is assigned to the cut pieces P cut at the acceleration switching time NG2.

[0033] If the number of cut pieces reaches the set number C (Yes in step S14), the process proceeds to step S15, where the pass / fail data is sent to the next position. In step S16, it is determined whether processing for each cut piece P cut at the acceleration switching time NG2 has been completed, and if so (Yes in step S16), the process proceeds to step S17. In step S17, it is determined whether switching the discharge lane is possible, and if so (Yes in step S17), the discharge lane is switched to the defective product side in step S18.

[0034] In the next step S19, a process for sending pass / fail data is performed, and in step S20, it is determined whether the process for each cut object P has been completed. If the process has been completed (Yes in step S20), the process proceeds to step S21, where it is determined whether the discharge lane can be switched. If the discharge lane can be switched (Yes in step S21), in step S22, the discharge lane is switched to the non-defective side, and the cut objects P are transported to the non-defective product accumulation mechanism 7. Thereafter, the cutting process is performed while maintaining the transport speed of the workpiece W at a constant speed S, and a period OK2 is reached during which non-defective products can be obtained.

[0035] 4 shows the procedure for assigning pass / fail data to each cut piece P and discarding the cut pieces P, which is executed by the machine controller 12 from the time of issuing a processing end command until the cut piece P is actually stopped. That is, in step S31, the discharge lane is maintained in the state of the pass / fail side, and in the next step S32, it is determined whether or not the start of deceleration has been stored, that is, whether or not the deceleration switching time NG3 has arrived. If the start of deceleration has been stored (Yes in step S32), in step S33, NG data is written as pass / fail data in the unit data area for the cut piece P. In step S34, processing for sending the pass / fail data to the next position is performed, and in step S35, it is determined whether or not the sending processing has been completed.

[0036] When the process of sending the pass / fail data is completed (Yes in step S35), it is determined in step S36 whether the discharge lane can be switched, and if it is possible (Yes in step S36), the discharge lane is switched to the defective product side in step S37. Steps S38 to S42 are processes at the deceleration switching time NG3, and in step S38, NG data is written as pass / fail data in the unit data area, and in step S39, the pass / fail data is sent to the next position.

[0037] In the next step S40, it is determined whether the number of cut pieces reaches the set number D, and if not (No in step S40), the process from step S38 is repeated. As a result, NG data is assigned to the cut pieces P cut at the deceleration switching timing NG3. If the number of cut pieces reaches the set number D (Yes in step S40), the process proceeds to step S41, where pass / fail data is sent, and in step S42 it is determined whether the process for each cut piece P has been completed. If the process has been completed (Yes in step S42), the process proceeds to step S43.

[0038] In step S43, it is determined whether or not switching of the discharge lane is possible, and if it is possible (Yes in step S43), in step S44 the discharge lane is switched to the non-defective side. In step S45, the discharge lane is maintained on the non-defective side, and processing is performed on the cut object P during period OK3, during the deceleration period, in which non-defective products are obtained. Steps S46 to S50 are processing at end time NG4, and in step S46 NG data is written in the unit data area as pass / fail data, and in step S47 the pass / fail data is sent to the next position.

[0039] In the next step S48, it is determined whether the number of cut pieces reaches the set number E, and if not (No in step S48), the process is repeated from step S46. NG data is thus assigned to the cut pieces P cut at the end time NG4. If the number of cut pieces reaches the set number E (Yes in step S48), the process proceeds to step S49, where pass / fail data is sent, and in the next step S50, it is determined whether the process for each cut piece P has been completed. If the process has been completed (Yes in step S50), the process proceeds to step S51.

[0040] In step S51, it is determined whether or not the discharge lane can be switched, and if it is possible (Yes in step S51), the discharge lane is switched to the non-defective product side in step S52. In step S53, it is determined whether or not the conveying speed of the workpiece W and the cut object P has become 0, and when the conveying speed has become 0 (Yes in step S53), it is determined in step S54 whether or not the rotary cutter 13 of the cutting mechanism 4 has been moved to the origin position, and the process ends with the rotary cutter 13 stopped at the origin position.

[0041] The cutting system 1 of this embodiment can achieve the following effects: In this embodiment, the conveying speed at which the workpiece W is conveyed to the cutting mechanism 4 is controlled to follow a so-called trapezoidal pattern, and the quality determining unit 12a determines that the cut piece P cut at the acceleration switching time NG2 when the conveying speed is switched from acceleration to a constant speed S and at the deceleration switching time NG3 when the conveying speed is switched from the constant speed S to deceleration is a defective product that does not meet the product standards.

[0042] Here, the inventors have confirmed that the large variation in the length dimension of the cut workpieces P does not apply to all of the cut workpieces P cut in the acceleration section and the deceleration section, but only to the cut workpieces P cut at the acceleration switching time NG2 and the deceleration switching time NG3. In other words, even in the acceleration section and the deceleration section, for the periods OK1 and OK3, which are the periods excluding the acceleration switching time NG2 and the deceleration switching time NG3, it is possible to obtain a sufficient number of good products whose length dimension falls within the standard. As a result, this embodiment has the excellent effect of preventing the wasteful disposal of cut workpieces P when cutting a long workpiece W while conveying it progressively.

[0043] Further research by the inventors has revealed that there is also a tendency for variations in the length of the cut object P to occur at the acceleration start time NG1 and the deceleration end time NG4. In this embodiment, the quality determination unit 12a determines that the cut cut object P is defective, also with respect to the acceleration start time NG1 and the deceleration end time NG4. This makes it possible to more accurately determine whether the cut object P is defective or not.

[0044] In this embodiment, the quality determining unit 12a is configured to determine a predetermined number of cut objects P as defective at each of the above-mentioned periods NG1, NG2, NG3, and NG4. This is preferable because, even in the system 1 in which the cutting operation of the workpiece W is performed at high speed, the determination of defective products is managed based on the number of cut objects P, which simplifies the selection of defective products from the cut objects P and makes it easy to control the defective product discharge mechanism 6.

[0045] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the cutting mechanism 4 employs a rotary cutter 13 that is rotationally driven in synchronization with the conveying speed of the workpiece W. As a result, in the constant speed section in which the workpiece W is conveyed at a constant speed S, the rotary cutter 13 is rotationally driven in synchronization with the conveying speed, thereby making it possible to continuously cut the workpiece W to a set constant length. This also makes it possible to cut the workpiece W to a set length in the acceleration section and deceleration section, except for the above-mentioned times NG1, NG2, NG3, and NG4 at which the workpiece is determined to be defective. Therefore, the rotary cutter 13 of the cutting mechanism 4 can be easily controlled, and the workpiece W can be repeatedly cut to a set length.

[0046] In the above embodiment, the cutting system 1 is configured to include the forming mechanism 3, the speed-increasing conveying mechanism 5, the defective product discharge mechanism 6, etc., but various changes can be made to the overall configuration of the system, such as a system that includes at least a conveying path, a conveying mechanism, and a cutting mechanism. In the above embodiment, the cut objects P cut at the start time NG1 and the end time NG4 are also determined to be defective, but the desired effect can be achieved by determining whether the cut objects P cut at at least the acceleration switching time NG2 and the deceleration switching time NG3 are defective.

[0047] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the cutting mechanism 4 employs the rotary cutter 13 that is driven in synchronization with the feed speed of the workpiece W, but various cutters other than the rotary cutter can be employed. In this case, similarly, variations occur in the cut dimensions of the cut piece P for the start time NG1, acceleration switch time NG2, deceleration switch time NG3, and end time NG4, so by similarly performing defective product judgment, it is possible to obtain the effect of suppressing the wasteful disposal of the cut piece.

[0048] Furthermore, although the above embodiment is applied to equipment for manufacturing flat tubes for vehicle heat exchangers, the present disclosure can also be applied to equipment for cutting various workpieces. While the present disclosure has been described based on the examples, it is understood that the present disclosure is not limited to those examples or structures. The present disclosure also encompasses various modifications and modifications within the scope of equivalents. Additionally, various combinations and configurations, including only one element, more than one element, or fewer than one element, are also within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure.

[0049] The control unit and the method described herein may be implemented by a special-purpose computer configured by configuring a processor and memory programmed to perform one or more functions embodied in a computer program. Alternatively, the control unit and the method described herein may be implemented by a special-purpose computer configured by configuring a processor with one or more dedicated hardware logic circuits. Alternatively, the control unit and the method described herein may be implemented by one or more special-purpose computers configured by combining a processor and memory programmed to perform one or more functions with a processor configured with one or more hardware logic circuits. Furthermore, the computer program may be stored in a computer-readable non-transitory tangible recording medium as instructions executed by a computer. [Explanation of symbols]

[0050] In the drawing, 1 is a cutting processing system, 2 is a conveying path, 3 is a forming mechanism (conveying mechanism), 4 is a cutting mechanism, 5 is a speed-up conveying mechanism, 6 is a defective product discharge mechanism, 7 is a good product accumulation mechanism, 12 is a machine controller (control device), 12a is a good / bad judgment unit, 13 is a rotary cutter, W is a workpiece, and P is a cut piece.

Claims

1. A cutting system (1) comprising: a conveying mechanism (3) for conveying a long workpiece (W) in a sequential manner; a cutting mechanism (4) for cutting the workpiece supplied by the conveying mechanism to a set length to obtain cut pieces (P); and a control device (12) for controlling the conveying mechanism and the cutting mechanism to repeatedly perform cutting, The control device controls the conveying speed of the workpiece in the conveying mechanism to accelerate from a speed of 0 to a constant speed (S) when a processing start command is issued, and then continues to control the constant speed, and controls the conveying speed to decelerate from the constant speed to a speed of 0 when a processing end command is issued, The cutting system is provided with a quality judgment unit (12a) that judges cut products that have been cut during a period near the time when the conveying speed is switched from an accelerated speed to a constant speed and during a period near the time when the conveying speed is switched from a constant speed to a decelerated speed as defective products that do not meet product standards, and judges cut products other than those judged to be defective as good products.

2. The cutting system according to claim 1 , wherein the quality determining unit further determines that the cut product cut at the start time when the acceleration of the conveying speed starts and the end time when the deceleration ends is defective.

3. 2. The cutting system according to claim 1, wherein the cutting mechanism includes a rotary cutter (13), and the rotary cutter is rotationally driven in synchronization with the conveying speed of the conveying mechanism.

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