Cable tie attachment device

Abstract

To provide a binding band attachment device capable of automatically winding a binding band around an object to be bound to bind it.SOLUTION: A binding band attachment device 10 comprises a holding part 4 for holding a protector 2 and an electric wire 1, a first unit 11, and a second unit 12. The first unit 11 comprises: a feed roller 53 for feeding a band part 31 of a binding band 3; a stop part 51 disposed on the upstream side of the feed roller 53 and positioning a locking part 32 of the binding band 3; a feed guide part 57 disposed on the downstream side of the feed roller 53 and guiding the band part 31 to the second unit 12 side; a return guide part 58 for guiding the band part 31 which has passed through the second unit 12, to the stop part 51 side; and a fastening roller 59 for fastening the band part 31 which has passed through the locking part 32. The second unit 12 comprises a folding-back guide part 7 for folding back the band part 31 guided from the feed guide part 57 into a U-shape and guiding the band part to the return guide part 58 side.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 10

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a cable tie attaching device that wraps a cable tie around an object to be tied. [Background technology]

[0002] One example of a wire harness installed in a vehicle includes electric wires and a trough-shaped exterior component that houses the electric wires, and the electric wires and the exterior component are bound together with cable ties. This binding work is performed manually, and automation by machine has been desired.

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses a bundling method using a bundling tool to wrap a cable tie around a steel plate and a bundle of electric wires running along the plate. This bundling tool includes a pair of beak-shaped clamping pieces that surround the object to be bundled and guide the cable tie, and a piston grip that switches the pair of clamping pieces between an open standby state and a closed bundling state. In this bundling method, the bundle of electric wires is placed between a pair of elongated holes formed through the steel plate, and the pair of clamping pieces is passed through each of the elongated holes to enter the bundling state, whereby the cable tie is wrapped around the portion of the steel plate between the pair of elongated holes and the bundle of electric wires to bind them. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2005-343538 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The binding method of Patent Document 1 still requires manual operations such as aligning the pair of clips with the elongated holes and operating the piston grip.

[0006] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to make it possible to automatically wrap a binding band around an object to be bound and bind it. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The present invention provides a cable tie attachment device comprising: a holding portion for holding an object to be bound; a first unit positioned on one side of the object to be bound; and a second unit positioned on the other side of the object to be bound; wherein the first unit comprises a feed roller for feeding out the band portion of the cable tie; a stop portion located upstream of the feed roller for positioning the locking portion of the cable tie; a feed guide portion located downstream of the feed roller for guiding the band portion toward the second unit; a return guide portion for guiding the band portion that has passed through the second unit toward the stop portion; and a tightening roller for tightening the band portion that has passed through the locking portion; and wherein the second unit comprises a fold back guide portion for folding the band portion guided from the feed guide portion into a U-shape and guiding it toward the return guide portion, and wherein the cable tie attachment device wraps the cable tie around the object to bind it. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the present invention, it is possible to automatically wrap a cable tie around an object to be bound and bind it. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram showing a cable tie attachment device according to one embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 2] 2 is a diagram showing a state in which a protector is set in a holding portion of the binding band attaching device of FIG. 1. FIG. [Figure 3] 3 is a diagram showing a state in which an electric wire is housed in the protector of FIG. 2.

[0023] FIG. [Figure 4] 4 is a diagram showing a state in which a cable tie is wrapped around the electric wire and the protector of FIG. 3. FIG. [Figure 5] 1. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the cable tie attaching device of FIG. 1, showing how the first unit and the second unit approach the holding portion in which the protector and the electric wires are set. [Figure 6]6 is a diagram showing a state in which the first unit and the second unit of FIG. 5 are positioned above and below the holding part. FIG. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a state in which the second unit in FIG. 6 has moved to the first unit side. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is an enlarged view of a main part of FIG. 7. [Figure 9] 8 is a diagram showing a state in which a binding band is supplied to the first unit of FIG. 7. FIG. [Figure 10] 10 is a diagram showing the state in which the binding band in FIG. 9 is fed out to the second unit side by a feed roller. [Figure 11] 11 is a diagram showing a state in which the band portion of the binding band in FIG. 10 has passed through the locking portion and reached the tightening roller. [Figure 12] 12 is a diagram showing a state in which the second unit in FIG. 11 has moved away from the first unit. FIG. [Figure 13] 13 is a diagram showing how the band portion of FIG. 12 is tightened by tightening rollers. FIG. [Figure 14] 14 is a diagram showing a state in which the locking portion in FIG. 13 is pressed toward the protector by the pressing portion, and the unnecessary portion of the band portion is cut off by the cutting portion. FIG. [Figure 15] 15 is a diagram showing a state in which the first unit and the second unit in FIG. 14 are separated from the holder. FIG. [Figure 16] 8 is a side view of the cable tie attachment device in the state shown in FIG. 7. FIG. [Figure 17] 12 is a side view of the cable tie attachment device in the state shown in FIG. 11. FIG. [Figure 18] 13 is a side view of the cable tie attachment device in the state shown in FIG. 12. FIG. [Figure 19] 19 is a diagram showing a state in which the feed rollers and the like in FIG. 18 are retracted to positions where they do not overlap with the binding bands. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] A "cable tie attaching device" according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0011] The cable tie attachment device 10 shown in Fig. 1 is a device that wraps a cable tie 3 around a protector 2 (object to be tied, exterior part) shown in Fig. 2 and two electric wires 1 (objects to be tied) shown in Fig. 3 as shown in Fig. 4 to tie them together. The protector 2 and the two electric wires 1 wrapped with the cable tie 3 constitute an automotive wire harness.

[0012] The binding band 3 is a well-known one having a band portion 31 and a locking portion 32 connected to one end of the band portion 31. A plurality of tooth-like protrusions are provided in succession on the band portion 31. The other end of the band portion 31 is passed through the locking portion 32. The locking portion 32 is locked onto one of the plurality of protrusions to fix the band portion 31 in a ring shape.

[0013] The protector 2 is made of insulating synthetic resin. The protector 2 has a bottom wall 20 and a pair of side walls 21, 22, and is formed in a gutter shape to accommodate two electric wires 1. The bottom wall 20 is formed with a pair of through holes 23, 24 aligned in the opposing direction of the pair of side walls 21, 22. A band portion 31 of a cable tie 3 is passed through these through holes 23, 24. The two electric wires 1 are placed in a portion 20a between the pair of through holes 23, 24 of the bottom wall 20. The cable tie 3 is passed through the pair of through holes 23, 24 and wrapped around the portion 20a between the pair of through holes 23, 24 of the bottom wall 20 and the two electric wires 1 to bind them together.

[0014] The protector 2 also has a restricting portion 25 that moves the two electric wires 1 toward the center in the width direction of the protector 2. The restricting portion 25 is a plate that is connected to the pair of side walls 21, 22 and the bottom wall 20, and has a semicircular notch 25a formed therein. The restricting portion 25 is provided at a position offset from the pair of through holes 23, 24 in the longitudinal direction of the protector 2.

[0015] A cover facing the bottom wall 20 is attached to the protector 2. The pair of side walls 21 and 22 are provided with locking projections 26 that lock with the cover.

[0016] The cable tie attachment device 10 includes a holder 4 that holds the protector 2 and two electric wires 1, a first unit 11, a second unit 12, a frame 13 that supports the first unit 11 and the second unit 12, and a moving means (not shown) that moves the frame 13. The first unit 11 and the second unit 12 are arranged opposite each other in the direction of arrow Y in FIG. 1. In this example, the direction of arrow Y is the up-down direction. The first unit 11 and the second unit 12 are also arranged so that they can move toward and away from each other. In this example, the second unit 12 moves up and down relative to the first unit 11.

[0017] 2 and 8, the holding portion 4 is formed in a plate shape. The holding portion 4 is formed with a groove 42 into which the protector 2 is fitted and an elongated hole 43 that communicates with the groove 42. The elongated hole 43 extends in the opposing direction of the pair of side walls 21, 22 of the protector 2 and overlaps with both of the pair of through holes 23, 24 of the protector 2.

[0018] When the protector 2 and the electric wire 1 are set in the holding part 4, the first unit 11 and the second unit 12 are positioned at a position away from the holding part 4. Then, the first unit 11 and the second unit 12 are moved closer to the holding part 4 by a moving means such as a robot arm connected to the frame 13 as shown in FIG. 5, and the first unit 11 and the second unit 12 are positioned above and below the holding part 4 as shown in FIG.

[0019] The first unit 11 is positioned above the protector 2 and the wire 1 held by the holding portion 4. As shown in Figures 1, 5 to 19, the first unit 11 includes a block-shaped main body 50, a tightening roller 59 and a driven roller 60 arranged above the main body 50, a pressing portion 62 and a cutting portion 61 arranged in front of the main body 50 in the direction of arrow Z (to the right in Figures 16 to 19), and the like.

[0020] The main body 50 is provided with a stop portion 51, a guide portion 52, a feed guide portion 57, and a return guide portion 58. The main body 50 also has a feed roller 53 and a driven roller 54 attached thereto.

[0021] The feed roller 53 is a roller that passes the band portion 31 of the cable tie 3 supplied from a cable tie supply means (not shown) between itself and a driven roller 54, and feeds out the band portion 31.

[0022] The stop portion 51 is provided on the upstream side of the feed roller 53 and is a portion for positioning the locking portion 32 of the binding band 3.

[0023] The guide portion 52 is a groove provided between the stop portion 51 and the feed roller 53 and guides the band portion 31 toward the feed roller 53 side.

[0024] The feed guide portion 57 is provided downstream of the feed roller 53. The feed guide portion 57 guides the band portion 31 toward the second unit 12. In this example, the feed guide portion 57 guides the band portion 31 to pass through one of the through holes 23. The feed guide portion 57 is configured to have an entrance portion 55 that is part of the main body portion 50, and a guide plate 56 attached to the main body portion 50. There is a gap between the entrance portion 55 and the guide plate 56, and the band portion 31 passes between them.

[0025] 8, the insertion portion 55 is inserted between the pair of side walls 21, 22 of the protector 2, and the band portion 31 passes between the insertion portion 55 and the side wall 21. As shown in FIG.

[0026] The return guide portion 58 is a groove provided in the main body portion 50, and guides the band portion 31 that has passed through the second unit 12 toward the stop portion 51 side.

[0027] The tightening roller 59 is a roller that tightens the band portion 31 by passing the band portion 31 that has passed through the locking portion 32 positioned at the stop portion 51 between itself and a driven roller 60 .

[0028] The pressing portion 62 presses the locking portion 32 toward the protector 2 and into the protector 2 after the band portion 31 has been brought into a state where it can be tightened by the tightening roller 59 .

[0029] The cutting portion 61 cuts off the unnecessary portion of the band portion 31 after the band portion 31 has been tightened by the tightening rollers 59 and the locking portion 32 has been pushed into the protector 2 by the pressing portion 62 .

[0030] The main body 50, pressing portion 62, and cutting portion 61 are provided so as to be movable in the direction of arrow Z (see FIGS. 16 to 19). After the band portion 31 is brought into a state in which it can be tightened by the tightening rollers 59, these move rearward in the direction of arrow Z (to the left in FIGS. 16 to 19). As a result, the above-mentioned parts of the main body 50 are retracted to positions where they do not overlap with the binding band 3, and the pressing portion 62 and cutting portion 61 are positioned directly above the locking portion 32. Next, the pressing portion 62 and cutting portion 61 move downward to push the locking portion 32 into the protector 2, and the cutting portion 62 cuts off the unnecessary portion of the band portion 31.

[0031] The second unit 12 is positioned below the protector 2 and the wire 1 held by the holding portion 4. As shown in Figures 1, 5 to 19, the second unit 12 includes a folding guide portion 7 that folds the band portion 31 guided from the feed guide portion 57 back in a U-shape and guides it toward the return guide portion 58. The folding guide portion 7 in this example guides the band portion 31 to pass through the other through-hole 24.

[0032] The folding guide portion 7 has a first folding guide portion 71 that is movable in the direction of the arrow Z by a cylinder 15, and a second folding guide portion 72 that is movable in the direction of the arrow Y by a cylinder 14 (see Figures 16 to 19).

[0033] The folding guide portion 7 is arranged so as to be displaceable between a state in which the first folding guide portion 71 is positioned between the protector 2 and the second folding guide portion 72, and a state in which the first folding guide portion 71 is retracted and the second folding guide portion 72 is close to the protector 2.

[0034] The first folding guide portion 71 has a block portion 73 and an entrance portion 74 that protrudes above the upper surface of the block portion 73. The first folding guide portion 71 is provided with a groove 75 that guides the band portion 31 that has passed through one of the through holes 23, and a groove 76 that guides the band portion 31 so that it passes through the other through hole 24.

[0035] A tapered surface 73a is provided on the front surface of the block portion 73. When the second folding guide portion 72 moves upward, the second folding guide portion 72 comes into contact with the tapered surface 73a, which causes the first folding guide portion 71 to move rearward in the direction of arrow Z.

[0036] 8, the entry portion 74 enters the elongated hole 43 of the holder 4 to form guide portions 63, 64 within the elongated hole 43. The guide portion 63 is formed between one through hole 23 and the groove 75, and guides the band portion 31. The guide portion 64 is formed between the other through hole 24 and the groove 76, and guides the band portion 31.

[0037] The second folding guide portion 72 has a main body portion 77 provided with a semicircular recess 79 and a plate 78 attached to the front surface of the main body portion 77.

[0038] Next, a series of operations performed by the cable tie attaching device 10 to wrap the cable tie 3 around the protector 2 and the two electric wires 1 to bind them together will be described.

[0039] First, the protector 2 and the wire 1 are set in the holding part 4. Then, the first unit 11 and the second unit 12 are brought close to the holding part 4 as shown in Fig. 5, and the first unit 11 and the second unit 12 are positioned above and below the holding part 4 as shown in Fig. 6. Next, the second unit 12 is brought close to the first unit 11 and the holding part 4 as shown in Figs. 7 and 8.

[0040] Next, as shown in Fig. 9, the cable tie 3 is supplied from the cable tie supply means, and the band portion 31 passes through the guide portion 52 and is fed to the feed roller 53. The feed roller 53 feeds out the band portion 31 until the locking portion 32 abuts against the stop portion 51 and is positioned as shown in Fig. 10. The band portion 31 fed out from the feed roller 53 is guided by the feed guide portion 57, the folding guide portion 7, and the return guide portion 58.

[0041] 10, when the band 31 is positioned just before the locking portion 32 positioned at the stop portion 51, the second folding guide portion 72 moves upward and the first folding guide portion 71 retreats backward in the direction of arrow Z. By moving the second folding guide portion 72 upward in this manner, the band guide path becomes shorter, and as shown in FIG. 11, the band portion 31 passes the locking portion 32 positioned at the stop portion 51 and reaches the tightening roller 59.

[0042] When the band portion 31 reaches the tightening roller 59, the second unit 12 descends as shown in Figure 12. The main body portion 50, the pressing portion 62, and the cutting portion 61 move backward in the direction of arrow Z, and each part of the main body portion 50 retreats to a position where it does not overlap with the binding band 3.

[0043] Next, as shown in Fig. 13, the band portion 31 is tightened by the tightening roller 59, and as shown in Fig. 14, the fastening is continued with a specified torque while the pressing portion 62 presses down the locking portion 32. Then, after the locking portion 32 is pressed into the protector 2, the unnecessary portion of the band portion 31 is cut off by the cutting portion 61.

[0044] Next, as shown in FIG. 15, the first unit 11 and the second unit 12 are separated from the holding portion 4, and the binding operation of the binding band 3 is completed.

[0045] The cable tie attachment device 10 described above can automatically wrap the cable tie 3 around the protector 2 and two electric wires 1 to bind them. Furthermore, the cable tie attachment device 10 makes it possible to automate the insertion and tightening of the cable tie 3 into a limited, narrow path such as the protector 2. Furthermore, when manually binding, the electric wire 1 must first be lifted up, the cable tie 3 must be passed through the through holes 23 and 24 of the protector 2, and then looped, and confirmation must be performed to ensure that both the electric wire 1 and the protector 2 are tightened. However, this is no longer necessary with the device 10. Furthermore, the cable tie attachment device 10 can accommodate a variety of workpieces by changing the width and overall length of the band guide path to match the shape of the target workpiece.

[0046] The above-described embodiment merely shows a typical form of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. In other words, the present invention can be implemented with various modifications within the scope of the gist of the present invention. As long as such modifications still include the configuration of the present invention, they are of course included in the scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0047] 1 Electric wire (object to be bundled) 2 Protector (for bound objects, exterior parts) 3 cable ties 4 Holding part 7 Folding guide 11 Unit 1 12 Unit 2 31 Band Club 32 Locking part 51 Stop part 53 Feed roller 57 Feed guide 58 Return guide part 59 Tightening roller 61 Cut section 62 Pressing part 71 First folding guide part 72 Second folding guide part

Claims

1. a holding portion that holds the object to be bound; a first unit positioned on one side of the object to be bound; a second unit positioned on the other side of the object to be bound, The first unit is a feed roller that feeds out the band portion of the cable tie; a stopper provided upstream of the feed roller and configured to position the locking portion of the cable tie; a feed guide portion provided downstream of the feed roller and guiding the band portion toward the second unit; a return guide portion that guides the band portion that has passed through the second unit toward the stop portion; a tightening roller that tightens the band portion that has passed through the locking portion, the second unit includes a folding guide portion that folds the band portion guided from the feed guide portion back in a U-shape and guides the band portion toward the return guide portion, The binding band is wrapped around the object to be bound to bind it. A cable tie attachment device.

2. The folding guide section has a first folding guide section and a second folding guide section that are movably provided, and is provided so as to be displaceable between a state in which the first folding guide section is disposed between the object to be bound and the second folding guide section, and a state in which the first folding guide section is retracted from between the object to be bound and the second folding guide section, and the second folding guide section is brought close to the object to be bound.

2. The cable tie attachment device according to claim 1.

3. The feed roller, the stopper, the feed guide, and the return guide are provided with a pressing portion that retreats to a position where it does not overlap with the binding band after the band portion has been brought into a state where it can be fastened by the fastening roller, and that presses the locking portion toward the object to be fastened after the retreating portions.

2. The cable tie attachment device according to claim 1.

4. A cutting section is provided to cut off an unnecessary portion of the band portion after the band portion is fastened by the fastening rollers.

2. The cable tie attachment device according to claim 1.

5. the object to be bound is an electric wire and a trough-shaped exterior part having a bottom wall and a pair of side walls and accommodating the electric wire, A pair of through holes is formed in the bottom wall and aligned in the opposing direction of the pair of side walls, the feed guide portion guides the band portion so that it passes through one of the through holes, The folding guide portion guides the band portion to pass through the other through hole.

2. The cable tie attachment device according to claim 1.

6. The feed guide portion has an entry portion that enters between the pair of side walls.

6. The cable tie attachment device according to claim 5.

7. a groove into which the exterior component is fitted, and an elongated hole that communicates with the groove and overlaps with both of the pair of through holes of the exterior component, The folding guide portion has an insertion portion that is inserted into the long hole of the holding portion.

6. The cable tie attachment device according to claim 5.

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