Measurement method using a coil holding device

Abstract

To provide a retainer of a coil which can place a coil without inclining the coil.SOLUTION: A retainer 1 of a coil 10 placing a multilayered and concentrated winding cassette coil 10 includes a plurality of seating parts 30 where the concentrated winding cassette coil 10 is seated. The plurality of seating parts 30 includes: a seating part 31 whose height in a vertical direction is a first height; and a seating part 32 whose height is a second height that is different from the first height. The concentrated winding cassette coil 10 has a top face 11 and a bottom face 12. Each of the seating parts 30 includes a seating face 40 which contacts with the bottom face 12 and on which the concentrated winding cassette coil 10 is seated. The seating face 40 of the seating part 31 is positioned vertically below a contact point of the top face 11 where a probe 21 measuring thickness of the concentrated winding cassette coil 10 in the vertical direction contacts with the top face.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 8

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a coil retention device. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a jig for supporting a coil in the manufacturing process of a concentrated winding cassette coil. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2013-017266 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-280247 [Patent Document 3] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2020-089108 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Concentrated winding cassette coils are formed in a spiral shape, which causes a tilt in the stacking direction. For example, when trying to inspect the thickness of the coil in the stacking direction, the tilt makes it difficult to accurately measure the thickness. Concentrated winding cassette coils are required to be placed without any tilt.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made to solve such problems, and aims to provide a coil holding device that can place a coil without tilting it. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] A coil holding device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure is a coil holding device for placing concentrated winding cassette coils stacked in multiple layers, and is provided with a plurality of seating portions for seating the concentrated winding cassette coils, the plurality of seating portions including a first seating portion having a first vertical height and a second seating portion having a second vertical height different from the first height.

[0007] In the above-described coil holding device, the concentrated winding cassette coil may have an upper surface and a lower surface, each seating portion may have a seating surface that contacts the lower surface and seats the concentrated winding cassette coil, and a first seating surface of the first seating portion may be located vertically below a contact point on the upper surface that contacts a probe that measures the thickness of the concentrated winding cassette coil in the vertical direction.

[0008] The coil holding device may further include an adjustment mechanism that moves the seating portion in a vertical direction to adjust the height in the vertical direction. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide a coil holding device that allows a coil to be placed without tilting. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 10 is a top view illustrating a coil according to a comparative example. [Figure 2A] 2 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a coil holding device according to a comparative example, taken along line II-II in FIG. 1; [Figure 2B] 2 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a coil holding device according to a comparative example, taken along line II-II in FIG. 1; [Figure 3A] FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which each layer of the coil is floating in the measurement of the thickness of the coil according to the comparative example. [Figure 3B] FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which the coil is tilted in measuring the thickness of the coil according to the comparative example. [Figure 4A]10 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which each layer of the coil is misaligned in measuring the width of the coil according to the comparative example. FIG. [Figure 4B] FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which the coil is tilted in measuring the width of the coil according to the comparative example. [Figure 5] FIG. 2 is a top view illustrating the coil according to the first embodiment. [Figure 6A] 6 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the coil holding device according to the first embodiment, taken along line VIA-VIA in FIG. 5. FIG. [Figure 6B] 6 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the coil holding device according to the first embodiment, taken along line VIB-VIB in FIG. 5. FIG. [Figure 7A] 7 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the coil holding device according to the first embodiment, taken along line VII-VII in FIG. 5. FIG. [Figure 7B] 7 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the coil holding device according to the first embodiment, taken along line VII-VII in FIG. 5. FIG. [Figure 8] 10 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a coil holding device according to another example of the first embodiment. FIG. [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is a top view illustrating a coil holding device according to a second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] Specific configurations of the present embodiment will be described below with reference to the drawings. The following description illustrates preferred embodiments of the present disclosure, and the scope of the present disclosure is not limited to the following embodiments. Furthermore, not all of the configurations described in the present embodiment are necessarily essential means for solving the problems. For clarity of explanation, the following description and drawings have been omitted and simplified as appropriate. In each drawing, the same elements are assigned the same reference numerals, and duplicate explanations are omitted as necessary.

[0012] Before describing the coil holding device according to the embodiment, a coil holding device according to a comparative example will be described. Then, after describing the problems of the coil holding device according to the comparative example, the coil holding device of this embodiment will be described in comparison with the comparative example. This will make the coil holding device of this embodiment clearer. Note that the coil holding device of the comparative example and its problems are also included in the technical concept of the embodiment.

[0013] (Comparative Example) FIG. 1 is a top view illustrating a coil according to a comparative example. FIGS. 2A and 2B are cross-sectional views illustrating a coil holding device according to a comparative example, taken along line II-II in FIG. 1. As shown in FIGS. 1, 2A, and 2B, a holding device 101 for a coil 10 according to the comparative example includes, for example, a stage 100. The stage 100 mounts the coil 10. Thus, the coil 10 is mounted on the stage 100. The coil 10 is used in, for example, a motor. Note that the use of the coil 10 is not limited to motors.

[0014] The stage 100 has a horizontal surface. Here, for the convenience of explaining the holding device 101 for the coil 10, an XYZ Cartesian coordinate system is introduced. For example, the vertical direction is the Z-axis direction, and the horizontal plane is the XY plane.

[0015] The coil 10 is, for example, a concentrated winding cassette coil. The coil 10 is formed by stacking multiple layers of rectangular wire in a spiral shape. Note that the coil 10 is not limited to rectangular wire, and may be formed by stacking multiple layers of other shaped conductive wires in a spiral shape. The coil 10 is stacked in the Z-axis direction. The coil 10 may also be formed by winding rectangular wire in a spiral shape around a central axis. In this case, the coil 10 is placed so that the central axis is aligned with the Z-axis direction. The coil 10 has an upper surface 11 and a lower surface 12. The upper surface 11 of the coil 10 faces the +Z-axis direction, and the lower surface 12 of the coil 10 faces the -Z-axis direction.

[0016] The length of the coil 10 in the stacking direction is called the thickness A1. As shown in Figures 2A and 2B, when the stacking direction is the Z-axis direction, the thickness A1 is the length in the Z-axis direction. Therefore, the thickness A1 is the length in the vertical direction. The thickness A1 is the length between the top surface 11 and the bottom surface 12 of the coil 10 in the Z-axis direction.

[0017] The spacing between the rectangular wires in the direction perpendicular to the stacking direction of the coil 10 is called width A2 and width A3. For example, width A2 is the spacing between the rectangular wires facing each other in the X-axis direction across the central axis of the coil 10. Therefore, width A2 is the length between the side surfaces 13 facing each other in the X-axis direction. Width A3 is the spacing between the rectangular wires facing each other in the Y-axis direction across the central axis of the coil 10. Therefore, width A3 is the length between the side surfaces 13 facing each other in the Y-axis direction.

[0018] The thickness A1 of the coil 10 is measured, for example, by contact measurement using the probe 21. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2A , first, the probe 21 is brought into contact with the stage 100 on which the coil 10 is placed. In this way, the probe 21 measures the position of the bottom surface 12 of the coil 10. Next, the probe 21 is brought into contact with the top surface 11 of the coil 10. In this way, the probe 21 measures the position of the top surface 11 of the coil 10. Then, the probe 21 measures the thickness A1 of the coil 10 by subtracting the position of the bottom surface 12 from the position of the top surface 11.

[0019] The width A2 of the coil 10 is measured, for example, by image measurement using projection. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2B , a light source 22 disposed below the coil 10 irradiates the coil 10 with light from below. The light that passes between the side surfaces 13 of the coil 10 is captured as an image via a lens 23 disposed above the coil 10. The widths A2 and A3 of the coil 10 are measured by measuring the distance between the side surfaces 13 of the coil 10 in the captured image.

[0020] However, if the coil 10 is not properly restrained by clamping or the like, the thickness A1 cannot be measured accurately. FIG. 3A is a cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which each layer of the coil 10 is floating when measuring the thickness A1 of the coil 10 according to the comparative example. When each layer of the coil 10 is floating as shown in FIG. 3A, the thickness A1 of the coil 10 cannot be measured accurately. FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which the coil 10 is tilted when measuring the thickness A1 of the coil 10 according to the comparative example. When the coil 10 is tilted as shown in FIG. 3B, the thickness A1 of the coil 10 cannot be measured accurately.

[0021] Furthermore, if the coil 10 is improperly restrained by clamping or the like, the widths A2 and A3 between the side surfaces 13 of the coil 10 cannot be accurately measured. FIG. 4A is a cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which the layers of the coil 10 are misaligned when measuring the widths A2 and A3 of the coil 10 according to the comparative example. As shown in FIG. 4A, when the layers of the coil 10 are misaligned, the widths A2 and A3 of the coil 10 cannot be accurately measured. FIG. 4B is a cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which the coil 10 is tilted when measuring the widths A2 and A3 of the coil 10 according to the comparative example. As shown in FIG. 4A, when the coil 10 is tilted, the widths A2 and A3 of the coil 10 cannot be accurately measured.

[0022] The following issues were found to be the causes of such problems. (I) The concentrated winding coil 10 is formed in a spiral shape in the Z-axis direction, and therefore has no flat surface relative to the central axis, and will tilt if placed on a flat surface. (II) When the aspect ratio (width / length) of the cross section of the rectangular wire is large and the rigidity is low, the coil 10 is significantly deformed by the clamp. Specifically, the rectangular wire is soft and can be deformed with a small force. For example, each layer of the coil 10 may float or shift. Therefore, in the concentrated winding coil 10, it is difficult to measure the thickness A1, width A2, and width A3 with high accuracy, especially when (a) the product shape requirements are high and (b) the aspect ratio (width / length) of the cross section of the rectangular wire is large and the rigidity is low.

[0023] (Embodiment 1) Next, a holding device for the coil 10 according to this embodiment will be described. The holding device for the coil 10 according to this embodiment solves the problems of the comparative example described above. FIG. 5 is a top view illustrating a coil according to embodiment 1. FIG. 6A is a cross-sectional view illustrating the coil holding device according to embodiment 1, taken along line VIA-VIA in FIG. 5. FIG. 6B is a cross-sectional view illustrating the coil holding device according to embodiment 1, taken along line VIB-VIB in FIG. 5. FIGS. 7A and 7B are cross-sectional views illustrating the coil holding device according to embodiment 1, taken along line VII-VII in FIG. 5.

[0024] As shown in FIGS. 5, 6A and 6B, and 7A and 7B, a holding device 1 for a coil 10 according to this embodiment places, for example, a concentrated winding cassette coil 10 stacked in multiple layers. The holding device 1 includes a stage 100 and a plurality of seats 30. The plurality of seats 30 seats the concentrated winding cassette coil 10. The plurality of seats 30 includes seats 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, and 36. The seats 31 to 36 are collectively referred to as seats 30, and a specific seat 30 is referred to by its reference symbol. The number of seats 30 is not limited to six, but may be two to five, or seven or more.

[0025] The vertical height of seat 31 is a first height. The height of seat 32 is a second height different from the first height. Similarly, seats 33, 34, 35, and 36 are third, fourth, fifth, and sixth heights, respectively. Each seat 30 may have a different height. Alternatively, some seats 30 may have the same height. Each seat 30 has a height difference A4 that matches the inclination of coil 10.

[0026] The seating portion 30 has a seating surface 40 that contacts the underside 12 of the coil 10 and seats the coil 10. The seating surface 40 is, for example, the end surface at the upper end of the seating portion 30. Note that the seating surface 40 is not limited to the end surface at the upper end, as long as it can seat the coil 10. In Figures 6A and 6B, some reference numerals have been omitted to avoid cluttering the figures.

[0027] The height of the seating section 30 may be expressed as the vertical position of the seat surface 40. In that case, the height is the position of the seat surface 40 in the Z-axis direction. For example, if the stage 100 is a horizontal surface, the height is the length between the stage 100 and the seat surface 40.

[0028] The fixing clamps 24 may be pressed against the upper surface 11 of the coil 10 from above along the Z-axis direction to fix the coil 10 with the fixing clamps 24. Furthermore, in addition to pressing the fixing clamps 24 against the upper surface 11 from above along the Z-axis direction, the fixing clamps 24 may be pressed against the lower surface 12 from below along the Z-axis direction to fix the coil 10. Furthermore, both sides of the seating surface 40 may be clamped with fixing clamps 24. Fixation may also be achieved with multiple fixing clamps 24.

[0029] 6A and 7A, for example, seating surface 40 of seating portion 31 may be positioned vertically below the contact point of upper surface 11 with which probe 21 comes into contact. This allows thickness A1 of coil 10 to be measured with high accuracy.

[0030] Fig. 8 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a holding device 1a for the coil 10 according to another example of the first embodiment. As shown in Fig. 8, the holding device 1a for the coil 10 may include an adjustment mechanism 50 that adjusts the height of the seating portion 30. The adjustment mechanism 50 moves the seating portion 30 in the vertical direction to adjust the height of the seating portion 30.

[0031] Next, the effects of this embodiment will be described. The holding device 1 for the coil 10 of this embodiment includes the following key features. (i) The height of the seating surfaces 40 of the plurality of seating portions 30 is adjusted to match the inclination of the lower surface 12 of the coil 10 . (ii) A seat 40 is provided directly below the thickness measurement point, and both sides of the seat 40 are clamped.

[0032] Specifically, the holding device 1 of this embodiment places the coil 10 on a plurality of seats 30 whose heights correspond to the inclination of the coil 10. This realizes the configuration (i) above. The concentrated winding coil 10 is formed in a spiral shape in the Z-axis direction, and therefore has no flat surface relative to the central axis, so it will tilt if placed on a flat surface. However, the holding device 1 of this embodiment supports the coil 10 on a plurality of seats 30 whose heights are different. Therefore, the height of the seating surface 40 of the seating portion 30 can be adjusted to match the inclination of the coil 10, so the coil 10 can be placed without tilting.

[0033] Furthermore, the seating surface 40 of the seating portion 30 is positioned directly below the contact point on the top surface 11 of the coil 10 with which the probe 21 makes contact. This achieves the configuration (ii) above. If the cross-sectional aspect ratio (width / length) of the rectangular wire is large and the rigidity is low, the coil 10 may be significantly deformed by the clamp, making it impossible to accurately measure the thickness A1. However, the holding device 1 of this embodiment has the seating surface 40 located directly below the thickness measurement point and clamps both sides, so that the thickness A1 can be measured with high accuracy even for coils 10 with low rigidity.

[0034] As described above, according to this embodiment, the configurations (i) and (ii) make it possible to fix the coil 10 while suppressing tilt and displacement in the X, Y, and Z axis directions, and it is possible to measure the dimensions of the coil 10, such as the thickness A1, width A2, and width A3, with high accuracy even for a coil 10 with low rigidity. Furthermore, it is possible to restrain the coil 10 in the same position each time of measurement, thereby improving the repeatability of measurements.

[0035] (Embodiment 2) Next, a holding device for coil 10 according to a second embodiment will be described. The holding device of this embodiment has a wide contact surface of the clamp. FIG. 9 is a top view illustrating the holding device for coil 10 according to the second embodiment. As shown in FIG. 9, the holding device 2 for coil 10 according to this embodiment includes, in addition to the configuration of the holding device 1 described above, an X-axis reference 25, an X-axis clamp 26, a Y-axis reference 27, a Y-axis clamp 28, and a plurality of springs 29.

[0036] The X-axis reference 25 and the X-axis clamp 26 sandwich the conductor wire, such as a flat wire, of the coil 10 in the X-axis direction. When viewed from the Z-axis direction, the coil 10 has a rectangular shape with the longer side in the Y-axis direction and the shorter side in the X-axis direction. The X-axis reference 25 is brought into contact with the inner side surface 13 of the coil 10, and the X-axis clamp 26 is brought into contact with the outer side surface 13. The flat wire is then clamped by the force of the spring 29 connected to the X-axis clamp 26. In this case, the contact surfaces of the X-axis reference 25 and the X-axis clamp 26 with the flat wire are made wide. Specifically, the X-axis reference 25 and the X-axis clamp 26 sandwich the flat wire in the coil straight portion A5 extending in the Y-axis direction of the coil 10.

[0037] The Y-axis reference 27 and the Y-axis clamp 28 clamp the conductor wire, such as a rectangular wire, of the coil 10 in the Y-axis direction. The Y-axis reference 27 is brought into contact with the outer side surface 13 of the coil 10, and the Y-axis clamp 28 is brought into contact with the inner side surface 13. The rectangular wire is then clamped by the force of a spring 29 connected to the Y-axis clamp 28.

[0038] As mentioned above, when the cross-sectional aspect ratio (width / length) of a rectangular wire is large and its rigidity is low, the layers of the coil 10 are likely to shift. Therefore, to prevent layer shift and align the layers of the coil 10, the coil 10 is fixed with a wide contact surface at the coil straight portion A5, which is the long side of the coil 10. For example, the X-axis reference 25 and the X-axis clamp 26 clamp 80% or more of the long side of the coil 10 as the coil straight portion A5. This configuration can prevent the coil 10 from tilting or shifting in the X, Y, and Z axes and fix it, allowing the dimensions of the coil 10, such as the thickness A1, width A2, and width A3, to be measured with high accuracy, even for a coil 10 with low rigidity. Other configurations and effects are included in the description of embodiment 1.

[0039] Although the embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above, the present disclosure includes appropriate modifications that do not impair the objects and advantages thereof, and is not limited to the above-described embodiments. Furthermore, the configurations in embodiment 1 may be combined as appropriate. [Explanation of symbols]

[0040] 1, 1a, 2 holding device 10 coils 11 Top side 12 Bottom side 13 Side 21 Probe 22 Light source 23 Lens 24 Fixed clamp 25 X-axis direction reference 26 X-axis clamp 27 Y-axis direction reference 28 Y-axis clamp 29 Spring 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36 Seating area 40 seat 50 Adjustment mechanism A1 Thickness A2, A3 width A4 difference A5 Coil straight section 100 stages 101 Holding device

Claims

1. A coil holding device for mounting a concentrated winding cassette coil stacked in multiple layers, comprising: a plurality of seats for seating the concentrated winding cassette coil; The plurality of seating sections include a first seating section having a first height in the vertical direction and a second seating section having a second height different from the first height, the concentrated winding cassette coil has an upper surface and a lower surface; Each seating portion has a seating surface that contacts the lower surface and seats the concentrated winding cassette coil, a first seating surface of the first seating portion is located vertically below a contact point on the top surface with which a probe for measuring the thickness of the concentrated winding cassette coil in the vertical direction comes into contact; the first seating surface on which the concentrated winding cassette coil is seated, and the thickness of the concentrated winding cassette coil in the vertical direction is measured from a position on the first seating surface that the probe contacts and a position on the upper surface that the probe contacts; Measurement method using a coil holding device.

2. The seat further includes an adjustment mechanism that moves the seat in a vertical direction and adjusts the height in the vertical direction. A measuring method using the coil holding device according to claim 1.

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