Tension adjusting device, conveying device, tire component manufacturing device, tire manufacturing device, tension adjusting method, conveying method, tire component manufacturing method, tire manufacturing method, and program

Abstract

To provide a material transferring apparatus that suppresses tension fluctuations and maintains high-precision tension.SOLUTION: A tension adjusting apparatus of the invention comprises: a pair of support rollers for supporting a material to be transferred; a push roller that pushes the material in the direction intersecting with the transferring direction of the material when viewed from the axial direction of the support roller between the pair of support rollers; a measuring part that measures the load that the push roller pushes the material; a driving part that drives the push roller; and a control part that controls the driving part so that the load becomes a target load range based on the measurement result of the measuring part.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a tension adjusting device, a conveying device, a tire component manufacturing device, a tire manufacturing device, a tension adjusting method, a conveying method, a tire component manufacturing method, a tire manufacturing method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] The following documents are known as adjusting devices and methods for maintaining the tension of the material being conveyed.

[0003] For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a wire tension adjusting device that includes a let-off pulley 21 around which a wire rod is wound, a servo motor 22 that rotates and drives the let-off pulley 21 to feed the wire rod from the upstream side to the downstream side, a tension detecting unit 50 that is disposed downstream of the let-off pulley 21 and detects the tension of the wire rod being pulled and drawn out from the downstream side, and a speed detecting unit 40 that is disposed downstream of the let-off pulley 21 and detects the moving speed of the wire rod being pulled and drawn out from the downstream side. In this device, the rotation speed of the servo motor 22 is controlled based on the moving speed of the wire rod detected by the speed detecting unit 40, and the rotation speed of the servo motor 22 is corrected based on the tension of the wire rod detected by the tension detecting unit 50, thereby adjusting the tension of the wire rod being drawn out from the let-off pulley 21. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 5308860 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] In a material conveying system, it is desirable to match the peripheral speeds of the upstream drive roller (sometimes an unwinding drum) and the downstream drive roller (sometimes a winding drum), i.e., to maintain a constant line speed. However, due to mechanical vibrations and fluctuations in core (drum) rotation, achieving this speed matching is practically difficult. More specifically, the power source for the drive roller is a motor. While the desired control is the surface speed of the drive roller or drum, it is the motor that actually controls it. Therefore, because the mechanical load of the driven object differs for each motor, it is difficult to match the surface speed. In addition, in the case of a drum, it is difficult to maintain a constant surface speed because the winding diameter changes as the long material is unwound and wound. Furthermore, because the motor and the driven object are connected by a mechanical shaft, torsional vibration occurs, mainly due to the torsional rigidity of the connecting shaft.

[0006] Therefore, tension is generated between the upstream drive roller and the downstream drive roller, and this tension is controlled by a dancer arm.

[0007] The configuration described in Patent Document 1 above has a dancer arm type wire slack absorbing unit 30, and adjusts the tension of the wire W by swinging an arm 31 supporting a slack absorbing pulley 32 using the torque of a slack absorbing servomotor 33. However, with this configuration, when the temperature of the servomotor rises, the torque output from the servomotor changes.

[0008] In addition, there are generally individual differences in output torque for each servo motor, and torque loss due to the servo motor's reducer, bearings, etc. changes with temperature. For this reason, feedback control that only compares the torque output from the servo motor has the problem that the load pulling the wire is not constant, and the tension of the wire fluctuates.

[0009] The present invention has been made in response to the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a material conveying device that can adjust the tension of the material being conveyed with high precision and suppress tension fluctuations. [Means for solving the problem]

[0010] The tension adjustment device of the first aspect includes a pair of support rollers that support the material to be transported, a push roller that is located between the pair of support rollers and pushes the material in a direction intersecting the material transport direction as viewed from the axial direction of the support rollers, a measurement unit that measures the load with which the push roller pushes the material, a drive unit that drives the push roller, and a control unit that controls the drive unit so that the load falls within a target load range based on the measurement results of the measurement unit.

[0011] A second aspect of the tension adjusting device is the tension adjusting device described in the first aspect, wherein the push roller is a dancer arm including a roller that contacts the material and an arm that rotatably supports the roller at one end and is rotatably supported at the other end around an axis extending along the axial direction of the roller, the drive unit rotationally drives the arm of the dancer arm, and the measurement unit measures the torque generated in the dancer arm.

[0012] A third aspect of the invention is the tension adjusting device according to the second aspect, wherein the dancer arm further includes a counterweight on the opposite side of the shaft from the roller.

[0013] A fourth aspect of the tension adjusting device is the tension adjusting device described in the second or third aspect, wherein the control unit further includes a memory unit that stores a correspondence relationship between the angle of the dancer arm and the tension generated in the material being conveyed, and corrects the torque output by the drive unit based on the correspondence relationship stored in the memory unit.

[0014] The tension adjustment device of the fifth aspect is the tension adjustment device described in the second or third aspect, further comprising a tension measurement unit that measures the tension generated in the material transported downstream in the material transport direction relative to the support roller, and the control unit corrects the torque output by the drive unit based on the result obtained from the tension measurement unit.

[0015] A sixth aspect of the tension adjustment device is the tension adjustment device described in the first aspect, wherein the push roller is a linearly moving member having a roller that contacts the material and a linearly moving body that rotatably supports the roller and moves linearly in the intersecting direction, and the measuring unit measures the load that the linearly moving member receives from the material.

[0016] A seventh aspect of the tension adjusting device is the tension adjusting device according to the sixth aspect, wherein the pair of support rollers are arranged so that the angular range in which the material is wrapped around the rollers of the linear moving member is 180°.

[0017] The tension adjustment device of the eighth aspect is the tension adjustment device of any one of the second to sixth aspects, further comprising a conveying unit that is arranged upstream of the pair of support rollers in the material conveying direction and applies a conveying force to the material, and the control unit controls the material conveying speed by the conveying unit so that the angle of the dancer arm or the position of the roller that constitutes the linear moving member is constant.

[0018] The conveying device of the ninth aspect has an unwinding section that unwinds the material, a winding section that winds the material, and a tension adjustment device of any one of the first to seventh aspects that is provided midway along the path along which the material is conveyed from the unwinding section to the winding section.

[0019] In a tire component manufacturing apparatus of a tenth aspect, the material is a tire component, and the apparatus has an unwinding section that unwinds the tire component, a winding section that winds up the tire component, and a tension adjusting device of any one of the first to seventh aspects that is provided midway along a path along which the tire component is transported from the unwinding section to the winding section.

[0020] In an eleventh aspect of the tire manufacturing apparatus, the material is a tire component, and the tire manufacturing apparatus has an unwinding section that unwinds the tire component, a winding section that winds up the tire component, a tension adjusting device of any one of the first to seventh aspects that is provided midway along the path along which the tire component is transported from the unwinding section to the winding section, and a tire building apparatus that processes tire components obtained from the tire component into tires.

[0021] A twelfth aspect of the tension adjustment method includes supporting a material to be conveyed with a pair of support rollers, pressing the material between the pair of support rollers in a direction intersecting the conveying direction of the material as viewed from the axial direction of the support rollers with a push roller driven by a drive unit, measuring the load with which the push roller presses the material with a measurement unit, and controlling the drive unit with a control unit based on the measurement result of the measurement unit so that the load falls within a target load range.

[0022] A thirteenth aspect of the tension adjustment method is the tension adjustment method according to the twelfth aspect, wherein the push roller is a dancer arm including a roller that contacts the material and an arm that rotatably supports the roller at one end and is rotatably supported at the other end around a central axis extending along the roller, the drive unit rotationally drives the arm of the dancer arm, and the measurement unit measures the torque generated in the dancer arm.

[0023] In a fourteenth aspect of the invention, in the tension adjustment method according to the twelfth aspect, the push roller is a linearly moving member having a roller that contacts the material and a linearly moving body that rotatably supports the roller and moves linearly in the intersecting direction, and the measuring unit measures the load that the linearly moving member receives from the push roller.

[0024] A fifteenth aspect of the conveying method includes unwinding the material at an unwinding section, winding the material at a winding section, and controlling the tension of the material along the path it is conveyed from the unwinding section to the winding section using the tension adjustment method of any one of the twelfth to fourteenth aspects.

[0025] A tire component manufacturing method of a sixteenth aspect includes the step of: the material is a tire component; the tire component is unwound at an unwinding section; the tire component is wound up at a winding section; and the tire component is conveyed from the unwinding section to the winding section along a path along which the tire component is transported; and the method of adjusting tension of any one of the twelfth to fourteenth aspects is included.

[0026] A tire manufacturing method of a seventeenth aspect includes the steps of: unwinding the tire component at an unwinding section; winding the tire component at a winding section; and processing a tire component obtained by the tension adjustment method of any one of the twelfth to fourteenth aspects into a tire by a tire building device along a path along which the tire component is transported from the unwinding section to the winding section.

[0027] A program according to an eighteenth aspect causes a computer to function as a control unit of the tension adjusting device according to any one of the first to seventh aspects. [Effects of the Invention]

[0028] In the tension adjustment device of the first aspect, the measurement unit measures the load with which the push roller presses the material, and the control unit controls the drive unit based on the measurement results of the measurement unit so that the load falls within the target load range. As a result, fluctuations in the tension of the material during the material conveying process can be reduced compared to when the load with which the push roller presses the material is not measured.

[0029] The tension adjusting device of the second aspect has a rotationally driven dancer arm and a measuring unit that measures the torque generated in the dancer arm, and therefore the tension adjusting device of the first aspect of the invention can be achieved by using a rotationally driven dancer arm.

[0030] According to the tension adjuster of the third aspect, since the tension adjuster according to the second aspect further includes a counterweight, the rated capacity of the motor that rotates the dancer arm can be made smaller.

[0031] According to the tension adjusting device of the fourth aspect, in the tension adjusting device of the second or third aspect, a memory unit for storing the correspondence relationship is further provided, and therefore, by varying the torque output by the motor that rotates the dancer arm according to the angle by which the dancer arm is rotated, it is possible to further reduce fluctuations in the tension of the material.

[0032] According to the tension adjustment device of the fifth aspect, since the tension adjustment device of the second or third aspect further includes a tension measurement unit, it is possible to further reduce tension fluctuations in the material even when the angle of the dancer arm changes.

[0033] The tension adjustment device of the sixth aspect has a linearly moving member and a measuring unit that measures the load that the linearly moving member receives from the material, and therefore the tension adjustment device of the first aspect of the invention can be achieved by using a linearly moving member.

[0034] According to the tension adjustment device of the seventh aspect, in the tension adjustment device of the sixth aspect, the roller is arranged so that the angular range in which the material is wound around the roller is 180°, so that the bending posture of the material is constant and the tension generated in the material can be controlled with higher precision.

[0035] According to the tension adjustment device of the eighth aspect, the angle of the dancer arm or the roller position of the linear moving member is constant depending on the conveying speed of the conveying section, so the bending posture of the material is constant and the tension generated in the material can be controlled with higher precision.

[0036] The conveying device of the ninth aspect includes the tension adjusting device of any one of the first to seventh aspects, and therefore, compared to a case where the load with which the push roller presses the material is not measured, the material can be conveyed while further reducing fluctuations in tension occurring in the material.

[0037] A tire component manufacturing apparatus according to a tenth aspect includes the tension adjusting device according to any one of the first to seventh aspects, and therefore can manufacture tire components while further reducing fluctuations in tension in the material compared to a case in which the load with which the push rollers press the material is not measured.

[0038] According to the tire building apparatus of the eleventh aspect, the apparatus includes the tension adjusting device of any one of the first to seventh aspects, and therefore, compared to a case where the load with which the long pressing roller presses the material is not measured, it is possible to manufacture tires while further reducing fluctuations in tension occurring in the material.

[0039] According to the tension adjustment method of the twelfth aspect, the measurement unit measures the load with which the push roller presses the material, and the control unit controls the drive unit based on the measurement result of the measurement unit so that the load falls within the target load range. Therefore, fluctuations in tension occurring in the material during the material conveying process can be reduced compared to when the load with which the push roller presses the material is not measured.

[0040] The tension adjusting method of the thirteenth aspect includes a rotationally driven dancer arm and a measuring unit that measures the torque generated in the dancer arm, and therefore achieves the tension adjusting method of the twelfth aspect of the invention by using a rotationally driven dancer arm.

[0041] According to the tension adjustment method of the fourteenth aspect, a linearly moving member and a measuring unit that measures the load that the linearly moving member receives from the material are included, and therefore the tension adjustment device of the twelfth aspect of the invention is achieved by the linearly moving member.

[0042] According to the conveying method of the fifteenth aspect, since it includes an unwinding section, a winding section, and the tension adjustment method described in any one of the twelfth to fourteenth aspects, it is possible to reduce fluctuations in tension occurring in the material compared to a case where the load with which the push roller presses the material is not measured.

[0043] A tire component manufacturing method according to a sixteenth aspect includes an unwinding section that unwinds a tire component, a winding section that winds the tire component, and the tension adjusting method according to any one of the twelfth to fourteenth aspects, thereby making it possible to reduce fluctuations in tension in the material compared to a case in which the load with which the push roller presses the material is not measured.

[0044] A tire manufacturing method according to a seventeenth aspect includes an unwinding section that unwinds tire components, a winding section that winds the tire components, the tension adjusting method according to any one of the twelfth to fourteenth aspects, and a molding device that processes tire components obtained from the tire components into tires. This makes it possible to reduce fluctuations in tension in the material compared to a case in which the load with which the push rollers press the material is not measured.

[0045] According to the program of the eighteenth aspect, the drive unit is controlled based on the measurement results of the measurement unit so that the load falls within the target load range, and thus the computer is caused to function as a control unit of the tension adjustment device of any one of the first to seventh aspects. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0046] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a tire component manufacturing apparatus according to a first embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a tension adjusting device of the tire component manufacturing apparatus according to the first embodiment. [Figure 3] 1 is a diagram illustrating a tire building device of a tire component manufacturing apparatus according to a first embodiment. FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of a control unit according to the first embodiment. [Figure 5-A] 4A to 4C are diagrams illustrating the operation of a tension adjusting device of the tire component manufacturing apparatus according to the first embodiment. [Figure 5-B] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating the relationship between the angle of the dancer arm of the tension adjuster of the tire component manufacturing apparatus according to the first embodiment and the torque output by the dancer rotation motor. [Figure 6]FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an operation procedure of a control unit according to the first embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a modified example of a tension adjusting device of the tire component manufacturing apparatus according to the first embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a modified example of the tire component manufacturing apparatus according to the first embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a tension adjusting device of a tire component manufacturing apparatus according to a second embodiment. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an operation procedure of a control unit according to the second embodiment. [Figure 11] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating the operation of a tension adjusting device of a tire component manufacturing apparatus according to a second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0047] An example of an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described below with reference to the drawings. In each drawing, the same or equivalent components and parts are designated by the same reference numerals. Furthermore, the dimensional proportions in the drawings are exaggerated for the sake of explanation and may differ from the actual proportions.

[0048] First Embodiment (Device overview) 1 is a diagram showing a tire component manufacturing apparatus 10 according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The tire component manufacturing apparatus 10 according to the first embodiment of the present invention includes an unwinding section 20 that supplies material, a winding section 30 that winds up the material, a pressing section 90 that processes the material, a conveying section 40 that conveys the material, a tension adjusting device 50 that adjusts the tension of the material between the conveying section 40 and the winding section 30, and a control section 70 that controls the operations of the unwinding section 20, the winding section 30, and the tension adjusting device 50.

[0049] (unwinding section) The unwinding section 20 holds a fibrous body F (an example of a material) that is a raw material for manufacturing tire components in a wound state.

[0050] The unwinding section 20 has a cylindrical material drum 22 around which the fibrous material F is wound, and an unwinding motor 24 that controls the rotation angle of the material drum 22.

[0051] The fibrous body F according to the present invention is, for example, a cord which is a component forming a tire, and is made by weaving organic fibers such as nylon, aramid, polyester, etc. in a lattice pattern.

[0052] The material drum 22 is rotatably supported on a support base at the shaft of the material drum 22, for example, and an unwinding motor 24 is connected to the shaft of the material drum 22.

[0053] The axial direction of the material drum 22 is a direction (depth direction of the paper in each figure) perpendicular to the conveying direction of the fibrous body F (tire component TP described later), and unless otherwise specified, the same applies to the rotational axis direction of each roller and drum described later.

[0054] The unwinding motor 24 is driven to rotate so that the conveying speed of the fibrous material F is constant, thereby conveying the fibrous material F wound around the material drum 22 to the tension adjusting device 50.

[0055] (crimping part) The pressing unit 90 includes, as an example, an unvulcanized rubber supply unit (not shown) and a pressing roller 92 .

[0056] The pressure roller 92 is, for example, rotatably supported on a shaft of the pressure roller 92 , and a pressure motor 94 is connected to the shaft of the pressure roller 92 .

[0057] The pressing motor 94 rotates and drives the unvulcanized rubber to be pressed onto the fibrous body F at a constant speed, thereby pressing the unvulcanized rubber onto the fibrous body F and processing the fibrous body F into a sheet-shaped tire component TP (another example of a material) covered with unvulcanized rubber.

[0058] Then, the tire components TP are transported to the transport section 40.

[0059] (Transportation section) The conveying section 40 is provided between the crimping section 90 and a tension adjusting device 50 (described later), and conveys the tire material TP conveyed from the crimping section 90 to the tension adjusting device 50.

[0060] As an example, the conveying section 40 has a conveying roller 42 that conveys the tire component TP, a conveying motor 44 that rotates and drives the conveying roller 42, and a pinch roller 46 that pinches the tire component TP between the conveying roller 42 and the tire component TP to convey the tire component TP without slipping.

[0061] The conveying roller 42 is rotatably supported by a support part (not shown), and is connected to a conveying motor 44 and is rotationally driven by the conveying motor 44. The conveying roller 42 conveys the tire component TP by rotating while in contact with the tire component TP.

[0062] The conveying motor 44 is preferably a servo motor whose rotation angle and rotation speed can be controlled, and is controlled by a control unit 70 described later.

[0063] (Tension adjustment device) The tension adjustment device 50 is provided midway along the path along which the tire component TP is transported from the conveying section 40 to the winding section 30, and includes a tension adjustment section 52 that adjusts the tension of the tire component TP transported to the winding section 30, and a control section 70 that controls the operation of the tension adjustment section 52.

[0064] In this embodiment, the control unit 70 controls the operation of the unwinding unit 20, the winding unit 30, the crimping unit 90, and the conveying unit 40 in addition to the operation of the tension adjusting unit 52.

[0065] (Tension adjustment part) The tension adjusting section 52 has a pair of support rollers 54, a dancer arm 58 (an example of a push roller), a dancer rotation motor 60 (an example of a drive section), and a torque meter 62 (an example of a measurement section).

[0066] The dancer arm 58 includes a tensioner roller 56 that contacts the tire component TP between the pair of support rollers 54, and an arm 58A that rotatably supports the tensioner roller 56 at one end and is journaled at the other end to a shaft 58B that extends along the axial direction of the roller.

[0067] Dancer rotation motor 60 transmits torque to arm 58A of dancer arm 58 (drives it to rotate).

[0068] Torque meter 62 measures the torque exerted on dancer arm 58 .

[0069] As shown in FIG. 2, the pair of support rollers 54 are rotatably supported and provided below the tire member TP.

[0070] The tensioner roller 56 applies a load to the tire component TP from above, that is, on the opposite side of the pair of support rollers 54, at one end side of the dancer arm 58.

[0071] The dancer rotation motor 60 is connected to the dancer arm 58 by a shaft 58B, and transmits the torque output by the dancer rotation motor 60 to the dancer arm 58.

[0072] As a result, a load is applied to the tire component TP being transported as described above. The dancer arm transmits torque so that the torque output by the dancer rotation motor 60 is balanced with the moment due to the reaction force (pressing load) from the tire component TP.

[0073] The dancer rotation motor 60 is a servo motor whose rotation angle and rotation speed can be controlled, and the rotation angle and output torque are controlled by a control unit 70 as described below.

[0074] Torque meter 62 measures the torque generated in dancer arm 58, more specifically, the torque generated in shaft 58B on which dancer arm 58 is journaled, as (a physical quantity related to) the load that tensioner roller 56 applies to tire component TP.

[0075] For example, in this embodiment, the torque meter 62 may be provided on the output shaft of the dancer rotation motor 60, or if the dancer rotation motor 60 has a reducer, the torque meter 62 may be provided on the output shaft end of the reducer.

[0076] In this way, the tire material TP is transported to the winding section 30 while the tension in the material is adjusted by the tension adjusting section 52 during transport.

[0077] As an example, the dancer arm 58 is provided so as to apply a load to the tire component TP from above downward, but is not limited to this, and may be provided so as to apply a load to the tire component TP from below upward.

[0078] (winding section) The winding section 30 has, for example, a cylindrical winding drum 32 that rotates to wind up the tire member TP, and a winding motor 34 that drives the winding drum 32 to rotate.

[0079] The winding drum 32 is, for example, a molding drum used to form tire components. The winding drum 32 is rotatably supported on a shaft, and a winding motor 34 is connected to the shaft of the winding drum 32. The winding motor 34 is controlled by the control unit 70.

[0080] The winding motor 34 is driven to rotate so that the winding speed of the tire component TP being transported is constant, thereby winding up the tire component TP being transported from the tension adjusting device 50.

[0081] The tire component TP is wound up by the winding section 30. The wound tire component TP is then transported to a tire building device 80, which will be described later.

[0082] (Tire building equipment) FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a tire building apparatus 80 for processing tire components TP into tires according to this embodiment.

[0083] As shown in FIG. 3, the tire building apparatus 80 has a belt unwinding drum 84 around which tire components TP are wound, a conveyor 82, and a tire building drum 86.

[0084] The tire components TP transported to the tire building device 80 are hung on a belt unwinding drum 84 and then transported by a conveyor 82 to a tire building drum 86, where they are molded into a green tire together with other tire components such as a tread and bead wires (not shown).

[0085] The molded raw tire is then processed into a tire by applying heat and pressure in the vulcanization process.

[0086] (Control unit) FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the control unit 70 according to this embodiment.

[0087] As shown in FIG. 4, the control unit 70 includes, for example, a storage unit 76, a CPU 78A (Central Processing Unit), a ROM 78B (Read Only Memory), and a RAM 78C (Random Access Memory).

[0088] The torque meter 62, unwinding motor 24, winding motor 34, conveying motor 44, crimping motor 94, dancer rotation motor 60, and memory unit 76 are each connected by an interface (I / O), and the CPU 78A, ROM 78B, RAM 78C, and the interface are connected to each other so that they can communicate with each other via a bus 79.

[0089] The CPU 78A is a central processing unit that executes various programs and controls each part. That is, the CPU 78A reads a program from the ROM 78B or the storage part 76, and executes the program using the RAM 78C as a working area.

[0090] The CPU 78A controls the above configuration and performs various arithmetic processing in accordance with a program recorded in the ROM 78B or the storage unit 76.

[0091] In this embodiment, the ROM 78B or the storage unit 76 stores a tension adjustment program according to the present invention and a dancer arm angle-torque correction relationship, which will be described later.

[0092] The ROM 78B stores various programs and various data. The RAM 78C temporarily stores programs or data as a working area.

[0093] The storage unit 76 is configured by a hard disk drive (HDD) or a solid state drive (SSD), and stores various programs including an operating system, and various data.

[0094] The interface acquires the torque measured by the torque meter 62 and outputs the results calculated by the CPU 78A to the unwinding motor 24, the winding motor 34, the conveying motor 44, the crimping motor 94, and the dancer rotation motor 60.

[0095] The interface may communicate with each device in any manner, but may use standards such as USB (Universal Serial Bus), RS-232C, Ethernet (registered trademark), or Wi-Fi (registered trademark).

[0096] The control unit 70 that controls the unwinding motor 24, the winding motor 34, the conveying motor 44, the crimping motor 94, and the dancer rotation motor 60 is not limited to the above configuration, and may be, for example, an integrated unit of a PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) and a servo amplifier.

[0097] (Tension adjustment) Next, tension adjustment in this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 5-A.

[0098] First, as shown in FIG. 2, the tire component TP is conveyed between a pair of support rollers 54 while the conveying direction is changed by applying a load to the tensioner roller 56.

[0099] The control unit 70 also controls the speed of the transport motor 44 that rotates the transport roller 42 based on information from an encoder built into the winding motor 34 that drives the winding drum 32 .

[0100] That is, the control unit 70 controls the speed of the conveying motor 44 using the peripheral speed of the winding drum 32 as a control target. As a result, the tire material TP being conveyed to the tension adjusting unit 52 is isolated from tension fluctuations of the material drum 22.

[0101] In this embodiment, a load is applied by the tensioner roller 56 to the tire component TP being transported between the pair of support rollers 54 from the opposite side of the pair of support rollers 54 as viewed from the axial direction of the tensioner roller 56, thereby applying tension to the tire component TP being transported.

[0102] During the transport of the tire component TP, the control unit 70 feeds back the measurement result of the torque meter 62 to the dancer rotation motor 60, and controls the dancer rotation motor 60 so that the measurement result falls within the control target range.

[0103] The output torque of the dancer rotation motor 60 is correlated with the tension of the tire component TP, and the above control keeps the fluctuation in the tension of the tire component TP within a certain range.

[0104] Incidentally, the angle of dancer arm 58 may change as a result of the above control, as shown in Figure 5-A. In this case, tensioner roller 56 moves on imaginary line I, whose radius is the length of dancer arm 58 from shaft 58B.

[0105] Here, when the dancer arm 58 rotates as shown in FIG. 5-A, even if the tension of the tire component TP does not change, the angular range in which the tire component TP is wound around the tensioner roller 56 changes, and the torque measurement result measured by the torque meter 62 changes.

[0106] Furthermore, since the tire component TP generally has bending rigidity, when the tire component TP is wound around the tensioner roller 56, bending resistance (bend loss) occurs to bend the tire component TP.

[0107] When the angular range in which the tire component TP is wound around the tensioner roller 56 changes as described above, the bending resistance also changes, which also causes the torque measurement result measured by the torque meter 62 to change.

[0108] In this way, when the dancer arm 58 rotates, even if the tension of the tire component TP does not change, the measurement result of the torque meter 62 changes before and after the dancer arm 58 rotates, and therefore the correlation between the output torque of the dancer rotation motor 60 and the tension of the tire component TP changes.

[0109] In this embodiment, the correspondence between the angle of the dancer arm 58 and the corrected torque output by the dancer rotation motor 60, taking into account changes in the correlation between the output torque of the dancer rotation motor 60 and the tension of the tire component TP, is derived in advance and stored in the storage unit 76 (hereinafter referred to as the "dancer arm angle-torque correction relationship").

[0110] Based on this dancer arm angle-torque correction relationship, control unit 70 corrects the torque transmitted to dancer arm 58. Details of this control will be described later.

[0111] The control unit 70 acquires angle information of the dancer arm 58 from the motor pulse signal sent to the dancer rotation motor 60.

[0112] Next, the processing operation of the control unit 70 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

[0113] 6 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing for adjusting the tension of a tire member TP by the control unit 70. The tension adjustment processing is performed by the CPU 78A reading out a tension adjustment program from the ROM 78B or the storage unit 76, expanding it into the RAM 78C, and executing it.

[0114] In step S101, the control unit 70 acquires the target tension of the tire component TP to be conveyed from the storage unit 76, and the CPU 78A calculates the value of the torque to be output by the dancer rotation motor 60 to derive the target load range.

[0115] The derived torque value is stored in RAM 78C.

[0116] In step S102, the control unit 70 acquires the measurement result of the torque being applied to the shaft 58B of the dancer arm 58 from the torque meter 62 of the tension adjustment unit 52.

[0117] In step S103, the control unit 70 detects the angle of the dancer arm 58 from the dancer rotation motor 60, which is a servo motor of the tension adjustment unit 52.

[0118] In step S104, the control unit 70 corrects the torque output by the dancer rotation motor 60 from the value derived in step S101, based on the angle of the dancer arm 58 acquired in step S103 and the dancer arm angle-torque correction relationship stored in the memory unit 76.

[0119] The corrected torque value is stored in the RAM 78C.

[0120] In step S105, control unit 70 calculates the difference between the torque value corrected in step S104 and the torque acting on shaft 58B of dancer arm 58 obtained in step S102.

[0121] The calculated torque value is stored in RAM 78C.

[0122] In step S106, control unit 70 causes the servo motor to output torque to shaft 58B of dancer arm 58 based on the torque value calculated in step S105.

[0123] In step S107, the control unit 70 checks whether or not to continue the transport of the tire material TP, and if the transport is to be continued, returns to step S102 to continue tension adjustment. On the other hand, if the transport is to be ended, the process ends.

[0124] (Action and effect) As described above, the control unit 70 controls the speed of the conveying motor 44 with the peripheral speed of the winding drum 32 as the control target, and it is desirable to match the peripheral speeds of the conveying roller 42 of the conveying unit 40 and the winding drum 32 of the winding unit 30.

[0125] However, due to mechanical vibrations, fluctuations in the rotation of the transport roller 42 and the winding drum 32, and the like, it is practically difficult to match the above speeds.

[0126] That is, it is difficult to maintain a constant tension on the tire material TP by making the peripheral speeds of the transport roller 42 of the transport section 40 and the winding drum 32 of the winding section 30 the same.

[0127] Here, the tire component manufacturing apparatus 10 according to this embodiment generates tension in the tire component TP by rotating the dancer arm 58 with the dancer rotation motor 60 and applying a load by bringing the tensioner roller 56 into contact with the tire component TP.

[0128] This makes it possible to adjust the tension of the tire component TP within a certain range, regardless of the rotation speed of the rollers that transport the tire component TP, such as the unwinding section 20, the winding section 30, and the transporting section 40.

[0129] Furthermore, the tire component manufacturing apparatus 10 according to the present invention uses the torque meter 62 to measure the torque acting on the dancer arm 58 as a physical quantity related to the load that the dancer arm 58 of the tension adjusting unit 52 applies to the tire component TP.

[0130] In the tire component manufacturing apparatus 10 , the control unit 70 performs feedback control of the dancer rotation motor 60 using the torque of the dancer arm 58 measured by the torque meter 62 .

[0131] As a result, even if the torque output by the dancer rotation motor 60 changes due to an external disturbance such as a rise in the temperature of the dancer rotation motor 60, the output torque of the dancer rotation motor 60, i.e., the load with which the tensioner roller 56 presses the tire component TP, can be kept constant.

[0132] Therefore, compared to when fluctuations in the torque of the dancer arm 58 are not detected or when the torque command value output to the dancer rotation motor 60 is controlled to be constant, the tire component manufacturing apparatus 10 according to this embodiment can adjust the tension of the tire member TP with higher precision.

[0133] Furthermore, the tire component manufacturing apparatus 10 according to the present invention corrects the torque output by the dancer rotation motor 60 in accordance with the angle of the dancer arm 58 of the tension adjusting unit 52 in order to adjust the tension of the tire component TP within a certain range.

[0134] That is, based on the dancer arm angle-torque correction relationship, the torque output by the dancer rotation motor 60 is corrected to a value that takes into account changes in the angle at which the tire component TP is wound around the tensioner roller 56 and changes in the correlation between the output torque of the dancer rotation motor 60 and the tension of the tire component TP due to bend loss of the tire component TP, in accordance with the rotation angle θ of the dancer arm 58 as shown in FIG. 5-A.

[0135] More specifically, since the angle at which the tensioner roller 56 wraps around the tire component TP changes depending on the angle of the dancer arm 58, the torque output to keep the tension acting on the tire component TP constant is changed as shown in FIG. 5-B.

[0136] The relationship between the output torque for maintaining a constant tension acting on the tire member TP and the angle of the dancer arm 58 is experimentally determined and stored in the memory unit 76, and the torque output by the dancer rotation motor 60 is corrected according to the angle of the dancer arm 58.

[0137] This allows the tension of the tire component TP to be adjusted with higher precision than when the angle of the dancer arm 58 is not detected or when the tension generated in the tire component TP is adjusted by the torque or rotation speed of the conveying roller 42 of the conveying section 40.

[0138] As shown in FIG. 5-B, in the range of −20° to −10°, the amount of change in the correction amount of the output torque relative to the change in angle becomes large. Therefore, in order to adjust the tension of the tire component TP with higher precision, it is more preferable that the angle of the dancer arm 58 be in the range of −10° to 20°.

[0139] (First Modification) Fig. 7 shows an example of a modification of this embodiment. As shown in Fig. 7, in this modification, a counterweight 64 is provided on dancer arm 58 on the opposite side of shaft 58B of dancer arm 58 from tensioner roller 56.

[0140] In this modification, a counterweight 64 is provided on the opposite side of the shaft 58B of the dancer arm 58 from the tensioner roller 56 in FIG.

[0141] Therefore, (at least a part of) the moment due to the weight of the tensioner roller 56 acting on the shaft 58B of the dancer arm 58 is canceled by the moment due to the weight of the counterweight 64.

[0142] Therefore, by configuring dancer arm 58 to have counterweight 64 as in this modified example, the moment of inertia of dancer arm 58 is reduced.

[0143] This reduces the torque required to rotate the dancer arm 58, allowing the capacity of the dancer rotation motor 60 to be reduced.

[0144] (Second Modification) 8, in this modification, as an example, a tension measuring unit 66 is provided downstream in the conveying direction from the tension adjusting unit 52. The tension measuring unit 66 measures the tension of the tire material TP immediately before it is conveyed to the winding unit 30.

[0145] As an example, the tension measuring unit 66 preferably employs a contact-type tension measuring device 68, which continuously measures the tension of the tire material TP being transported and transmits the measured tension to the control unit 70.

[0146] The tire component manufacturing apparatus 10 according to this modification corrects the output torque of the dancer rotation motor 60 based on the results obtained by the tension measuring unit 66, instead of the tension adjustment operation described in the first embodiment based on the angle of the dancer arm 58.

[0147] In this way, by feeding back the results of the tension adjustment of the tire component TP by the tension adjustment unit 52, when tension fluctuations occur downstream in the conveying direction relative to the tension adjustment unit 52, the tension of the tire component TP can be adjusted with high precision regardless of the angle of the dancer arm 58.

[0148] However, in this case, the tension measuring device 68 cannot be omitted, as compared with the tire component manufacturing apparatus 10 according to the first embodiment.

[0149] (Third Modification) Furthermore, the conveying roller 42 of the conveying section 40 may be feedback-controlled by the angle of the dancer rotation motor 60 so that the rotation angle of the dancer arm 58 becomes a predetermined target value.

[0150] For example, when the rotation angle θ of dancer arm 58 increases, control unit 70 decreases the rotation speed of conveying roller 42 of conveying unit 40, and when the rotation angle θ of dancer arm 58 decreases, control unit 70 increases the rotation speed of conveying roller 42 of conveying unit 40, thereby maintaining the rotation angle of dancer arm 58 constant.

[0151] As a result, the tire component TP is tensioned by the dancer arm 58 while maintaining a constant conveying posture, and there is no need to correct the torque to keep the tension of the tire component TP constant due to changes in the angular range in which the tire component TP is wound around the tensioner roller 56.

[0152] It is possible to use both the torque correction according to the angle of dancer arm 58 in the first embodiment and the control of keeping the rotation angle θ of dancer arm 58 constant according to this modification.

[0153] In this case, even if the rotation angle θ of the dancer arm 58 fluctuates for some reason while maintaining the rotation angle θ of the dancer arm 58 constant, the control unit 70 can maintain the tension of the tire member TP constant by correcting the torque in accordance with the angle of the dancer arm 58.

[0154] In this case, control unit 70 may perform control to return the rotation angle θ of the dancer arm to the angle before the change, or may perform control to keep the rotation angle θ of the dancer arm constant at the angle after the change.

[0155] In this modification, the conveying section 40 can be considered as a component of the tension control device.

[0156] (Fourth Modification) Alternatively, the rotation angle range of the dancer arm 58 may be set to a predetermined angle range obtained in advance, and the rotation speed of the transport roller 42 of the transport section 40 may be adjusted according to the angle of the dancer rotation motor 60.

[0157] For example, in FIG. 5A, when the rotation angle θ of the dancer arm 58 exceeds a predetermined rotation angle, the rotation speed of the conveying roller 42 of the conveying unit 40 is reduced so that the rotation angle θ of the dancer arm 58 falls within the predetermined angle range.

[0158] Furthermore, when the rotation angle θ of the dancer arm 58 falls below a predetermined rotation angle, the rotation speed of the conveying roller 42 of the conveying section 40 is increased so that the rotation angle θ of the dancer arm 58 falls within the predetermined angle range.

[0159] In this way, by adjusting the rotation speed of the conveying roller 42 of the conveying section 40 in accordance with the angle of the dancer rotation motor 60, it is possible to prevent the dancer arm 58 from going outside the rotatable angular range and hitting the mechanical stopper.

[0160] (Other variations) In the above description, the torque meter 62 provided on the output shaft of the dancer rotation motor 60 is used to obtain the torque acting on the dancer arm 58, but the present invention is not limited to this and any device capable of detecting the torque acting on the dancer arm 58 will suffice.

[0161] For example, instead of torque meter 62, a strain gauge may be attached to dancer arm 58 to measure the bending moment of dancer arm 58 and detect the torque applied to dancer arm 58.

[0162] Even in this case, the same effects as those of the tire component manufacturing apparatus 10 according to the present invention can be obtained as described above.

[0163] In addition, in the above description, the tension adjustment program is stored in ROM 78B or memory unit 76, but this is not limited to this, and the tension adjustment program may be provided in a form recorded on a recording medium such as a CD-ROM (Compact Disc Read Only Memory) on which the above-mentioned tension adjustment program is recorded.

[0164] The tension adjustment program may also be downloaded from an external device via a network.

[0165] In addition, in the above description, the target tension of the tire component TP is obtained from the storage unit 76, but this is not limiting, and the target tension may be input by an operator using an external input device such as a touch panel.

[0166] Furthermore, for example, the tire building apparatus 80 in the above description may further be provided with a tension adjusting device 50 in the middle of the conveying path, similar to the tire component manufacturing apparatus 10.

[0167] In this case, the tension of the tire component TP wound around the tire building drum 86 in the tire building device 80 can be controlled with higher precision, making it possible to further stabilize the quality of the green tire.

[0168] In the above explanation, the tire component manufacturing apparatus 10 and the tire building apparatus 80 according to the present invention have been described separately, but the tire component manufacturing apparatus 10 and the tire building apparatus 80 can also be combined to be used as a tire manufacturing apparatus.

[0169] Furthermore, in the above description, the tire component manufacturing apparatus 10 according to the present invention has a pressure-bonding section 90, but it is also possible to use a fibrous body F that is pre-coated with rubber without this, thereby making it a tire manufacturing apparatus that does not have a pressure-bonding section 90.

[0170] In the above description, the tire component TP according to the present invention is wound around the winding drum 32, but this is not limiting and the tire component TP may be wound around a tire building drum 86, for example.

[0171] That is, the tire component manufacturing apparatus 10 and the tire building apparatus 80 can be used as an integrated tire manufacturing apparatus without the winding section 30, the belt unwinding drum 84, and the conveyor 82.

[0172] Furthermore, in the above description, organic fibers such as cords have been used as an example of the material, but the material is not limited to this. For example, the material may be a tire component material such as unvulcanized rubber, including rubber for tire treads, or a tire component material such as a metal wire rod, such as a bead wire or a steel belt. In other words, all components related to tire manufacturing can be subject to tension adjustment by the tension adjusting device 50, can be manufactured by the tire component manufacturing apparatus 10, and can be materials used by the tire building apparatus 80.

[0173] Furthermore, the material according to the present invention is not limited to being used as a raw material for tire components, but can be suitably employed in any material that is deformable in a direction intersecting the conveying direction, such as a film-shaped, sheet-shaped, string-shaped, or strip-shaped material.

[0174] Furthermore, the tire component manufacturing apparatus 10 according to the present invention can be used as a conveying device for a fibrous body F having a tension adjusting device 50, in addition to being used as a tire component manufacturing device.

[0175] Second Embodiment Next, a tire component manufacturing apparatus 100 according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with appropriate reference to Figures 9 and 10. The tire component manufacturing apparatus 100 differs from the first embodiment in that it includes a tension adjusting unit 152 instead of the tension adjusting unit 52. Note that the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and descriptions thereof may be omitted.

[0176] (Tension adjustment part) 9, the tension adjusting unit 152 according to this embodiment is modified from the tension adjusting unit 152 according to the first embodiment as follows: The push roller is a tensioner roller 56 and a linearly moving member 158 having a linear moving body 158A and moving linearly, the drive unit is a drive motor 160, and the measurement unit is a load meter 162.

[0177] The linearly moving member 158 moves linearly in a direction substantially perpendicular to the conveyance direction of the tire component TP, and, as one example, is installed below the tire component TP.

[0178] The tensioner roller 56 is rotatably supported on one end side of the linear moving body 158A, and applies a load to the tire component TP between the pair of support rollers 154 in a direction intersecting the conveying direction of the tire component TP, as in the first embodiment.

[0179] The load meter 162 measures the load that the tensioner roller 56 applies to the tire component TP.

[0180] The drive motor 160 is connected to the linear moving body 158A via a linear moving mechanism, and moves the linear moving body 158A linearly.

[0181] The drive motor 160 is a servo motor whose rotation angle and rotation speed can be controlled, and the rotation angle and output torque are controlled by the control unit 70 in the same manner as in the first embodiment.

[0182] The linear motion mechanism and the method for linearly moving the linear moving body 158A are not particularly limited, but as an example, a method of converting the rotational motion output from the drive motor 160 into linear motion using a rack and pinion mechanism is preferably adopted.

[0183] (Tension adjustment) In this embodiment, as in the first embodiment, a load is applied to the tire component TP being transported between the pair of support rollers 154 by the tensioner roller 56 from the surface side opposite the pair of support rollers 154, thereby adjusting the tension of the tire component TP being transported.

[0184] During the transport of the tire component TP, the control unit 70 feeds back the measurement result of the load meter 162 to the drive motor 160, and controls the drive motor 160 so that the measurement result falls within the control target range.

[0185] The measurement results of the load meter 162 correlate with the tension of the tire component TP, and the above control causes the fluctuations in the tension of the tire component TP to fall within a certain range.

[0186] Here, when the linear moving body 158A moves linearly as shown in FIG. 9, as in the first embodiment, even if the tension of the tire component TP does not change, the angular range in which the tire component TP is wound around the tensioner roller 56 changes, and the measurement result of the load measured by the load meter 162 changes.

[0187] Furthermore, similarly to the first embodiment, the tire component TP generally has bending rigidity, and therefore, when the tire component TP is wound around the tensioner roller 56, bending resistance (bend loss) for bending the tire component TP is also generated.

[0188] When the angular range in which the tire component TP is wound around the tensioner roller 56 changes as described above, the bending resistance also changes, which also causes the torque measurement result measured by the load meter 162 to change.

[0189] In this way, when the linear moving body 158A moves linearly, even if the tension of the tire component TP does not change, the measurement result of the load meter 162 changes before and after the linear moving body 158A moves linearly, and therefore the correlation between the output torque of the drive motor 160 and the tension of the tire component TP changes.

[0190] In this embodiment, the correspondence between the position of the linear moving body 158A and the corrected torque output by the drive motor 160, taking into account the change in the correlation between the output torque of the drive motor 160 and the tension of the tire component TP, as described above (hereinafter referred to as the "linear moving body position-torque correction relationship"), is derived in advance and stored in the memory unit 76.

[0191] Based on this position-torque correction relationship of the linear moving body, a value for correcting the torque output by the drive motor 160 is derived.

[0192] Next, the processing operation of the control unit 70 and the operation of the tire component manufacturing apparatus 10 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

[0193] 10 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing for adjusting the tension of a tire member TP by the control unit 70. The tension adjustment processing is performed by the CPU 78A reading out a tension adjustment program from the ROM 78B or the storage unit 76, expanding it into the RAM 78C, and executing it.

[0194] In step S201, the control unit 70 acquires the target tension of the tire component TP to be conveyed from the storage unit 76, and the CPU 78A calculates the value of the torque output by the drive motor 160 to derive the target load range.

[0195] The derived torque value is stored in RAM 78C.

[0196] In step S202, the control unit 70 acquires the load being applied to the linear moving body 158A from the load meter 162 of the tension adjusting unit 152.

[0197] In step S203, the control unit 70 detects the position of the linear moving body 158A from the drive motor 160 of the tension adjusting unit 152.

[0198] In step S204, the control unit 70 corrects the load output by the drive motor 160 from the value derived in step S201 based on the position of the linear moving body 158A acquired in step S203 and the position-torque correction relationship of the linear moving body 158A stored in the memory unit 76.

[0199] The corrected load value is stored in the RAM 78C.

[0200] In step S205, the control unit 70 calculates the difference between the value of the load corrected in step S204 and the load received by the linear moving body 158A obtained in step S202.

[0201] The calculated load value is stored in the RAM 78C.

[0202] In step S206, the control unit 70 causes the drive motor 160 to output a load that linearly moves the linearly moving body 158A, based on the value of the load calculated in step S205.

[0203] In step S207, the control unit 70 checks whether or not to continue the transport of the tire material TP, and if the transport is to be continued, returns to step S202 to continue tension adjustment. On the other hand, if the transport is to be ended, the process ends.

[0204] (Action and effect) In the tire component manufacturing apparatus 100 according to this embodiment, the drive motor 160 is driven to linearly move the linearly moving member 158, and tension is generated in the tire component TP by bringing the tensioner roller 56 into contact with the tire component TP and applying a load thereto.

[0205] In the tire component manufacturing apparatus 10, the control unit 70 performs feedback control of the drive motor 160 using the load measured by the load meter 162 with which the tensioner roller presses the tire component TP.

[0206] As a result, even if the load with which the tensioner roller 56 presses the tire component TP due to the drive motor 160 changes due to disturbances such as a rise in the temperature of the drive motor 160, the load can be kept constant.

[0207] Therefore, compared to a case where the tensioner roller 56 does not detect fluctuations in the load pressing on the tire component TP, or a case where the position command value output to the drive motor 160 is controlled to be constant, the tire component manufacturing apparatus 100 according to this embodiment can adjust the tension of the tire component TP with higher precision.

[0208] Furthermore, the tire component manufacturing apparatus 10 according to the present invention corrects the torque output by the drive motor 160 in accordance with the position of the tensioner roller 56 of the tension adjusting unit 152 in order to adjust the tension of the tire component TP within a certain range.

[0209] That is, based on the position-torque correction relationship of the linear moving body 158A, the torque output by the drive motor 160 is corrected according to the position of the linear moving body 158A so that the torque output by the drive motor 160 is a value that takes into account changes in the angle at which the tire component TP is wound around the tensioner roller 56 and changes in the correlation between the output torque of the drive motor 160 and the tension of the tire component TP due to bend loss of the tire component TP.

[0210] This allows the tension of the tire component TP to be adjusted with higher precision than when the position of the linear moving body 158A is not detected or when the tension generated in the tire component TP is adjusted by the torque or rotation speed of the conveying roller 42 of the conveying section 40.

[0211] (First Modification) In the tire component manufacturing apparatus 100 according to this embodiment, the conveying rollers 42 of the conveying section 40 may be feedback-controlled based on the position of the tensioner roller 56 so that the vertical position of the tensioner roller 56 reaches a predetermined target value.

[0212] For example, the control unit 70 maintains the position of the tensioner roller 56 constant by decreasing the rotation speed of the conveying roller 42 of the conveying unit 40 when the position of the tensioner roller 56 rises, and by increasing the rotation speed of the conveying roller 42 of the conveying unit 40 when the position of the tensioner roller 56 falls.

[0213] As a result, the tire component TP is given tension by the linear motion member 158 while maintaining a constant conveying posture, and there is no need to correct the torque to keep the tension of the tire component TP constant due to changes in the angular range in which the tire component TP is wound around the tensioner roller 56.

[0214] It is possible to use both the torque correction according to the angle of the dancer arm 58 in the first embodiment and the control according to this modification for maintaining the position of the tensioner roller 56 constant.

[0215] In this case, even if the position of the tensioner roller 56 fluctuates for some reason while the position of the tensioner roller 56 is controlled to be constant, the tension of the tire component TP can be kept constant by the control unit 70 correcting the torque according to the position of the tensioner roller 56.

[0216] In this case, the control unit 70 may perform control to return the position of the tensioner roller 56 to the position before the change, or may perform control to keep the position of the tensioner roller 56 constant at the position after the change.

[0217] In this modification, the conveying section 40 can be considered as a component of the tension control device.

[0218] (Second Modification) As described above, when the linear moving body 158A shown in FIG. 9 moves linearly, the distance between the tensioner roller 56 and the support roller 154 changes, and therefore the angular range in which the tire component TP is wound around the tensioner roller 56 also changes.

[0219] Here, as shown in FIG. 11, in this modified example, the tension adjusting device 150 according to the second embodiment narrows the gap between the pair of support rollers 154, and the tire component TP is arranged so that the angular range in which it is wound around the tensioner roller 56 of the linear moving body 158A is 180°.

[0220] In this way, if the angular range in which the tire component TP is wound is set to 180°, even if the position of the linear moving body 158A changes, that is, even if the linear moving body 158A moves linearly upward in FIG. 11, the angular range in which the tire component TP is wound around the tensioner roller 56 does not change.

[0221] In this way, by setting the angular range in which the tire component TP is wound to 180°, the angular range in which it is wound does not change, and therefore the position of the linear moving body 158A that generates tension in the tire component TP can be derived without being based on the position-torque correction relationship of the linear moving body 158A.

[0222] Therefore, by setting the angle range in which the tire component TP is wound to 180°, the tension of the tire component TP can be adjusted with higher precision.

[0223] (Other variations) In this embodiment, the load meter 162 directly detects the load received by the linear moving body 158A, but the load meter 162 according to this embodiment is not limited to this.

[0224] For example, similar to the first embodiment, the load may be measured from the torque output by the drive motor 160 using a torque meter 62 incorporated in the output shaft of the drive motor 160 .

[0225] In addition, in this embodiment, the linear moving body 158A converts the rotational torque of the drive motor 160 into linear motion using a linear motion mechanism, but the linear motion method according to this embodiment is not limited to this. For example, a linear servo motor or a hydraulic cylinder may be used to directly cause linear motion. Furthermore, a feed screw mechanism may be used instead of the rack and pinion mechanism described above.

[0226] The modifications that can be adopted in the first embodiment can also be adopted and combined as appropriate in this embodiment.

[0227] The above describes an embodiment of the present disclosure with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, it is clear that a person with ordinary knowledge in the field of technology to which the present disclosure pertains can conceive of various modifications or applications within the scope of the technical ideas set forth in the claims, and it is understood that these also naturally fall within the technical scope of the present disclosure. [Industrial Applicability]

[0228] The tension adjusting device according to the present disclosure can be used in tension adjusting devices, conveying devices, tire component manufacturing devices, and tire manufacturing devices that convey material while adjusting the tension with high precision. [Explanation of symbols]

[0229] 10... tire component manufacturing apparatus, 20... unwinding section, 22... material drum, 24... unwinding motor, 30... winding section, 32... winding drum, 34... winding motor, 40... conveying section, 42... conveying roller, 46... pinch roller, 50... tension adjusting device, 52... tension adjusting section, 54... support roller, 56... tensioner roller, 58... dancer arm, linear moving member (an example of a push roller), 58A... arm, linear moving body, 58B... shaft, 60... dancer rotation motor (an example of a drive section), 62... torque meter (an example of a measurement section), 64... counterweight, 66...tension measuring unit, 68...tension measuring device, 70...control unit, 76...storage unit, 78A...CPU, 78B...ROM, 78C...RAM, 79...bus, 80...tire building device, 82...conveyor, 84...belt unwinding drum, 86...tire building drum, 90...pressing unit, 92...pressing roller, 94...pressing motor, 100...tire component manufacturing device, 150...tension adjusting device, 152...tension adjusting unit, 154...support roller, 158...linearly moving member, 158A...linearly moving body, 160...drive motor, 162...load meter, F...fibrous body, I...virtual line, TP...tire component

Claims

1. a pair of support rollers for supporting the material to be conveyed; a push roller that pushes the material between the pair of support rollers in a direction intersecting a conveying direction of the material as viewed from an axial direction of the support rollers; a measuring unit for measuring a load with which the pressing roller presses the material; a drive unit that drives the push roller; a control unit that controls the drive unit based on the measurement result of the measurement unit so that the load falls within a target load range; Equipped with the push roller is a dancer arm including a roller that contacts the material, and an arm that rotatably supports the roller at one end and is rotatably supported at the other end with its axial direction extending along the axial direction of the roller; the drive unit drives the arm of the dancer arm to rotate; the measuring unit measures the load based on a torque generated in the dancer arm, the control unit further includes a memory unit that stores a correspondence relationship between the angle of the dancer arm and the tension generated in the material being conveyed, and corrects the torque output by the drive unit based on the correspondence relationship stored in the memory unit. Tension adjustment device.

2. a pair of support rollers for supporting the material to be conveyed; a push roller that pushes the material between the pair of support rollers in a direction intersecting a conveying direction of the material as viewed from an axial direction of the support rollers; a measuring unit for measuring a load with which the pressing roller presses the material; a drive unit that drives the push roller; a control unit that controls the drive unit based on the measurement result of the measurement unit so that the load falls within a target load range; Equipped with the push roller is a dancer arm including a roller that contacts the material, and an arm that rotatably supports the roller at one end and is rotatably supported at the other end with its axial direction extending along the axial direction of the roller; the drive unit drives the arm of the dancer arm to rotate; the measuring unit measures the load based on a torque generated in the dancer arm, a tension measuring unit for measuring a tension generated in the material conveyed downstream of the support roller in the material conveying direction, the control unit corrects the torque output by the drive unit based on the result obtained from the tension measurement unit. Tension adjustment device.

3. The dancer arm further includes a counterweight on the opposite side of the roller relative to the shaft supporting the arm. The tension adjusting device according to claim 1 or 2.

4. a pair of support rollers for supporting the material to be conveyed; a push roller that pushes the material between the pair of support rollers in a direction intersecting a conveying direction of the material as viewed from an axial direction of the support rollers; a measuring unit for measuring a load with which the pressing roller presses the material; a drive unit that drives the push roller; a control unit that controls the drive unit based on the measurement result of the measurement unit so that the load falls within a target load range; Equipped with the push roller is a linearly moving member having a roller that contacts the material and a linearly moving body that rotatably supports the roller and moves linearly in the intersecting direction, the measuring unit measures a load that the linear motion member receives from the material, The pair of support rollers are arranged so that the angular range in which the material is wrapped around the rollers of the linear moving member is 180°. Tension adjustment device.

5. a conveying unit disposed upstream of the pair of support rollers in a conveying direction of the material and configured to apply a conveying force to the material; The control unit further controls the conveying speed of the material by the conveying unit so that the angle of the dancer arm is constant. The tension adjusting device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

6. a conveying unit disposed upstream of the pair of support rollers in a conveying direction of the material and configured to apply a conveying force to the material; The control unit further controls the conveying speed of the material by the conveying unit so that the position of the roller constituting the linear motion member is constant.

5. The tension adjusting device of claim 4.

7. an unwinding unit that unwinds the material; a winding section that winds the material; The tension adjusting device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, which is provided midway along a path along which the material is transported from the unwinding section to the winding section; A conveying device having the above structure.

8. the material is a tire component, an unwinding unit that unwinds the tire component; a winding section that winds up the tire component; the tension adjusting device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, which is provided midway along a path along which the tire component is transported from the unwinding section to the winding section; A tire component manufacturing apparatus having:

9. the material is a tire component, an unwinding unit that unwinds the tire component; a winding section that winds up the tire component; the tension adjusting device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, which is provided midway along a path along which the tire component is transported from the unwinding section to the winding section; a tire building device that processes tire components obtained from the tire members into tires; A tire manufacturing apparatus comprising:

10. The material being conveyed is supported by a pair of support rollers, between the pair of support rollers, the material is pressed by a press roller driven by a drive unit in a direction intersecting a conveying direction of the material as viewed in an axial direction of the support rollers; a load applied by the pressing roller to the material is measured by a measuring unit; a control unit controls the drive unit based on the measurement result of the measurement unit so that the load falls within a target load range. This includes: the push roller is a dancer arm including a roller that contacts the material, and an arm that rotatably supports the roller at one end and is rotatably supported at the other end with an axial direction extending along the roller, the drive unit drives the arm of the dancer arm to rotate; the measuring unit measures the load based on a torque generated in the dancer arm, the control unit further includes a memory unit that stores a correspondence relationship between the angle of the dancer arm and the tension generated in the material being conveyed, and corrects the torque output by the drive unit based on the correspondence relationship stored in the memory unit. Tension adjustment method.

11. The material being conveyed is supported by a pair of support rollers, between the pair of support rollers, the material is pressed by a press roller driven by a drive unit in a direction intersecting a conveying direction of the material as viewed in an axial direction of the support rollers; a load applied by the pressing roller to the material is measured by a measuring unit; a control unit controls the drive unit based on the measurement result of the measurement unit so that the load falls within a target load range. This includes: the push roller is a dancer arm including a roller that contacts the material, and an arm that rotatably supports the roller at one end and is rotatably supported at the other end with an axial direction extending along the roller, the drive unit drives the arm of the dancer arm to rotate; the measuring unit measures the load based on a torque generated in the dancer arm, a tension measuring unit for measuring a tension generated in the material conveyed downstream of the support roller in the material conveying direction, the control unit corrects the torque output by the drive unit based on the result obtained from the tension measurement unit. Tension adjustment method.

12. The material being conveyed is supported by a pair of support rollers, between the pair of support rollers, the material is pressed by a press roller driven by a drive unit in a direction intersecting a conveying direction of the material as viewed in an axial direction of the support rollers; a load applied by the pressing roller to the material is measured by a measuring unit; a control unit controls the drive unit based on the measurement result of the measurement unit so that the load falls within a target load range. This includes: the push roller is a linearly moving member having a roller that contacts the material and a linearly moving body that rotatably supports the roller and moves linearly in the intersecting direction, the measuring unit measures the load that the linear motion member receives from the push roller; The pair of support rollers are arranged so that the angular range in which the material is wrapped around the rollers of the linear moving member is 180°. Tension adjustment method.

13. The material is unwound at an unwinding section; The material is wound in a winding section; The tension adjustment method according to any one of claims 10 to 12 is included in controlling the tension of the material along a path along which the material is transported from the unwinding section to the winding section. Transportation method.

14. the material is a tire component, The tire component is unwound at an unwinding section, The tire component is wound up by a winding section, The method includes the tension adjustment method according to any one of claims 10 to 12, wherein the tire component is conveyed along a path from the unwinding section to the winding section. A tire component manufacturing method.

15. the material is a tire component, The tire component is unwound at an unwinding section, The tire component is wound up by a winding section, and processing the tire component obtained by the tension adjusting method according to any one of claims 10 to 12 into a tire midway along a path along which the tire component is transported from the unwinding section to the winding section. Tire manufacturing method.

16. A program that causes a computer to function as a control unit of the tension adjusting device according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

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