Grinding device

Abstract

To suppress the degradation of detection accuracy of a height position of a polishing member, with a simple structure.SOLUTION: A polishing device includes: a conveyer 10 that carries a workpiece W in a carrying direction P on a horizontal surface; a supporting part 20 that is disposed above the conveyer 10; a rotation member 30 that is supported by the supporting part 20 so as to ascend / descend, and rotates around a first rotation axis AX1 in parallel with a width direction Q of the conveyer 10 orthogonal to the carrying direction P on a horizontal surface or a vertical direction orthogonal to a carrying surface 13a of the workpiece W in the conveyer 10; a polishing member 40 that is detachably attached to the rotation member 30, and rotates around the first rotation axis AX1 integrally with the rotation member 30 to polish a surface of the workpiece W; and a detection device 50 that detects a height of the polishing member 40. The detection device 50 comprises a moving body 51 that contacts with the rotation member when the rotation member descends while the polishing member 40 rotates, and moves by rotations of the polishing member 40, and a movement detecting portion 52 that detects the movement of the moving body 51.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a polishing apparatus. [Background technology]

[0002] When a portion of a plate-shaped workpiece is cut or punched using a punch press, burrs may occur in the cut portion. Furthermore, when a portion of the workpiece is cut using a laser processing machine, some of the material may be melted by the laser light and become dross that adheres to the workpiece. In order to remove such burrs and dross, a polishing device having a polishing member is used. A known polishing device has a configuration in which a disk-shaped polishing member is rotated and brought into contact with the workpiece to remove burrs and dross from the workpiece (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In the polishing device of Patent Document 1, a photoelectric sensor detects the polishing surface, which is the underside of the polishing member, to detect the height position of the polishing member. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 5557614 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the above-described polishing device, dust is generated when the polishing member polishes the workpiece. If this dust adheres to the light-emitting and light-receiving surfaces of the photoelectric sensor, the accuracy of detecting the height position of the polishing member may decrease. As a result, the height position of the polishing member varies, which may result in insufficient removal of burrs and dross from the workpiece or in the polishing of the workpiece surface more than necessary, which is undesirable. Therefore, it is necessary to remove the dust adhering to the light-emitting and light-receiving surfaces of the photoelectric sensor every time the polishing device is operated for a predetermined period of time or every time a predetermined number of workpieces have been polished. This not only creates a tedious task for the operator but also reduces the processing efficiency of the workpiece.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide a polishing apparatus that can suppress a decrease in the detection accuracy of the height position of a polishing member with a simple configuration. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] A polishing apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention comprises a conveyor that transports a workpiece in a transport direction in a horizontal plane; a support section arranged above the conveyor; a rotating member that is supported by the support section and moves up and down, and rotates around an axis of a first rotating shaft that is parallel to the width direction of the conveyor, which is perpendicular to the transport direction in the horizontal plane, or to the vertical direction, which is perpendicular to the transport surface of the workpiece on the conveyor; a polishing member that is detachably attached to the rotating member and rotates integrally with the rotating member around the axis of the first rotating shaft to polish the surface of the workpiece; and a detection device that detects the height of the polishing member.The detection device comprises a moving body that comes into contact with the rotating member as it descends while the polishing member is rotating, and moves due to the rotation of the polishing member, and a movement detection section that detects the movement of the moving body. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the polishing device of the above aspect, the rotating member comes into contact with the movable body while the polishing member is rotating, thereby moving the movable body, and the movement of this movable body is detected by the movement detector to detect the height position of the polishing member, so that a decrease in detection accuracy due to dust can be suppressed. In other words, even if dust adheres to the movable body, the detection accuracy of the height position of the polishing member can be maintained by detecting the movement of the movable body with the movement detector.

[0008] In the polishing apparatus according to the above aspect, the movable body may be a rotating body that rotates when the rotating polishing member comes into contact with it, and the movement detector may detect the rotation of the rotating body. With this configuration, since the rotating body is used as the movable body, it is possible to easily determine that the polishing member has come into contact with the rotating body by its rotation. In the polishing apparatus according to the above aspect, the rotating body may be positioned so that its upper end, with which the polishing member comes into contact, is higher than the conveyor surface on which the workpiece is transported. With this configuration, it is possible to prevent the polishing member from interfering with the conveyor when detecting the height position of the polishing member.

[0009] In the polishing apparatus according to the above aspect, the rotating body may be disk-shaped and rotatable about a second rotation axis parallel to the width direction, and the movement detector may detect the rotation of the rotating body without contacting the rotating body. With this configuration, the disk-shaped rotating body rotates about the second rotation axis parallel to the width direction, so that when the polishing member comes into contact with the rotating body, the rotating body can be rotated with high sensitivity. In the polishing apparatus according to the above aspect, the rotating body may have at least one through-hole that penetrates the rotating body in the width direction and is located at a portion of the rotation direction around the second rotation axis, and the movement detector may have a light-emitting unit that emits detection light toward the portion of the rotating body that includes the through-hole and a light-receiving unit that receives the detection light from the light-emitting unit. With this configuration, the rotation of the rotating body can be reliably detected without contacting the rotating body by detecting when the detection light passes through the through-hole and when the detection light is blocked by the rotating body.

[0010] In addition, in the polishing apparatus according to the above aspect, the support portion may support the rotating member so that it can move in the width direction, the rotating member may rotate about a first rotation axis parallel to the vertical direction, the polishing member may be detachably attached to the underside of the rotating member, and the detection device may be disposed on at least one of the two sides of the conveyor in the width direction. With this configuration, the detection device is disposed to the side of the conveyor, thereby reducing the distance the polishing member needs to move when detecting the height position of the polishing member. In addition, in the polishing apparatus according to the above aspect, the support portion may have a guide portion that guides the rotating member in the width direction to a position where the polishing member can contact the detection device. With this configuration, the polishing member can be moved above the detection device with a simple configuration.

[0011] The polishing apparatus according to the above aspect may further include a control unit that causes the detection device to detect the height of the polishing member when the polishing member is replaced. With this configuration, the height position of the polishing member is detected when a new polishing member is attached, so that even if the replaced polishing member has a different thickness, the height position of the polishing member can be detected and the workpiece can be polished appropriately. Furthermore, in the polishing apparatus according to the above aspect, the control unit may cause the detection device to detect the height of the polishing member when a predetermined number of workpieces have been processed with the polishing member, or when a predetermined amount of time has passed since the polishing member was processed. With this configuration, even if the polishing member has worn and its thickness has changed, the height position of the polishing member can be detected and the workpiece can be polished appropriately. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] 1 is a front view showing an example of a polishing apparatus according to a first embodiment. [Figure 2] 1 is a plan view showing an example of a polishing apparatus according to a first embodiment. [Figure 3] 1 is a side view showing an example of a polishing apparatus according to a first embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a rotating member and a polishing member. [Figure 5]FIG. 10 is a view showing an example of a detection device as viewed from the Y direction. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a view showing an example of a detection device as viewed from the Z direction. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a state in which a rotating body is rotatably attached. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a state before the height position of the polishing member is detected. [Figure 9] 10 is a diagram showing a state in which the polishing member is in contact with a moving body of the detection device. FIG. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is an enlarged front view showing a state in which the polishing member is in contact with the moving body. [Figure 11] FIG. 10 is an enlarged plan view showing a state in which the polishing member is in contact with the moving body. [Figure 12] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a state in which another polishing member comes into contact with a moving body of another detection device. [Figure 13] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a polishing apparatus according to a second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0013] Hereinafter, embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the content described below. Furthermore, in order to explain the embodiments, the drawings are scaled appropriately, such as by enlarging or emphasizing certain parts, and the shape, dimensions, etc., of the actual product may differ. In each of the following drawings, directions in the drawings will be explained using an XYZ coordinate system. In this XYZ coordinate system, a plane parallel to the horizontal plane is defined as the XY plane. In this XY plane, the direction parallel to the conveying direction P of the workpiece W is referred to as the X direction, and the width direction Q of the conveyor 10 perpendicular to the X direction is referred to as the Y direction. Furthermore, the vertical direction perpendicular to the XY plane is referred to as the Z direction. The X, Y, and Z directions will be explained assuming that the direction indicated by the arrow in each drawing is the + direction, and the direction opposite to the arrow is the - direction.

[0014] First Embodiment FIG. 1 is a front view showing an example of a polishing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a plan view showing an example of a polishing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a side view showing an example of a polishing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the polishing apparatus 100 includes a conveyor 10, a support unit 20, a rotating member 30, a polishing member 40, a detection device 50, and a control unit 70. The conveyor 10 transports a workpiece W in a transport direction P. The workpiece W is a flat plate material such as a metal.

[0015] A part of the workpiece W has been cut or punched by a laser processing machine, which is a machine tool, and burrs have been generated in the cut or punched parts due to the processing. Also, a part of the workpiece W has been cut or drilled by the laser processing machine, which is a machine tool, and dross has been generated in the cut or drilled parts, where a part of the workpiece W has melted and adhered to the cut or drilled parts due to the processing. The polishing apparatus 100 of this embodiment is used to remove burrs and dross generated on the workpiece W.

[0016] The conveyor 10 is, for example, a belt conveyor mechanism. As shown in FIG. 1 , the conveyor 10 includes a conveyor frame 11, a pair of rollers 12, and an endless conveyor belt 13. The conveyor frame 11 is fixed to a support frame 61 of a main frame 60. The main frame 60 is installed, for example, on the floor of a building. The support frame 61 is horizontally disposed on the lower side inside the main frame 60. The pair of rollers 12 are disposed on the +X side and the -X side in the X direction of the conveyor frame 11, respectively, and are supported so as to be rotatable around axes parallel to the Y direction. At least one of the pair of rollers 12 is driven to rotate by a roller drive unit (not shown). The roller drive unit may be, for example, an electric rotary motor, and its rotation and stopping are controlled by a control unit 70.

[0017] An endless conveyor belt 13 is placed around a pair of rollers 12. The conveyor belt 13 moves in a circular motion as the rollers 12 rotate. The upper surface (the surface on the +Z side) of the conveyor belt 13 is a conveying surface 13a on which the workpieces W are placed, and moves in the +X direction as the conveyor belt 13 moves in a circular motion. A guide portion 12A (see FIG. 3) is arranged on the inner side of each of the pair of rollers 12. The guide portion 12A shown in FIG. 3 is a sheet metal guide that abuts against the inner surface (back surface) of the conveyor belt 13. The guide portion 12A has a length in the Y direction that corresponds to the width of the conveyor belt 13, for example, and is supported by the conveyor frame 11. The conveyor belt 13 slides on the upper surface of the guide portion 12A while being lifted upward by the guide portion 12A. In other words, the guide portion 12A applies a predetermined tension to the conveyor belt 13 while determining the height of the conveying surface 13a. The guide portion 12A is not limited to being a metal plate guide, and an auxiliary roller (driven roller) supported rotatably around an axis parallel to the Y direction may be used.

[0018] The dimensions of the conveyor belt 13 in the X direction and the width (dimension in the Y direction) are arbitrary and are set depending on the dimensions and number of workpieces W to be placed on it. When the rollers 12 are driven to rotate with the workpieces W placed on the conveying surface 13a of the conveyor belt 13, the conveying surface 13a moves in the +X direction as the conveyor belt 13 moves around, and the workpieces W placed on the conveying surface 13a are conveyed in the conveying direction P (+X direction). Note that the conveying surface 13a of the conveyor belt 13 may be subjected to a surface treatment such as an anti-slip treatment to increase the coefficient of friction with the workpieces W in order to prevent the placed workpieces W from slipping.

[0019] The conveying surface 13a of the conveyor belt 13 is set to follow a horizontal plane (XY plane) by the guide portion 12A. Therefore, the workpiece W is conveyed in the +X direction while remaining positioned on the horizontal plane. The conveyor belt 13 may be configured with a plurality of through-holes (not shown) penetrating from the front to the back. In this case, the conveyor 10 may be provided with a suction device that adsorbs (sucks) the workpiece W to the conveying surface 13a. This suction device is disposed, for example, between the pair of rollers 12 and between the upper and lower portions of the conveyor belt 13. The suction device sucks the workpiece W through the through-holes of the conveyor belt 13, thereby adsorbing the workpiece W to the conveying surface 13a. The workpiece W is conveyed while being adsorbed to the conveying surface 13a of the conveyor belt 13 by the suction device.

[0020] In this embodiment, a belt conveyor mechanism having an endless conveyor belt 13 is used as the conveyor 10, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a roller conveyor mechanism may be used as the conveyor 10. When this roller conveyor mechanism is used, a configuration may be adopted in which multiple rollers are arranged in parallel in the conveying direction P (X direction), and some of the multiple rollers are rotationally driven rollers, so that the workpiece W is conveyed on these rollers in the conveying direction P. Furthermore, in addition to a belt conveyor mechanism or a roller conveyor mechanism, any mechanism capable of conveying the workpiece W in the conveying direction P may be applied as the conveyor 10.

[0021] The support part 20 is disposed above the conveying surface 13a of the conveyor belt 13. The support part 20 is provided on an upper frame 62, which is a part of the main body frame 60. The upper frame 62 has support pillar parts extending upward in the vertical direction from both sides in the width direction Q of the conveyor belt 13, and beam parts extending in the width direction Q at the upper ends of the support pillar parts. The support part 20 has a slider 21, a guide part 22, a lifting frame 23, and a lifting guide 24.

[0022] The slider 21 is, for example, a plate-like body, and supports the rotating member 30. The slider 21 is movable in the width direction Q (Y direction) along the guide portion 22. The guide portion 22 is provided on the -X side of the lifting frame 23. The guide portions 22 are provided at two locations, one above and one below the lifting frame 23, extending in the width direction Q and guiding the slider 21 in the width direction Q. The slider 21 moves in the width direction Q by driving the slide driving portion 25. In other words, by driving the slide driving portion 25, it is possible to move the rotating member 30 together with the slider 21 back and forth in the width direction Q.

[0023] The guide portion 22 is set to a length that allows the grinding member 40, described later, to reciprocate within the range of the width direction Q of the conveyor belt 13. In other words, the length of the guide portion 22 is set to include a length that allows the rotational member 30 to move so that the grinding member 40 reciprocates within the range of the width direction Q of the conveyor belt 13. This configuration makes it possible to bring the grinding member 40 into contact with a workpiece W placed at any position on the conveying surface 13a. Furthermore, the guide portion 22 is set to a length that allows the rotational member 30 to move to a position where a portion of the grinding member 40 reaches above the detection device 50, described later. With this configuration, the grinding member 40 can be easily positioned above the detection device 50 simply by lengthening the guide portion 22 in the width direction Q.

[0024] The lifting frame 23 is supported by the main frame 60 via the lifting guide 24. The lifting frame 23 is movable up and down (movable in the Z direction) along the lifting guide 24. The lifting guide 24 is supported by the main frame 60. The lifting guide 24 extends in the vertical direction on both sides of the width direction Q of the conveyor belt 13, and guides the lifting frame 23 in the vertical direction. The lifting frame 23 has guided portions 27 on the +Y side and the -Y side that are guided by the lifting guide 24. The guided portions 27 are guided by the lifting guide 24, so that the lifting frame 23 is guided in the vertical direction.

[0025] The lifting frame 23 is raised and lowered by the drive of the lifting drive unit 26. As the lifting frame 23 is raised and lowered by the lifting drive unit 26, the rotating member 30 is raised and lowered. As the lifting frame 23 is raised and lowered by the lifting drive unit 26, for example, a ball screw mechanism or a rack and pinion mechanism using a rotary electric motor, or a cylinder device is used as the lifting drive unit 26. The lifting drive unit 26 may be provided on a part of the main body frame 60 (for example, the upper frame 62), or may be provided on the lifting frame 23. By driving the lifting drive unit 26, the rotating member 30 is raised and lowered, and the polishing member 40 provided on the rotating member 30 can be moved closer to or away from the workpiece W.

[0026] The height of the rotating member 30 (or the height of the polishing member 40) can be detected by a detecting device 50, which will be described later. The rotating member 30 (or the polishing member 40) can be set to a desired height by driving the lifting / lowering drive unit 26 based on the output from the detecting device 50. When the rotating member 30 is reciprocated in the width direction Q while set at the desired height, the slide drive unit 25 can be driven to reciprocate the rotating member 30 in the width direction Q relative to the workpiece W. In this way, the support unit 20 can position the rotating member 30 (polishing member 40) at a desired height and position in the width direction Q. The configuration of the support unit 20 is not limited to the above-described configuration. Any configuration that can position the rotating member 30 (polishing member 40) at a desired height and position in the width direction Q can be applied to the support unit 20.

[0027] Two rotating members 30 are arranged on the -X side of the lifting frame 23. The two rotating members 30 are arranged side by side in the width direction Q (Y direction). The two rotating members 30 are each supported by the lifting frame 23 via a rotation drive unit 33. The two rotating members 30 can move in the width direction Q and in the up-down direction (Z direction) by the support unit 20 described above. Hereinafter, when distinguishing between the two rotating members 30, the rotating member 30 on the +Y side will be referred to as rotating member 31, and the rotating member 30 on the -Y side will be referred to as rotating member 32.

[0028] The rotating member 31 is supported by the rotation drive unit 33 so as to be rotatable about the first rotation axis AX1. The rotating member 32 is supported by the rotation drive unit 33 so as to be rotatable about the first rotation axis AX2. The first rotation axes AX1 and AX2 are parallel to the vertical direction (Z direction). The first rotation axes AX1 and AX2 are parallel to each other and perpendicular to the conveying surface 13a of the conveyor belt 13. The rotating members 31 and 32 are each connected to the rotation axis of the rotation drive unit 33, and rotate about the first rotation axes AX1 and AX2 by driving the rotation drive unit 33. The rotation drive unit 33 may include, for example, a rotary electric motor and a reducer.

[0029] The rotary drive unit 33 includes a height adjustment unit 34. The height adjustment unit 34 adjusts the height of the rotary member 30 relative to the rotary drive unit 33. Therefore, by adjusting the height positions of the rotary members 31 and 32 with the height adjustment unit 34, the height positions of the rotary members 31 and 32 can be aligned. For example, even if polishing members 40 of different thicknesses are attached to the rotary members 31 and 32, the heights of the two polishing members 40 can be aligned by adjusting the height positions of the rotary members 31 and 32. Note that the present invention is not limited to a configuration in which each of the two rotary drive units 33 includes a height adjustment unit 34. A configuration in which the height adjustment unit 34 is provided on either one of the two rotary drive units 33 may also be adopted.

[0030] FIG. 4 shows an example of a rotating member 30 and a polishing member 40. The rotating member 30 has a shaft 30a and a polishing member support 30b. The shaft 30a is rod-shaped and extends along the first rotation axes AX1 and AX2. It is connected to the rotation shaft of the rotation drive unit 33 and rotates around the first rotation axes AX1 and AX2. The polishing member support 30b is disk-shaped and is provided at the lower end of the shaft 30a. The center of the polishing member support 30b coincides with the first rotation axes AX1 and AX2. When the shaft 30a rotates, the polishing member support 30b rotates integrally with the shaft 30a around the first rotation axes AX1 and AX2.

[0031] The polishing member 40 is disk-shaped and is held on the underside of the polishing member support portion 30b. The polishing member 40 is detachably attached to the polishing member support portion 30b. The polishing member 40 rotates integrally with the polishing member support portion 30b (rotating member 30) around the first rotation axes AX1 and AX2. The underside of the polishing member 40 is the polishing surface 40a, and sandpaper, for example, is used. Note that a metal brush, for example, may be used as the polishing member 40. In this case, the tip of the metal brush forms the polishing surface 40a.

[0032] The surface of the workpiece W can be polished by bringing the polishing surface 40a into contact with the workpiece W while rotating the polishing member 40. Furthermore, since the rotating member 30 can move back and forth in the width direction Q as described above, the surface of the workpiece W can be polished by bringing the polishing member 40 into contact with the workpiece W while rotating and moving it back and forth in the width direction Q. Furthermore, the polishing member 40 can be positioned above the detection device 50 by moving the rotating member 30 to the +Y side or -Y side in the width direction Q.

[0033] The detecting device 50 detects the height of the polishing member 40 by coming into contact with the rotating polishing member 40. The detecting devices 50 are arranged on both sides of the conveyor belt 13 in the width direction Q. The detecting devices 50 are not limited to being arranged on both sides of the conveyor belt 13, but may be arranged on at least one of the sides of the conveyor belt 13. The detecting device 50 arranged on the +Y side of the conveyor belt 13 and the detecting device 50 arranged on the -Y side of the conveyor belt 13 are configured symmetrically across the conveyor belt 13 and are made of the same components.

[0034] FIG. 5 is a view of an example of the detection device 50 as viewed from the Y direction. FIG. 6 is a view of an example of the detection device 50 as viewed from the Z direction. FIG. 7 is a view showing a state in which a rotating body 51 is rotatably mounted. The detection device 50 is provided, for example, on the conveyor frame 11. As shown in FIGS. 5 to 7, the detection device 50 has a rotating body 51 (moving body) and a movement detection unit 52. The rotating body 51 comes into contact with the polishing surface 40a of the polishing member 40 as the rotating member 40 is rotating and moves as the polishing member 40 rotates. In this embodiment, the rotating body 51 rotates as the rotating polishing member 40 comes into contact with the rotating body 51.

[0035] The rotating body 51 is disk-shaped. The rotating body 51 is rotatable around a second rotation axis AX3 that is parallel to the width direction Q. An upper end 51a of the rotating body 51 is the portion that comes into contact with the polishing member 40. As shown in FIG. 5, the rotating body 51 is disposed so that the upper end 51a is higher by a height L than the conveying surface 13a of the workpiece W on the conveyor 10. The height L can be set arbitrarily. As shown in FIG. 7, the rotating body 51 is rotatably supported by a shaft portion 55 provided on the conveyor frame 11 via a bearing 54. A rotating plate 56 is attached to the rotating body 51 by a connecting member 57.

[0036] The rotating plate 56 is disposed on the +Y side of the rotating body 51 and spaced apart from the rotating body 51. The rotating plate 56 is, for example, in the shape of a disk having the same or nearly the same diameter as the rotating body 51, and is disposed so that its center coincides with the second rotation axis AX3. In other words, the rotating plate 56 rotates integrally with the rotating body 51 around the second rotation axis AX3. Therefore, the rotating plate 56 constitutes a part of the rotating body 51 or is included in the rotating body 51.

[0037] The rotating plate 56 has a plurality of through holes 56a that penetrate in the Y direction and are arranged in a circumferential direction around the second rotation axis AX3. The inner diameter of the through holes 56a is set to be larger than the diameter of the detection light emitted from the light-emitting unit 52a, which will be described later, for example. The plurality of through holes 56a are arranged at equal pitches in the circumferential direction around the second rotation axis AX3. The number of through holes 56a is arbitrary, and at least one is provided. Furthermore, the arrangement of the plurality of through holes 56a is not limited to an equal pitch, and they may be arranged at different pitches.

[0038] The movement detection unit 52 detects rotation of the rotor 51 around the second rotation axis AX3 without contacting the rotor 51. The detection result by the movement detection unit 52 is sent to the control unit 70. The movement detection unit 52 is supported on the conveyor frame 11 by a support member 53. The movement detection unit 52 has a light-emitting unit 52a and a light-receiving unit 52b. The light-emitting unit 52a and the light-receiving unit 52b are arranged to face each other across the portion of the rotor plate 56 in the circumferential direction where the through-hole 56a is provided. The support member 53 has a light-emitting side support portion 53a and a light-receiving side support portion 53b. The light-emitting side support portion 53a is arranged on the -Y side of the rotor plate 56 and supports the light-emitting unit 52a. The light-receiving side support portion 53b is arranged on the +Y side of the rotor plate 56 and supports the light-receiving unit 52b.

[0039] The light-emitting unit 52a emits detection light toward the rotating plate 56. That is, the light-emitting unit 52a emits detection light toward the rotating plate 56, which is a part of the rotating body 51. When the detection light emitted from the light-emitting unit 52a passes through the through-hole 56a, the light-receiving unit 52b receives the detection light and transmits the reception information to the control unit 70. Therefore, when the rotating plate 56 is not rotating (i.e., when the rotating body 51 is not rotating), the state in which the detection light emitted from the light-emitting unit 52a is not received or the state in which the detection light is received continues. The control unit 70 determines that the rotating plate 56 (rotating body 51) is not rotating when the state in which the detection light is not received or the state in which the detection light is received continues for a predetermined time based on the detection result from the light-receiving unit 52b.

[0040] Furthermore, when the rotating plate 56 is rotating (i.e., when the rotating body 51 is rotating), the light receiving unit 52b intermittently receives the detection light. The light receiving unit 52b outputs the detection light to the control unit 70 at the timing when the light receiving unit 52b receives the detection light. The control unit 70 determines whether the number of times the detection light is received exceeds a predetermined number of times within a predetermined period of time based on the detection result from the light receiving unit 52b. The control unit 70 determines that the rotating plate 56 (rotating body 51) has rotated when the number of times the detection light is received exceeds the predetermined number of times. The above-mentioned predetermined period of time and predetermined number of times can be set arbitrarily.

[0041] The control unit 70 acquires the height of the polishing member 40 when it determines that the rotating plate 56 (rotating body 51) has rotated. The control unit 70 acquires the height position of the polishing member 40 (height position of the rotating member 30) based on the amount of elevation of the lift frame 23 by the elevation drive unit 26 or the output value of an encoder (not shown). In other words, the control unit 70 acquires that, when the rotating plate 56 rotates, the polishing surface 40a of the polishing member 40 is located at height L (see FIG. 5 ) from the conveying surface 13a of the conveyor belt 13. The control unit 70 also acquires the thickness of the workpiece W to be polished from a higher-level control device or the like. The control unit 70 can, for example, use the acquired height position of the polishing member 40 as a reference position and set the height of the polishing member 40 to match the height of the workpiece W to be polished, thereby allowing the polishing member 40 to appropriately contact the top surface of the workpiece W.

[0042] Next, the operation of the polishing apparatus 100 configured as described above will be described. After a portion of the workpiece W is cut or punched using a machine tool such as a laser processing machine or a punch press, the workpiece W is placed on the -X side of the conveyor belt 13 of the conveyor 10 by a transport device or manually by an operator. First, the lifting / lowering drive unit 26 (see FIG. 1, etc.) is driven to adjust the height (position in the Z direction) of the polishing member 40 to a height at which the polishing surface 40a of the polishing member 40 appropriately abuts the workpiece W. The height of the polishing member 40 may be automatically set by the control unit 70 controlling the lifting / lowering drive unit 26 to a value preset depending on the thickness of the workpiece W, or the operator may manually drive the lifting / lowering drive unit 26 to set the height.

[0043] Next, prior to the conveyor 10 transporting the workpiece W, the rotation drive unit 33 rotates the rotating member 30 (polishing member 40) in a direction around the first rotation axes AX1 and AX2. The rotation speed (rpm) of the rotating member 30 driven by the rotation drive unit 33 may be controlled by a control unit (not shown) or may be set manually by an operator. The rotating members 30 (31, 32) may be rotated in the same direction around the axial directions of the first rotation axes AX1 and AX2, or may be rotated in mutually opposite directions.

[0044] When the rotation of the rotating member 30 has stabilized, the slide drive unit 25 is driven to move the slider 21 back and forth within a predetermined range in the width direction Q. The predetermined range is set so that the polishing member 40 moves back and forth within the width of the conveyor belt 13. The movement speed of the slider 21 is set, for example, according to the speed at which the workpiece W is transported in the conveying direction P. By driving the conveyor 10 in this state, the conveyor belt 13 is moved in a circular motion, and the workpiece W placed on the conveyor belt 13 is transported in the conveying direction P. While the workpiece W is being transported in the conveying direction P, the polishing surface 40a of the polishing member 40 comes into contact with the top surface of the workpiece W. As a result, burrs and dross occurring on the workpiece W are scraped off by the polishing surface 40a and removed from the surface.

[0045] In such a polishing apparatus 100, it is necessary to acquire the height position of the polishing member 40 in order to properly bring the polishing surface 40a of the polishing member 40 into contact with the upper surface of the workpiece W. The height of the polishing member 40 is detected by the above-described detection device 50. The control unit 70 causes the detection device 50 to detect the height of the polishing member 40, for example, when the polishing member 40 is replaced, when a predetermined number of workpieces W have been machined by the polishing member 40, or when the time spent machining the workpiece W by the polishing member 40 has reached a predetermined time. The control unit 70 may also cause the detection device 50 to detect the height of the polishing member 40 when the polishing apparatus 100 starts operating, when an operator issues an instruction to perform height detection, or the like.

[0046] Next, the operation of detecting the height position of the polishing member 40 in the polishing apparatus 100 will be described with reference to FIGS. 8 to 12. FIG. 8 illustrates a state before the height position of the polishing member 40 is detected. As shown in FIG. 8, first, the control unit 70 drives the lifting drive unit 26 to raise the lifting frame 23 to a position where the polishing surface 40a of the polishing member 40 is higher than the height L (see FIG. 5) above the conveying surface 13a of the conveyor belt 13. Next, the control unit 70 drives the slide drive unit 25 to move the slider 21 in the +Y direction so that the polishing member 40 of the rotating member 31 is positioned above the detection device 50 on the +Y side. The position of the support unit 20 in the Y direction can be automatically adjusted to a preset position, for example, by the control unit 70 controlling the slide drive unit 25.

[0047] Next, the rotation drive unit 33 rotates the rotating member 31 and the polishing member 40 around the first rotation axis AX1. The rotation speed (rpm) of the rotating member 31 is automatically set by the control unit 70 controlling the rotation drive unit 33 so that it becomes a preset rotation speed. The control unit 70 may, for example, rotate the rotating member 31 at the same rotation speed as when polishing the workpiece W, or may rotate the rotating member 31 at a rotation speed lower than the rotation speed when polishing the workpiece W.

[0048] 9 is a diagram showing a state in which the polishing member 40 attached to the rotating member 31 comes into contact with the rotating body 51 of the detection device 50. As shown in FIG. 9, the control unit 70 lowers the lifting frame 23 while rotating the rotating member 31, thereby bringing the polishing member 40 into contact with the detection device 50. When lowering the lifting frame 23, the control unit 70 may control the lifting drive unit 26 to lower the lifting frame 23 by small increments from a position where the polishing surface 40a of the polishing member 40 is assumed to approach height L above the conveying surface 13a. This operation prevents the polishing member 40 from coming into forceful contact with the rotating body 51, which could damage the polishing member 40 or the rotating body 51.

[0049] FIG. 10 is an enlarged front view showing the polishing member 40 in contact with the rotor 51. FIG. 11 is an enlarged plan view showing the polishing member 40 in contact with the rotor 51. As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the polishing surface 40a of the rotating polishing member 40 contacts the upper end 51a of the rotor 51, thereby transmitting the rotation of the polishing member 40 to the rotor 51, causing the rotor 51 to rotate around the second rotation axis AX3. FIG. 11 shows a contact portion V between the polishing surface 40a and the rotor 51. Note that, because the polishing surface 40a has a high coefficient of friction, the rotation can be transmitted to the rotor 51 with high sensitivity via the contact portion V. Note that the circumferential surface of the rotor 51 may be subjected to a surface treatment to increase frictional resistance.

[0050] As the rotor 51 rotates around the second rotation axis AX3, the through-hole 56a of the rotor plate 56, which rotates integrally with the rotor 51, moves around the second rotation axis AX3. The movement of the through-hole 56a changes the detection state of the movement detection unit 52. That is, when the through-hole 56a moves out of contact with the light-emitting unit 52a, the detection light from the light-emitting unit 52a is blocked by a part of the rotor 51 and does not reach the light-receiving unit 52b. On the other hand, when the through-hole 56a reaches the light-emitting unit 52a, the detection light from the light-emitting unit 52a is received by the light-receiving unit 52b. In this way, as the rotor 51 rotates, a state in which the light-receiving unit 52b does not receive light and a state in which the light-receiving unit 52b receives light are alternately repeated.

[0051] Therefore, the control unit 70 determines that the rotating body 51 is rotating based on the detection results of the light receiving unit 52b, for example, if the number of light signals received by the light receiving unit 52b within a predetermined period of time exceeds a predetermined threshold. By comparing the number of light signals received within a predetermined period of time with the threshold in this manner, it is possible to exclude cases where the rotating body 51 rotates slightly without contact with the polishing member 40, and it is possible to accurately detect whether the polishing member 40 is in contact with the rotating body 51. The control unit 70 obtains the height of the polishing member 40 when it determines that the rotating body 51 is rotating. The control unit 70 obtains, based on the amount of elevation of the lifting frame 23 or the output value of an encoder or the like (not shown), that the height of the polishing surface 40a of the polishing member 40 is height L (see FIG. 5) from the conveying surface 13a of the conveyor belt 13.

[0052] Next, the height position of polishing member 40 on the -Y side is detected. In this case, an operation equivalent to detecting the height position of polishing member 40 on the +Y side described above is performed. First, lifting drive unit 26 is driven to raise lifting frame 23 until polishing surface 40a of polishing member 40 is at a position higher than height L above conveying surface 13a of conveyor belt 13. Next, slide drive unit 25 is driven to move slider 21 in the -Y direction so that polishing member 40 of rotating member 32 is positioned above detection device 50 on the -Y side. Next, rotating member 32 and polishing member 40 are rotated around first rotation axis AX2.

[0053] 12 is a diagram showing a state in which the polishing member 40 attached to the rotating member 32 comes into contact with the rotating body 51 of the detection device 50. As shown in FIG. 12, the control unit 70 drives the lifting drive unit 26 to lower the lifting frame 23, causing the polishing surface 40a of the rotated polishing member 40 to come into contact with the rotating body 51 of the detection device 50. As the polishing surface 40a comes into contact with the rotating body 51, the rotation of the polishing member 40 is transmitted to the rotating body 51, causing the rotating body 51 to rotate about the second rotation axis AX3, as described above. Also, as described above, the rotation of the rotating body 51 is detected by the detection device 50, and the control unit 70 acquires the height position of the polishing member 40 at that time.

[0054] If the height position of the polishing member 40 of the rotating member 31 differs from the height position of the polishing member 40 of the rotating member 32, the height adjustment unit 34 of either of the rotating members 31, 32 adjusts the height position of the polishing member 40 to align the height positions of the two polishing members 40 of the rotating members 31, 32. The operation of this height adjustment unit 34 may be performed automatically by the control unit 70 or manually by an operator. The control unit 70 performs polishing of the workpiece W as described above in a state in which the height positions of the two polishing members 40 are aligned. At this time, since the height positions of the polishing members 40 have been detected with high accuracy, the polishing members 40 can be set to an appropriate height position relative to the workpiece W.

[0055] As described above, according to the first embodiment, the rotating polishing member 40 is brought into contact with the rotating body 51 while rotating, thereby rotating the rotating body 51, and the height position of the polishing member 40 is detected by detecting the rotation of the rotating body 51 with the movement detection unit 52, thereby preventing a decrease in detection accuracy due to dust generated when polishing the workpiece W. In other words, even if dust adheres to the rotating body 51 (rotating plate 56), the height position of the polishing member 40 can be detected with high accuracy by detecting the rotation of the rotating body 51 with the movement detection unit 52.

[0056] In the first embodiment, the movement detector 52 detects the rotation of the rotating body 51 (rotating plate 56) using the light-emitting unit 52a and the light-receiving unit 52b, but this is not limiting. Any sensor capable of detecting the rotation of the rotating body 51 can be used as the movement detector 52. For example, a configuration that detects the rotation of the rotating body 51 in a non-contact manner, such as a capacitance sensor, may be applied as the movement detector 52. In this case, the rotating body 51 (rotating plate 56) is configured such that portions with different capacitances are formed alternately around the second rotation axis AX3. Furthermore, the movement detector 52 may be a contact-type configuration that includes a probe that comes into contact with the rotating body 51 and detects the rotation of the rotating body 51 by displacement of the probe.

[0057] Second Embodiment FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a polishing apparatus 200 according to the second embodiment. As shown in FIG. 13, the polishing apparatus 200 has a detection device 150 that is different from the detection device 50 of the first embodiment described above, but other configurations are similar to those of the first embodiment. In FIG. 13, the same components as those of the first embodiment described above are denoted by the same reference numerals, and their description will be omitted or simplified. The following description will focus on the configuration of the detection device 150.

[0058] The detection device 150 has a moving body 151 and a movement detection unit 152. The moving body 151 is provided so as to be movable, for example, in a direction parallel to the conveying direction P of the workpiece W (see FIGS. 2 and 3). The upper surface of the moving body 151 is a contact surface 151a. The moving body 151 comes into contact with the contact surface 151a as the rotating member 30 descends while the polishing member 40 is rotating, and moves as the polishing member 40 rotates. In this embodiment, the moving body 151 moves linearly in the conveying direction P as the rotating polishing member 40 comes into contact with the contact surface 151a.

[0059] The movement detection unit 152 detects the movement of the moving body 151 in the transport direction P. The movement detection unit 152 may be configured to detect the movement of the moving body 151 without contacting the moving body 151, or may be configured to detect the movement of the moving body 151 by contacting the moving body 151. Any non-contact or contact sensor capable of detecting the movement of the moving body 151 can be used as the movement detection unit 152. The movement detection unit 152 transmits the detection result to the control unit 70. The control unit 70 obtains the detection result regarding the movement of the moving body 151 from the movement detection unit 152 and detects the height position of the polishing member 40 when the moving body 151 moves.

[0060] As described above, according to the second embodiment, the polishing member 40 comes into contact with the moving body 151 while rotating, thereby moving the moving body 151, and the movement of this moving body 151 is detected by the movement detection unit 152. As a result, as in the first embodiment, even if dust adheres to the moving body 151, the movement of the moving body 151 is detected by the movement detection unit 152, and the height position of the polishing member 40 can be detected with high accuracy.

[0061] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and improvements can be made to the above-described embodiments. Furthermore, forms incorporating such modifications or improvements are also included within the technical scope of the present invention. One or more of the requirements described in the above-described embodiments may be omitted. Furthermore, the requirements described in the above-described embodiments may be combined as appropriate. Furthermore, the order of execution of each operation shown in the embodiments can be realized in any order as long as the results of a previous operation are not used in a subsequent operation. Furthermore, even if the operations in the above-described embodiments are described using terms such as "first," "next," and "subsequently" for convenience, it is not necessary to perform them in this order.

[0062] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, an example in which two rotating members 30 (31, 32) are used has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a configuration in which one rotating member 30 is used, or a configuration in which three or more rotating members 30 are used, may also be used. When three or more rotating members 30 are used, the three or more rotating members 30 may be arranged side by side in the width direction Q (Y direction), or may be arranged offset in the conveying direction P (X direction), for example.

[0063] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the first rotation axis AX1 (AX2) of the rotating member 30 is set in the vertical direction (Z direction) perpendicular to the conveying surface 13a of the conveyor belt 13, but this is not limiting. For example, the first rotation axis of the rotating member 30 may be set parallel to a horizontal plane (e.g., parallel to the width direction Q), and the polishing member 40 may be detachably attached to the circumferential surface around the first rotation axis of the rotating member 30. Even in this configuration, the polishing member 40 of the rotating rotating member 30 comes into contact with something, thereby moving the rotating body 51 (moving body), and the movement of the rotating body 51 is detected by the movement detection unit 52, thereby making it possible to detect the height position of the lower end of the polishing member 40. [Explanation of symbols]

[0064] AX1, AX2...First rotation axis AX3: Second rotation axis P...Transport direction Q...Width direction W...Work 10. Conveyor 13. Conveyor belt 13a...Transport surface 20...Support part 21 Slider 22 Guide section 23. Lifting frame 24···Lifting guide 25 Slide drive unit 26. Lifting drive unit 30, 31, 32... Rotating members 40...Abrasive material 50, 150...Detection device 51 Rotating body (moving body) 51a...Top end 52, 152...Movement detection unit 52a Light-emitting part 52b Light receiving section 56 Rotating plate 56a...Through hole 70 Control unit 100, 200...polishing equipment 151 Mobile 151a...Contact surface

Claims

1. a conveyor that conveys the workpiece in a conveying direction on a horizontal plane; a support disposed above the conveyor; a rotating member that is supported by the support portion and moves up and down, and that rotates around a first rotation axis that is parallel to the width direction of the conveyor that is perpendicular to the conveying direction on a horizontal plane, or the vertical direction that is perpendicular to the conveying surface of the workpiece on the conveyor; a polishing member that is detachably attached to the rotating member and rotates integrally with the rotating member around the axis of the first rotation shaft to polish the surface of the workpiece; a detection device for detecting the height of the polishing member, The detection device includes: a moving body that comes into contact with the polishing member when the rotating member is lowered while the polishing member is rotating, and that moves as the polishing member rotates; a movement detection unit that detects the movement of the movable body.

2. the moving body is a rotating body that rotates when the rotating polishing member comes into contact with it, 2. The polishing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said movement detector detects rotation of said rotating body.

3. 3. The polishing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the rotating body is disposed so that an upper end thereof, which comes into contact with the polishing member, is higher than a surface of the conveyor on which the workpiece is transported.

4. the rotating body is disk-shaped and rotatable around a second rotation axis parallel to the width direction, 3. The polishing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the movement detector detects the rotation of the rotating body without contacting the rotating body.

5. the rotating body has at least one through-hole that penetrates in the width direction and is arranged in a part of the circumferential direction around the second rotation axis, 5. The polishing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the movement detection unit has a light-emitting unit that emits detection light toward a portion of the rotating body in the rotation direction that includes the through hole, and a light-receiving unit that receives the detection light from the light-emitting unit.

6. the support portion supports the rotating member so as to be movable in the width direction, the rotating member rotates around a first rotation axis parallel to a vertical direction, the polishing member is detachably attached to the lower surface of the rotating member, 2. The polishing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the detection device is disposed on at least one of both sides of the conveyor in the width direction.

7. 7. The polishing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the support portion has a guide portion that guides the rotating member in the width direction to a position where the polishing member can contact the detection device.

8. 2. The polishing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a control unit that controls the detection device to detect the height of the polishing member when the polishing member is replaced.

9. The polishing apparatus of claim 8, wherein the control unit causes the detection device to detect the height of the polishing member when the number of pieces of the workpiece processed by the polishing member reaches a predetermined number, or when the processing time of the workpiece by the polishing member reaches a predetermined time.

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