Modular Machining Layout for Front and Rear Maintenance Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing machining systems, such as vertical machining centers, require significant side space for maintenance, leading to increased production line length, which hinders practicality and efficiency.
Innovation Solution
A machining system design that allows processing modules to be pulled out in both forward and rearward directions, eliminating the need for side space and enabling a more compact arrangement by using a modular structure with wheels and rails for easy removal and replacement of modules.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a vertical machining center is arranged in a production line, then machining operations can be performed, but significant side space is required for maintenance, increasing the overall length of the production line
Solution Approach 1:
The machining system is divided into independent processing modules that can be individually accessed and maintained. Each module is a self-contained unit with its own machining capabilities, allowing maintenance personnel to access specific modules without disrupting the entire production line and without requiring extensive side space.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from a traditional side-access maintenance approach to a front/rear access approach. By orienting the modules so that maintenance can be performed from the front or rear directions rather than from the sides, the system eliminates the need for significant side space while maintaining ease of maintenance.
2Ease of repair
If processing modules are designed with wheels and rails for easy removal, then maintenance becomes simpler and module replacement is faster, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The processing modules are designed with movable components (wheels) that allow dynamic repositioning along fixed rails. This dynamic capability enables easy removal and reinstallation of modules for maintenance or reconfiguration, while the standardized rail system keeps the overall complexity manageable through reuse of common components.
Solution Approach 2:
The wheels and rails form a universal interface system that can be applied across multiple processing modules. This standardized mechanism serves multiple functions: it enables easy module removal for maintenance, allows quick reinstallation, and facilitates reconfiguration of the production line layout, thereby justifying the added complexity through multiple benefits.
Data Source
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AI summary
A machining system including a base (base unit 34) ; multiple work modules arranged in an arrangement direction on the base (base unit 34), at least one of the multiple work modules being a processing module 50, which processes a work with a tool, provided with (A) a main shaft head including a main shaft on which a tool is attached and a main shaft rotating device that rotates the main shaft; (B) a head raising and lowering device that moves the main shaft head in a vertical direction; (C) a head moving device that moves the main shaft head in a horizontal plane by moving it in two perpendicular directions; and (D) a work table that holds a work; the processing module 50 being configured so as to be pulled from the base (base unit 34) along a path extending in an intersecting direction, which is a direction perpendicular to the arrangement direction.