Workpiece Conveying Apparatus for Pressing Machines
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing workpiece conveying apparatuses for pressing machines are cumbersome, costly, and inefficient due to the need for high-power servomotors and complex mechanisms, limiting high-speed conveyance and increasing vibration noise.
Innovation Solution
A workpiece conveying apparatus featuring a pair of linear motor tables and arms with pivotable ends, supported by pivot axes, allowing independent movement and control of the conveying table's posture through gear mechanisms and servomotors, enabling lightweight, compact design and efficient conveyance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If traditional feed bars with multiple fingers are used to hold and convey workpieces through multiple dies, then workpiece conveying function is achieved, but the weight of movable components increases and high-power driving units are required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the traditional single feed bar system into multiple independent conveyance units (first conveyance unit, second conveyance unit, etc.), each responsible for specific workpiece handling tasks. This segmentation reduces the weight and complexity of each individual moving component while maintaining overall conveying functionality through coordinated operation of multiple lighter units.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts and removes the heavy feed bars and multiple fingers from the system, replacing them with lighter conveyance units that use link mechanisms and linear motors. This extraction eliminates unnecessary heavy components while preserving the essential workpiece conveying function through more efficient mechanical arrangements.
2Ease of operation
If separate servomotors are used for lifting, advancing, and clamping operations, then precise control is achieved, but cost increases and high-power motors are required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple driving functions into integrated conveyance units where a single linear motor drives both lifting and advancing operations through a coordinated link mechanism. This consolidation reduces the number of separate servomotors from three per workpiece to one per conveyance unit, lowering cost and complexity while maintaining precise control through unified motion control.
Solution Approach 2:
The conveyance units are designed with multi-functionality, where the same linear motor and link mechanism perform multiple operations (lifting, advancing, positioning) that traditionally required separate dedicated motors. This universal design reduces the total number of driving units while achieving all necessary control functions.
3Speed
If high-speed conveyance is attempted with traditional feed bars, then productivity increases, but resonance occurs and vibration noise increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the traditional mechanical feed bar system with a modern combination of linear motors and link mechanisms. This substitution eliminates the resonance-prone long feed bars and uses rigid, short linkages that can operate at high speeds without vibration. The linear motor provides smooth acceleration and deceleration, further reducing mechanical shock and noise.
4Strength
If large and heavy feed bars are used to ensure strength and rigidity, then structural stability is maintained, but the apparatus becomes costly and unsuitable for high-speed operation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from static, heavy feed bars to dynamic conveyance units with movable link mechanisms. The links are designed to be strong and rigid where needed but remain compact and lightweight. The system achieves high-speed capability through controlled dynamic motion of the link mechanisms, allowing strength to be optimized locally rather than requiring overall heavy construction.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution reduces vibration noise, increases conveying speed, and enhances production efficiency by eliminating the need for large, heavy feed bars and high-power actuators, allowing for flexible workpiece positioning and reduced cycle times.
Implementation Method 1
a linear motor unit (stationary member) extending in the workpiece conveying direction, a first moving unit (movable member) to be moved by the linear motor unit in the workpiece conveying direction, and a second moving unit (movable member) to be moved by the linear motor unit in the workpiece conveying direction
Implementation Method 2
a first arm and a second arm each having one end coupled to the conveying table so as to be pivotable through a pivot axis in a substantially vertical plane extending along a workpiece conveying direction, a first moving unit to which another end of the first arm is coupled so as to be pivotable through a pivot axis, and a second moving unit to which another end of the second arm is coupled so as to be pivotable through a pivot axis
Data Source
Figure 1A~1C
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
Provided is a workpiece conveying apparatus, including: a conveying table 300 including a workpiece supporting mechanism configured to support a workpiece in a releasable manner; a first arm 110 and a second arm 120 each having one coupled to the conveying table 300 so as to be pivotable; a first moving unit 100 to which another end of the first arm 110 is coupled; a second moving unit 200 to which another end of the second arm 120 is coupled; and a posture control unit configured to control a posture of the conveying table 300 through control of an angle between the conveying table 300 and one of the first arm 110 and the second arm 120, in which the first moving unit 100 and the second moving unit 200 are movable by a moving mechanism in a workpiece conveying direction, in which the conveying table 300 is lifted up and down through a change of an interval between the first moving unit 100 and the second moving unit 200, and in which the first moving unit 100 and the second moving unit 200 are moved in the same workpiece conveying direction so as to move the conveying table 300 in the workpiece conveying direction, to thereby convey the workpiece.