Welding Gun Tip Separation with Modular Rotating Clamp Units
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional tip separation apparatuses for welding guns in robot welding machines have complex structures, leading to potential malfunctions and difficulties in maintenance and repair.
Innovation Solution
A simplified tip separation apparatus with tip seating stands, rotatably disposed tip separation units, and a housing for elastic support, featuring a rotating body, compression latch, lever, and tip extractor, which allows for easy clamping and rotation of tips for separation, reducing mechanical complexity and improving maintenance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a clamping unit and a rotating unit are used to separate tips from the welding gun, then the tip separation function is achieved, but the structure becomes too complicated and mechanical coupling requires preciseness, leading to potential malfunctions and difficulty in maintenance
Solution Approach 1:
The tip separation apparatus is divided into multiple independent tip separation units, each capable of separately clamping and rotating a tip. Each unit includes a rotating body with a tooth part that engages with the tip, allowing independent operation. This segmentation reduces the complexity of the overall system while maintaining reliable tip separation functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The tip separation units are designed to be rotatably disposed on the tip seating stands, allowing dynamic movement during the tip separation process. The rotating bodies can rotate to engage and disengage from tips, and the entire tip separation unit can be rotated to position the separated tip for removal. This dynamic design enables reliable tip separation while simplifying the mechanical coupling requirements.
2Reliability
If conventional tip separation apparatus is used, then tip separation is achieved, but maintenance and repair become difficult due to complex structure
Solution Approach 1:
The apparatus uses multiple independent tip separation units that can be individually accessed and maintained. Each unit contains all necessary components (rotating body, tooth part, elastic member) in a compact configuration, making it easy to replace or repair a single unit without affecting the entire system. This modular segmentation significantly improves ease of maintenance and repair.
Solution Approach 2:
The elastic members automatically return the rotating bodies to their initial positions after tip separation, reducing the need for manual resetting or adjustment during maintenance. The self-resetting mechanism simplifies maintenance procedures and reduces the skill level required for repair operations.
3Strength
If tips are pressed to be inserted into the finger of the welding gun, then the tip is firmly coupled, but the tip needs to be separated by rotation which requires precise mechanical coupling
Solution Approach 1:
The rotating body incorporates a tooth part that engages with a corresponding feature on the tip. During tip separation, the rotating body rotates to disengage the tooth part from the tip, creating a mechanical vibration or jarring motion that helps break the press-fit coupling. This vibration-assisted separation reduces the precision requirements for the mechanical coupling while maintaining strong initial coupling.
Solution Approach 2:
The tip separation process uses dynamic rotation of the rotating body to transition the tip from a static press-fit state to a separated state. The rotating motion creates varying forces on the tip-finger interface, enabling separation without requiring excessively precise mechanical coupling. The dynamic action complements the static press-fit coupling strength.
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed is a tip separation apparatus of a welding gun, which mechanically separates consumable tips installed at the end of the welding gun in a robot welding machine. The tip separation apparatus includes tip seating stands coupled to a main plate configured to maintain level, and configured such that each of the tip seating stands has a first insertion hole, into which a corresponding one of tips coupled to fingers of the welding gun is inserted, tip separation units rotatably disposed on bottom surfaces of the tip seating stands and configured to press outer circumferential surfaces of the tips inserted into the first insertion holes of the tip seating stands so as to clamp the tips and to rotate the clamped tips so as to separate the tips from the welding gun, and a housing configured to rotatably receive the tip separation units in a state of being elastically supported.