JP7609649B2 - Wire delivery device and welding system including the same - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a wire feeding device and a welding system equipped with the same.

Conventionally, in automatic welding performed using a robot or the like, the wire used for welding is stored in a wire pack, for example in a wound state. The wire in the wire pack is passed by an operator through a conduit cable (hereinafter referred to as "cable") and manually fed to the wire feeder. When the wire pack and the wire feeder are far apart, it is time-consuming for the operator to feed out the wire.

In response to this, Patent Document 1 discloses a wire feeding device interposed between a wire pack and a cable. The wire feeding device described in this document is equipped with a pair of rollers and a drive motor, and is used with one end connected to the wire pack and the other end connected to the cable. The wire feeding device is configured to clamp the wire between a pair of rollers and rotate the feed rollers using the drive motor, thereby enabling the wire in the wire pack to be fed into the conduit cable. With the wire feeding device, the wire in the wire pack can be fed into the cable by motor drive rather than manually. Therefore, even if the wire pack and the wire feeding device are far apart, the burden on the worker is reduced.

On the other hand, in the conventional wire delivery device, both ends of the wire delivery device are connected to both the wire pack and the cable. This makes the connection structure of the wire delivery device complicated and makes the installation of the wire delivery device cumbersome.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 8-19864

The present invention was conceived under these circumstances, and its main objective is to provide a wire feeding device that can easily feed the wire in the wire pack.

To solve the above problems, the present invention employs the following technical means:

The wire feeding device provided by the first aspect of the present invention comprises a drive roller that rotates around a first axis line along a first direction, a support body that supports the drive roller, a pressure roller that presses the drive roller with a wire sandwiched between the drive roller and the support body, a lever that supports the pressure roller so that the pressure roller can rotate around a second axis line along the first direction, and a drive means that is supported by the support body and drives the drive roller to rotate. The support body extends in an elongated shape in a direction perpendicular to the first direction, and has a first gripping member for holding by hand at one end side in the longitudinal direction. The lever extends in an elongated shape in a direction perpendicular to the first direction and has a second gripping portion at one end in the longitudinal direction for handholding, and the other end of the lever in the longitudinal direction is attached to the other end of the support in the longitudinal direction so as to be rotatable about a third axis along the first direction, and the lever is rotatable between a first position where the pressure roller is close to the drive roller and the wire can be sandwiched between the drive roller and the pressure roller, and a second position where the pressure roller is separated from the drive roller.

In a preferred embodiment, the first axis is located closer to the other end than the center of the longitudinal direction of the support, and the second axis is located closer to the other end than the center of the longitudinal direction of the lever.

In a preferred embodiment, the support is provided with a switch for switching between driving and stopping the driving means, the switch driving the driving means when the lever is in the first position, and stopping the driving of the driving means when the lever is in the second position.

In a preferred embodiment, the lever further includes a biasing member that applies a biasing force in a direction in which the lever rotates from the first position to the second position.

A welding system provided by a second aspect of the present invention includes a wire feeding device according to the first aspect of the present invention, a cable for passing the wire fed by the wire feeding device, a welding torch for performing welding using the wire that has passed through the cable, a robot that supports the welding torch, and a wire feeding device for feeding the wire that has passed through the cable to the welding torch.

According to the present invention, an operator can insert the wire feeding device into the wire pack and operate the lever to feed the wire in the wire pack into the cable. In this way, the wire feeding device of the present invention makes it easy to feed the wire in the wire pack without changing the connection structure between the wire pack and the cable.

When the lever is in the first position, the pressure roller supported by the lever is close to the drive roller, and the wire can be sandwiched between the drive roller and the pressure roller. As a result, when the lever is in the first position, the second grip portion of the lever is close to the first grip portion of the support, and the operator can hold both the first grip portion and the second grip portion with his or her hands. With this configuration, the lever can be easily maintained in a closed state (the first position where the wire can be fed out) by the operator holding it with his or her hand, resulting in excellent operability in the wire feeding operation.

Other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing an example of a welding system including a wire feeding device according to the present invention. 1 is a perspective view showing an example of a wire feeding device according to the present invention. FIG. 3 is a plan view of the wire feeding device shown in FIG. 2 . FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line IV-IV in FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line VV in FIG. 3. FIG. 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line VI-VI in FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the wire feeding device shown in FIG. 2 when the lever is in a second position. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the wire feeding device shown in FIG. 2 with a lever and a separate case for the support removed. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a state in which the wire feeding device shown in FIG. 2 is used; FIG. FIG. 8 is a perspective view similar to FIG. 7, showing a modified example of the wire feeding device.

A preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

Figure 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a welding system equipped with a wire feeding device according to the present invention. Figure 2 is a perspective view showing an example of a wire feeding device according to the present invention. Figure 3 is a plan view of the wire feeding device shown in Figure 2. Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line IV-IV in Figure 3. Figure 5 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line V-V in Figure 3. Figure 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line VI-VI in Figure 3.

The welding system A1 shown in FIG. 1 includes a wire feeder B1, a robot 10, a welding torch 11, a cable 12, and a wire feeder 13. The robot 10 is, for example, an articulated robot equipped with multiple arms 101. The welding torch 11 is supported at the tip of the arm 101. The cable 12 is for passing the welding wire W, and is, for example, a conduit cable. One end of the cable 12 is connected to the upper end of the wire pack 7, and the other end is connected to the welding torch 11 side. In this embodiment, the wire (for example, a pack-wound wire) contained inside the wire pack 7 is passed through the cable 12.

The wire feeder 13 is interposed between the tip of the arm 101 and the base end of the welding torch 11. The wire feeder 13 has, for example, a feed roller 131, a driven roller 132, and a drive source (not shown) that rotates the feed roller 131. The wire passed through the cable 12 is sandwiched between the feed roller 131 and the driven roller 132, and is fed into the inside of the welding torch 11 when the feed roller 131 rotates. The wire in the welding torch 11 passes through a power feed tip (not shown) provided inside the tip side of the welding torch 11 and is sent out to the outside from an opening at the tip of the welding torch 11. In addition, power and shielding gas are supplied to the welding torch 11. Power is supplied from a power supply device (not shown), and this power is supplied to the wire through the power feed tip inside the welding torch 11. The shielding gas is supplied from a gas cylinder (not shown), flows through the welding torch 11, and is ejected to the outside from an opening at the tip of the welding torch 11.

As shown in Figures 2 to 7, the wire feeding device B1 includes a drive roller 21, a support 22, a pressure roller 23, a lever 24, a drive means 25, and a switch 26. The wire feeding device B1 is used to feed the wire W in the wire pack 7.

The drive roller 21 cooperates with the pressure roller 23 to send out the wire W in a predetermined direction. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, FIG. 5, etc., the drive roller 21 is supported by the drive shaft 253 of the drive means 25 so as not to rotate relative to the drive shaft 253. The drive shaft 253 extends along the first direction X (see FIG. 5, FIG. 8, the direction perpendicular to the paper surface in FIG. 4). As a result, the drive shaft 253 rotates around the first direction X. As the drive shaft 253 rotates around the first direction X, the drive roller 21 rotates around the first direction X. In this embodiment, the drive roller 21 has a resin roller portion 211 and a metal roller portion 212. The resin roller portion 211 is located on the inner periphery side and is made of a synthetic resin such as urethane resin. The metal roller portion 212 is fitted around the resin roller portion 211. A groove 213 is formed on the outer periphery of the metal roller portion 212. The groove 213 faces radially outward of the drive shaft 253 and is recessed from the outer circumferential surface of the metal roller portion 212. The groove 213 is formed to guide the wire W. The drive roller 21 is supported by the support 22 via the drive shaft 253 (drive means 25).

The support body 22 houses and supports the driving means 25. In this embodiment, the support body 22 includes two separate cases 22A and 22B, and these separate cases 22A and 22B are combined to house the driving means 25 and the driving roller 21 in the internal space of the support body 22. As shown in FIG. 7, a portion of the outer circumferential surface of the driving roller 21 (the upper side in the figure) is exposed to the outside through an opening formed in the separate case 22B. Note that FIG. 8 shows the state in which the lever 24 and the separate case 22B have been removed.

As shown in Figures 2 and 3, the support 22 extends in an elongated shape in a direction Y perpendicular to the first direction X. The support 22 has a first grip 221 at one end in the longitudinal direction (direction Y). The first grip 221 is a part for an operator to hold in his/her hand. As shown in Figure 6, a through hole 223 extending along the first direction X is formed in the other end 222 in the longitudinal direction of the support 22. The support shaft 28 is inserted into the through hole 223. As shown in Figures 2 to 4, the first axis O1 (the rotation axis of the drive roller 21) is located closer to the other end 222 than the center of the support 22 in the longitudinal direction (direction Y).

As shown in FIG. 4, the pressure roller 23 presses the drive roller 21 with the wire W sandwiched between the pressure roller 23 and the drive roller 21. In this embodiment, the pressure roller 23 is rotatably supported on a support shaft 27. The support shaft 27 is supported by the lever 24 and extends along the first direction X. As a result, the pressure roller 23 is supported by the lever 24 via the support shaft 27 and is rotatable around a second axis O2 along the first direction X. The outer periphery of the pressure roller 23 is made of a synthetic resin, such as a urethane resin.

A portion of the outer peripheral surface of the pressure roller 23 faces a portion of the outer peripheral surface of the drive roller 21 (metal roller portion 212). The wire W is fed out by rotating the pressure roller 23 and the drive roller 21 with the wire W sandwiched between the outer peripheral surface of the pressure roller 23 and the groove 213 of the drive roller 21. A groove may also be formed on the outer peripheral surface of the pressure roller 23, and the wire W may be sandwiched between the groove of the pressure roller 23 and the groove 213 of the drive roller 21.

The direction of rotation of the pressure roller 23 is opposite to the direction of rotation of the drive roller 21. When the pressure roller 23 and the drive roller 21 rotate with the wire W sandwiched between them, frictional force acts on the wire W from the pressure roller 23 and the drive roller 21, causing the wire W to be fed out. The direction in which the wire W is fed out (direction Y) is perpendicular to the first direction X, and in this embodiment, the wire W is fed out in the left direction in Figures 3 and 4.

As shown in Figures 2 and 3, the lever 24 extends in an elongated shape in a direction perpendicular to the first direction X. The lever 24 has a second grip portion 241 at one end in the longitudinal direction. The second grip portion 241 is a portion for an operator to hold in his/her hand.

As shown in FIG. 6, a through hole 243 extending along the first direction X is formed in the other end 242 in the longitudinal direction of the lever 24. The support shaft 28 is inserted into the through hole 243. In this embodiment, the lever 24 is rotatably supported by the support shaft 28. The support shaft 28 is inserted into both the through hole 223 of the support body 22 and the through hole 243 of the lever 24. As a result, the lever 24 is supported by the support body 22 via the support shaft 28 and can rotate around the third axis O3 along the first direction X. As shown in FIG. 4, the second axis O2 (the rotation axis of the pressure roller 23) is located closer to the other end 242 than the center of the longitudinal direction of the lever 24.

The lever 24 can be rotated between a first position shown in FIG. 2 to FIG. 5 and a second position shown in FIG. 7. The first position shown in FIG. 2 to FIG. 5 is a position where the pressure roller 23 supported by the lever 24 is close to the drive roller 21 and the wire W can be sandwiched between the drive roller 21 and the pressure roller 23. When the lever 24 is in the first position, the lever 24 extends in the direction Y in the same manner as the support 22. As a result, when the lever 24 is in the first position, the second grip portion 241 of the lever 24 is close to the first grip portion 221 of the support 22. At this time, the operator can hold both the first grip portion 221 and the second grip portion 241 with his or her hands. The second position shown in FIG. 7 is a position where the pressure roller 23 supported by the lever 24 is separated from the drive roller 21. When the lever 24 is in the second position, the wire W cannot be sandwiched between the drive roller 21 and the pressure roller 23. The rotation angle around the third axis O3 when the lever 24 rotates between the first position and the second position is set to a predetermined angle, for example, within a range of approximately 30° to 90°.

The driving means 25 drives the driving roller 21 to rotate. As shown in Figures 5, 8, etc., the driving means 25 is configured to include, for example, a motor 251, a gear unit 252, a driving shaft 253, and a battery 255. The motor 251 is driven by the battery 255 as a power source, and the gear unit 252 decelerates the rotation of the motor 251 and outputs it to the driving shaft 253.

The switch 26 shown in FIG. 7 switches between driving and stopping the driving means 25, and is provided on the support 22. The switch 26 protrudes upward from the support 22 in the figure. Although detailed illustrations are omitted, the switch 26 is always biased upward in FIG. 7, and can be pressed downward from the protruding state shown in FIG. 7. When the switch 26 shown in FIG. 7 protrudes from the support 22, the contacts of the circuit of the driving means 25 are open, and the driving of the driving means 25 is stopped. On the other hand, when the switch 26 is pressed, the contacts of the circuit of the driving means 25 are closed, and the driving means 25 is driven. When the driving means 25 is driven, the motor 251 is driven, and the driving shaft 253 and the driving roller 21 are rotated.

When the lever 24 is in the second position shown in FIG. 7, the switch 26 protrudes upward, and the drive means 25 stops driving. On the other hand, when the lever 24 is in the first position shown in FIG. 2, FIG. 3, etc., the switch 26 is pressed down by the lever 24. As a result, when the lever 24 is rotated from the second position to the first position, the switch 26 is pressed down and the drive means 25 is driven.

Next, the operation of the wire feeding device B1 and the welding system A1 will be explained.

When using the wire delivery device B1, the worker places it inside the wire pack 7. As shown in FIG. 1, an opening 71 is formed in the umbrella-shaped portion near the upper end of the wire pack 7. Through this opening 71, the worker can grasp the wire delivery device B1 with his or her hand and place the wire delivery device B1 inside the wire pack 7 through the opening 71.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 9, the tip of the wire W (pack-wound wire) in the wire pack 7 is pulled out and inserted into the inside of the cable 12 connected to the upper end of the wire pack 7. Next, the lever 24 of the wire feeding device B1 is opened to the second position (shown by phantom lines in FIG. 9). Next, the driving roller 21 is aligned with the wire W, and the lever 24 is rotated from the second position to the first position, and the operator holds the first gripping portion 221 of the support 22 and the second gripping portion 241 of the lever 24 with his or her hands. In FIG. 9, the lever 24 in the first position is shown by solid lines. When the lever 24 is in the first position, the wire W is sandwiched between the driving roller 21 and the pressure roller 23. Then, the switch 26 provided on the support 22 is pressed, and the driving means 25 is driven. As a result, the driving roller 21 is rotated and the wire W in the wire pack 7 is sequentially fed into the inside of the cable 12.

When the tip of the wire W fed into the cable 12 passes through the other end of the cable 12 and reaches the wire feeder 13 near the welding torch 11, the lever 24 is rotated from the first position to the second position. When the lever 24 is in the second position, the switch 26 returns to a state in which it protrudes from the support 22, and the drive means 25 is stopped. Next, the wire feeder B1 is removed to the outside of the wire pack 7 through the opening 71, and use of the wire feeder B1 is terminated. Thereafter, the wire feeder 13 is driven to feed the wire W into the welding torch 11, and welding work can be performed using the welding torch 11 (welding system A1).

In this embodiment, the lever 24 has a second gripping portion 241 at one end in the longitudinal direction, and the other end 242 in the longitudinal direction is rotatable about a third axis O3 along the first direction X relative to the other end 222 in the longitudinal direction (direction Y) of the support 22. The drive roller 21 is supported on the support 22 so as to be rotatable about a first axis O1 along the first direction X. The support 22 also supports a drive means 25 that drives the drive roller 21 to rotate. The lever 24 supports the pressure roller 23 so as to be rotatable about a second axis O2 along the first direction X. The lever 24 is rotatable between a first position where the pressure roller 23 is close to the drive roller 21 and a second position where the pressure roller 23 is away from the drive roller 21. According to this configuration, when an operator aligns the drive roller 21 with the wire W and rotates the lever 24 from the second position to the first position, the wire W is sandwiched between the drive roller 21 and the pressure roller 23. The drive roller 21 is then driven to rotate by the drive means 25, and the wire W sandwiched between the drive roller 21 and the pressure roller 23 is fed in a predetermined direction. Therefore, if the wire feeding device B1 is used in this embodiment, the operator can insert the wire feeding device B1 into the wire pack 7 and operate the lever 24 to feed the wire W in the wire pack 7 into the cable 12. In this way, according to the wire feeding device B1, the wire W in the wire pack 7 can be easily fed out without changing the connection structure between the wire pack 7 and the cable 12.

When the lever 24 is in the first position, the pressure roller 23 supported by the lever 24 is close to the drive roller 21, and the wire W can be sandwiched between the drive roller 21 and the pressure roller 23. As a result, when the lever 24 is in the first position, the second grip portion 241 of the lever 24 is close to the first grip portion 221 of the support body 22, and the operator can hold both the first grip portion 221 and the second grip portion 241 with his or her hands. With this configuration, the lever 24 can be easily maintained in a closed state (the first position where the wire W can be fed) by the operator holding it with his or her hand, which provides excellent operability in the operation of feeding out the wire W.

The first axis O1, which is the rotation axis of the drive roller 21, is located closer to the other end 222 than the center in the longitudinal direction of the support 22. The second axis O2, which is the rotation axis of the pressure roller 23, is located closer to the other end 242 than the center in the longitudinal direction of the lever 24. With this configuration, the support shaft 28 (third axis O3) on the other end side of the lever 24 in the longitudinal direction is the fulcrum, the second gripping portion 241 on one end side of the lever 24 in the longitudinal direction is the force point, and the pressing portion of the pressure roller 23 against the drive roller 21 is the action point. By using the principle of leverage, the operator can lightly grasp the first gripping portion 221 and the second gripping portion 241 with his hands to cause the lever 24 to take the first position. This reduces the workload of the wire W feeding operation performed using the wire feeding device B1.

The support 22 is provided with a switch 26 that switches between driving and stopping the driving means 25. As described above, this switch 26 drives the driving means 25 when the lever 24 is in the first position, and stops the driving of the driving means 25 when the lever 24 is in the second position. With this configuration, when the lever 24 is in the first position, the driving means 25 drives the driving roller 21 to rotate. This allows the operator to hold the lever 24 with his or her hand and to feed the wire W sandwiched between the driving roller 21 and the pressure roller 23 only when the lever 24 is in the first position, resulting in superior workability.

According to the welding system A1, even if the wire pack 7 (wire supply source) and the robot 10 (wire feeder 13) are far apart, the wire W can be easily fed to the wire feeder 13 via the cable 12 by using the wire feeder B1. This reduces the workload of feeding the wire W into the cable 12.

In the welding system A1, when the wire W is fed by the wire feed device B1, the wire feed device B1 is removed from the wire pack 7, and the use of the wire feed device B1 is terminated. This configuration makes it easier to replace the wire W (the pack-wound wire in the wire pack 7) and shortens the work time.

When performing welding operations using the welding system A1, in order to improve welding quality, the wire W may not only be fed in the forward direction by the wire feeder 13, but may also be moved alternately in the forward and backward directions. In this embodiment, the wire delivery device B1 is not interposed between the wire pack 7 and the cable 12. Therefore, even when the wire feeder 13 moves the wire W alternately in the forward and backward directions, the wire W in the cable 12 is smoothly fed and retracted repeatedly. In addition, the wire W that is retracted into the wire pack 7 is appropriately slackened, allowing the space in the wire pack 7 to function as a wire buffer. Therefore, when the wire feeder 13 moves the wire W alternately in the forward and backward directions, the overall structure of the welding system A1 can be simplified.

Figure 10 shows a modified example of the wire feeding device according to the above embodiment. In Figure 10, elements that are the same as or similar to those in the above embodiment are given the same reference numerals as in the above embodiment, and descriptions thereof will be omitted as appropriate.

In the wire feeding device B2 shown in FIG. 10, a biasing member 31 is additionally provided. The biasing member 31 is, for example, a torsion spring, and has a coil portion 311 and a pair of arm portions 312, 313. The coil portion 311 is located between the support body 22 and the lever 24, and is arranged so as to surround the support shaft 28. One arm portion 312 is engaged with the support body 22, and the other arm portion 313 is engaged with the lever 24. As can be seen from FIG. 10, when the lever 24 is in the first position, an elastic restoring force is generated in the coil portion 311 in the biasing member 31, and a biasing force is applied in a direction in which the arm portions 312, 313 move away from each other. In this way, the biasing member 31 applies a biasing force in a direction in which the lever 24 rotates from the first position to the second position.

In the wire delivery device B2, by providing the biasing member 31, when an operator grasps the support 22 (first gripping portion 221) and the lever 24 (second gripping portion 241) with his/her hands, the lever 24 takes the first position. This drives the drive means 25, enabling the delivery of the wire W. On the other hand, when the operator releases the lever 24, the biasing force of the biasing member 31 causes the lever 24 to take the second position, and the drive means 25 stops driving. This configuration prevents the lever 24 from incorrectly taking the first position, preventing malfunction of the drive means 25, and is easy to use. Note that the specific configuration of the biasing member 31 is not limited to the torsion spring described above, and various modifications are possible.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the scope of the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments, and all modifications within the scope of the matters described in each claim are included in the scope of the present invention.

A1: welding system, B1, B2: wire feeder, 10: robot, 11: welding torch, 12: cable, 13: wire feeder, 21: drive roller, 22: support, 221: first grip, 222: other end, 23: pressure roller, 24: lever, 241: second grip, 242: other end, 25: drive means, 26: switch, 31: biasing member, O1: first axis, O2: second axis, O3: third axis, W: wire, X: first direction

Claims (4)

a drive roller that rotates about a first axis along a first direction;
A support for supporting the drive roller;
a pressure roller that presses the drive roller with a wire sandwiched between the pressure roller and the drive roller;
a lever that supports the pressure roller rotatably around a second axis along the first direction;
a driving means supported by the support and configured to rotate the driving roller;
A biasing member ,
the support extends in an elongated shape in a direction perpendicular to the first direction, and has a first grip portion at one end side in the longitudinal direction for holding by hand;
the lever extends in an elongated shape in a direction perpendicular to the first direction, and has a second grip portion at one end side in the longitudinal direction to be held by hand;
the other end of the lever in the longitudinal direction is attached to the other end of the support body in the longitudinal direction so as to be rotatable about a third axis along the first direction,
the lever is rotatable between a first position in which the pressure roller is close to the drive roller and the wire is sandwiched between the drive roller and the pressure roller, and a second position in which the pressure roller is separated from the drive roller ;
The biasing member applies a biasing force in a direction in which the lever rotates from the first position to the second position . the first axis is located closer to the other end than to a center in the longitudinal direction of the support;
The wire feeding device according to claim 1 , wherein the second axis is positioned closer to the other end of the lever than a center of the lever in the longitudinal direction. a switch for switching between driving and stopping the driving means is provided on the support;
3. The wire feeding device according to claim 1, wherein the switch drives the drive means when the lever is in the first position, and stops driving the drive means when the lever is in the second position. A wire feeding device according to any one of claims 1 to 3 ,
a cable for passing the wire fed by the wire feeding device;
a welding torch for performing welding using a wire passing through the cable;
A robot supporting the welding torch;
a wire feeder for feeding the wire passing through the cable to the welding torch.

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