WO2017122943A1 - Material supply apparatus for supplying material comprising shapeable plastic material and 3d object manufacturing robot comprising same - Google Patents

Abstract

Disclosed are a material supply apparatus for supplying a material comprising a shapeable plastic material and a 3D object manufacturing robot comprising same. A material supply apparatus, according to the present invention, comprises: a material supply unit for supplying a material; and a guide unit for guiding the material, which has been supplied from the material supply unit, to a manufacturing robot. The guide unit comprises: a main tube through which the material is guided; at least one inlet-side joint part which connects one end of the main tube and the material supply unit and is pivotable; and at least one discharge-side joint part which connects the other end of the main tube and the manufacturing robot and is pivotable. Therefore, the present invention enables free movement of a 3D object manufacturing robot as well as smooth supply of a material, thereby enabling manufacturing of a detailed 3D object.

Description

Material supply device for supplying a material made of a formable plastic material and a 3D three-dimensional object manufacturing robot including the same

The present invention relates to a material supply apparatus for supplying a material made of a formable plastic material, and a 3D three-dimensional object manufacturing robot comprising the same, and more particularly, to ensure the free movement of the 3D three-dimensional object manufacturing robot, and to smoothly supply the material The present invention relates to a material supply apparatus and a 3D stereoscopic manufacturing robot including the same.

Recently, a technique of manufacturing an internal reinforcement for reinforcing strength and durability using a plastic composite material has been used. Research into internal skeletal fabrication techniques such as additive manufacturing devices and internal reinforcements of polymers / composites is being actively conducted.

By using this, 3D printing or 3D molding has been in the spotlight because it can reduce the amount of raw materials used in lightweight composite material and improve mechanical performance. In particular, the lamination speed has also been improved to allow it to function as part of an automated process.

The additive processing technology has great potential in that it can be extended not only to the automotive parts market but also to various fields such as aircraft, electronic parts, consumer electronics, sports goods, and building materials. However, more research and development is required to produce sophisticated skeletal structures in a cost-effective manner.

In particular, the additive manufacturing apparatus for manufacturing the inner skeleton uses raw materials of thin and long strands, which are mostly made of materials that are easily solidified, cured or degraded. There is a need for a technique for preventing the raw material from hardening, hardening or deterioration until it passes through the inside of the additive processing apparatus and is discharged to the outside.

In addition, the additive manufacturing apparatus performs free trajectory movements (eg, rotational, linear or curved movements) in order to produce shapes of various complex structures, in which, due to its geometrical characteristics, the additive machining is performed in a wide range of joint motions. There is a problem that the tension of the raw material is difficult to be kept constant while passing through the device.

If the tension of the raw material is too strong, it may lead to failure of the lamination processing equipment. If the tension of the raw material is too weak, it is difficult to control the discharge speed and position of the raw material. In addition, in the process of supplying the raw material or in the process of discharging to the outside, when the flow of the raw material is not smooth, it becomes impossible to manufacture a precise 3D solid object, or the manufacturing process may be stopped. That is, it should be possible to prevent the raw material from being injected at a high rate or too much, or from being caught or accumulated in the manufacturing apparatus.

Korean Patent Publication No. 10-1198621 (name of the invention: a plastic composite bumper beam for automobiles) discloses a bumper beam having an insert reinforcement inserted therein. However, the description regarding the manufacturing apparatus for manufacturing the bumper beam with the inserted insert reinforcement has not been sufficiently disclosed, and there is no mention regarding the method for promoting the smooth flow of raw materials, and thus the clues to overcome the problems mentioned above are provided. Not found

The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a free movement of the 3D solid object manufacturing robot, and a material supply apparatus that can smoothly supply the material for the precise production of the 3D solid object and the same. It relates to a 3D solid object manufacturing robot comprising.

Material supply apparatus according to the present invention for achieving the above object, the material supply unit for supplying a material; And a guide unit for guiding the material supplied from the material supply unit to the manufacturing robot, wherein the guide unit includes: a main tube through which the material is guided; At least one pivotable inflow joint connecting the one end of the main tube and the material supply unit; And at least one outlet side joint part pivotable to connect the other end of the main tube to the manufacturing robot.

On the other hand, 3D three-dimensional object manufacturing robot according to the present invention for achieving the above object, the material supply device; A head supply unit connected to the material supply device and having an inlet through which the material is introduced; A transformer unit having a plurality of rollers for guiding movement of the material delivered from the head supply unit; And a head unit for discharging the material transferred from the transformer unit to the outside.

According to the material supply apparatus for supplying a material made of a formable plastic material of the present invention according to the above configuration and the 3D three-dimensional object manufacturing robot comprising the same, not only can the free movement of the 3D three-dimensional object manufacturing robot, but also the supply of the material By doing so, it is possible to produce a precise 3D solid object.

1 is a perspective view of a 3D stereoscopic manufacturing robot according to the present invention.

Figure 2 shows the path that the tow moves in the material supply apparatus and the 3D solid object manufacturing robot according to the present invention.

Figure 3 is a perspective view showing a material supply apparatus connected to the 3D solid object manufacturing robot according to the present invention.

4 is a cross-sectional view showing an internal configuration of a material supply apparatus according to the present invention.

The invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which specific embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. With respect to the specific embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings, those skilled in the art will be described in detail enough to practice the present invention. Embodiments other than the specific embodiments are different from one another, but need not be mutually exclusive. In addition, it is to be understood that the following detailed description is not intended to be taken in a limiting sense.

The detailed description of specific embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings is to be read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which are considered to be part of the description of the invention as a whole. References to directions or orientations are for convenience of description only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention in any way.

Specifically, a term indicating a position such as "down, up, horizontal, vertical, top, bottom, up, down, top, bottom", or a derivative thereof (for example, "horizontally, downward, upward"). Etc.) should be understood with reference to both the drawings being described and related descriptions. In particular, these relative words are merely for convenience of description, and do not require that the apparatus of the present invention be configured or operated in a particular direction.

In addition, terms that refer to a mutual coupling relationship between components such as “mounted, attached, connected, connected, interconnected,” and the like, unless otherwise stated, indicate that the individual components are directly or indirectly attached, connected, or fixed. It is to be understood that it is to be understood as a term encompassing not only a movable, non-movable state, as well as a movably attached, connected and fixed state.

Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 1, it is a perspective view which shows the 3D three-dimensional object manufacturing robot 100 provided with the material supply apparatus 1000 which concerns on this invention as a whole. The material supply apparatus 1000 according to the present invention supplies a material made of a formable plastic material to the 3D three-dimensional object manufacturing robot 100.

First, the 3D stereoscopic manufacturing robot 100 will be described. The 3D stereoscopic manufacturing robot 100 according to the present invention includes a head unit 200, a transformer unit 300, and a head supply unit. 400, a body unit 500, a fixing part 530, and a support 600.

The body unit 500 includes a rotation base 510 and a connecting arm 520. The rotation base 510 has a rotational movement F-F 'on a horizontal plane about the rotation axis 501a. One end of the connection arm 520 is connected to the rotation base 510, and the other end of the connection arm 520 is connected to the head supply unit 400. In this case, the rotation base 510 may be rotatably connected about the rotation shaft 501a with respect to the fixing portion 530, and the fixing portion 530 may be immovably fixed on the support 600.

The connection arm 520 and the head supply unit 400, and the connection arm 520 and the rotation base 510 may be connected by a pivotable member such as a pivot hinge or a shaft, but are not limited thereto. .

More specifically, one end of the connecting arm 520 is rotatably connected to the rotating base 510. The connection arm 520 rotates around the connection axis 501b of the portion where the connection arm 520 and the rotation base 510 are connected to each other.

The other end of the connecting arm 520 is rotatably connected to the head supply unit 400. The connecting arm 520 is a member in the longitudinal direction, and adjusts the height of the head supply unit 400 with respect to the horizontal plane.

In other words, the head supply unit 400 performs a rotational motion D-D 'about the connection shaft 401a of the portion where the connection arm 520 and the head supply unit 400 are interconnected.

The head supply unit 400 makes a rotational movement (C-C ') about the longitudinal axis. At this time, as the head supply unit 400 rotates, the transformer unit 300 and the head unit 200 connected to the head supply unit 400 also rotate in conjunction with each other.

In addition, the head unit 200 is connected to the head supply unit 400. The head unit 200 is connected to the head fastening part 440 provided in the head supply unit 400. The head unit 200 performs a rotational motion B-B 'about the connection shaft 401b of the portion where the head unit 200 and the head fastening part 440 are interconnected.

The head unit 200 makes a 360 degree rotational movement A-A 'about its longitudinal axis 201a. The wheel assembly allows the head unit 200 to rotate multiple degrees 360 degrees (360 °, 720 ° ...). In this case, a spacer may be provided in the head unit 200 so that the conducting wires included in the head unit 200 are not affected by the rotation of the head unit 200.

As described above, the 3D solid object manufacturing robot 100 according to the present invention may perform a multi-axis rotational motion. In the above description, the six-axis rotational motion has been described as possible, but if the tiltable tool table robot, to which the rotation base 510 is coupled, eight-axis rotation is possible. More specifically, the possible rotation of the 3D three-dimensional object manufacturing robot 100 according to the present invention is as follows.

First axis rotation: A rotation around the longitudinal axis 201a of the head unit 200 (A-A ').

Second axis rotation: rotation of the head unit 200 controlled by the transformer unit 300 (B-B ').

Third axis rotation: rotation about the longitudinal axis of the head supply unit 400 (C-C ').

4th axis rotation: Rotation (D-D ') of the head supply unit 400 about the connection shaft 401a with the connection arm 520 connected to the head supply unit 400. As shown in FIG.

Fifth axis rotation: Rotation (E-E ') of the connection arm 520 around the connection shaft 501b of the rotation base 510 connected to the connection arm 520.

6th axis rotation: rotation (F-F ') of the rotation base 510 about the rotation axis 501a perpendicular | vertical to a horizontal plane.

7th and 8th Axis Rotation: Rotation of a biaxial rotatable tool table (not shown) associated with the rotating base 510.

The 3D solid object manufacturing robot 100 which performs the multi-axis rotational motion as mentioned above can operate the operation of the head unit 200 which discharges a material finely, and it becomes possible to manufacture a 3D solid object of a more complicated and sophisticated shape. .

On the other hand, the material supply apparatus 1000 according to the present invention supplies a material made of a formable plastic material to the 3D solid object manufacturing robot 100 capable of the multi-axis rotational movement. In this description, a material made of a formable plastic material will be described consistently with the tow 50.

Here, the tow 50 is a continuous strand of polymer material or composite material, yarn, tow, bundle, band, Tape or the like. Polymer materials include thermoplastics such as PLA, PE, PP, PA, ABS, PC, PET, PEI, PEEK, or thermosetting resins such as epoxy, unsaturated polyester, PI, and PUR. (thermosetting resins).

However, the polymer material is not limited thereto. In addition, the reinforcing fibers may be GF (glass fiber), CF (carbon fiber), NF (natural fiber), aramid fiber (AF) and the like. In addition, a 3D solid body manufacturing robot may be used for texturing yarn or roving.

In addition, the final composite material is a mixture of fibers in the polymer material, the fibers may be glass fibers, carbon fibers, boron fibers, alumina fibers, silicon carbide fibers, aramid fibers, various whiskers or combinations thereof It is not limited to this.

The 3D solid object manufacturing robot 100 may be injected with yarn, tow, strand, band, bundle or tape. Individual yarns, tows, strands, bands, bundles or tapes may be incorporated into the tow in whole or in part in an oven (including collectors, heaters, compressors, etc.). The head supply unit 400, the transformer unit 300 and the head unit 200 finally help to compact and coalesce the tow 50.

2 shows a moving path through which the tow 50 supplied from the material supply apparatus 1000 according to the present invention is discharged to the outside through the 3D three-dimensional object manufacturing robot 100.

As shown in FIG. 2, the tow 50 generated in the material supply unit 1100 of the material supply device 1000 is guided by the guide unit 1200 and introduced into the 3D solid-material manufacturing robot 100. do. The tow 50 introduced into the 3D solid object manufacturing robot 100 is discharged to the outside through an internal passage leading to the head supply unit 400, the transformer unit 300, and the head unit 200. That is, the 3D stereoscopic manufacturing robot 100 according to the present invention includes a built-in including a moving path of the tow 50 connected to the head supply unit 400, the transformer unit 300, and the head unit 200. has a built-in structure.

Hereinafter, the material supply apparatus 1000 according to the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to FIGS. 1, 3, and 4. 3 is a view showing the configuration of the material supply apparatus 1000 according to the present invention connected to the 3D three-dimensional object manufacturing robot 100, Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view showing the interior of the material supply apparatus 1000.

As shown in FIG. 1, the material supply apparatus 1000 according to the present invention includes a material supply unit 1100, a guide unit 1200, a guide fixing part 1210, and a base unit 1300.

The material supply unit 1100 forms or stores the tow described above. That is, polymer materials, composite materials or fibers are mixed, collected, heat treated and compressed, and various devices (for example, collectors, heaters, compressors, etc.) are used for this purpose. It may be provided. In addition, an apparatus (for example, a heater) may be further provided to prevent the formed tow from hardening or curing.

The tow 50 formed in the material supply unit 1100 moves to the guide unit 1200. In FIG. 1, the material supply unit 1100 is mounted on the base unit 1300, and the base unit 1300 is fixed to the ground to fix the material supply unit 1100, but the material supply unit 1100 itself is grounded. It may be fixed to. In addition, in FIG. 1, the guide unit 1200 is fixed to the base unit 1300 by the guide fixing part 1210, and an inflow side of the guide unit 1200 is connected to the material supply unit 1100 to supply material. Although shown as being received, in another embodiment, the inlet side of the guide unit 1200 may be implemented in a manner that is directly connected to the material supply unit 1100.

On the other hand, the guide unit 1200 is connected to the guide fixing portion 1210 by a guide fastening portion 1221, the guide fastening portion 1221 is rotatably installed around the axis (GA), the guide unit ( Free movement of 1200).

The guide unit 1200 for guiding the tow 50 has a multi-joint structure. Although the guide unit 1200 illustrated in FIG. 3 is illustrated as having a total of five joint portions 1221, 1222, 1223, 1224, 1225, and 1226, in other embodiments, more or less joint portions may be provided. In order to distinguish each joint part, the joint part connected to the 3D solid-state manufacturing robot 100 side among the joint parts connected to both ends of the main tube 1232 in consideration of the direction of movement of the material is the discharge side joint part 1224, and the material supply unit. The joint portion connected to the (1100) side will be referred to as an inflow side joint portion 1223. In addition, the joint portion provided between the discharge side joint portion 1224 and the 3D solid-state manufacturing robot 100 and the joint portion provided between the inflow side joint portion 1223 and the material supply unit 1100 are rotational joint portions 1222, 1225, and 1226. Will be referred to collectively).

The inflow joint 1223, the discharge joint 1224, and the rotation joints 1222, 1225, and 1226 are pivotally provided.

Referring to FIG. 3, the rotatable joint portion 1222 may be rotatable in a vertical direction about an axis GA, and at this time, the rotation angle may be approximately −45 to 45 °. This is an angle with respect to the horizontal plane on which the support 600 is placed in FIG. 3.

Inflow-side joint portion 1223 is also rotatable in the vertical direction around the axis (GA), wherein the rotation angle may be approximately 0 ~ 90 °. Similarly, the discharge-side joint portion 1224 can also be rotated in the vertical direction about the axis GA, where the rotation angle can be 0 to 90 degrees. The inlet joint 1223 and the outlet joint 1224 rotate in the positive direction. That is, when the shape of FIG. 3 in which the sub tube 1231 and the main tube 1232 are perpendicular to each other is a basic shape of the guide unit 1200, the angle between the sub tube 1231 and the main tube 1232 is 90 degrees. It is preferable to rotate to be larger than °. Since the rotation angles of the inflow joint 1223 and the discharge joint 1224 are 0 ° to 90 °, the angle between the sub tube 1231 and the main tube 1232 may be between 90 ° and 180 °.

Similarly, the rotary joint parts 1225 and 1226 may be rotatable in the vertical direction about the respective axes GA and GA, and the rotation angles may be approximately −45 to 45 °.

The guide unit 1200 includes a plurality of tubes. First, the main tube 1232 is a straight tube formed in the longitudinal direction, and is rotatably connected about an axis in the longitudinal direction (indicated by an arrow in FIG. 3). Both ends of the main tube 1232 are connected to the inflow joint 1223 and the discharge joint 1224.

In addition, the rotary joint part 1222 provided on the inlet joint part 1223 side is connected to the inlet joint part 1223 by the sub tube 1231 to form an internal passage for guiding the tow 50. The sub tube 1231 is also rotatably connected about an axis in the longitudinal direction (indicated by an arrow in FIG. 3).

Sub-tubes 1233 and 1234 are also provided between the discharge-side joint part 1224 and the rotary joint part 1225, and between the rotary joint part 1225 and the rotary joint part 1226, respectively. ) Is also rotatably connected about an axis in the longitudinal direction.

In this way, free movement of the guide unit 1200 is ensured by the joints 1222, 1223, 1224, 1225, and 1226 and the tubes 1231, 1232, 1233, and 1234 which rotate with different axes. However, not only the main tube 1232 is very long and strong, but also the rotation allowance range of each of the joint parts 1222, 1223, 1224, 1225, and 1226 is set, so that the tow 50 passing through the inside freely flows. It is not disturbed.

As shown in FIG. 4 in which the configurations of the respective joint parts 1222, 1223, 1224, 1225, and 1226 are further enlarged, rollers may be mounted inside the joints 1222, 1223, 1224, 1225, and 1226.

More specifically, the rotary joint portion 1226 has a pair of rollers 1246-1 and 1246-2, and the rotary joint portion 1225 has a pair of rollers 1245-1 and 1245-2 and the discharge-side joint portion 1224. ), One roller 1244 is provided, one roller 1243 is provided at the inflow-side joint part 1223, and a pair of rollers 1242-1 and 1242-2 are provided at the rotary joint part 1222.

That is, the rotary joint portions 1222, 1225, and 1226 are provided with a pair of rollers, and the discharge joint 1212 and the inlet joint 1223 are provided with one roller, which smoothly flows the tow 50. It is to. Referring again to FIG. 2, the tow 50 changes its moving path (direction) while passing through the inlet joint 1223 and the outlet joint 1224. Thus, one roller is provided at the inlet joint 1223 and the outlet joint 1224 to change the path of the tow 50.

The rotary joint portions 1222, 1225, and 1226 are provided with a pair of rollers to prevent a situation such as entanglement or accumulation of the tow 50 passing through the inside, and facilitate smooth flow.

In summary, each of the joints includes one roller for changing the direction when there is a change in the moving direction of the tow 50, and a pair of rollers is embedded when there is no change in the moving direction.

Although not shown in the drawings, a motor (not shown) is connected to each roller, so that the moving speed of the tow 50 can be precisely controlled.

Meanwhile, the tow 50 may include a guide heater 1250 to prevent the tow 50 from being hardened or hardened while moving the guide unit 1200. The guide heater 1250 may be provided in one configuration surrounding the main tube 1232 as shown in FIG. 3, but may be provided in a plurality of configurations surrounding a partial region of the main tube 1232 as illustrated in FIG. 4. It's okay.

As described above, according to the material supply apparatus 1000 including the guide unit 1200 having a plurality of rotatable joint portions and a plurality of tubes, not only can the 3D stereoscopic manufacturing robot freely move, but also the material By supplying smoothly, it is possible to produce precise 3D solids.

3D three-dimensional object manufacturing robot 100 according to the present invention includes a material supply device 1000 having the above-described features. That is, the material supply device 1000 which is very free of joint movement and the 3D stereoscopic object manufacturing robot 100 capable of 8-axis rotation are combined, thereby enabling more precise movement, which helps to produce sophisticated and complex 3D stereoscopic objects. Gives.

Although the invention has been described in terms of specific examples, including preferred embodiments of the invention, those of ordinary skill in the art can predict various permutations or modifications in the construction of the invention described above. will be. In addition, structural and functional modulation may be variously performed without departing from the scope and technical spirit of the present invention. Accordingly, the spirit or scope of the present invention will be broadly understood as described in the claims appended hereto.

The present invention can be variously applied to a manufacturing apparatus having a 3D three-dimensional object manufacturing robot. For example, the present invention can be applied to a 3D three-dimensional object manufacturing robot, including a material supply device that can ensure the free movement of the 3D three-dimensional object manufacturing robot, and can smoothly supply the material.

Although described above with reference to the embodiments of the present invention, those skilled in the art various modifications and changes to the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention described in the claims below I will understand.

Claims (17)

A material supply unit for supplying a material; And And a guide unit for guiding the material supplied from the material supply unit to a manufacturing robot. The guide unit, A main tube through which the material is guided; At least one pivotable inflow joint connecting the one end of the main tube and the material supply unit; And And at least one outlet side joint portion pivotable to connect the other end of the main tube to the manufacturing robot. The method of claim 1, The main tube, the material supply apparatus is connected to at least one of the inlet joint and the outlet joint portion rotatably around a longitudinal axis. The method of claim 1, The sub-tube provided between the inlet-side joint part and the material supply unit to guide the material or the sub-tube provided between the discharge-side joint part and the manufacturing robot to guide the material, can be rotated about an axis. . The method of claim 1, And a roller for moving the material, wherein the inflow joint and the discharge joint are formed. The method of claim 1, Inlet and outlet joint portion connected to the main tube material supply apparatus is formed with one roller for changing the movement path of the material. The method of claim 1, And a base unit for supporting and fixing the material supply unit. And the inflow side joint part is connected to the material supply unit by a guide fixing part fixed to the base unit. The method of claim 1, And a guide heater for preventing the material from being hardened or cured. The method of claim 7, wherein The guide heater is provided in a form surrounding the at least a portion of the main tube. The method of claim 1, And at least one rotatable joint portion provided between at least one of the one end of the main tube and the material supply unit and between the other end of the main tube and the manufacturing robot. The method of claim 9, And a guide fastening part for fastening a rotary joint part provided between one end of the main tube and the material supply unit. The method of claim 9, And a roller for moving the material inside the inlet joint, the outlet joint and the rotary joint. The method of claim 9, The inlet-side joint portion, the discharge-side joint portion and the rotary joint portion, if there is a change in the direction of movement of the material is built in a roller for changing the direction, if there is no change in the direction of movement material supply apparatus. The method of claim 9, And said inlet joint and said outlet joint are rotated within a range of 0 to 90 degrees, and said rotatable joint rotates within a range of -45 to 45 degrees. The method of claim 1, The angle between the subtube provided between the inflow joint and the material supply unit and the main tube, or the angle between the subtube and the main tube provided between the discharge joint and the manufacturing apparatus is 90 °. Material supply device having a range of ～ 180 °. The method of claim 1, The main tube is a material supply device is a straight tube formed in the longitudinal direction. The method of claim 1, The material supply unit, the material supply apparatus for forming the material into a strand (yarn), tow (tow), a bundle (bundle), a band (band) or a tape (tape). The material supply apparatus of any one of claims 1 to 16; A head supply unit connected to the material supply device and having an inlet through which the material is introduced; A transformer unit having a plurality of rollers for guiding movement of the material delivered from the head supply unit; And And a head unit for discharging the material transferred from the transformer unit to the outside.

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