JP4649982B2 - Product assembly method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a product assembly method for assembling a product .

  As a conventional product assembling apparatus, for example, Patent Document 1 below discloses an apparatus for assembling an automobile floor panel. As shown in FIG. 15, this apparatus includes a workpiece loading position 1, a workpiece working position 3, and a workpiece unloading position 5 in order from the left in the drawing, as well as a first jig base 7 and a second jig. What is integrated with the tool base 9 connected by the connecting means 11 is the first state in which the first jig base 7 is at the work loading position 1 and the second jig base 9 is at the work work position 3. The first jig base 7 is movable between the work operation position 3 and the second jig base 9 in the second state where the work jig unloading position 5 is present.

  In the first state, the workpiece W is loaded into the first jig base 7 at the workpiece loading position 1, and at this time, the workpiece W 1 at the workpiece working position 3 is subjected to incremental welding by the welding robot 13.

  Thereafter, the two jig bases 7 and 9 move to the second state, and the welding robot 13 performs temporary welding to the work W on the first jig base 7 at the work work position 3. At this time, the second jig base 9 is at the workpiece carry-out position 5 and the workpiece W1 after the incremental hit welding is carried out.

When temporary welding to the workpiece W is completed, the workpiece W is lifted upward by the workpiece transfer means 15, and the two jig bases 7 and 9 are moved to the first state together with this, and in this state, The workpiece W lifted by the workpiece transfer means 15 is lowered onto the second jig base 9 and the welding robot 13 performs additional hit welding. At this time, the first jig base 7 is in the workpiece loading position 1 and the next workpiece is loaded.
JP-A-2-34283

  By the way, in the above-described conventional product assembling apparatus, when the jig bases 7 and 9 are in the first state, the incremental welding is performed on the workpiece, and when the jig base is in the second state, the temporary welding is performed. The jig tables 7 and 9 are moved at the points where each welding operation is completed. That is, the welding operation process for the workpiece and the movement process of the jig bases 7 and 9 are performed as separate processes, and the work efficiency is poor and improvement is desired.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to improve work efficiency by allowing a workpiece to be machined even while a jig table is moving.

In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 is directed to a workpiece loading step in which a workpiece positioned on a lower positioning holding portion provided on a moving body that moves on a guide rail is moved to the lower positioning holding portion. Is moved to the workpiece machining step, and the lower positioning holding portion is moved to the workpiece carrying-in step with the workpiece held by the upper positioning holding portion having a plurality of clamp arms and positioning means in the workpiece machining step. While machining the workpiece, the workpiece after machining can be moved from the upper positioning holding portion between the workpiece machining step and the workpiece unloading step on the same moving body as the lower positioning holding portion. Product assembly method for delivering to a workpiece receiving portion, wherein the workpiece is positioned and held from above and below by the lower positioning holding portion and the upper positioning holding portion. When the temporary holding welding is performed, and after the temporary welding operation, the workpiece is held only by the upper positioning holding portion and additional welding is performed, and when holding the workpiece only by the upper positioning holding portion, a plurality of upper the upper positioning and holding part of the part of the positioning holding unit is moved away from the workpiece, the clamp arm having a locking cylinder with the rest of the upper positioning and holding portion of the plurality of upper positioning and holding portion, holding the workpiece, the After finishing the incremental welding, the workpiece held by the clamp arm provided with the cylinder with the lock is further subjected to incremental welding in a state where the workpiece is positioned and held on the workpiece receiving portion .

According to the product assembling method described above, in a state where the workpiece is held by the upper positioning holding portion, the processing for the workpiece and the movement of the lower positioning holding portion to the workpiece carry-in process are performed in the same process, thereby improving work efficiency. To do.
In addition, the moving body moves along the guide rail between the work carry-in process and the work carry-out process around the work machining process, so that the lower positioning jig moves between the work carry-in process and the work machining process. The workpiece receiving portion moves integrally between the workpiece machining process and the workpiece unloading process.
Furthermore, additional welding work for the workpiece positioned and held by the upper positioning holder, movement of the lower positioning holder from the workpiece machining process to the workpiece loading process, and from the workpiece unloading process of the workpiece receiver to the workpiece machining process Are moved in the same process.
In addition, a sufficient working space is ensured when machining the workpiece.

According to a second aspect of the invention, the product assembly process of the first aspect of the present invention, the workpiece is an engine compartment is a body part of a motor vehicle, the engine compartment, between the steps as the direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction and the transport direction Transport.

  According to the product assembling method described above, the installation space in each process of the engine compartment is small with respect to the workpiece transfer direction, thereby shortening the movement stroke of the lower positioning jig and the workpiece receiving portion.

According to the first aspect of the present invention , since the workpiece can be processed and the lower positioning holder can be moved to the workpiece loading process in the same process while the workpiece is positioned and held by the upper positioning holder, work efficiency can be improved. Can be improved.
In addition, since the lower positioning holding part and the work receiving part are provided on the same moving body that moves along the guide rail and move integrally with each other, the drive part can be shared and the structure can be simplified. Can do.
Furthermore, additional welding work for the workpiece positioned and held by the upper positioning holder, movement of the lower positioning holder from the workpiece machining process to the workpiece loading process, and from the workpiece unloading process of the workpiece receiver to the workpiece machining process Since the movement is performed in the same process, the working efficiency can be improved.
In addition, when the workpiece is subjected to additional welding, the upper positioning holding portion that is unnecessary for holding the workpiece is separated from the workpiece, so that the work space can be widened and the workability can be improved.

According to the invention of claim 2 , since the engine compartment is transferred between the processes with the longitudinal direction being a direction orthogonal to the transfer direction, the installation space in each process of the engine compartment is small with respect to the workpiece transfer direction. In addition, the movement stroke between the steps of the lower positioning jig and the workpiece receiving portion is shortened, and the working time can be shortened.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a simplified plan view showing an overall configuration of a vehicle body assembly apparatus for assembling an engine compartment in a vehicle body by welding as a product assembly apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. The engine compartment assembled here is composed of a radiator core support assembly 17 at the front of the vehicle body, left and right hood ridges & member assemblies 19, 21 and a dash panel assembly 23, as shown in an exploded perspective view in FIG. Each component as these works is joined and fixed by welding.

  The vehicle body assembly apparatus shown in FIG. 1 includes a workpiece carry-in process 25 in which the radiator core support assembly 17 and the left and right hood ridges & member assemblies 19 and 21 are positioned and set by an operator or a handling robot, and a dash panel assembly 23. A workpiece machining step 29 which is positioned and set by a handling robot at predetermined positions on the left and right hood ridges & member assemblies 19 and 21 and which joins each component part by welding with a welding robot 27 as a workpiece machining means; A workpiece unloading step 35 is performed. The workpiece unloading step 35 is performed by the handling robot 33 after performing additional hit welding on the processed workpiece by the welding robot 31.

  3 is a front view of the vehicle body assembly apparatus with the welding robots 27 and 31 and the handling robot 33 omitted, FIG. 4 is a plan view of the same, and FIG. 5 is a right side view of FIG. 3 and 4, a base 37 extending along the work carry-in process 25, the work machining process 29, and the work carry-out process 35 is arranged, and a slide base 39 as a moving body is disposed on the base 37. It is provided so as to be movable in the left-right direction in FIG.

  The slide base 39 is set to have a length extending between the workpiece carry-in process 25 and the workpiece machining process 29, or a length spanned between the workpiece machining process 29 and the workpiece carry-out process 35. A plurality of (in this case, twelve) lower positioning jigs 43 as holding portions are installed so that the radiator core support assembly 17, the left and right hood ridges & member assemblies 19, 21 and the dash panel assembly 23 can be positioned and held respectively. Has been.

  As shown in FIG. 7 which is a right side view of FIGS. 6 and 6, the lower positioning jig 43 is inserted into a positioning hole formed in the workpiece. A positioning pin 45 provided is provided. That is, by inserting the positioning pin 45 into the positioning hole of the workpiece from below, the lower stepped portion 47 is pressed in contact with the lower surface of the workpiece, and in this state, the clamp claw is a slit formed in the positioning pin 45. Rotate to protrude outward from the top and hold the work from above. As a result, the workpiece is positioned by the positioning pin 45 and is clamped and fixed between the stepped portion 47 and the clamp pawl.

  The positioning pin 45 described above is provided at the upper end of the bracket 49, and the bracket 49 can move up and down with respect to the jig body 51. A ball screw 53 extending in the vertical direction is accommodated in the jig main body 51, and a nut 55 screwed to the ball screw 53 is fixed to the lower end side portion of the bracket 49. The upper end of the ball screw 53 is connected to a motor 59 fixed on the jig body 51 side via a power transmission mechanism 57 including a pulley and a belt.

  That is, the ball screw 53 is rotated by driving the motor 59, and the bracket 49 integrated with the nut 55 screwed into the ball screw 53 moves up and down together with the positioning pin 45. A mechanism for moving the positioning pin 45 up and down is referred to as a first drive mechanism section 60.

  The first drive mechanism portion 60 can be moved in the left-right direction in FIGS. 6 and 3 by a second drive mechanism portion 61 provided in the lower portion thereof, and the second drive mechanism portion 61 is positioned in the lower portion thereof. The third drive mechanism 63 installed on the slide base 39 can be moved in the left-right direction in FIGS.

  The second and third drive mechanism sections 61 and 63 employ the same mechanism as the first drive mechanism section 60. That is, in the second drive mechanism portion 61, the ball screw 61b is rotated by the drive of the motor 61a, and the jig body 51 integrated with the nut 61c screwed to the ball screw 61b moves in the left-right direction in FIG. To do. Similarly, in the third drive mechanism 63, a ball screw (not shown) is rotated by driving the motor 63a, and the second drive mechanism 61 integrated with a nut screwed into the ball screw is left and right in FIG. Move in the direction.

  As described above, the lower positioning jig 43 has the first, second, and third drive mechanism portions 60, 61, and 63 so that the position of the positioning pin 45 for positioning and holding the workpiece is in the three directions of up and down, front and rear, and left and right. Will be moved to.

  On the other hand, on the left side of the slide base 39 in FIG. In the work receiving portion 65, a plurality of simple increasing jigs 71 that are moved up and down by a cylinder 69 are installed on a support frame 67.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the slide base 39 has a rack 75 mounted on the lower surface in the center in the width direction, and a motor 79 rotates the pinion 77 screwed into the rack 75 via a drive shaft 81. 5 moves in the direction orthogonal to the paper surface in FIG. 5, that is, in the left-right direction in FIG. This movement is guided along the guide rails 82 on the support portions 37 a provided on both sides in the width direction of the base 37.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the slide base 39 has a state in which the lower positioning jig 43 is positioned in the workpiece machining step 29 and the workpiece receiving portion 65 is positioned in the workpiece unloading step 35, as shown in FIG. In addition, the lower positioning jig 43 is moved and displaced to a state where the workpiece receiving portion 65 is positioned in the workpiece loading step 25 and the workpiece receiving portion 65 is positioned in the workpiece machining step 29.

  In the work processing step 29, two support legs 83 are installed on each side of the slide base 39 in the width direction, and the two upper ends on both sides of the support leg 83 are cured with the slide base 39 in between. A tool holding frame 85 is suspended. On this jig holding frame 85, an upper positioning jig 87 as an upper positioning holding part can position and hold the radiator core support assembly 17, the left and right hood ridges & member assemblies 19, 21 and the dash panel assembly 23 from above. As shown, a plurality (10 in this case) are installed.

The upper positioning device 87, the positioning pins 89 as positioning means provided with a definitive ones similar clamp jaws below the positioning jig 43 described above is projected downward, the positioning pin 89 is attached The L-shaped bracket 91 can be moved up and down by the first drive mechanism section 93. The first drive mechanism section 93 can be moved in the left-right direction in FIG. 3 by the second drive mechanism section 95, and the second drive mechanism section 95 is further moved by the third drive mechanism section 97 in FIG. 3. It is possible to move in the direction perpendicular to the paper surface.

  In other words, the positioning pin 89 for positioning and holding the workpiece can be moved in the three directions, up and down, front and rear, and left and right, by the first, second, and third drive mechanism sections 93, 95, and 97. These drive mechanism portions 93, 95, and 97 are driven by motors in the same manner as the first, second, and third drive mechanism portions 60, 61, and 63 in the lower positioning jig 43. The object that is integral with the nut is moved by the movement of the nut that is rotated by the screw and screwed into the ball screw.

  Four upper positioning jigs 87 are provided with positioning pins 89 as described above, and the remaining six are, as shown in FIG. A workpiece holding structure having a structure that rotates and displaces between positions is used. Although not shown, four of the upper positioning jigs 87 including the positioning pins 89 are also equipped with clamp arms, and the remaining six are also equipped with positioning pins. The remaining six units use cylinders with locks that can hold the clamped state. That is, the clamp arm 101 is rotatably supported at the tip of the piston rod 103, and the other end of the rotation support piece 105 whose one end is fixed to the clamp arm 101 is rotatable with respect to the bracket 107. It has become. The cylinder 99 itself is also rotatably supported by the bracket 107 via a rotation support portion 109. When the clamp arm 101 reaches the solid line position, the workpiece is held between the holding movable pin 111 provided at the tip thereof and the fixed pin 113 provided on the bracket 107.

  Note that the lower positioning jig 43 may have a configuration using the clamp arm 101 as in the upper positioning jig 87.

  FIG. 10 shows the positioning and holding positions of the 12 lower positioning jigs 43 and 10 upper positioning jigs 87 with respect to the workpiece, and the position indicated by L is the lower positioning jig 43, U The positions indicated by U1 are due to the upper positioning jig 87. Among these, the position indicated by U1 is due to the six upper positioning jigs provided with the clamp arm 101 shown in FIG.

  Next, the operation will be described. As shown in FIG. 8, in the state where the lower positioning jig 43 is positioned in the workpiece loading process 25, the positioning pins 45 are moved up and down, front and rear, left and right as appropriate, The work W (the radiator core support assembly 17 and the left and right hood ridges & member assemblies 19, 21) is positioned and set by a person or a handling robot. At this time, in the workpiece machining step 29, the workpiece W (the radiator core support assembly 17, the left and right hood ridges & member assemblies 19, 21 and the dash panel assembly 23) before the welding process has been completed is removed from the upper positioning jig 87. The workpiece is transferred to the workpiece receiver 65.

  Thereafter, the slide base 39 moves to the left from the state of FIG. 8, and as shown in FIG. 3, the lower positioning jig 43 is positioned in the workpiece machining step 29 and the workpiece receiving portion 65 is positioned in the workpiece unloading step 35. It becomes a state. In this state, the dash panel assembly 23 is positioned and set on the lower positioning jig 43 so that the dash panel assembly 23 is placed on the hood ridge & member assembly 19, 21 by the handling robot, whereby all the parts constituting the engine compartment are placed on the lower side. This means that the positioning jig 43 has been positioned and set. Depending on the workpiece shape and vehicle type, the radiator core support assembly 17 and the left and right hood ridges & member assemblies 19 and 21 are welded (temporary hammering), then the dash panel assembly 23 is positioned and set, and positioning welding (temporary hammering) is performed again. ).

  Next, the positioning pins 89 of the upper positioning jig 87 are appropriately moved up and down, front and rear, left and right to position the workpiece W (the radiator core support assembly 17, the left and right hood ridges & member assemblies 19, 21 and the dash panel assembly 23). The workpiece W is held by a clamp arm (not shown). As a result, the workpiece W is positioned and fixed by both the lower positioning jig 43 and the upper positioning jig 87. The state is shown in FIG. 11 as a front view and FIG. 12 as a right side view of FIG. 13 and 14 show a state where the lower positioning jig 43 and the upper positioning jig 87 are in their original positions.

  In the state of FIGS. 11 and 12, when the welding robot 27 performs temporary welding on the workpiece W and secures the joining accuracy between the components, the lower positioning jig 43 moves to the original position shown in FIGS. 13 and 14. The holding of the workpiece W is released and the upper positioning jig 87 including the four positioning pins 89 is also released from the holding of the workpiece W and separated from the workpiece W. As a result, the work W is held at the six U1 positions shown in FIG. 10 by six of the upper positioning jigs 87 provided with the clamp arm 101 shown in FIG.

  On the other hand, the workpiece W on the workpiece receiver 65 moving to the workpiece unloading process 35 is appropriately subjected to additional welding by the welding robot 31 and then unloaded by the handling robot 33.

  Then, with the workpiece W held by the six upper positioning jigs 87, the slide base 39 moves rightward from the position of FIG. 3 to the position of FIG. 27, the additional welding work is performed on the workpiece W. Thus, the work efficiency can be improved by performing the welding work even in the process in which the slide base 39 moves from the work machining process 29 to the work carry-in process 25. The four upper positioning jigs 87 that have released the work W are retracted to a position where the welding robot 27 does not interfere with each other, so that a sufficient welding work space is secured and the welding workability is improved.

  When the additional hit welding is completed and the slide base 39 is in the position shown in FIG. 8, the simple hitting jig 71 is raised by the cylinder 69 in the workpiece receiving portion 67 to position and hold the workpiece W. Perform punch welding. On the other hand, the workpiece to be processed next is loaded into the lower positioning jig 43 positioned in the workpiece loading step 25. After completion of the additional welding, the six upper positioning jigs 87 return to the original positions shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, and when the delivery of the workpiece W to the simple additional jig 71 is completed, the slide base 39 is shown in FIG. In the workpiece unloading step 35, the welding robot 31 performs further incremental welding, then the handling robot 33 unloads the workpiece W to another facility and the workpiece machining step 29. Then, welding is performed on the next workpiece in the same manner as described above.

  The engine compartment constructed by assembling the above workpiece W by welding has a long vertical direction in FIG. 10 as is apparent from FIG. 10, and the workpiece W is placed in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction. Since the transfer is performed between the steps 25, 29, and 35, the moving stroke of the slide base 39 of the workpiece W is shortened, and the working time can be shortened.

  Note that the workpiece W can be transferred from the upper positioning jig 87 to the additional hammering simple jig 71 even if the upper positioning jig 87 lowers the workpiece W to the additional hammering simple jig 71. The simple hitting jig 71 may be fixed without providing the cylinder 69. In addition, the lower positioning jig 43 and the work receiving portion 65 are configured to be installed on the same slide base 39 and move together, but may be installed on different slide bases and moved separately. Furthermore, although the description has been given by taking the body part as an example of the workpiece, it is not limited to this.

It is the simplified top view which shows the whole structure of the vehicle body assembly apparatus which assembles the engine compartment in a vehicle body by welding as a product assembly apparatus concerning one Embodiment of this invention. It is a disassembled perspective view of an engine compartment. It is a front view of the vehicle body assembly apparatus of FIG. FIG. 4 is a plan view of FIG. 3. FIG. 4 is a right side view of FIG. 3. FIG. 2 is a front view of a lower positioning jig in the vehicle body assembly apparatus of FIG. 1. FIG. 7 is a right side view of FIG. 6. It is operation | movement explanatory drawing which shows the state which the slide base moved to the right direction with respect to FIG. It is a front view of the upper side positioning jig provided with the clamp arm. It is explanatory drawing which shows the positioning position by the positioning jig with respect to a workpiece | work. It is a front view which shows the state which has positioned and hold | maintained the workpiece | work with the lower positioning jig and the upper positioning jig. It is a right view of FIG. It is a front view showing the state where the lower positioning jig and the upper positioning jig are in their original positions. FIG. 14 is a right side view of FIG. 13. It is a top view of the product assembly apparatus which shows a prior art example.

Explanation of symbols

W Work 25 Work loading process 27 Welding robot (work processing means)
29 Workpiece machining process 35 Workpiece unloading process 39 Slide base (moving body)
43 Lower positioning jig (lower positioning holder)
65 Workpiece receiving part 87 Upper positioning jig (Upper positioning holding part)

Claims (2)

In the workpiece loading process, the workpiece positioned on the lower positioning holding portion provided on the moving body moving on the guide rail is transferred to the workpiece machining step by the movement of the lower positioning holding portion. While the workpiece is held by the upper positioning holding portion having a plurality of clamp arms and positioning means, the workpiece is processed while moving the lower positioning holding portion to the workpiece loading step, and the processed workpiece is moved to the upper positioning position. A product assembly method capable of moving between a workpiece processing step and a workpiece unloading step from a holding portion and delivering the workpiece to a workpiece receiving portion provided on the same moving body as the lower positioning holding portion, Temporary welding is performed with the workpiece positioned from above and below with the lower positioning holder and the upper positioning holder, and after the temporary welding operation, When the workpiece is held only by the upper positioning holding portion and the welding is performed by additional hit welding, and the workpiece is held only by the upper positioning holding portion, some of the upper positioning holding portions of the plurality of upper positioning holding portions are separated from the workpiece. The workpiece is held by a clamp arm having a cylinder with a lock of the remaining upper positioning holding portion among the plurality of upper positioning holding portions, and the cylinder with the lock is provided after finishing the additional welding. A product assembling method , wherein the work held by the clamp arm is further welded in a state where the work is positioned and held by the work receiving portion .   2. The product assembling method according to claim 1, wherein the work is an engine compartment which is a body part of an automobile, and the engine compartment is transferred between the respective processes with the longitudinal direction being a direction perpendicular to the transfer direction.

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