JPH11197976A - Positioning device and handling jig - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To heighten the contact performance of a receiving piece with an abutted surface of a work in a positioning device. SOLUTION: A shaft body 18 and a guide part 19 are supported in a floating manner on a main body 11 by an elastic body 21. A receiving piece 9 is fitted through a ball joint 10 to the guide part 19. When the receiving piece 9 is butted against a work W, the receiving piece 9 is rotated around a contact point 9b with a surface W, to be abutted. At this time, the center point 10c of the ball joint which is the actual rotational center point of the receiving piece 9 is moved with respect to the original axis. Accordingly, the angle of the contact surface 9a of the receiving piece 9 is coincided with the surface Wf to be abutted without excessive force applied to the contact point 9b of the receiving piece, the surface Wf to be abutted of the work, and the ball joint 10. Further, the conical surface 19a of the guide part 19 is guided to slide on the conical surface 11b of the main body 11. Thus, the position of the ball joint 10c moved from the original axis is corrected, and the conical surfaces 11b, 19a come into close contact with each other to eliminate the floating state of the shaft body 18 to the main body 11.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a general-purpose positioning device for supporting works having various shapes in a desired state.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, in the case of an automobile welding line, parts of a plurality of types (hereinafter referred to as "work") are arranged on the same line.
It is a common practice to carry out welding work corresponding to each vehicle type on each work at the same time. At this time, it is necessary that the work positioning device be sure to perform positioning in accordance with different work shapes of different vehicle types. The device for performing this positioning includes a receiving piece as a portion that directly contacts the work, and adjusts the angle of the receiving piece according to the shape of the contact surface of the work, thereby holding the work. Do it more reliably.

In Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 6-34907, as shown in FIG. 13, a plurality of receiving pieces 1, 2, 3, and 4 are supported by an index device 5, and an appropriate receiving piece is selected according to the work shape. A positioning device capable of doing so is disclosed. The contact surfaces of the receiving pieces 1, 2, 3, and 4 with the workpieces (shaded portions in the figure) are formed in different shapes. Can be improved in adhesion.

FIG. 14 shows a conventional positioning device.
A plurality of jigs 6 and 7 having several receiving pieces are prepared as shown in FIG. 1 and these jigs 6 and 7 are exchanged to form a contact surface (shaded portion in the drawing) with a different work shape. Some are changed to correspond. Further, as shown in FIG. 15, the receiving piece 8 is supported by two orthogonal rotating shafts (Y axis and Z axis), and the contact surface (a portion shown by oblique lines in the drawing) is formed by an NC device according to the shape of the work. Positioning devices that actively control the tilt are also used. Further, the receiving frame 9 is abutting surface of the workpiece W as shown in FIG. 16, attached to the main body 11 via a ball joint 10, following the abutted surface W _f of the workpiece W of the contact surface 9a Positioning devices that passively change the angle have also been used.

[0005]

However, each of the above conventional examples has the following disadvantages. First, according to the example shown in FIG. 13, since the shape of the contact surface of each of the receiving pieces 1, 2, 3, and 4 with the workpiece is fixed, if the type of the workpiece to be positioned increases, the type of the receiving piece Need to be increased accordingly. This is also true for the jigs 6 and 7 shown in FIG. In this regard, according to the positioning device shown in FIGS. 15 and 16, the inclination of the contact surface (the portion shown by oblique lines in the drawings) can be changed according to the shape of the work. Can respond to work. However, the example shown in FIG. 15 requires a configuration for actively controlling the inclination of the contact surface of the receiving piece 8, and particularly when the work is positioned using a plurality of receiving pieces, each The structure of the actuator supporting the receiving piece and the control data become complicated. This problem can be solved by using the positioning device shown in FIG. However, since the positioning device of FIG. 16 has a configuration of passively changing the angle of the contact surface 9a, it has the following problems.

The problem occurs when the receiving piece 9 is brought into contact with the work. As shown in FIG. 16, when the workpiece W in contact with the receiving piece 9 moves further in the direction to approach the receiving piece 9 (rightward in the figure) as shown in FIG.
Rotates about the contact point 9b with the contacted surface W _f,
Attempts to match the angle of the contact surface 9a on the abutted surface W _f. However, the contact point 9 which is the operation center point at this time is
b and the center point 10c of the ball joint 10 which is the actual center point of rotation of the receiving piece 9, the rotation of the receiving piece 9 about the ball joint 10 is not well induced, and the ball joint It appears as 10 distortions (the amount of distortion is indicated by the symbol h).

[0007] However, the ball joint 10 is
Since it is fixed to the body 11 (the body 11 is of course positioned so as not to be displaced), the reaction force acts on the contact point 9b before the distortion h increases. Since the contact point 9b is a point contact with respect to the contact surface W _f, tuned to further approach the workpiece W, (in the abutted surface W _f of the contact point 9b) due to stress one point concentration bite the Will happen. Therefore, the contact surface W _{f of} the receiving piece 9
It is difficult to generate a "slip" with respect to, not obtained occur angular change of the contact surface 9a corresponding to the contact surface W _f. For these reasons, contact surface against the contacted surface W _f 9
a was likely to be insufficiently adhered. In the worst case, the work W is deformed as shown in FIG.

Further, since the work shape has various three-dimensional curved surfaces, it is necessary to use a plurality of receiving pieces to support a plurality of places of the work in order to reliably support all the works that can be handled. . In order to adjust the plurality of receiving pieces to the optimal positions, a handling jig for accurately determining the positions of the respective receiving pieces on three axes is required. In addition, the conventional handling jig performs positioning control based on the vehicle number line as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-116658. Therefore, three-axis (XYZ-axis) control for setting a dedicated vehicle line for each work and aligning the handling jig with a position based on the vehicle line has become indispensable. This has resulted in an increase in the structure and control contents of the handling jig. In this regard, if a dedicated jig is used, the weight and the structure can be simplified. However, preparing dedicated jigs for various types of vehicles is not realistic in view of securing a storage space for jigs and man-hours required for exchanging jigs.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a general-purpose positioning device and a handling jig for a work having various shapes, which increase the work holding ability and An object of the present invention is to achieve weight reduction, cost reduction and further versatility improvement by simplifying the structure.

[0010]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a positioning device, comprising: a member provided with an abutting surface for a swingably provided work; It is characterized in that it is provided with means for floatingly supporting the main body together with the mechanism, and for canceling the floating state as the contact pressure against the work increases.

According to the above construction, when the contact surface with the work changes its angle passively with respect to the contact surface of the work, the member having the contact surface with the work is moved together with the swing mechanism. Since it is floating supported on the main body, the contact surface with the workpiece follows the contact surface irrespective of the operation of the swing mechanism. Then, the angle between the work surface and the work contact surface is relaxed, and the edge of the contact surface is prevented from biting into the work due to concentration of one point of stress. Further, by providing means for eliminating the floating state, the member having the contact surface is fixed to the main body, and the work is positioned.

Further, in the positioning device according to a second aspect of the present invention, the member provided with the contact surface with the work is provided on a shaft extending in the separating and approaching direction of the work and floatingly supported on the body.
It is desirable to be held via a ball joint.
According to this configuration, when the contact surface with the workpiece passively changes its angle with respect to the contact surface of the workpiece, regardless of the operation of the ball joint, the displacement of the shaft itself causes the workpiece to be in contact with the workpiece. The contact surface follows the contact surface. Then, the angle between the work surface and the work contact surface is reduced. Then, the member having the contact surface with the workpiece is prevented from biting into the workpiece due to the concentration of one point of stress.

Further, according to the positioning device of the third aspect of the present invention, it is preferable that conical surfaces that can be brought into close contact with each other are arranged on the main body and the shaft body so as to face each other in the approach direction of the work. The floating state of the shaft body with respect to the main body is eliminated by bringing the conical surfaces provided on the main body and the shaft body into close contact with each other with the displacement of the work in the approaching direction of the work with respect to the contact surface with the work. At this time, the contact surface is fixed to the main body, and the workpiece is positioned by the contact surface.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a positioning device for a workpiece having a vacuum pad supported by a ball joint, wherein the positioning device supports a ball portion of the ball joint. A friction material capable of being pressed from the race surface to the ball portion surface is provided, and the ball joint is supported by a parallel link that can be fixed at a predetermined position.

When the target work is a panel component, the vacuum pad can position the work by adsorbing to the surface thereof. Since the vacuum pad is made of an elastic body such as rubber, the followability of the workpiece to the contact surface is originally high, and the followability is further improved by supporting the vacuum pad with a ball joint. . However, in this state, the vacuum pad swings freely and cannot receive a desired load. Therefore, the swing angle of the vacuum pad is fixed by pressing the friction material against the ball portion of the ball joint from the race surface. . Further, by supporting the ball joint with a parallel link, the followability of the vacuum pad to the contact surface of the workpiece is enhanced. Since the parallel link can be fixed at a predetermined position, the ball joint and the vacuum pad supported by the parallel link are fixed at appropriate positions to receive a desired load.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a handling jig according to the fifth aspect of the present invention, wherein a plurality of target workpieces are selected as locations necessary for gripping the workpieces, and the workpieces are placed at each selected position. Arrange positioning device to grip,
Further, at least one positioning device is supported by an actuator that operates only in one axial direction for displacing with respect to another positioning device.

As places necessary for gripping the work, several places having relatively little change with respect to a change in the overall shape of the target work are selected. Then, at least one of the positioning devices arranged at each selected position is displaced by an actuator that operates only in one axial direction, so that the workpiece is supported in response to a slight change in each selected position.

Further, according to a handling jig according to a sixth aspect of the present invention, it is desirable to provide at least one positioning device according to any one of the first to fourth aspects. With this configuration, the structure of the positioning device itself is simplified, and simplification of the entire handling jig is promoted.

In addition, according to the handling jig according to claim 7 of the present invention, the target work is a side member outer of an automobile body, and the selected location is a front pillar lower flange, a center pillar upper flange, and a quarter part. It is desirable to use three locations. The front pillar lower flange, the center pillar upper flange, and the quarter part of the side member outer are places where there is relatively little change with respect to the above-mentioned overall shape change. Further, by holding these three places, it is possible to stably hold the outer side member.

[0020]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Here, the same or corresponding portions as in the conventional example are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 1 shows a positioning device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. (A) is a top view of the positioning device, and (b) is a side view and a partial cross-sectional view of the positioning device. This positioning device has a lower receiving piece 12
The work W is clamped between the lower support 12 and the upper support 13 by operating the upper support 13 after the work W is placed thereon (the work is supplied from above in FIG. 1). .). Incidentally, the lower receiving piece 12 is fixed to a bracket 14 which is positioned by an NC device, a handling jig described later, or the like. The upper receiving piece 13 is rotatably supported by a bracket 14 by a rotating shaft 15. A base end 13a of the upper receiving piece 13 is pivotally supported by a pivot 16 by an actuator 17 such as a piston.
Therefore, by expanding and contracting the actuator 17, the upper receiving piece 13 can be opened and closed between the state shown by the dashed line and the state shown by the solid line in (b). Further, the distal end portion 13b of the upper receiving piece 13 has a spherical shape, and its center line is in a clamped state (a state shown by a solid line).
With the center line C.

Next, the lower receiving piece 12 will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 to 4 show the upper side of the lower receiving piece 12 shown in FIG. 1 on the left side and the lower side on the right side.

As shown in FIG. 2, the main body 11 of the lower receiving piece 12 is fixed to the bracket 14. And this body
The shaft 18 is supported by 11. As shown, shaft 18
Extends in the separating and approaching direction of the work W (the horizontal direction in FIG. 2),
It penetrates the main body 11. And the shaft body 18 is
The insertion hole 11a of the shaft 18 formed in the main body 11 has a larger diameter than that of the shaft 18 so as to be movable with respect to.

At one end (upper end) of the shaft 18, a frusto-conical guide 19 is provided. The body 11 also has a direction in which the workpiece W approaches the conical surface 19a of the guide portion 19 (FIG. 2).
(To the right). An elastic body 21 such as a coil spring is arranged between the small-diameter end face of the guide portion 19 and a fastener such as a washer 23 provided at a step portion of the insertion hole 11a. Therefore, the shaft body 18 is urged by the elastic body 21 in the direction in which the work W is separated from the main body 11 (to the left in FIG. 2). A fixing member 20 such as a nut is attached to the other end (lower end) of the shaft body 18 to prevent the main body 11 from falling off. Further, a collar 22 having wear resistance is fitted in the vicinity of the end of the insertion hole 11a opposite to the conical surface 11b.

Therefore, the shaft 18 is supported by the body 11 in a floating manner (supported in a state where the posture with respect to the body 11 can be freely changed) by receiving the elastic force of the elastic body 21. And
The conical surface 11b of the main body 11 and the conical surface 19a of the guide portion 19 constitute means (described later) for eliminating the floating state of the shaft body 18 with respect to the main body 11.

Further, a guide provided at one end of the shaft 18
The receiving piece 9 is attached to 19 via a ball joint 10. Therefore, the contact surface 9 of the receiving piece 9 with the work W
a can swing with respect to the shaft body 18.

Subsequently, the lower receiving piece 12 having the above structure is
Regarding the operation state of each member when supporting the work W,
This will be described with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIG. 2, when the workpiece W in contact with the receiving piece 9 moves in a direction (rightward in the drawing) further approaching the receiving piece 9 as shown in FIG. rotates around the contact point 9b of the surface W _f, attempts to match the angle of the contact surface 9a on the abutted surface W _f. Now, as described above, the ball joint 10 which is the actual pivot point of the receiving piece 9 is moved by the shaft 18 to the main body 11.
Floating support for For this reason, the center point 10c of the ball joint 10 follows the rotation of the receiving piece 9 about the contact point 9b, and is moved downward with respect to the original axis in FIG. ). Then, receiving the angle of the contact surface 9a of the frame 9 can be matched to the abutted surface W _f. At this time, no excessive force is applied to any of the contact point 9 b of the receiving piece 9, the contact surface W _f , and the ball joint 10.

The amount of movement H of the ball joint 10 at this time depends on the conical surface 11b of the main body 11 and the conical surface of the guide portion 19.
The amount of movement at the position where it makes contact with 19a is limited. The conical surface 11b, 19a abutting later, the ball joint 10 only by changing its angle, receiving match the angle of the contact surface 9a of the frame 9 to the abutment surface W _f. However, the angle of the contact surface 9a and the contact surface W _f of the receiving piece 9, since it is smaller than the initial stage of the contact (the state shown in FIG. 2), the receiving frame 9 contact point 9b from due to stress one point concentration on the contacted surface W _f (contact point 9b to the contacted surface W _f) bite without causing "slip" with respect to the contact surface W _f of the received frame 9 to generate, the angle of the contact surface 9a can be modeled after abutted surface W _f.

When the work moves further from the state shown in FIG. 3 to the direction approaching the receiving piece 9 (rightward in the figure), the receiving piece 9
Abutment surface 9a and the abutted surface W _f of the work is complete contact, so that the pressing force of the workpiece W is transmitted to the axial direction of the shaft 18 of the. Then, the conical surface 19a of the guide portion 19 is
The shaft body 18 is slidably guided by the conical surface 11b of the shaft 11 and gradually moves rightward in FIG. At this time, ball joint 10
The movement amount H of the center point 10c is also reduced, and the angle formed between the receiving piece 9 and the shaft 18 changes. Then, as shown in FIG. 4, when the entire peripheral surface of the conical surface 19 a of the guide portion 19 comes into close contact with the entire peripheral surface of the conical surface 11 b of the main body 11,
The floating state of 18 has been eliminated and the center point of the ball joint 10
10c matches the original axis.

That is, in the present embodiment, the conical surface 11b of the main body 11 and the conical surface 19a of the guide portion 19 cause the shaft 18 against the main body 11 to increase when the contact pressure of the workpiece W on the receiving piece 9 increases. This constitutes means for eliminating the floating state. In a state where the floating state is eliminated, the load applied from the workpiece W to the receiving piece 9 can be entirely received by the main body 11. In other words, a sufficient contact pressure of the receiving piece 9 against the work W can be secured.

The functions and effects obtained from the first embodiment of the present invention having the above-described configuration will be summarized below. The lower receiving piece 12 of the positioning device according to the present embodiment supports the shaft 18 in a floating manner with respect to the main body 11, and the receiving piece 9 is attached to the shaft 18 via the ball joint 10. That is, the receiving piece 9 is floatingly supported by the main body 11. Therefore, receiving the piece 9 abuts against the workpiece W, the contact point between the abutted surface W _f 9
When rotating around the center b, no excessive force is applied to any of the contact point 9b of the receiving piece, the workpiece contact surface _Wf , and the ball joint 10, and it is the actual center point of rotation of the receiving piece 9. The center point 10c of the ball joint 10 can be moved with respect to the original axis. Therefore, to generate a "slip" in the received frame 9 with respect to the contact surface W _f, received frames 9
Of the angle of the contact surface 9a it can be matched to the abutted surface W _f. For the above reasons, it becomes possible to passively adjust the angle of the contact surface 9a as the work W approaches the receiving piece 9.

Further, conical surfaces 11b which can be in close contact with each other are arranged on a guide portion 19 formed on the main body 11 and the shaft body 18 so as to face each other in the approaching direction of the workpiece. According to this configuration, the guide section
The ball joint moved from its original axis by the sliding guide of the conical surface 19a of the main body 11 to the conical surface 11b of the main body 11.
The position of the center point 10c of 10 is corrected, and the conical surfaces 11b, 19
The floating state of the shaft body 18 with respect to the main body 11 can be eliminated by the close contact of a.

That is, at the time of contact of the receiving piece 9 with the work W, the position of the receiving piece 9 is freely changed by floatingly supporting the shaft 18 with respect to the main body 11, so that the contact surface W
The followability of the contact surface 9a to _f is improved. Eventually, the floating state is canceled, and all the load applied to the receiving piece 9 from the work W is received by the main body 11, so that the function as the receiving piece of the positioning device can be secured.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Here, the same or corresponding portions as in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

The second embodiment of the present invention relates to a handling jig which can use the positioning device according to the first embodiment. FIG. 5 shows the second embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 6 shows a side view of the handling jig 24 according to this embodiment, and FIG. 6 shows a bottom view thereof. This handling jig
No. 24 is intended for handling a workpiece having a relatively small number of portions with relatively small relative position changes even when the overall shape is changed in response to differences in product specifications and the like. Work 25 with such features (hereinafter referred to as “target work”)
In the present embodiment, a side member outer of a vehicle body will be described as an example. 5 and 6
3 shows a state in which the handling jig 24 supports the outer side member for a large passenger car.

The handling jig 24 includes three positioning devices 28, 29 and 30. In the following description, each positioning device will be referred to as a first positioning device 28, a second positioning device 2
9, referred to as a third positioning device 30. Handling jig 24
Is fixed to the robot arm.
The robot arm 26 is rotatable around its rotation axis 26C (see FIGS. 5 and 6). flame
27 has arms 31, 32, and 33 extending in three directions around a mounting portion to the robot arm. Of these, the first
Arm 31 is integrated with the frame 27, and the robot arm
It extends diagonally upward from the attachment to 26. The first positioning device 28 is supported at the tip. Further, the second arm 32 and the third arm 33 extend in directions opposite to each other and in a direction intersecting the first arm 28.

The second arm 32 includes a first actuator 34 attached to the frame 27 and a first actuator
A boom 36 supported by the boom 34. The third arm 33 includes a second actuator 35 mounted on the frame 27 and a boom 37 supported by the second actuator 35.
Is provided. FIG. 7 shows the second arm 32 in an enlarged manner. The first actuator 34 rotates a ball screw shaft 34b with a power source 34a such as a stepping motor, so that the table is screwed into a spiral groove of the ball screw shaft 34b.
34c is guided along the rail 34d. Therefore, the table 34c operates only in one axial direction indicated by the arrow D in FIG. 6 (the direction in which the ball screw 34b and the rail 34d extend). The boom 36 is fixed to the table 34c, and its tip extends obliquely upward. The second positioning device 29 is fixed to the tip of the boom 36.

The second positioning device 29 has substantially the same configuration as the positioning device according to the first embodiment (see FIG. 1B), but the structure of the upper receiving piece 13 is different therefrom. . As shown in FIG. 8, the second positioning device 29 is provided on the contact surface of the upper receiving member 13 as well as on the contact surface of the lower receiving member 12.
It has a structure for supporting the receiving piece 9 via a ball joint 10. In the present embodiment, the first arm 31
The first positioning device 28 supported by the second positioning device 29 has the same configuration as the second positioning device 29, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

The second actuator 35 forming the third arm 33 has the same structure as the first actuator 34. As shown in FIG. 6, the table is moved in one axis direction (arrow E). (In the direction indicated by). The base end of the linear boom 37 is fixed to the table. The third positioning device 30 is a boom
It is fixed to the tip of 37.

FIG. 9 shows the third positioning device 30 supported by the boom 37 in an enlarged manner. The third positioning device 30 is a part that directly contacts the workpiece,
A vacuum pad 38 is provided instead of the receiving pieces provided in the first and second positioning devices 28 and 29. This type of positioning device including the vacuum pad 38 is effective when the target work has a wide contact surface such as a panel component. The vacuum pad 38 is generally formed of an elastic body such as rubber. Then, after the vacuum pad 38 is brought into close contact with the work, air in a space formed between the work surface and the inside of the vacuum pad 38 is extracted from the pipeline 58 indicated by the dotted line, whereby the work can be sucked.

Vacuum pad of the third positioning device 30
38 is supported by a ball joint body 40 by a ball joint 39. The ball joint body 40 is fixed to a rod 41. The rod 41 is pivotally supported by parallel links 43 and 44 with respect to a housing 42 fixed to the boom 37. Then, by swinging the parallel links 43 and 44, the rod 41 (that is, the vacuum pad 38) is moved in the separating and approaching direction of the work (the direction of arrow F in FIG. 5) without changing the angle of the rod 41 with respect to the target work 25. Can be moved to Also, the parallel link 43
The coil spring 45 is wound around the housing 41 and the rod 41 by utilizing the elastic force of the coil spring 45.
Toward its top dead center in its operating range. Therefore, when no load is applied to the vacuum pad 38, the vacuum pad 38 is maintained at the top dead center of the operation range.

FIG. 10 is a sectional view of the housing 42 taken along line AA. As shown, the parallel link 43 is pivotally attached to the housing 42 by a rotating shaft 43a. The parallel link 43 is provided with a clamp module 47 for pressing the friction material 46 against the inner wall of the housing 42. The clamp module 47 has a substantially box shape, and its wall surface is elastically deformable. This elastically deformable wall has friction material
46 are installed. And clamp module 47
When the compressed air PA is supplied from the opening, the wall surface is deformed in the direction of arrow B, and the friction material 46 is pressed against the inner wall of the housing 42. Therefore, since the parallel link 43 is fixed to the housing 42, the position of the rod 41 (that is, the vacuum pad 38) can be fixed. When the supply of compressed air to the clamp module 47 is stopped, the friction material 46 is separated from the inner wall of the housing 42, and the parallel link 43 is freely rotated about the rotation shaft 43a. Therefore, the rod 41 (that is, the vacuum pad 38) can freely move up and down.

FIG. 11 shows the structure of the ball joint body 40 that supports the vacuum pad 38. A race 49 for supporting the ball portion 48 of the ball joint 39 is formed in the ball joint body 40. The race 49 has a pair of openings, and the friction material 50 is inserted through the openings. The friction material 50 is attached to the tip of a piston 52 that slides in a cylinder hole 51 provided behind the friction material. In addition, the ball joint body 40 includes
A communication pipe 55 of the pair of cylinder holes 51 is formed.

The piston 52 usually has a coil spring 53
As a result, it is urged in a direction away from the ball portion 48, and is in contact with a positioning pin 54 also serving as a sealing plug for the cylinder hole 21. In this state, the friction material 50 attached to the tip of the piston 52 is stored in the opening of the race 49. However, when compressed air is supplied to the communication pipe 55 from the intake port 56, the air pressure in the cylinder hole 51 increases, and the piston 52 is pushed out to the surface of the ball portion 48 against the elastic force of the coil spring 53. Therefore, the friction material 50 can be pressed against the ball portion 48 as necessary, and the position of the ball portion 48 with respect to the ball joint body 40 can be fixed. Note that FIG.
The member denoted by reference numeral 59 is a piston 52 and a cylinder bore.
O-ring to keep the seal with 51.

As described above, since the vacuum pad 38 is made of an elastic material such as rubber, the ability to follow the contact surface of the work is originally high. The third positioning device 30 further includes a vacuum pad 38 and a ball joint 39.
By changing to be able to swing, followability is further enhanced. Further, it is also possible to fix the swing angle by pressing the friction material 50 against the ball portion 48. In addition, the ball joint body is
By supporting the vacuum pad 38 at 3, 44, the vacuum pad 38 can be moved to a predetermined height. Therefore, the ability of the vacuum pad to follow the contact surface of the target work 25 is extremely high. Further, the swing of the parallel links 43 and 44 can be fixed by the clamp module 47 provided on the parallel link 43, and the ability to receive a required load can be secured.

The operation and effect obtained by the handling jig according to the second embodiment of the present invention are as follows. In the present embodiment, the target work 25 is a side member outer of an automobile body. The outer side member is an important factor that determines the appearance of the vehicle. Therefore, even if the parts are the same, the overall shape thereof varies depending on the vehicle type. However, the front pillar lower flange, the center pillar upper flange, and the quarter, even if the overall shape changes,
This is a portion where the relative position change is relatively small. this is,
This is because the basic components of an automobile are substantially the same even when its appearance changes.

Therefore, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the handling jig 24 according to the present embodiment is provided with a first positioning device 28 supported by a first arm 31 and a center pillar of a side member outer. Grab the upper flange. The second positioning device 29 supported by the second arm 32
Hold the front pillar lower flange of the side member outer with. Further, the quarter portion of the outer side member is sucked by the third arm 33.

As described above, the second positioning device 29 and the third positioning device 30 are each provided with the first actuator.
It is driven by 34 and a second actuator 35 and can be displaced with respect to the first positioning device 28. Although both the first actuator 34 and the second actuator 35 operate only in one axial direction, it is possible to sufficiently cope with them by selecting the three positions where the relative position change is small. Since only the quarter portion of the outer side member is a portion forming the design surface of the product, the change in position is relatively large among the three portions. However, since the third positioning device 30 includes the parallel links 43 and 44 and can adjust the height of the vacuum pad 38 freely, the followability to the change in the shape of the work is sufficiently ensured.

That is, before the target work 25 is received, the vacuum pad 38 located at the top dead center of the movable range
Lowers the position while the target work 25 contacts. Then, the lowering is continued until the first positioning device 28 grips the center pillar upper flange of the side member outer and the second positioning device 29 can grip the front pillar lower flange. Thereafter, the position is fixed by operating the clamp module 47, so that the vacuum pad 38
Load can be received.

In FIG. 12, the handling jig 24
This shows a state where a side member outer 25 'for a so-called compact car is supported. Compared to the state in which the outer side member 25 for a large passenger car shown in FIG. 6 is supported, the shape of the target work is obtained by moving the second and third positioning devices 29 and 30 closer to each other with the first positioning device 28 as a reference. It can be seen that it corresponds to the change of. That is, in FIG. 12, the second positioning device 29 is in the position of P _3, the third positioning device 30 is in the position of P _4. 6 In contrast, the second positioning device 29 is at a position corresponding to P ₁ in FIG. 12, the third positioning device 30 is at a position corresponding to P ₆ in FIG. 12. Further, since the handling jig 24 can be rotated around the mounting portion to the robot arm 26, the side member outer, which is the target work, is for a so-called station wagon, minivan,
Applicable to various shapes such as RV wagons.

The procedure corresponding to each vehicle type is as follows.
First, the robot arm 26 is moved based on a control signal set corresponding to the side member outer for each vehicle model, and the first positioning device 28 is aligned with the center pillar upper flange of the target work. Subsequently, the positions of the first and second actuators 34 and 35 are adjusted based on the control signal. Thereafter, by placing the target work on the first to third positioning devices 27 to 29, each receiving piece or vacuum cup changes its angle according to the shape of the work, thereby securely holding the work.

As described above, according to the handling jig according to the second embodiment of the present invention, all of the first to third positioning devices 28 to 30 passively adjust the angle of the contact surface with respect to the target work. The structure for changing the contact surface does not require a configuration for actively adjusting the angle of the contact surface and the setting of control data, and the structure as a handling jig is simplified and versatility is improved. Can be. In addition, the handling jig has a first and a second which operate only in one axial direction.
Since the actuators 34 and 35 are used, it is possible to provide a lightweight, low-cost and highly versatile handling jig as compared with a handling jig including a conventional three-axis control actuator.

[0053]

According to the present invention, the following effects are obtained. First, according to the positioning device according to claim 1 of the present invention, since the contact surface is floated and supported, the followability of the contact surface to the contact surface is improved, so that the angle of the contact surface is changed. Can be reliably performed. Further, after the contact surface is brought into close contact with the contact surface, the contact surface is fixed by means for eliminating the floating state, and the work is received at a fixed position. Can be secured.

According to the positioning apparatus of the second aspect of the present invention, the contact surface with the workpiece is floatingly supported on the main body so that the contact surface can follow the contact surface. Can be enhanced. Therefore, the operation of passively changing the angle of the contact surface with respect to the contact surface can be reliably performed.

Further, according to the positioning device of the third aspect of the present invention, the conical surfaces provided on the main body and the shaft body are brought into close contact with each other with the displacement of the work in the approaching direction with respect to the contact surface with the work. Thus, the floating state is eliminated, so that the load received by the contact surface can be received by the main body. Therefore, at the time of contact of the contact surface with the workpiece, the followability of the contact surface is improved,
In addition, finally, all the load from the work W received by the contact surface is received by the main body, and a positioning function as a work positioning device can be obtained.

Further, according to the positioning device of the fourth aspect of the present invention, the followability of the positioning device having the vacuum pad to the contact surface is improved, and the contact surface is brought into close contact with the contact surface. Later, the contact surface can be fixed by means for eliminating the floating state, and the workpiece can be received at a fixed position. Therefore, the work positioning function required for the positioning device can be secured.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the handling jig, at least one of the positioning devices disposed at each of the selected positions is displaced by an actuator that operates only in one axial direction, so that each of the selected positions is slightly shifted. It is possible to support the work in response to the change of the above, and to simplify the structure of the handling jig and the control contents.

Further, a handling jig according to a sixth aspect of the present invention uses the positioning device according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, thereby simplifying the structure of the positioning device itself and improving the handling efficiency. The simplification and generalization of the whole tool can be promoted.

In addition, the handling jig according to claim 7 of the present invention is for a side member outer, and the positioning device holds three locations of a front pillar lower flange, a center pillar upper flange, and a quarter portion. This makes it possible to stably hold the outer side member of various types of vehicles.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIGS. 1A and 1B show a positioning device according to a first embodiment of the present invention, wherein FIG. 1A is a top view of the positioning device, and FIG.
Shows a side view and a partial sectional view of the positioning device.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing an initial state when a work is supported in a lower receiving piece of the positioning device shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a middle stage of supporting a work in a lower receiving piece of the positioning device shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a state when supporting of a work is completed in a lower receiving piece of the positioning device shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a schematic side view of a handling jig according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

6 is a schematic bottom view of the handling jig shown in FIG.

7 is an enlarged view showing a second arm of the handling jig shown in FIG.

8 is a side view and a partial cross-sectional view of the second positioning device shown in FIG.

9 is a side view and a partial cross-sectional view of the third positioning device shown in FIG.

10 is a sectional view of the third positioning device shown in FIG. 9 taken along line AA.

11 is a sectional view of a vacuum pad main body of the third positioning device shown in FIG.

FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram showing a state where a target work is changed in a handling jig according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a conventional positioning device.

FIG. 14 is a schematic view showing another conventional positioning device.

FIG. 15 is a schematic view showing another conventional positioning device.

FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view showing an initial state when supporting a work in a conventional positioning device that passively adjusts the angle of a contact surface.

FIG. 17 is a cross-sectional view showing a middle stage of supporting a work in the positioning device shown in FIG. 16;

FIG. 18 is a cross-sectional view showing a state when the support of the work is completed in the positioning device shown in FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 9 Receiving piece 9a Contact surface 10 Ball joint 11 Main body 11b Conical surface 12 Lower receiving piece 18 Shaft body 19 Guide part 19a Conical surface 21 Elastic body

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A member having an abutting surface for contacting a work, which is provided so as to be swingable, is floated and supported on a main body together with a swing mechanism of the member, and the floating state is increased with an increase in the contact pressure on the work. A positioning device, comprising: means for solving the problem. 2. A member having a contact surface with the workpiece,
2. The positioning device according to claim 1, wherein the positioning device is held via a ball joint on a shaft that extends in the separating and approaching direction of the work and is floatingly supported by the main body. 3. The positioning device according to claim 2, wherein conical surfaces that can be in close contact with each other are arranged on the main body and the shaft body so as to face each other in the approach direction of the workpiece. 4. A device for positioning a work comprising a vacuum pad supported by a ball joint, comprising: a friction material capable of being pressed from a race surface supporting a ball portion of the ball joint to a surface of the ball portion; A positioning device, wherein a ball joint is supported by a parallel link that can be fixed at a predetermined position. 5. A plurality of target workpieces are selected as necessary places for gripping a workpiece, and a positioning device for gripping the workpiece is disposed at each selected position, and at least one positioning device is positioned at another position. A handling jig supported by an actuator that operates only in one axial direction for displacing the apparatus. 6. A handling jig according to claim 5, comprising at least one positioning device according to any one of claims 1 to 4. 7. The object work is a side member outer of a vehicle body, and the selected places are three places of a front pillar lower flange, a center pillar upper flange, and a quarter part.
Or the handling jig according to 6.