JPH11255379A - Sheet material positioning device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To position a weak sheet material having a low stiffness using a simple and low-cost mechanism. SOLUTION: Air holes 24 are dispersively provided in the top surface of a stage 20 on which a sheet material is placed, and when positioning pushers 23x and 23y push the sheet material 14 and locate, air is sent off from the holes 24 so as to reduce the friction between the sheet material and stage. Thus the sheet material 14 can be moved without risk of deformation.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a device for positioning a rectangular sheet material at a predetermined position on a stage, and more particularly to a positioning device suitable for a thin sheet material having a low rigidity.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a device for positioning a rectangular plate at a predetermined position on a stage, there is a device as shown in a plan view in FIG. The rectangular stage 1 is provided with a plurality of cuts 2x and 2y at two adjacent edges, respectively, and each of the cuts 2x is provided with a claw-shaped positioning pusher 3x arranged in the same straight line so as to be able to advance and retreat in the X direction. The positioning pushers 3y are similarly arranged in the notches 2y in the same straight line, and can move forward and backward in the Y direction.
2 with the positioning pushers 3x and 3y retracted outside.
When the plate material 4 is placed on the stage 1 and the positioning pushers 3x and 3y then gently advance to a predetermined position in the plane of the stage 1 and stop there, the plate material 1 is positioned at a predetermined position indicated by a dashed line. ing.

[0003] That is, since the plate 1 is rigid, when the edge is pressed, the plate 1 is not deformed and moves against the friction generated between the plate 1 and the stage 1, and as shown in FIG. Even if the pushers 3x or 3y are arranged in parallel, the position pushed by the pusher 3x or 3y is different from the center of the frictional force and the pushing direction is not toward the center of the frictional force. You.

However, if an attempt is made to apply a weak sheet having a large area of, for example, 0.2 mm thick and 400 mm × 1500 mm to such a device, friction between the stage 1 and the position pushers 3x and 3y is large.
Pressing does not cause it to move to a predetermined position, but only to deform.

Therefore, in the case of such a stiff sheet material, the stage 10 is made movable in the X, Y, and θ directions as shown in a plan view in FIG. A plurality of sensors 5 for detecting the edge are fixedly arranged, and the stage 10 is moved and positioned so that the edge of the sheet material 14 comes to a predetermined position.

However, since the stage 10 moves in X, Y, and .theta. In the above-described conventional apparatus corresponding to the weakly stiff sheet material 14, since the mechanism is complicated and only the size is increased. In addition, the control is complicated, a sophisticated method is required, and the apparatus becomes expensive. When the sheet material 14 is a transparent sheet material such as a vinyl sheet, for example, it is difficult to obtain edge contrast, and it is necessary to select a sensor depending on the sheet material to be applied, or the material of the sheet material is limited. . Therefore, the present invention provides an inexpensive device that can be positioned more reliably with respect to various sheet materials and has a simple mechanism.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a sheet material positioning apparatus according to the present invention includes a stage for placing a sheet material and a position for pushing the placed sheet material to a predetermined position. The stage includes an air hole distributed on the top surface, and when the positioning pusher pushes the sheet material to position the same, the gas is blown out from the air hole to provide a space between the sheet material and the stage. It is characterized by reducing friction. In particular, when the sheet material to be handled is rectangular, the first of the placed sheet materials is used.
A first positioning pusher that presses an edge of the first pusher to a predetermined position, and a second edge adjacent to the first edge is pressed in a direction perpendicular to a direction in which the first pusher pushes the second edge to a predetermined position. A second positioning pusher is provided. According to this configuration, when the positioning pusher pushes the sheet material to position the sheet material, the gas to be blown out from the air hole to reduce the contact area between the sheet material and the stage and reduce friction, so that the material to be handled is soft. Even a sheet material having a weak waist moves without being deformed.

[0007]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION The sheet material applied to the apparatus of the present invention has a feature that it can be applied not only to a sheet material having a strong stiffness (hard to deform) but also to a sheet material having a considerably low stiffness. The apparatus includes a stage on which the sheet material is placed,
Then, the sheet material is positioned. This stage may be one that holds the sheet material as it is after positioning and performs processing such as printing, for example, and is used only for positioning. It may be such that it is taken out to another device.
An air hole is provided on the top surface of the stage. The air holes may be those in which pores are evenly dispersed, those in which a number of narrow grooves are arranged in parallel at equal intervals, or those in a vertical and horizontal lattice. The air holes are collectively connected to a high-pressure gas source such as a pump via a flow control means. In order to collect these air holes, the entire stage is not suddenly combined into one, but into blocks that are divided into sections corresponding to the size of the sheet material to be handled, and then combined into one through a stop valve for each block. When handling smaller sheets, the gas flow is not wasted.

For example, when a rectangular sheet material is handled, a positioning pusher that pushes the placed sheet material to position it at a predetermined position may be a ruler-shaped one that moves in contact with the upper surface of the stage. A claw that has a groove and projects through the groove from the surface of the movement stage may be used. The claws are then arranged in a straight line. If the sheet material to be handled is not rectangular but has a different shape, the pusher shape is changed according to the shape of the sheet material instead of the linear ruler. The nails are also arranged according to the shape of the sheet material.

When the pusher pushes and positions the sheet material on the stage, the gas is blown out from the air holes to partially lift the sheet material and the contact area between the sheet material and the stage. And the friction is reduced to such an extent that the sheet material moves without being deformed by the positioning pusher pushing the sheet material. The sheet material must not be lifted all the way to eliminate friction. This is because if the entire surface is lifted up, not only will the position not be determined, but also if it is pushed by the positioning pusher, it will not stop at the predetermined position and will go too far by inertia. Therefore, the amount of gas blowout must be adjusted according to the sheet material to be handled.

When the next processing is performed on the positioned sheet material as it is on the stage, the connection of the air hole is switched from a high pressure gas source to a suction source such as a vacuum pump so that the sheet material can be sucked and held. .

[0011]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a plan view conceptually showing this. The rectangular stage 20 is provided with a plurality of cuts 22x and 22y at two adjacent edges, respectively, and each of the cuts 22x is provided with a claw-shaped pusher 23x (first pusher) which is arranged in the same straight line and advances and retreats in the X direction. A point-like pusher 23y (a second pusher) is arranged in the same straight line in each of the cuts 22y, and is capable of moving forward and backward in the Y direction.

However, the stage 20 of this apparatus has a large number of small air holes 24 evenly distributed on the top surface. These air holes 24 are divided into several blocks, each block is combined into one pipe, and each block is combined into one pipe via a stop valve (not shown), and further, a stop valve (not shown) And a high-pressure air pipe via a flow control valve (not shown). The block to be used is selected according to the size of the sheet material 14 to be applied, and the stop valve (not shown) of the unused block is closed. Then, the amount of air ejected from the air holes 24 is selected according to the sheet material 14. That is, when the positioning pushers 23x and 23y press the sheet material 14, the sheet material 14 moves without being deformed, and the contact area between the sheet material 14 and the stage 20 is such that the friction is such that overshoot does not occur. Reduce the flow rate.

Next, a description will be given of the operation of positioning the flexible and weak stiff sheet material by this apparatus. FIG. 1 shows a state in which the claw-shaped positioning pushers 23x and 23y are retracted outside.
When the sheet material 14 is placed on the stage 20 and air is passed through the air holes 24, the sheet material 14 is partially lifted to reduce the friction. In this state, when the positioning pushers 23x and 23y gently advance to a predetermined position in the plane of the stage 20 and stop there, the sheet material 14 is positioned at a predetermined position indicated by a one-dot broken line.

That is, although the sheet material 14 is weak in stiffness, it moves without deformation even when the edge is pushed because the friction is reduced, and the sheet material 14 has an appropriate amount of friction, as shown in FIG. Even when the pushers 23x and 23y are arranged non-parallel to the positioning pushers 23x and 23y, they are rotated and positioned in a predetermined direction since an appropriate frictional force remains.

According to the above-described apparatus, for example, edge detection of a sheet material using a CCD sensor or X, Y, θ of a stage
Simple configuration without the need for advanced control technology such as driving.

In the above-described embodiment, the case where the upper side and the left side of the sheet material 14 are aligned at the same position in FIG. 1 even when the size of the applied sheet material 14 is changed has been described. If it is desired to make the cuts 22x and 22y extend further from the center, the entry positions of the positioning pushers 23x and 23y may be set freely.

As described above, according to the apparatus of the present invention, a flexible and weak sheet material can be positioned by a simple and inexpensive mechanism.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a conventional plate positioning device.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of a conventional sheet material positioning device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 14 Sheet Material 20 Stage 23x First Positioning Pusher 23y Second Positioning Pusher 24 Air Hole

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A stage on which a sheet material is placed, and a positioning pusher which pushes the placed sheet material to a predetermined position, wherein the stage has air holes distributed on a top surface, When the positioning pusher pushes and positions a sheet material, gas is blown out from the air hole to reduce friction between the sheet material and the stage. 2. A positioning device for positioning a rectangular sheet material at a predetermined position, comprising: a stage on which the sheet material is mounted; and a first edge of the mounted sheet material being pushed to position the sheet material at a predetermined position. A first positioning pusher, and a second positioning pusher that pushes a second edge adjacent to the first edge in a direction perpendicular to a direction in which the first pusher is pressed to position the second edge at a predetermined position, The stage is provided with air holes distributed on the top surface, and when the first and second positioning pushers push and position the sheet material, a gas is blown out from the air hole to allow the sheet material and the stage to communicate with each other. A sheet material positioning device characterized by reducing friction between the sheet materials. 3. A sheet material positioning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said air holes are formed of a plurality of blocks, and airflow is stopped for unnecessary blocks corresponding to the size of the sheet material to be applied. 4. The air hole is switchably connected to a high pressure gas source and a suction source, and the positioning pusher sucks and holds the positioned sheet material.
3. The sheet material positioning device according to claim 1.