Tool changing – Including machine tool or component – Rotary spindle machine tool
Reexamination Certificate
2000-10-05
2003-01-14
Wellington, A. L. (Department: 3722)
Tool changing
Including machine tool or component
Rotary spindle machine tool
C483S067000, C483S010000, C483S012000, C483S013000, C029S888090, C409S133000, C409S136000, C409S137000, C409S173000, C409S186000, C409S193000, C409S207000, C409S164000, C409S224000, C409S225000, C408S002000, C408S707000, C279S002230, C279S121000, C279S137000, C279S141000, C269S032000, C269S155000, C269S224000, C269S234000, C033S603000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06506143
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus for finishing an inside diameter of a work, which is designed to finish inner surfaces of a plurality of bores to be finished, which are provided in the work and have diameters different from one another and axes parallel to one another, and to measure inside diameters of the bores after completion of the finishing treatment.
2. Description of the Related Art
Such an apparatus has been already known, for example, from Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No.10-217012 and the like.
In the above known apparatus, however, spindles and tools individually corresponding to a plurality of bores to be finished provided in the work are provided for each of a plurality of works, so that the finishing treatments of the plurality of works are conducted simultaneously. For this reason, when the type of the work is changed, a large number of operations of exchanging the tools on the spindles must be carried out. Therefore, the above apparatus is not suitable for the finishing treatment for multiple types of works. Moreover, after completion of the finishing treatment, each of the works is transported to a measuring station by use of a large-sized loader, resulting in an increased equipment cost.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for finishing an inside diameter of a work, which is designed at a low cost to accommodate a variation in type of the work in a simple manner in carrying out the finishing treatment of a plurality of works each having a plurality of bores to be finished, which bores have different diameters, and in conducting the measurement of the diameters of the finished bores.
To achieve the above object, according to a first aspect and feature of the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for finishing an inside diameter of a work, in which inner surfaces of a plurality of bores to be finished, which are provided in the work and have diameters different from one another and axes parallel to one another, are subjected to a finishing treatment, and after completion of the finishing treatment, inside diameters of the bores are measured, the apparatus comprising a retaining frame for retaining a plurality of works at distances in a direction of an X-axis perpendicular to the axis of each of the bores to be finished, a movable table which is movable in the direction of the X-axis, a single spindle having an axis parallel to the axis of each of the bores and disposed on the movable table for advancing and retracting movements in an axial direction, a combination tool mounted at a tip end of the spindle and capable of doing the finishing treatment to the inner surfaces of the bores in accordance with a change in position of the tool inserted into each of the bores, and a measuring means which is capable of being inserted into each of the finished bores to measure an inside diameter of each of the finished bores, the measuring means being disposed on the movable table at a location displaced in the direction of the X-axis from the spindle, and capable of being be advanced and retracted in a direction along the axis of each of the bores independently from the spindle.
With such arrangement of the first feature, the plurality of works are supported side by side in the direction of the X-axis on the retaining frame. The inner surfaces of the plurality of bores provided in each of the works can be finished by the combination tool mounted at the tip end of the spindle by moving the movable table in the direction of the X-axis and axially advancing and retracting the single spindle on the movable table. If the type of the work is changed, only exchanging the combination tool is needed. Therefore, it is possible to accommodate the change in type of the work in a simple manner. Moreover, the measuring means capable of measuring the inside diameter of each of the bores is disposed at the location displaced in the direction of the X-axis from the spindle on the movable table for advancing and retraction movements independent from the spindle in the direction along the axis of the each of the bores. Therefore, when the finishing treatment of a certain work is being conducted by the combination tool, an inside diameter of a finished bore provided in another work can be measured. Thus, as compared with the prior art apparatus in which a work is transported to a measuring station by use of a large-sized loader, the time taken till the completion of the measurement can be shortened, and such a large-sized loader is not required, leading to a reduction in equipment cost.
According to a second aspect and feature of the present invention, in addition to the first feature, the apparatus further includes a correcting means provided on the spindle and capable of regulating the position of the combination tool in the radial direction of the spindle, a tool stocker in which a plurality of the combination tools are stocked in a manner that the combination tools can be alternatively brought into a previously established exchanging position at which the spindle can be moved and a combination tool removed from the tip end of the spindle can be newly retained, a deflection detector for detecting a deflection of the combination tool newly mounted at the tip end of the spindle in the exchanging position, a tool mounting and removing unit for carrying out the removal of the combination tool from the tip end of the spindle and the mounting of a combination tool to the tip end of the spindle in the exchanging position, a tool cleaning means equipped on the tool stocker and capable of cleaning that portion of one combination tool retained in the tool stocker, which is to be mounted to the spindle, a spindle cleaning means equipped on the tool stocker and capable of cleaning the tip end of the spindle, and a control means for controlling the operations of the correcting means, the tool stocker, the tool mounting and removing unit, the tool cleaning means and the spindle cleaning means as to regulate the position of the combination tool by the correcting means, based on a detection result provided by the deflection detector after the exchange of the tool in the exchanging position, or to carry out the cleaning by the tool cleaning means and the spindle cleaning means.
With such arrangement of the second feature, in a state in which the spindle has been moved to the exchanging position, the combination tool removed from the spindle by the tool mounting and removing unit can be newly retained in the tool stocker, and in a state in which one of the plurality of combination tools stocked in the tool stocker has been brought into the exchanging position, the new combination tool can be equipped on the tip end of the spindle by the tool mounting and removing unit. Moreover, when it is determined, as a result of detection of the deflection of the combination tool by the deflection detector after exchange of the combination tool, that the combination tool has been deflected largely to such an extent that the deflection can be dealt with by the correction provided by the correcting means, the correcting means can be operated to regulate the position of the combination tool in the radial direction of the spindle. When it is determined that the combination tool has been deflected largely to such an extent that it is difficult to deal with the deflection by the correction provided by the correcting means, it is determined that the incorporation of chips or the like has been caused, whereby the combination tool is removed from the spindle, and the equipped portion of the combination tool on the spindle and the tip end of the spindle are cleaned by the operation of the tool cleaning mans and the spindle cleaning means. Thereafter, the new combination tool can be equipped on a good accuracy by carrying out the exchange of the combination tool again. In this way, the automatic exchange of the combination tool is ensured, while confirming the accuracy of equi
Abe Yuzo
Arai Koichi
Goto Kaname
Kondo Yasuo
Ueno Tsugio
Arent Fox Kintner & Plotkin & Kahn, PLLC
Cadugan Erica E
Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
Wellington A. L.
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