Wireworking – Article making or forming – Forms and frames
Patent
1992-09-10
1994-10-25
Larson, Lowell A.
Wireworking
Article making or forming
Forms and frames
29755, B21F 2712
Patent
active
053580168
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
DESCRIPTION
Technical Field
The present invention relates to an apparatus for making cable harnesses having a formboard onto which routing means can be attached, such as connector housing cavities. routing aids, etc., which, respectively guide, the wires while the cable harness is being assembled.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
There are many different known attempts at manufacturing cable harnesses automatically, which have hitherto been fabricated predominantly by hand.
In the presently promising pilot automatic cable harness fabrication systems, formboards of the type set forth in the characterizing part of claim 1 hereto and one or more industrial robots are utilized which route the wires between the individual connector housing cavities on the formboard with routing and/or contacting tools of various design. The "shape" of the cable harness is determined by the so-called routing aids which may be designed as guiding and/or bundling means.
The hitherto known proposals for the automatic production of cable harnesses are concerned with routing the wires, fastening (contacting) the wires in the connector housing cavities, respectively sheathing the individual subbranches of the cable harness. In this case, following assemblage, the cable harnesses are removed from the formboard by an industrial robot or a handling device. This is a relatively time consuming procedure as the industrial robot does not only have to change suited tools but also has to remove the individual subbranches of the cable harness singly from the routing aid.
In the older application P 38 27 010.7, therefore, to which the present application is a patent of addition, a solution is described permitting simple automatic removal of the assembled cable harness from the formboard together with the routing means, such as connector housing cavities, routing aids, etc., which, respectively guide, the wires while the cable harness is being assembled.
The solution described in the present application is particularly advantageous if the cable harnesses are fabricated as "individual pieces" or if the routing aids are to remain on the cable harnesses as assembly aids as in each instance the routing means will be removed together with the cable harness. This, however, is no problem in the individual fabrication of cable harnesses as the formboard has to be "loaded" anew anyway prior to the fabrication of the individual cable harnesses.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to improve an apparatus for making cable harnesses having a formboard onto which routing means, such as connector housing cavities, routing aids, etc. can be mounted, in such a manner that the finished assembled cable harness can be automatically removed without also having to remove the routing means at the same time.
A solution to this object in accordance with the present invention with its further developments is set forth in the claims hereto.
The present invention is based on the fundamental concept that removal of a finished assembled cable harness from a formboard with an industrial robot is very time consuming: by way of illustration the industrial robot would have to "approach" every single connector housing cavity on the each subbranch of the cable harness, remove the connector housing from the cavity, then grasp the cable harness at a central point and remove it from the formboard: then, in particular, if subsequently a different type cable harness is to be fabricated, the industrial robot would have to remove all the routing means, such as connector housing cavities, routing aids, etc.
An inventive element is therefore that a (central) ejection unit is provided which, in order to remove the cable harness following that part of the fabrication process that is performed on the formboard, releases the connection between the routing means, such as by way of illustration connector housing cavities, routing aids, etc., and the cable harness, respectively the connector housings attached thereon in such a manner that they are slipped off the formb
REFERENCES:
patent: 3346020 (1967-10-01), Geisinger
patent: 4442872 (1984-04-01), Gibbons
patent: 4724612 (1988-02-01), Pearson
Thomas & Betts Publication, pp. 26-27, Jun., 1975.
Fraunhofner-Gesellschaft zur Forderung der Angewandten
Larson Lowell A.
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