Metal working – Plural diverse manufacturing apparatus including means for... – Common reciprocating support for spaced tools
Patent
1983-05-16
1986-09-09
Bilinsky, Z. R.
Metal working
Plural diverse manufacturing apparatus including means for...
Common reciprocating support for spaced tools
29 26A, 29 485A, 408 35, 409211, B23Q 3157
Patent
active
046100741
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an automatic tool changer of a machine tool.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In an automatic tool changer of a machine tool, it is important that several requirements be satisfied, for example, the structure be simple, the operation reliable, and the tool changing time short. There are known automatic tool changers in which the indexing of the tool magazine is effected by utiliztion of the spindle drive motor. Such known changers, however, have not fully satisfied the above-mentioned requirements.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide an automatic tool changer of a machine tool, which is simple in construction, reliable in operation, and able to change tools in a short period of time, by utilizing a spindle motor for the indexing of a tool magazine.
An automatic tool changer of a machine tool, according to the invention, comprises a spindle head rotatably carrying a spindle onto which a first gear is rigidly mounted, a tool magazine having a plurality of tools around its center axis, onto which magazine a second gear is rigidly coaxially mounted, and means for engaging and disengaging the two gears so that they are disengaged during the machining operation and engaged during the tool changing operation, thereby enabling magazine indexing by means of a motor which drives the spindle.
This arrangement is advantageous in that the mechanism for transmitting the movement from the spindle to the tool magazine can be simple, since only two gears are required to transmit the movement therebetween. It is also advantageous in that reliable control for magazine indexing can be attained since the spindle motor can be easily controlled by numerical control.
The means for engaging and disengaging the two gears preferably makes use of the relative axial movement between the tool magazine and the spindle head. More preferably, this relative axial movement is effected by actuating only the spindle head in the axial direction.
This is advantageous for changing the tools in a short period of time, wherein both the operation for removing one tool from and putting another tool onto the spindle and the operation for engaging and disengaging the two gears to bring the machine tool in the machining position and tool changing position are carried out during a single axial movement of the spindle head.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from a reading of the following brief description of the drawings, the detailed description of the invention, and the appended claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a schematic view of an automatic tool changer of a machine tool according to the invention, with the machine tool being in the machining condition; and
FIG. 2 is a similar schematic view, with the machine tool being in the tool changing condition.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The figures show a machining center. The frame means has been deleted to clarify the description, but the characteristic feature as a whole will be easily understood by those skilled in the art from the arrangement of main components shown.
A spindle 2 is rotatably carried on a spindle head 4 and driven by a spindle drive motor 6 via a belt 5. The spindle 2 is also connected to a position coder 8. The spindle drive motor 6 and position coder 8 are electrically connected to a numerical control unit 10.
The spindle head 4 has a nut 12 fixed thereon via a support member 11, which nut mates with a feed screw 14, and is driven vertically upward or downward by a motor 16 (hereinafter referred to as the Z axis motor). The Z axis motor 16 is also connected to the numerical control unit 10 together with an X axis motor 22, which drives a table 20 carrying a workpiece 18 horizontally in an X axis direction, and with a Y axis motor 24, which drives the same horizontally in a Y axis direction perpendicular to the X axis direction.
A slider 30 is axially slidably carried on the spindle head
REFERENCES:
patent: 3473419 (1969-10-01), Ollearo
patent: 4223579 (1980-09-01), Stack et al.
patent: 4237595 (1980-12-01), Kitamura
patent: 4355446 (1982-10-01), Shimajiri et al.
Aso Toshiyuki
Katsube Hideo
Bilinsky Z. R.
Fanuc Ltd.
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