Data processing: generic control systems or specific application – Specific application – apparatus or process – Product assembly or manufacturing
Reexamination Certificate
2002-02-22
2004-02-24
Gandhi, Jayprakash N. (Department: 2125)
Data processing: generic control systems or specific application
Specific application, apparatus or process
Product assembly or manufacturing
C700S122000, C297S464000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06697692
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention is related to providing a factory automation facility for a seatbelt retractor assembly, and particularly, to providing a control system of a factory automation facility for enabling the mass-production of a seatbelt retractor assembly through factory automation procedures using a Programmable Logic Controller (PLC), solenoid valves, sensors, actuator solenoid valves, etc. and a control method thereof.
Prior Arts
In general, the assembly of a seatbelt retractor has depended upon the manual work rather than the use of a factory automation facility, in which the factory automation requires the PLC. The PLC is known as a core of the factory automation, which includes a microprocessor integrated with a relay, a timer, a counter, etc. Such like PLC was firstly represented to replace an old relay control board therewith, which enables the sequence control, the computation of the arithmetics, the logics and the function and the data process. For it, the PLC includes a microprocessor able to store/process the sequence program (memory and CPU), an input/output device, a power supply and its peripheries, another PLC, a communication device for receiving/transferring data and executive software for controlling them. Therefore, in these days, the PLC is adapted to the factory facility through all over the industry mechanism fields, especially used as means rising the competition force in the production and marketing such as an automobile assembly and its part companies.
On the other hand, a field requiring many manual works such as a seatbelt retractor assembly requests a factory automation facility suitable for a kind of its related parts and assembly procedures in respects of the product price reduction and quality control.
The seatbelt retractor is a kind of a safety apparatus including a seatbelt assembly and retractor. The seatbelt retractor assembly includes a webbing of a strip form made of a high tension fiber material, a removable buckle and a retractor fixed to a place of a vehicle frame for protecting a driver or passenger who wears a seatbelt in a vehicle in a manner to fasten the driver to a seat in a accident such as rapid acceleration or deceleration, crashing, etc., thereby preventing a serious wound due to the clashing against the vehicle structure or the escape out of the vehicle. Especially, the webbing includes an end with a metal fixing pin being wrapped around its periphery and other end that an end mount is coupled thereto. Also, the webbing includes a tongue fixed thereto and for being engaged with the buckle, an end mount with an integral bolt for making it fix to the vehicle frame, at least one stopper of a button form pressed on its surface, a ring mount with an integral bolt for making it fix to the vehicle side frame and a guide ring used as an inner finishing material. The webbing assembled with its parts is mounted in the vehicle in a manner to fix its three points.
Catching up with the consistent and exact assembly of the seatbelt retract, the factory automation facility is inevitably required. For it, the seatbelt retractor assembly requires a factory automation facility for improving a complicated assembly process of assembling the webbing into a reel under the elastic force, inserting a plurality of parts into/on the webbing in advance, forcing the webbing to be maintained at the assembled state with its parts, etc.
Accordingly, an object of the invention is to provide a control system of a factory automation facility for enabling mass-production a seatbelt retractor assembly through a PLC operation and a control method thereof.
Another object of the invention is to provide a control system including a factory automation facility and a control portion that a PLC is based on for enabling mass-production a seatbelt retractor assembly, easily and economically and a control method thereof.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to the invention, a control system of a factory automation facility for a seatbelt retractor assembly comprises a factory automation facility and a control portion for controlling the operating of all parts in the factory automation facility, integrally, to enable the mass-production of a seatbelt retractor assembly, in which the factory automation facility comprises a webbing throwing-in portion for throwing-in a webbing of a strip type thereinto by a first webbing supplying portion; first and second webbing position determining devices for guiding the webbing to pass through the hole of a retractor spool, a webbing withdrawing portion including a second webbing supplying portion and a case to withdraw the webbing and store it for a while, first and second part supplying portions for assembling a tongue, a guide ring and a ring mount on the withdrawn webbing, a stopper fixing portion including a third webbing supplying portion for carrying the webbing to a webbing folding portion, upper and lower stopper suppliers for supplying upper and lower to be mounted on both surfaces of the webbing, respectively, and a stopper pressing portions for coupling the upper and lower stopper parts with each other on the other side of the webbing; and a webbing folding portion for folding the front end of the webbing by the reference of its centre in a longitudinal direction and coupling the folded end to an end mount, and the control portion includes an inputting portion for processing signals from various sensors properly arranged on the factory automation facility, a power source supply for supplying at least one different power sources to a PLC, the PLC for controlling the operating of all portions in the factory automation facility, integrally, first and second microprocessor circuits connected through an interface to the PLC for controlling the operating of various parts in the factory automation facility and an outputting portion for applying control signals from the PLC to a load driving portion including rotating motors, stepping motors, a folding motor, various flexible cylinders using a hydraulic pressure, various solenoid valves and various lamps.
Also, a control method of a factory automation facility for a seatbelt retractor assembly comprises routines of turning on the power of a system to force the portions of the factory automation facility to be ready for their operating; throwing-in a webbing into a retractor; withdrawing the webbing from the retractor; carrying the webbing to a proper position so as to press upper and lower stoppers on the webbing; pressing the upper and lower stoppers to be arranged on the other side of the webbing; and pressing the upper and lower stoppers to be coupled to each other and folding the front end of the webbing to be coupled with an end mount.
REFERENCES:
patent: 6378350 (2002-04-01), Ito
patent: 6419271 (2002-07-01), Yamada et al.
Choi Byung Gul
Kim Taek Kwang
Lee Dong Sub
Park Jun Yong
Delphi Automotive Systems Sungwoo Corporation
Gandhi Jayprakash N.
Jacobson & Holman PLLC
Jarrett Ryan A
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