Coating apparatus – Work holders – or handling devices
Reexamination Certificate
1999-03-15
2001-06-19
Edwards, Laura (Department: 1734)
Coating apparatus
Work holders, or handling devices
C029S460000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06248172
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the invention
The present invention relates to a method for selecting a suitable coating door jig depending on a kind of automobile to be coated and a positioning door jig used for this purpose. The present invention also relates to a coating door jig selected by this method. The coating door jig is temporarily connected between a door opening at a side of a vehicle body to be coated and a slide door so as to enable forward and rearward movement of the slide door for opening and closing the door opening.
2. Prior art
When coating a vehicle body with slide doors, coating door jigs are used for temporarily connecting the slide doors to the vehicle body. The slide doors and the vehicle body are coated at one time so as to prevent the appearance of different color shades.
FIG. 7
is a sectional view showing a door opening H provided at a side of a vehicle body. A slide door D is connected to the door opening H by a conventional coating door jig K. The conventional coating door jig K connects one end D
1
of the slide door D and an edge H
1
of the door opening H. Here, the conventional coating door jig K shown in the solid line supports the slide door D at its closed position, where the slide door D is parallel to the side of the vehicle body, and the conventional coating door jig K shown in phantom supports the slide door D at its open position, where the other end D
2
of the slide door D is away from the side of the vehicle body.
Such conventional coating door jig K comprises a hinge bracket K
1
and a hinge arm K
2
connected by a pin K
3
. The hinge bracket K
1
is fixed to a center pillar P of the vehicle body through a bolt K
4
, and the hinge arm K
2
is fixed to the front surface of the slide door D through a bolt K
5
, thereby pivotably supporting the slide door D with regard to the center pillar P of the vehicle body.
With the use of such conventional coating door jig K, a slide door D is temporarily connected to a side of a vehicle body at a certain position. However, since this connecting position differs depending on a kind or a shape of automobile, shape and size of a conventional door jig K should be considered so as to correspond to the vehicle body to be coated.
For this reason, simulation is carried out based on the design drawings of the automobile so as to select the most suitable conventional door jig K.
In the conventional coating door jig K, however, fine adjustment is required in the most cases when it is temporarily connected to the vehicle body. This is because size and shape of the conventional door jig K are specified by previous simulating. Further, fine adjustment of the conventional door jig K is tedious and time-consuming. Therefore, if the conventional coating door jig K is not applicable to the slide door, it may be replaced to another coating door jig K.
Replacement with another coating door jig K results in that a new set of coating door jigs K may be required since a number of coating door jigs K are used for each kind of automobiles to be coated. This is inconvenient and costly.
As shown in
FIG. 7
, the conventional coating door jig K is connected to the door opening H so that one end D
1
of the slide door D is spaced apart from the opposing edge H
1
of the door opening H. This is for preventing the end D
1
of the slide door D from contacting with the edge H
1
of the door opening H when opening and closing the slide door D. To this end, the other end D
2
of the slide door D overlaps the vehicle body (OL in FIG.
7
), and the slide door D is not positioned flush with the vehicle body when it is closed. The overlap OL causes a difference in distance between a spray gun for the coating operation and the slide door D, which leads to shading of color or incomplete coating at the shade under the overlapping slide door D when coating the vehicle body. This results in deteriorated coating quality of the finished vehicle body.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
With the foregoing disadvantages of the prior art in view, the present invention seeks to provide a method for selecting a coating door jig depending on a kind of automobile to be coated, which coating door jig is temporarily connected between a door opening at a side of a vehicle body to be coated and a slide door so as to enable forward and rearward movement of the slide door for opening and closing the door opening, and forms a constrained linkage for guiding the slide door along a predetermined locus, the method comprising the steps of:
temporarily connecting a positioning door jig between one end of the slide door and an edge of the door opening, the positioning door jig having a non-constrained linkage comprising mechanismic elements same as those of said constrained linkage and another additional mechanismic element;
adjusting the kinematic pair position connecting the additional mechanismic element and one of said mechanismic elements, and specifying relative positions of the respective mechanismic elements constructing said non-constrained linkage; and
selecting a suitable coating door jig based on the specified relative positions.
There is also provided a positioning door jig for selecting a coating door jig depending on a kind of automobile to be coated, which coating door jig is temporarily connected between a door opening at a side of a vehicle body to be coated and a slide door so as to enable forward and rearward movement of the slide door for opening and closing the door opening, and forms a constrained linkage for guiding the slide door along a predetermined locus, the positioning door jig comprising:
a hinge base detachably fixed to an edge of the door opening; and
a hinge arm detachably fixed to one end of the slide door;
the hinge base and the hinge arm being connected so as to form therebetween a non-constrained linkage, the non-constrained linkage comprising mechanismic elements same as those of said constrained linkage and another additional mechanismic element, and the kinematic pair position connecting the additional mechanismic element and one of said mechanismic elements being adjustable by said additional mechanismic element.
Further, there is provided a coating door jig, which is temporarily connected between a door opening at a side of a vehicle body to be coated and a slide door so as to enable forward and rearward movement of the slide door for opening and closing the door opening, the coating door jig comprising: a hinge base detachably fixed to an edge of the door opening;
a hinge arm detachably fixed to one end of the slide door,
the hinge base and the hinge arm being connected so as to form therebetween a constrained linkage for guiding the slide door along a predetermined locus, the constrained linkage comprising a plurality of mechanismic elements; and
a cover provided at the outer side of the mechanismic element adjacent to the slide door.
Other objects and features of the present invention will become apparent by reference to the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5950295 (1999-09-01), Worden et al.
patent: 6086958 (2000-07-01), Russell et al.
patent: 61-229681 (1986-10-01), None
patent: 9206644 (1997-08-01), None
Kitamura Isamu
Maegawa Isao
Shirotani Toshitake
Toiyama Terushige
Edwards Laura
Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
Liniak Berenato Longacre & White
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