Conveyors: power-driven – With means to facilitate working – treating – or inspecting... – Means to convey a palleted load back and forth between an...
Reexamination Certificate
2000-05-30
2001-04-17
Valenza, Joseph E. (Department: 3651)
Conveyors: power-driven
With means to facilitate working, treating, or inspecting...
Means to convey a palleted load back and forth between an...
C198S867080, C198S867110
Reexamination Certificate
active
06216844
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a mounting system for assembling components which are brought to mounting stations on a workpiece carrier of a conveyor system. Each mounting station has a frame, and wherein a long stroke unit raises components in lift-like fashion and brings them in position to the selected mounting station.
In such known mounting systems for performing mounting, testing or machining operations on components, the workpiece carriers, disposed on the conveyor belt of the conveyor system that is responsible for conveying in the horizontal direction are raised, together with the components resting on them, in lift-like fashion to the work position of the mounting station with the aid of the long stroke unit. Raising the workpiece carrier has the advantage that the mounting apparatus, such as screwing units, need not be moved.
Since the workpiece carrier is also raised, the long stroke unit is disposed between two longitudinally extending conveyor belt profiles of the conveyor system and as a rule is secured to a cross strut of the frame of the mounting station. As a consequence, an undesirably large free space must be provided between the floor and the conveyor system, to allow for the elements of the long stroke unit. Another disadvantage is considered to be that the elements of the long stroke unit are disposed on a cross strut of the frame, and consequently the frame, long stroke unit and conveyor belt form a unit. The mounting of these three component groups can therefore be done only jointly, and for delivery to the usage site, they must be disconnected again, so that complicated and expensive re-erection must be done on site.
An apparatus is known that has a workpiece carrier movable along a production line from Published, Non-Prosecuted German Patent Application DE 40 15 702 A1. However, that reference provides no long stroke device for lift-like raising of components.
For transferring workpiece carriers to conveyor systems of different height, transfer stations are known from German Patent DE 19 500 148 C1.
German Examined, Published Patent Application 1 288 505 shows a workpiece carrier that can be raised in its entirety together with the workpiece.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide a mounting system for assembling components which overcomes the hereinafore-mentioned disadvantages of the heretofore-known devices of this general type, which has a reduced structural height of the conveyor system and a simplified construction of the mounting system.
With the foregoing and other objects in view there is provided, in accordance with the invention, a mounting system, including: a conveyor system; a workpiece carrier having a base plate resting on the conveyor system, at least one column extending vertically away from the base plate, and a supporting element releasably connected to the at least one column for receiving components; and a plurality of mounting stations for receiving the components transported on the workpiece carrier, each of the plurality of mounting stations including: a frame; a long stroke unit disposed laterally of the conveyor system and secured to the frame; and a supporting bracket projecting in a cantilevered fashion from the long stroke unit for engaging from beneath the supporting element of the workpiece carrier, the long stroke unit with the support bracket raising the components in a lift-like fashion and bringing the components in position to a respective mounting station.
Because of the columnar construction of the workpiece carrier, the workpiece carrier remains with its base plate and columns on the conveyor belt, while the supporting bracket of the long stroke unit needs only to raise the supporting element, receiving the components, into position to the mounting station. There is thus no longer any need to engage the entire workpiece carrier from beneath, which can be done only from a free space between the conveyor belt profiles. Along with the long stroke unit that is now disposed laterally of the conveyor belt, the conveyor system have a substantially lower structure, which makes it possible to cross over the conveyor system and leads to a generally more open mounting system. The long stroke unit can now be installed independently of the conveyor system.
To allow collision-free movement of the columns of the workpiece carrier past the supporting bracket of the stationary long stroke unit when the conveyor system with the workpiece carrier is moving longitudinally, the supporting bracket is embodied so that it can be pivoted out of the way or retracted.
If the supporting bracket has a rigid construction, the column is disposed on the symmetrical half of the base plate remote from the long stroke unit, to assure that the workpiece carriers can move past without colliding.
In accordance with an added feature of the invention, the at least one column and the supporting element are configured to form a separable plug-type connection.
The supporting bracket for raising the supporting element is preferably embodied in the form of two parallel-extending forks.
Particularly in the case of closed frames that surround the conveyor belt on all sides (so-called O-frames), there is provided, for the sake of independent mounting of the conveyor system on the one hand and the frame with the long stroke unit on the other, that once the conveyor system has been constructed, the lower cross strut is separated from the frame, thrust under the conveyor system, and screwed to the conveyor system. Next, the remaining frame is fitted over the conveyor belt and after locking is screwed to the cross strut. If a plurality of elements, such as the long stroke device, a machining device, a control cabinet and sensor equipment are pre-mounted to the frame, then the mounting system can for instance be put into operation independently of the conveyor system.
In accordance with an additional feature of the invention, the frame has a cross strut formed with a recess therein and a sub-frame with a centering pin, the conveyor system has a conveyor belt profile and a tab, the cross strut is separated from the frame and joined to the conveyor belt profile via the tab, the centering pin is then locked into the recess of the cross strut, and the sub-frame is screwed to the cross strut.
To allow adaptation of the height of workpieces with a conveyor system of constant height, there is provided that the base plate is assigned a lower column portion and at least two upper column portions of different lengths projecting in cantilevered fashion from the supporting element. The lower column portion is selectively connected to one of the upper column portions.
By horizontally offsetting the supporting element with the aid of the long stroke unit or some other hoisting tool, one of the upper column parts is set down on the lower column part. Without using moving parts that are vulnerable to malfunction, such as a transfer device, the workpiece height is changed while keeping the conveyor system height unchanged.
To enable assuming a predetermined position in the transfer of the upper column parts, positioning elements are associated with the upper and/or the lower column part.
Preferably, the positioning elements are pins, associated with the upper and/or lower column part, which can be inserted into bores of the lower and/or upper column part.
In another embodiment it is provided that the column includes an upper column part, connected to the supporting element, and a lower column part, connected to the base plate. The upper column part is axially displaceable together with the supporting element relative to the lower column part and can be locked in the applicable position.
Due to the relative displaceability in the axial direction of the upper and lower parts of the column, the length of the column and thus the height of the workpiece are changed.
By using a spacer between the upper and lower column parts, many different height settings are possible.
If a spindle is integrated i
ABB Patent GmbH
Greenberg Laurence A.
Lerner Herbert L.
Stemer Werner H.
Valenza Joseph E.
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