Fluid sprinkling – spraying – and diffusing – With cleaning means – drip collecting – waste disposal or soil... – Nozzle cleaner – flusher or drainer
Patent
1998-04-23
1999-10-12
Morris, Lesley D.
Fluid sprinkling, spraying, and diffusing
With cleaning means, drip collecting, waste disposal or soil...
Nozzle cleaner, flusher or drainer
2394161, 239DIG14, 901 43, B05B 1502, B05B 1214, B05B 704, B25J 1100
Patent
active
059644079
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD
The invention relates to painting robots equipped for change between different colours or the use of two-component paints.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
For many applications of painting robots it is desirable to be able to change color quickly, e.g. in automobile painting.
During color change, the supply volume between a colour changing equipment and the paint spraying device has to be emptied of the previously used paint and thoroughly cleaned with a cleaning liquid before new paint can be supplied. This volume is mostly made up by the supply lines between the changing equipment and the spraying device.
In other applications of painting robots, two-component paints are used. These components have to be mixed immediately before application. After finishing a paint application cycle, the supply volume filled with mixed paint has to be quickly emptied and thoroughly cleaned with cleansing liquid. Fast reacting two-component paints may already have started to cure during the preparation for cleaning thereby making cleaning more difficult.
FIG. 1 shows a painting robot of the prior art. The color changing equipment or the two-component mixing equipment is placed at the lower part of the robot in order to ensure short supply distances without having the color changer etc. interfering with the operational precision of the robot arm.
For both color change and two-component applications, the large volumes of waste paint that accumulate constitute a problem due to their environmental impact and the cost of the waste paint.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention improves upon conventional painting robots with colour changing equipment by having a paint supply system comprising an adapter with an integrated color changing unit placed on the robot arm, close to or in direct contact with the paint spraying device, thereby minimizing the supply volume that needs to be discharged and cleaned between color changes. In the same way a mixing unit is integrated into an adapter for application of two-component paints.
The adapter is made by a lightweight material such as a polymeric material or a light metal.
The color changing unit of the adapter comprises two paint supply lines, each carrying paint of different color. In the same way, two-component paint is supplied in two lines, one line for each component to a mixing unit.
The combination of the compact design of the color or mixing unit with the light material enables the adapter to be placed at the outer end of the robot arm, without interfering with the movements of the robot arm or disturbing the operational precision of the arm.
The adapter can also be used for speeding up color change between many colors by using one of the supply lines for applying paint and simultaneously preparing the other supply line for the next color by flushing it with cleansing liquid and filling it with the next paint to be used. Then a fast color change can be performed by switching to the other supply line for applying paint and perform the rinsing operation on the first supply line.
It is possible to integrate more than one color or mixing units in parallel into the adapter for use with two or more paint spraying devices. This is useful for applications where different kinds of paints are to be applied, enabling a fast shift between the use of different colors.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 shows a prior art painting robot.
FIG. 2 shows a schematic view of a painting robot according to the present invention.
FIG. 3 shows a schematic drawing of an adapter with a color changing unit, and
FIG. 4 shows a schematic drawing of an adapter with a mixing unit.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
FIG. 1 shows a painting robot 1 of the prior art with color changing equipment or two-component mixing equipment 4 placed at the lower part of the robot 1. The paint spraying device 2 is held by a tool holder at the end of the robot arm 3. The supply line 5 is used for connecting the paint spray device 2 with the color changing equipment 4. The volume
REFERENCES:
patent: 4785760 (1988-11-01), Tholome
patent: 4944459 (1990-07-01), Watanabe et al.
patent: 5029755 (1991-07-01), Schmidt et al.
patent: 5521477 (1996-05-01), Sasaki
patent: 5735627 (1998-04-01), Nagao et al.
ABB Flexible Automation A/S
Morris Lesley D.
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