JP2003285783A - Pallet transfer device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a pallet transfer device capable of reducing height of a traveling face of a bogie, changing a layout, and realizing easy maintenance, reducing working burden of an assembling worker, and improving workability by reducing a load applied to a transfer drive means and miniaturizing the transfer drive means. <P>SOLUTION: In this pallet transfer device, a transferred material is loaded on a pallet 110, so as to transfer the transferred material along a predetermined transfer line. The pallet 110 is transferred on a plurality of roller conveyor units 120 arranged parallel along the transfer line, and the roller conveyor units have a plurality of rollers 124 journaled by a frame 122 having length and width approximately equal to the pallet 110, and a drive means for driving the rollers 124. The pallet 110 has a transferred material supporting stand 112 supporting the transferred material on its top face, and a spring-up type working floor part 114 hinged on the side face of a traveling direction. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a pallet transfer device used in an assembly line for automobile engines, car bodies and the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a conveying device used in an assembly line of an automobile engine or the like, one of a plurality of trolleys with wheels, which are juxtaposed along the assembly line and are arranged side by side, is installed at a loading end of the assembly line. The carriage is pushed forward by the friction roller type conveyance drive means fixed on the ground, and the pushed truck moves the entire truck on the assembly line while pushing the truck adjacent to the front. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a transport drive unit of a conventional transport device.

This transfer apparatus 200 has a pair of left and right rails 210 laid on the floor of a factory premises, and a carriage 230 having caster wheels 220 on the back is placed on the rails 210. A passive portion 235 that extends in the traveling direction is vertically provided at the center of the rear surface of the carriage 230. The passive portion 235 is sandwiched between the stationary roller 240 and the feed roller 245, and the feed roller 245 is driven by the rotation driving means 250 to be fed forward to the carriage 230.

Further, an elevating and lowering drive means 270 is installed for each carriage 230, and the elevating and lowering drive means 270 supports a conveyed object support table 260 on which a conveyed object is loaded so as to be vertically movable.

[0005]

However, in such a conventional conveying apparatus, it is necessary to drive all the carriages constituting the assembly line by one conveying driving means, which requires a large conveying driving means. Further, since the structure of the transport driving means becomes large, the height of the traveling surface of the carriage becomes high, and it is necessary to provide the pit P along the assembly line. Further, since it is necessary to install an elevating and lowering drive means for elevating and lowering the transported object for each trolley, the space under the transported object support base is narrowed, the workability of the assembling operator is deteriorated, and the trolley is heavy. Therefore, it has also been a cause of an increase in the load of the transport driving means. Moreover, the assembler is forced to perform the assembly work while walking while the trolley is moved, and since only one trolley cannot be stopped, the assembler is always mentally and physically I felt a heavy burden.

Further, since the carriages are juxtaposed side by side along the entire length of the assembly line, maintenance work of the transport drive means provided below the traveling surface of the carriage is performed by stopping the entire assembly line and removing the carriage. It was necessary and extremely difficult.

Furthermore, it is not easy to change the layout of the assembly line because it is necessary to fix the transportation drive means and the rails for traveling the carriage on the floor.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems of the conventional conveying device, reduce the load applied to the conveying driving means, and downsize the conveying driving means. An object of the present invention is to provide a pallet transfer device that can reduce the height of the traveling surface of a trolley, can change the layout, can easily perform maintenance, and can reduce the work load on an assembly worker and improve work efficiency.

[0009]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention according to claim 1 is a pallet transporting device for stacking transportable products on a pallet and transporting the transportable products along a predetermined transport line. In, the pallet is transported on a plurality of roller conveyor units juxtaposed along the transport line, the roller conveyor unit is a plurality of pivotally supported on a frame having a length and width substantially equal to the pallet. The pallet has a roller and a driving means for driving the roller, and the pallet has a carrier support base for supporting a carrier on an upper surface, and is hinge-jointed on a side surface in a traveling direction for a flip-up type work. It is configured to have a floor.

The present invention according to claim 2 provides the invention according to claim 1.
In addition to the configuration of the invention according to claim 1, the conveyed object support base is fixed to the pallet by a stretchable column, and can be moved up and down with respect to the pallet by a lifting drive means installed outside the pallet. It has a simple structure.

The elevating and lowering drive means in the present invention is provided with the elevating and lowering drive means at a place in the transfer line where it is necessary to elevate and lower the conveyed goods, and the conveyed goods on the conveyed goods support table of the pallet passing therethrough are moved. As long as it can be surely driven up and down, it is not particularly limited, such as a hydraulic cylinder type or a chain drive type, but a pair of meshing members called a chuck chain is installed inside the extendable support column that supports the transported object support base. It is preferable that the ascending / descending driving means using the meshing chain for performing ascending / descending movements by meshing the chains with each other so as to be able to move back and forth can be installed in a small space and can secure a sufficient ascending / descending stroke.

[0012]

Since the present invention has the above-mentioned device configuration, it has the following unique operation.

First, according to the pallet transfer device of the first aspect, the pallet is transferred on a plurality of roller conveyor units juxtaposed along the transfer line, and the pallet has a top surface for supporting a transfer object. Since it has a flip-up work floor part hinged to the object support base on the side in the traveling direction, the load applied to the transfer drive means is reduced, and the transfer drive means can be downsized, and the trolley can be used. The lowering of the running surface of is achieved. Further, the burden of layout change and maintenance work is reduced, and the assembly worker is released from the work while walking.

Further, according to the present invention of claim 2, in addition to the function of the invention of claim 1, the transported object support base is fixed to the pallet by the extendable columns.
Moreover, since it is configured to be able to move up and down with respect to the pallet by the lifting drive means installed outside the pallet,
Eliminating the need for lifting drive means for each pallet,
The number of parts is reduced, the weight of each pallet is reduced, and the load on the transport drive means is further reduced. Further, since the lifting drive means is installed outside the pallet, a large space on the pallet can be secured, and the workability of the assembly worker is further improved.

[0015]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiment 1 which is an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a pallet transfer device 100 that is Embodiment 1 of the present invention. The pallet transport device 100 stacks the transported items on a pallet 110 and transports the transported items along a predetermined transport line. The pallet 110 is transported on a plurality of roller conveyor units 120 juxtaposed along the transport line. The roller conveyor unit 120 has a plurality of rollers 124 axially supported by a frame 122 having a length and a width substantially equal to the pallet and a driving means for driving the rollers. A transfer line is formed by arranging them side by side. Further, the pallet 110 has an article support base 112 for supporting articles on its upper surface, and has a flip-up work floor 114 joined to the side surface in the traveling direction by a hinge 113. The flip-up work floor 114 can be flipped up vertically and fixed to the pallet 110 in a place where no assembly work is performed.

FIG. 2A is a plan view of the roller conveyor unit 120 as seen from above, and FIG.
FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. A plurality of rollers 124 are pivotally supported by a frame 122 having a length and a width that are substantially equal to those of the pallet. Adjacent rollers are connected to each other by a belt 126, and one roller is driven by a drive motor 128 so that all the rollers rotate in conjunction with each other. Drive motor 128
Uses a gear motor 129 so that the axial direction is the same as the long side direction of the frame 122 of the roller conveyor unit 120. Therefore, as shown in FIG. It fits within.

Next, the elevating / lowering drive means 130 for vertically moving the conveyed object support base 112 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 shows a cross-sectional view of the pallet 110 in the lift position where the lift of the conveyed object is required.

In the lifting drive device 130, a pair of meshing chains 132A and 132B are accommodated under the roller conveyor unit 120 separately on the left and right sides, and from below a pair of sprockets 134A and 134B facing each other with a gap. In the state where the pair of meshing chains mesh with each other and are integrated with each other, they are sequentially extended upward by a sprocket. The unwound meshing chain passes through the stretchable column 140 that supports the conveyed product support 112 and lifts the conveyed product support 112. Further, by reversing the sprocket, the transported object support table is lowered again.

Further, as the pillar, a plurality of cylinders having different diameters are formed in a nested shape, and a plurality of component receiving portions (inner component receiving portion 115A, outer component receiving portion 115B) of the conveyed object support base 112 are separately provided. By supporting the plurality of component receiving portions, it is possible to independently move up and down.

[0020]

As described above, since the present invention has the above-described device configuration, the following effects peculiar to the present invention are exhibited.

According to the first aspect of the invention, the pallet is conveyed on the plurality of roller conveyor units juxtaposed along the conveyance line, and the pallet supports the conveyed object on the upper surface thereof. Since it has a flip-up work floor part hinged to the platform and the side surface in the traveling direction, the load applied to the transport drive means is reduced, the transport drive means is downsized, and the traveling surface of the trolley is low. Be converted.
Therefore, a pit for an assembling worker is not necessary, the degree of freedom when laying an assembly line is increased, and the layout can be easily changed. In addition, each pallet exists independently on the assembly line, and since the pallets are not adjacent to each other in a daisy chain, it is possible to check the status of the roller conveyor unit without removing the pallets, and perform maintenance work. Burden is reduced. Further, since the flip-up work floor is provided on each pallet, it is not necessary for the assembling worker to perform the assembling work while walking, and the workability is significantly improved. Further, in a place where no assembly work is performed, the flip-up work floor can be flipped up vertically and fixed, so that the installation area of the assembly line can be reduced.

According to the present invention of claim 2, claim 1
In addition to the effect exerted by the invention according to (1), the transported object support base is fixed to the pallet by a stretchable column, and
Since the lifting drive means installed outside the pallet is configured to be able to move up and down with respect to the pallet, the lifting drive means only needs to be installed at a position where lifting drive is required, and it is necessary to install it for each pallet. Is eliminated, which leads to a reduction in the number of parts. Further, the weight of each pallet is reduced, and the load on the transport driving means is further reduced. Moreover, since the lifting drive means is installed outside the pallet, a large space on the pallet can be secured, and the workability of the assembly operator is further improved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a pallet transfer device that is Embodiment 1 of the present invention.

2A and 2B are a plan view and a sectional view of a roller conveyor unit used in the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a lifting drive unit used in the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a transfer device used in a conventional assembly line.

[Explanation of symbols]

100 pallet carrier 110 pallet 112 .. Transported object support base 113 ... Hinge 114 ・ ・ ・ Flying work floor 115A ・ ・ ・ Inside part receiving part 115B ・ ・ ・ Outside part receiving portion 120 ・ ・ ・ Roller conveyor unit 122 ・ ・ ・ Frame 124 ... Roller 126 belt 128 ・ ・ ・ Drive motor 129 ... Gear motor 130 ... Elevating drive means 132A, B ・ ・ ・ Interlocking chain 134A, B ・ ・ ・ Sprocket 140 ... Support

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A pallet carrying device for carrying goods to be loaded on a pallet and carrying the goods along a predetermined carrying line, wherein the pallets are a plurality of roller conveyor units juxtaposed along the carrying line. Carried on, the roller conveyor unit has a plurality of rollers axially supported by a frame having a length and width substantially equal to the pallet, and a drive means for driving the rollers, the pallet, A pallet transfer apparatus having a transfer object support base for supporting the transfer object on an upper surface, and a flip-up work floor part hinged to a side surface in a traveling direction. 2. The transported object support base is fixed to the pallet by a stretchable column, and can be moved up and down with respect to the pallet by an elevating drive means installed outside the pallet. The pallet conveyor according to claim 1, which is characterized in that.