TWI854359B - Thermal process carrier and thermal process equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

A thermal process supporting device includes: at least one rail, a plurality of bridges, a moving module and a clamping module. Each bridge has a crossbeam and at least one column. The top of the column is vertically connected to the crossbeam, and the bottom of the column is slidably connected to the rail. The moving module is arranged on one side of the rail. The moving module provides power for movement parallel to the rail. The clamping module is connected to the moving module. The clamping module clamps the column in a clamping state and drives the bridge to move on the rail. The present invention also proposes a thermal process equipment, including the aforementioned thermal process supporting device. The thermal process supporting device and thermal process equipment of the present invention solve the problem that the supporting device of the prior art is difficult to be used for workpieces of different sizes and shapes.

Description

Thermal process carrier and thermal process equipment

The present invention relates to a thermal process equipment, and more particularly to a thermal process carrier and the thermal process equipment having the carrier.

Thermal processing is a common processing process in industry, especially heat treatment of sheet materials (such as glass, substrates, etc.). The shape and structure design of the traditional thermal process carrier are largely limited by the size and shape of the workpiece to be carried. Once the shape and specifications of the workpiece change, the existing thermal process carrier is no longer applicable, and a new carrier needs to be designed to meet the new specifications of the workpiece, which is quite inconvenient.

Therefore, in order to solve various problems of conventional thermal process carriers, the present invention provides a thermal process carrier with a changeable carrier surface.

To achieve the above and other purposes, the present invention provides a thermal process support device, which includes: at least one rail; a plurality of bridges, each of which has a crossbeam and at least one column, the top of the column is vertically connected to the crossbeam, and the bottom of the column is slidably connected to the rail; a moving module, which is arranged on one side of the rail and provides power for moving parallel to the rail; and a clamping module, which is connected to the moving module, and the clamping module clamps the column in a clamping state and drives the bridge to move on the rail.

In one embodiment of the present invention, a control module is further included, which is signal-connected to the moving module and the clamping module to control the displacement of the moving module and control the clamping module to switch between the clamping state and an open state.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the number of the rails is two, the two rails are parallel to each other, the number of the columns is two, the top ends of the two columns are respectively vertically connected to the two ends of the crossbeam, and the bottom ends of the two columns are respectively slidably connected to the two rails. The clamping module clamps one of the columns in the clamping state and drives the bridge to move on the two rails.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the plurality of bridges are arranged in parallel on the track.

In one embodiment of the present invention, an optical positioning module is further included, which is disposed on the clamping module.

In one embodiment of the present invention, a plurality of optical positioning modules are further included, which are disposed on each of the columns.

In one embodiment of the present invention, a magnetic ruler is further included, which is arranged parallel to the track.

In one embodiment of the present invention, each of the bridges further comprises at least one support member disposed on the crossbeam.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the support member is slidably disposed on the crossbeam.

In one embodiment of the present invention, each of the bridges further comprises at least one extending wing, the extending wing is connected to the supporting member, and the extending direction of the extending wing is parallel to the direction of the track.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the column and the crossbeam are connected by magnetic attraction.

In one embodiment of the present invention, each of the bridges further comprises a brake clamp disposed at the bottom end of the column.

The present invention further proposes a thermal process equipment, which includes: a box; a thermal process carrier as described above, which is arranged in the box; and at least one heat source, which faces the thermal process carrier.

Thus, the heat treatment process supporting device and heat treatment process equipment of the present invention can be arranged into workpiece supporting surfaces of different sizes by moving a plurality of bridges to adapt to workpieces of various specifications and sizes. The heat treatment process supporting device and heat treatment process equipment of the present invention are obviously more advantageous than the prior art.

In order to fully understand the present invention, the present invention is described in detail through the following specific embodiments and the attached drawings. Technical personnel in this field can understand the purpose, features and effects of the present invention from the contents disclosed in this specification. It should be noted that the present invention can be implemented or applied through other different specific embodiments, and the details in this specification can also be modified and changed in various ways based on different viewpoints and applications without departing from the spirit of the present invention. The following implementation method will further explain the relevant technical content of the present invention in detail, but the disclosed content is not used to limit the scope of the patent application of the present invention. The description is as follows:

As shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 3 , the thermal process supporting device 100 of the embodiment of the present invention comprises: at least one track 1, a plurality of bridges 2, a moving module 3 and a clamping module 4.

The track 1 can be in any form that allows the bridge 2 to move thereon, such as a groove, a slide rail, etc.

Each bridge 2 has a crossbeam 21 and at least one column 22. The top of the column 22 is vertically connected to the crossbeam 21, and the bottom of the column 22 is slidably connected to the track 1.

In this embodiment, the number of rails 1 is two and they are parallel to each other, so each bridge 2 also has two columns 22 correspondingly, the tops of the two columns 22 are respectively vertically connected to the two ends of the crossbeam 21, and the bottoms of the two columns 22 are respectively slidably connected to the two rails 1. The bridge 2 is generally in the shape of a letter "U", but the present invention is not limited thereto, the two ends of the crossbeam 21 can continue to extend outward, or each bridge 2 can have more columns 22, which can respectively slidably connect to the corresponding number of rails 1. In a more simplified embodiment, the bridge 2 can have only one column 22, corresponding to one rail 1. The top of the column 22 is connected to the center (center of mass) of the crossbeam 21, for example, and the entire bridge 2 is T-shaped.

The moving module 3 is arranged on one side of the track 1, and the moving module 3 provides the power for the gripping module 4 to move in a direction parallel to the track 1. In the present embodiment, the moving module 3 is, for example, a combination of a servo motor 31 and a screw 32, wherein the servo motor 31 provides a rotational force (which can be forward or reverse), and the screw 32 converts the rotational force into a linear force in a direction parallel to the track 1. The gripping module 4 is driven by the screw 32 to move forward or backward in a direction parallel to the track 1. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the moving module 3 can also be a mechanism such as a cylinder that can provide reciprocating power. Any mechanism that can be electrically controlled to move can be used as the moving module 3 of the present invention. In addition, the moving module 3 can be powered by a control module 5 or by receiving control instructions from the outside.

The clamping module 4 is connected to the moving module 3. The clamping module 4 clamps the column 22 in a clamping state and drives the bridge 2 to move on the track 1. In this embodiment, the clamping module 4 is, for example, a pneumatic clamp or an electric clamp, and a portion of the clamp can be controlled to rotate and turn outward at a certain angle (for example, 90 degrees). According to the size and structure of the column 22, the clamp can hold the column 22 tightly, or turn outward to release the column 22. The clamping module 4 is connected to the moving module 3. When a specific column 22 needs to be moved, the moving module 3 drives the clamping module 4 to the position of the specific column 22, and then controls the clamping module 4 to switch to the clamping state to clamp the column 22. The moving module 3 drives the clamping module 4 and the bridge 2 to move the bridge 2 to the specified position on the track 1.

In this embodiment, the combination of the clamping module 4 and the moving module 3 corresponds to the number of rails 1, that is, a set of clamping modules 4 and moving modules 3 are provided on one side of each rail 1. If there are multiple rails 1, each moving module 3 synchronously drives the clamping module 4, and each clamping module 4 clamps one column 22. However, the present invention is not limited to this. In other embodiments, in the case of multiple columns 22 and multiple rails 1, only one set of clamping modules 4 and moving modules 3 is provided on one side of a single rail 1. In the clamping state, the single clamping module 4 clamps one of the columns 22 and drives the bridge 2 to move on the two rails 1.

Since there are multiple bridges 2, the bridges 2 can be moved to form workpiece bearing surfaces of different sizes to accommodate workpieces of various sizes. For example, if the workpiece area is small, the bridges 2 can be arranged densely to support the smaller workpiece; if the workpiece area is large, the distance between the bridges 2 can be increased to provide a sufficient workpiece bearing surface. In summary, the thermal process bearing device 100 of the present invention is significantly more advantageous than the prior art.

Furthermore, the thermal process carrier 100 of the present invention further includes a control module 5, which is signal-connected to the moving module 3 and the clamping module 4. The control module 5 is used to control the displacement provided by the moving module 3 and control the clamping module 4 to switch between the aforementioned clamping state and an open state. The control module 5 is, for example, a control chip or a control circuit.

Furthermore, the plurality of bridges 2 are arranged in parallel on the track 1. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and in other embodiments, the plurality of bridges 2 may not be arranged in parallel to adapt to special workpieces or processes.

Furthermore, the thermal process carrier 100 of the present invention further includes an optical positioning module 61, which is disposed on the clamping module 4. The optical positioning module 61 includes, for example, an optical sensor, which normally or at intervals emits an optical signal to assist in determining whether the clamping module 4 has moved to a fixed point. For example, if the optical signal emitted by the optical positioning module 61 changes (the optical signal encounters the column 22 and is reflected back to the receiving end of the optical positioning module 61), it can be determined that the clamping module 4 has moved to the target column 22, and the control module 5 can control the moving module 3 to stop driving and command the clamping module 4 to switch to the clamping state to clamp the target column 22.

In another example, the carrier device 100 of the thermal process of the present invention includes a plurality of optical positioning modules 62. The difference from the optical positioning module 61 of the previous example is that the plurality of optical positioning modules 62 are respectively arranged on each column 22. The optical positioning module 62, for example, includes an optical sensor, which normally or at intervals emits an optical signal to assist in determining whether a clamping module 4 has moved to the column 22. For example, if the optical signal emitted by the optical positioning module 62 installed on a certain column 22 changes (the optical signal encounters the clamping module 4 and is reflected back to the receiving end of the optical positioning module 62), it can be determined that the clamping module 4 has moved to the position of this column 22, thereby determining whether the clamping module 4 has moved to a fixed point. If the column 22 is the column 22 to be moved, the control module 5 can control the moving module 3 to stop driving and instruct the clamping module 4 to switch to the clamping state to clamp the column 22.

In other embodiments, the thermal process carrier 100 further includes a magnetic ruler 7 disposed parallel to the track 1. The magnetic signal of the magnetic ruler 7 can be used to assist in determining the actual position of the gripping module 4.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 3 , each bridge 2 further includes at least one supporting member 23 disposed on the cross beam 21. The supporting member 23 stands on the cross beam 21, and the top end of the supporting member 23 serves as a direct contact point with a workpiece (not shown) to reduce the contact area between the workpiece and the bridge 2. Therefore, the top end of the supporting member 23 is usually in the form of a pointed tip or a dot.

Furthermore, the support members 23 are slidably disposed on the cross beam 21 , so that the support members 23 can adjust the density and spacing in a direction perpendicular to the track 1 according to the shape of the workpiece.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG3 , each bridge 2 further includes at least one extended wing 24, the extended wing 24 is connected to the support member 23, and the extended direction of the extended wing 24 is parallel to the direction of the track 1. The extended wing 24 can prevent the crossbeams 21 or the columns 22 from colliding with each other when the plurality of bridges 2 are moving.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, the column 22 and the cross beam 21 are connected by magnetic attraction, that is, at least one of the two is a ferromagnetic material and the other is a paramagnetic material, or a magnet is provided between the two to attract the column 22 and the cross beam 21 of the paramagnetic material. In this way, the column 22 and the cross beam 21 can be quickly disassembled or assembled. However, the present invention is not limited to this. In other embodiments, the column 22 and the cross beam 21 can be assembled and manufactured by snapping or other methods.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG3 , in this embodiment, each bridge 2 further includes a brake clamp 25 disposed at the bottom end of the column 22. The brake clamp 25 is, for example, pneumatic to prevent the column 22 from being improperly displaced.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 4 , the present invention further proposes a thermal process equipment 200 , which comprises: a box 8 , the aforementioned thermal process supporting device 100 and at least one heat source 9 .

The thermal process carrier 100 is disposed in the box 8, and at least one heat source 9 faces the thermal process carrier 100. Thus, the thermal process carrier 100 can be used in the thermal process equipment 200.

The present invention has been disclosed in the above by way of an embodiment, but those skilled in the art should understand that the embodiment is only used to describe the present invention and should not be interpreted as limiting the scope of the present invention. It should be noted that all changes and substitutions equivalent to the embodiment should be included in the scope of the present invention. Therefore, the protection scope of the present invention shall be subject to that defined by the scope of the patent application.

100: Thermal process support device 200: Thermal process equipment 1: Track 2: Bridge 21: Crossbeam 22: Column 23: Support 24: Extended side wing 25: Brake clamp 3: Moving module 31: Servo motor 32: Screw 4: Gripping module 5: Control module 61: Optical positioning module 62: Optical positioning module 7: Magnetic scale 8: Box 9: Heat source

FIG. 1 is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of a support device for a thermal process according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block schematic diagram of a support device for a thermal process according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a partially enlarged schematic diagram of FIG. 1. FIG. 4 is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of a thermal process equipment according to an embodiment of the present invention.

100: Thermal process carrier

1:Track

2: Bridge building

21: Beam

22: Pillar

3: Mobile module

4: Gripping module

Claims (11)

A thermal process support device, comprising: at least one rail; a plurality of bridges, each of which has a crossbeam and at least one column, the top of the column is vertically connected to the crossbeam, and the bottom of the column is slidably connected to the rail; a moving module, arranged on one side of the rail, the moving module provides power for moving parallel to the rail; and a clamping module, connected to the moving module, the clamping module clamps the column in a clamping state and drives the bridge to move on the rail, wherein each bridge further comprises at least one support member, arranged on the crossbeam, and the support member is slidably arranged on the crossbeam. The thermal process carrier device as described in claim 1 further includes a control module, which is signal-connected to the moving module and the clamping module to control the displacement of the moving module and control the clamping module to switch between the clamping state and an open state. The thermal process support device as described in claim 1, wherein the number of the rails is two, the two rails are parallel to each other, the number of the columns is two, the top ends of the two columns are respectively vertically connected to the two ends of the crossbeam, the bottom ends of the two columns are respectively slidably connected to the two rails, and the clamping module clamps one of the columns in the clamping state and drives the bridge to move on the two rails. A thermal process support device as described in claim 1, wherein the plurality of bridges are arranged in parallel on the track. The thermal process carrier device as described in claim 1 further includes an optical positioning module disposed on the clamping module. The thermal process support device as described in claim 1 further includes a plurality of optical positioning modules disposed on each of the columns. The thermal process support device as described in claim 1 further includes a magnetic ruler arranged parallel to the track. The thermal process support device as described in claim 1, wherein each of the bridges further comprises at least one extended side wing, the extended side wing is connected to the support member, and the extension direction of the extended side wing is parallel to the direction of the track. A thermal process support device as described in claim 1, wherein the column and the crossbeam are connected by magnetic adsorption. A thermal process support device as described in claim 1, wherein each of the bridges further includes a brake clamp disposed at the bottom end of the column. A thermal process equipment, comprising: a box; a thermal process carrier as described in any one of claims 1 to 10, arranged in the box; and at least one heat source, facing the thermal process carrier.

Images