Production line construction method, body assembly method, and body assembly line

• US 20030101578A1
• Filed: 05/30/2002
• Published: 06/05/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 12/28/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Yoshida, Masanori, Miyashita, Hiroshi, Son, Tatsuaki, Miyaoka, Yasuo, Kanazawa, Ikuo, Kanda, Masakazu, Yoshida, Haruji, Toyoda, Jyun, Hosono, Kouichi, Kouno, Takehiro, Tatsuda, Kenji, Moriya, Fumio, Iwami, Michinao, Kajima, Gengo, Ikumi, Kiyoshi, Takeuchi, Tomoyoshi
• Granted Patent: US 6,918,168 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 29/771
• CPC Class Codes: B23P 21/004 the units passing two or more work-stations whilst being composed
• CPC Class Codes: B23P 2700/50 Other automobile vehicle parts, i.e. manufactured in assembly lines
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 65/18 Transportation, conveyor or haulage systems specially adapted for motor vehicle or trailer assembly lines conveyors and haulage in general B65G
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49622 Vehicular structural member making
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/4978 Assisting assembly or disassembly
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49828 Progressively advancing of work assembly station or assembled portion of work
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49829 Advancing work to successive stations [i.e., assembly line]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/53052 including position sensor
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/53061 Responsive to work or work-related machine element
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/53313 Means to interrelatedly feed plural work parts from plural sources without manual intervention
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/53365 Multiple station assembly apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/534 Multiple station assembly or disassembly apparatus

Abstract

A production organizing method and a method and apparatus for assembling vehicle body are provided. The production line organizing method comprises the steps of classifying all parts for all types of vehicles to be assembled into groups of main part, synchronous subparts, and non-synchronous subparts, and the manhour for the non-synchronous subparts are assigned to the difference in manhours for assembly of main parts and synchronous subparts. In addition, a vehicle body assembly method and a vehicle body assembly line are also provided, which are capable of reducing a length of a main line and increasing the productivity by classifying all of the parts used for all vehicle types into three groups of main parts and two groups of subparts including non-synchronous main parts and subparts, and by assembling and storing the non-synchronous main parts and subparts in the separate section and supplying the sub-assembled non-synchronous subparts to the main line when necessary.

Claims

1. An assembly line organizing method, capable of producing a plurality of types of vehicles on a single line, comprising the steps of:

classifying all vehicle parts into main parts and subparts by classifying parts which are common to all types of vehicles as main parts and classifying remaining parts other than the main parts as subparts,

classifying all subparts into synchronizing subparts and non-synchronizing subparts by classifying subparts which can be assembled in synchronous with the assembly in the main line as synchronizing subparts and classifying other remaining subparts as non-synchronizing subparts, and

assigning all assembly manhours for the non-synchronizing subparts classified thereto in the above subparts classification step to at least either the difference in manhours for the assembly of the main parts depending on the vehicle type or the difference in manhours for the assembly of the synchronizing subparts depending on the vehicle type.

2. A production line organizing method according to claim 1, wherein all assembly manhour of said non-synchronizing subparts are collected and abridged for defining a new assembly manhour, and the production line organizing the assembly method comprises the steps of assigning the new assembly manhour to either the manhour difference of the main parts due to the vehicle type or the manhour difference of the synchronizing subparts due to the vehicle type.

3. An assembly method of a plurality of types of vehicle bodies for assembling main parts and subparts onto vehicle bodies on a single main line while conveying the vehicle bodies after coating comprising the steps of:

assembling in a main process first main parts, which are common to all types of vehicle bodies, and second main parts, which are not common to all types of vehicles but whose assembly can be accommodated by absorbing a difference in assembly manhours depending on the vehicle type;

assembling in a subprocess third main parts, which are not common to all types of vehicles and whose assembly cannot be accommodated by absorbing the difference in manhour due to the vehicle type, as a unit of parts;

supplying to the main process first subparts, which can be assembled synchronously with the main line, after assembled in a sub-main process;

storing after sub-assembling in a non-synchronous process subparts, which cannot be assembled synchronously with the main line, and said third main parts, whose assembly cannot be accommodated by absorbing deviation due to the vehicle type; and

supplying said sub-assembled parts to the sub-main process and to the main process.

4. A method for assembling a plurality of types of vehicle bodies according to claim 3, wherein, the differences in assembly manhours of the second main parts due to difference in the vehicle type, whose assembly can be accommodated while conveying on the main line, are absorbed by methods such as use of the assembly jigs, improvement of the assembly operation, and adoption of an automatic process and unification of specifications.

5. An assembly line of a plurality of types of vehicle bodies for assembling main parts and subparts while conveying the vehicle bodies after coating comprising:

a main line for assembling first main parts, which are common to all types of vehicle bodies, and second main parts, which are not common to all vehicle types but can be assembled by absorbing a difference in manhour in the assembly operation due to the vehicle type;

a sub-line for unitizing and sub-assembling third main parts, which are not common to all types of vehicles and which cannot absorb the difference of man-hour due to the vehicle type, and sub-parts;

wherein the sub-line comprises a sub-main line, connected to the main line for supplying first subparts, which can be assembled synchronously with the main line, after assembly in a sub-main line;

a non-synchronous part manufacturing area, in which subparts which cannot be assembled synchronously with the main line and main parts which cannot absorb the difference due to change of the vehicle type are assembled; and

a storage area which stores subparts assembled in the non-synchronous part manufacturing area and main parts, which cannot absorb the difference due to the vehicle type, and supplies these parts to the sub-main line or to the main line.