WORKPIECE FEED/CLAMP APPARATUS AND CUTTING MACHINE

• US 20180304385A1
• Filed: 09/23/2016
• Published: 10/25/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 10/08/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Amada Holdings Co Ltd (Amada Company Limited), Amada Machine Tools Co., Ltd. (Amada Company Limited)
• Original Assignee: Amada Holdings Co Ltd (Amada Company Limited), Amada Machine Tools Co., Ltd. (Amada Company Limited)
• Inventors: KITAI, Masataka
• Granted Patent: US 10,442,019 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: B23D 33/02 Arrangements for holding, guiding, and/or feeding work during the operation
• CPC Class Codes: B23D 33/04 for making circular cuts
• CPC Class Codes: B23D 47/04 of devices for feeding, positioning, clamping, or rotating work
• CPC Class Codes: B23D 47/045 feeding work into engagement with the saw blade
• CPC Class Codes: B23D 55/04 of devices for feeding or clamping work
• CPC Class Codes: B23D 55/043 for conveying work to the sawing machine
• CPC Class Codes: B25B 5/166 Slideways; Guiding and/or blocking means for jaws thereon
• CPC Class Codes: B26D 2007/082 Guiding or pushing a web into a favorable position by deflector means
• CPC Class Codes: B26D 3/16 Cutting rods or tubes transversely cutting tubes longitudinally B26D3/001
• CPC Class Codes: B26D 7/02 with clamping means B26D7/018 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B26D 7/06 Arrangements for feeding or delivering work of other than sheet, web, or filamentary form feeding or discharging sheets, webs, or filaments B65H
• CPC Class Codes: B26D 7/0658 using fluid, e.g. hydraulic, acting directly on the work
• CPC Class Codes: B26D 7/08 Means for treating work or cutting member to facilitate cutting tensioning band cutters B26D1/48

Abstract

A feed/clamp apparatus includes a feed vise mechanism provided upstream from a cutting position, and a downstream vise mechanism provided just downstream from the cutting position. The feed vise mechanism includes first/second feed vise jaws, a downstream moving cylinder for moving the first feed vise jaw, and a downstream shifting cylinder for shifting the second feed vise jaw. The downstream vise mechanism includes first/second downstream vise jaws, a downstream moving cylinder for moving the first downstream vise jaw, and a downstream shifting cylinder for shifting a second downstream vise jaw. A vise surface of the second downstream vise jaw is located on one side of the vise reference position when the downstream shifting cylinder is located its stroke end on the one side. A thrust force of the downstream shifting cylinder toward the one side is made equal to a thrust force of the downstream moving cylinder toward another side.

Claims

1. A workpiece feed/clamp apparatus that is used in a cutting machine for cutting a cut position of a workpiece set at a cut position on a feed direction and that feeds the workpiece in the feed direction and then fixes the workpiece on a base of the cutting machine, the apparatus comprising:

a feed vise mechanism that is provided on an upstream side of the cutting position movably in the feed direction and includes a pair of feed vise jaws that face to each other in a width direction perpendicular to the feed direction and clamp the workpiece, a feed vise moving cylinder that moves a first of the feed vise jaws in the width direction, and a feed vise shifting cylinder that shifts a second of the feed vise jaws in the width direction; and

a downstream main vise mechanism that is provided just on a downstream side of the cutting position and includes a pair of downstream main vise jaws that face to each other in the width direction and clamp a portion correspondent to a product in the workpiece, a downstream main moving cylinder that moves a first of the downstream main vise jaws in the width direction, and a downstream main shifting cylinder that shifts a second of the downstream main vise jaws in the width direction, wherein a vise surface

wherein a thrust force of the downstream main shifting cylinder toward the one side in the width direction is made equal to a thrust force of the downstream main moving cylinder toward another side in the width direction.,

wherein a position in the feed width direction where a vise surface of the second of the downstream main vise jaws is located when the downstream main shifting cylinder reaches a stroke end on an extended side thereof serves as a vise reference position, and

wherein, if a leading end portion of the workpiece curves, the vise surface of the second of the downstream main vise jaws is located at the one side or the other side of the vise reference position in the feed width direction according to a curvature of the leading end portion of the workpiece when the portion correspondent to the product in the workpiece is clamped by cooperation of the pair of downstream main vise jaws.

2. The workpiece feed/clamp apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

an upstream main vise mechanism that is provided just on an upstream side of the cutting position and includes a pair of upstream main vise jaws that face to each other in the width direction and clamp the workpiece, an upstream main moving cylinder that moves a first of the upstream main vise jaws in the width direction, and an upstream main shifting cylinder that shifts a second of the upstream main vise jaws in the width direction.

3. The workpiece feed/clamp apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

a cylinder chamber of the downstream main shifting cylinder on the other side of the width direction is connected with a working fluid supply source that supplies working fluid through a pipe, and a non-leak valve is provided on the pipe.

4. The workpiece feed/clamp apparatus according to claim 3, wherein

a cylinder chamber of the downstream main shifting cylinder on the one side in the width direction is communicated with a cylinder chamber of the downstream main moving cylinder on the other side in the width direction.

5. The workpiece feed/clamp apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

working fluid having an identical pressure is supplied to a cylinder chamber of the downstream main moving cylinder on the one side in the width direction and a cylinder chamber of the downstream main shifting cylinder on the other side in the width direction, and a cross-sectional area of the cylinder chamber of the downstream main shifting cylinder on the other side in the width direction is made equal to a cross-sectional area of the cylinder chamber of the downstream main moving cylinder on the one side in the width direction.

6. A cutting machine that cuts a cut portion of a workpiece set at a cutting position on a feed direction, the machine comprising:

a workpiece feed/clamp apparatus according to claim 1.