System for lapping ring and pinion gears

• US 7,715,947 B2
• Filed: 10/08/2007
• Issued: 05/11/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 05/24/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: American AXLE & Manufacturing Incorporated (American AXLE & Manufacturing Holdings Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: American AXLE & Manufacturing Incorporated (American AXLE & Manufacturing Holdings Incorporated)
• Inventors: Bickersteth, Daniel Thomas, Greene, Robert G., Gembel, Kenneth John II
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran; Khoi
• Assistant Examiner(s): Marc; McDieunel
• Application Number:
  US11/868,682
• Publication Number:
  US 20080046124A1
• Time in Patent Office: 946 Days
• Field of Search: 700/245, 700/255, 294/28, 294/30, 295/63, 414/791.7, 414/749.4, 198/36.46, 428/36.46, 901/1, 901/2, 901/6, 901/7, 901/8, 901/30, 901/31, 901/41, 483/14, 483/16, 483/22, 483/901, 483/902, 744/900.1
• US Class Current: 700/245
• CPC Class Codes: B23F 17/008 Features relating to transfer of work gears between different work stations
• CPC Class Codes: B23F 19/025 Lapping bevel gears by making use of a correspondingly shaped counterpart
• CPC Class Codes: B23F 23/04 Loading or unloading arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 29/025 Method or apparatus with particular material
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 483/901 Robot end effectors
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 483/902 Tool grippers
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49826 Assembling or joining
• 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 29/5124 with means to feed work intermittently from one tool station to another
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 409/100954 Utilizing transfer arm
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 409/10795 Process
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 409/108586 Plural rotary cutters
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 409/109699 with work clamping
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 483/16 with means to transfer work
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 483/17 including machine tool or component
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 483/1714 Tool changer between tool support and matrix

Abstract

A system for lapping gear sets with a ring gear and a pinion gear. The system includes a lapping machine tool and a robot. The lapping machine tool has a first spindle and a second spindle. The second spindle is rotatable about an axis that is generally perpendicular to a rotational axis of the first spindle. The lapping machine tool has a loading zone for loading the first and second spindles. The robot has an end effector with a first end that is configured to hold one of the gear sets. The robot is configured to position the first end of the end effector into the loading zone and to load the first gear set to the lapping machine tool without removing the end effector from the loading zone such that the ring gear is loaded onto the first spindle and the pinion gear is loaded onto the second spindle.

Claims

1. A system for lapping gear sets, each of the gear sets including a ring gear and a pinion gear, the system comprising:

a lapping machine tool having a first spindle and a second spindle, the second spindle being rotatable about an axis that is generally perpendicular to a rotational axis of the first spindle, the lapping machine tool having a loading zone for loading the first and second spindles;

a robot with an end effector, the end effector having a first end that is configured to hold one of the gear sets;

wherein the robot is configured to position the first end of the end effector into the loading zone and to load the first gear set to the lapping machine tool without removing the end effector from the loading zone such that the ring gear is loaded onto the first spindle and the pinion gear is loaded onto the second spindle.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the robot is configured to load the pinion gear to the second spindle before loading the ring gear to the first spindle.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the robot includes an articulating arm that is coupled to the end effector, the articulating arm having a first arm member and a second arm member that is pivotally coupled to the first arm member.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the end effector is configured to orient the ring gear such that a rotational axis of the ring gear is disposed in a predetermined attitude and to position the pinion gear such that a rotational axis of the pinion gear is generally perpendicular to the rotational axis of the ring gear.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the end effector includes a second end to hold a second gear set.

6. The system of claim 5 wherein the robot is configured to position the second end of the end effector into the loading zone and unload the second gear set from the lapping machine tool to the second end of the end effector prior to loading the first gear set held by the first end of the end effector to the lapping machine tool.

7. A system for lapping gear sets, each of the gear sets including a ring gear and a pinion gear, the system comprising:

a first lapping machine tool having a first spindle and a second spindle, the second spindle of the first lapping machine tool being rotatable about an axis that is generally perpendicular to a rotational axis of the first spindle of the first lapping machine tool, the first lapping machine tool having a first loading zone for loading the first and second spindles of the first lapping machine tool;

a robot with an end effector, the end effector having a first end that is configured to hold one of the gear sets;

wherein the robot is configured to position the first end of the end effector into the first loading zone and to unload the first gear set from the first lapping machine tool without removing the end effector from the first loading zone such that the ring gear is unloaded from the first spindle of the first lapping machine tool and the pinion gear is unloaded from the second spindle of the first lapping machine tool.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the robot is configured to unload the ring gear from the first spindle of the first lapping machine tool before unloading the pinion gear from the second spindle of the first lapping machine tool.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein the robot includes an articulating arm that is coupled to the end effector, the articulating arm having a first arm member and a second arm member that is pivotally coupled to the first arm member.

10. The system of claim 7, wherein the end effector is configured to orient the ring gear such that a rotational axis of the ring gear is disposed in a predetermined attitude and to position the pinion gear such that a rotational axis of the pinion gear is generally perpendicular to the rotational axis of the ring gear.

11. The system of claim 7, wherein the end effector includes a second end that is adapted to hold another one of the gear sets.

12. The system of claim 7, further comprising a second lapping machine tool having a first spindle and a second spindle, the second spindle of the second lapping machine tool being rotatable about an axis that is generally perpendicular to a rotational axis of the first spindle of the second lapping machine tool, the second lapping machine tool having a second loading zone for loading the first and second spindles of the second lapping machine tool and wherein the robot is configured to position the first end of the end effector into the second loading zone and to unload a second one of the gear sets from the second lapping machine tool without removing the end effector from the second loading zone such that the ring gear is unloaded from the first spindle of the second lapping machine tool and the pinion gear is unloaded from the second spindle of the second lapping machine tool.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the robot is configured to unload and load one of the first and second lapping machine tools and then unload and load the other one of the first and second lapping machine tools.

14. A system for lapping gear sets, each of the gear sets including a ring gear and a pinion gear, the system comprising:

a robot with an articulating arm having a first arm member and a second arm member that is pivotally coupled to the first arm member; and

an end effector having a beam portion, a first tooling set and a second tooling set, the beam portion including a first end and a second end opposite the first end, the beam portion including a rotational axis that is disposed between the first and second ends, the first tooling set being coupled to the first end of the beam portion and including a first tooling subset and a second tooling subset, the first tooling subset having a first set of jaws that are arranged about a first gear axis and which are releasably engaging the ring gear of a first one of the gear sets, the second tooling subset having a second set of jaws that are arranged about a second gear axis, the second gear axis being perpendicular to the first gear axis, the second set of jaws being releasably engaging the pinion pear of the first pear set, the second tooling set being coupled to the second end of the beam portion and being identical to the first tooling set.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the second tooling subset further includes an abutting member that is spaced apart from the second set of jaws and wherein the abutting member and the second set of jaws cooperate to capture the pinion gear.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the abutting member has a conical abutting surface to mate with a surface of a mating conical recess that is formed in the pinion gear.

17. The system of claim 14, wherein the second jaws travel in directions that are perpendicular to the second gear axis.

18. The system of claim 14, wherein the first jaws move in directions that are perpendicular to the first gear axis.

19. A system for lapping gear sets, each of the gear sets including a first gear and a second gear, the system comprising:

a robot with an articulating arm having a first arm member and a second arm member that is pivotally coupled to the first arm member; and

an end effector having a beam portion, a first tooling set and a second tooling set, the beam portion including a first end and a second end opposite the first end, the beam portion including a rotational axis that is disposed between the first and second ends, the first tooling set being coupled to the first end of the beam portion and including a first tooling subset and a second tooling subset, the first tooling subset having a first set of jaws that are arranged about a first gear axis and which are releasably engaging the first gear of a first one of the gear sets, the second tooling subset having a second set of jaws that are arranged about a second gear axis, the second gear axis being perpendicular to the first gear axis, the second set of jaws being releasably engaging the second gear, the second tooling set being coupled to the second end of the beam portion and being identical to the first tooling set;

wherein the second tooling subset further includes an abutting member that is spaced apart from the second set of jaws and wherein the abutting member and the second set of jaws cooperate to capture the second gear, wherein the abutting member has a conical abutting surface to mate with a surface of a mating conical recess that is formed in the second gear, wherein the second jaws travel in directions that are perpendicular to the second gear axis, and wherein the first jaws move in directions that are perpendicular to the first gear axis.

20. A system for lapping gear sets, each of the gear sets including a first gear and a second gear, the system comprising:

a robot with an articulating arm having a first arm member and a second arm member that is pivotally coupled to the first arm member; and

an end effector having a beam portion, a first tooling set and a second tooling set, the beam portion including a first end and a second end opposite the first end, the beam portion including a rotational axis that is disposed between the first and second ends, the first tooling set being coupled to the first end of the beam portion and including a first tooling subset and a second tooling subset, the first tooling subset arranged about a first gear axis and releasably engaging the first gear of a first gear set, the second tooling subset arranged about a second gear axis that is perpendicular to the first gear axis and releasably engaging the second gear of the first gear set, the second tooling set being coupled to the second end of the beam portion.

21. The system of claim 20 wherein the first gear is a ring gear and the second gear is a pinion gear.