FLUID MATERIAL DISCHARGE APPARATUS

Abstract

A purpose of the present invention is to prevent leakage of a sealant from the rear end side of a plunger in a sealant discharge operation. The sealant discharge apparatus is equipped with a piston that moves axially inside a cartridge and a contact portion, the outer peripheral surface of which has a cylindrical shape, that is provided at the tip of the piston and can contact the inner peripheral surface of a plunger provided in the cartridge housing a sealant, and the contact portion is provided to be movable radially in the piston.

Claims

1. A fluid material discharge apparatus comprising: a piston that moves in an axial direction inside a cartridge; and a contact portion that is provided at a tip of the piston and can come into contact with an inner peripheral surface of a plunger provided in the cartridge accommodating a fluid material and of which an outer peripheral surface has a cylindrical shape, wherein the contact portion is provided to be movable in a radial direction at the piston.

2. The fluid material discharge apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a shaft portion that protrudes in the axial direction is provided at the tip of the piston, and the contact portion is an annular member and the shaft portion is inserted with respect to an inner peripheral surface of the contact portion.

3. The fluid material discharge apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an outer diameter of the contact portion is larger than an inner diameter of the plunger and smaller than an inner diameter of the cartridge.

4. The fluid material discharge apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the contact portion is formed of metal or synthetic resin.

5. The fluid material discharge apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a through-hole is formed at the tip of the piston and a gas can be sucked through the through-hole.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0023] FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration view showing a sealant discharge apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0024] FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view showing a cylinder and a plunger of a cartridge of the sealant discharge apparatus according to the embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0025] FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the cylinder of the sealant discharge apparatus according to the embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0026] FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged vertical sectional view showing the cartridge.

[0027] FIG. 5 is a vertical sectional view showing a cylinder and a plunger of a cartridge of a sealant discharge apparatus in the related art.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

[0028] Hereinafter, an embodiment according to the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0029] The configuration of a sealant discharge apparatus according to the embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to FIG. 1.

[0030] As shown in FIG. 1, the sealant discharge apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment includes a cartridge fixation portion 2, a piston 3, a piston rod 4, a piston drive unit 5, and the like. For example, the sealant discharge apparatus 1 is used in a case where a sealant 40 is to be applied to a contact surface between a plurality of members or a corner formed at an intersection between an end surface of one member and a plate surface of the other member during assembly of an aircraft component such as a main wing and a fuselage.

[0031] Regarding the sealant discharge apparatus 1, when a cartridge 20 is fixed to the cartridge fixation portion 2 and the piston 3 presses the sealant 40 accommodated in the cartridge 20, the sealant 40 is discharged from a nozzle 21 provided on a tip side of the cartridge 20.

[0032] The sealant discharge apparatus 1 is installed in a drive device 30 such as a robot and is moved by the drive device 30. Since the movement of the sealant discharge apparatus 1 is controlled, the sealant 40 can be discharged to a position to which the sealant 40 needs to be applied.

[0033] The cartridge 20 is a cylindrical member and can accommodate the sealant 40. The cartridge 20 may be, for example, a commercially available product. The nozzle 21 is provided at one end (tip side) of the cartridge 20, and the sealant 40 is discharged through the nozzle 21. When the sealant 40 is accommodated inside, a plunger 22 is disposed inside the other end (rear end side) of the cartridge 20. The plunger 22 has, for example, a substantially U-shaped vertical section and has a shape obtained combining a cylindrical member and a hemispherical member with each other. The plunger 22 is installed inside the cartridge 20 such that a bottom portion thereof is positioned on the tip side of the cartridge 20 and a circular edge portion thereof is positioned on the rear end side of the cartridge 20.

[0034] The plunger 22 can accommodate a tip of the piston 3 and when the plunger 22 is pressed by the piston 3, the plunger 22 moves along an axial direction of the cartridge 20. When the plunger 22 moves and presses the sealant 40, the sealant 40 is discharged from the nozzle 21.

[0035] As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, a sealing lip 23 is provided on an outer peripheral surface of a cylindrical portion of the plunger 22. The sealing lip 23 is provided in an annular shape along a circumferential direction of the cylindrical portion and is formed to protrude in an outward direction. The sealing lip 23 can come into contact with an inner peripheral surface of the cartridge 20. The sealing lip 23 prevents the sealant 40 from leaking to the outside.

[0036] A dust wiper 24 is formed on an edge portion of the plunger 22. The dust wiper 24 has a tapered shape of which the diameter increases toward the edge portion of the plunger 22 from the bottom portion of the plunger 22. A tip of the dust wiper 24, that is, the edge portion of the plunger 22, can come into contact with the inner peripheral surface of the cartridge 20. The dust wiper 24 prevents a foreign substance (for example, dust) from entering the cartridge 20.

[0037] The cartridge fixation portion 2 has, a configuration in which the cartridge 20 can be accommodated inside and the cartridge 20 accommodated inside therein is fixed such that the cartridge 20 is not moved. The cartridge fixation portion 2 is connected to the drive device 30 such as a robot.

[0038] The piston 3 is provided to move in the axial direction inside the cartridge 20 accommodated in the cartridge fixation portion 2. The piston 3 is a cylindrical member and is installed integrally with the piston rod 4 at a tip of the rod-shaped piston rod 4. A contact portion 6, which will be described later, is provided at the tip of the piston 3.

[0039] The piston rod 4 is connected to the piston drive unit 5 and is moved by the piston drive unit 5. With the movement of the piston 3 in the axial direction controlled via the piston rod 4, the position of the piston 3 in the cartridge 20 and the amount of movement of the piston 3 are adjusted. The discharge amount of the sealant 40 is adjusted and controlled by means of the amount of movement of the piston 3.

[0040] The piston drive unit 5 is connected to the piston rod 4 and moves the piston rod 4 in parallel with the axial direction of the cartridge 20. The piston drive unit 5 includes, for example, a servomotor 7, a feed screw 8, a bracket 9, and the like. The servomotor 7 is connected to the feed screw 8 and causes the feed screw 8 to rotate around an axis. The feed screw 8 is connected to the bracket 9 coupled to the piston rod 4 and the bracket 9 is moved in parallel with the axial direction when the feed screw 8 rotates around the axis. The servomotor 7 and the feed screw 8 of the piston drive unit 5 are connected to the drive device 30 such as a robot.

[0041] Since the servomotor 7, the feed screw 8, and the cartridge fixation portion 2 are fixed to the drive device 30 and the piston 3 and the piston rod 4 are configured to be movable, it is possible to discharge the sealant 40 accommodated in the cartridge 20 fixed to the cartridge fixation portion 2 by driving the piston 3.

[0042] As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the contact portion 6 of which an outer peripheral surface has a cylindrical shape is provided at the tip of the piston 3. The contact portion 6 can come into contact with an inner peripheral surface of the plunger 22 provided in the cartridge 20.

[0043] As shown in FIG. 2, a shaft portion 10 protruding in the axial direction is provided at the tip of the piston 3. The shaft portion 10 has a cylindrical shape smaller than the diameter of the piston 3. The contact portion 6 is an annular member, and the shaft portion 10 is inserted with respect to an inner peripheral surface of the contact portion 6. The outer diameter of the shaft portion 10 is smaller than the inner diameter of the contact portion 6 with a fitting structure in which a gap is formed between an outer peripheral surface of the shaft portion 10 and the inner peripheral surface of the contact portion 6.

[0044] Accordingly, the contact portion 6 is provided to be movable (slidable) in a radial direction at the piston 3. With such a structure, the central axis of the contact portion 6 is positioned to match the central axis of the cartridge 20 when the piston 3 presses the plunger 22 even in a case where the axis of the piston 3 and the central axis of the cartridge 20 are positionally offset from each other. As a result, a straining force that is generated by the contact portion 6 with respect to an inner surface of the cartridge 20 is generated to be substantially even in the circumferential direction and thus a gap between the plunger 22 and the inner surface of the cartridge 20 is less likely to be formed.

[0045] As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the contact portion 6 having an annular shape is restrained from falling off in the axial direction by, for example, a disk 13 and a bolt 14. The disk 13 is installed on the tip side of the piston 3 to be adjacent with the contact portion 6. The bolt 14 is fixed at the tip of the piston 3 such that the disk 13 is interposed between the contact portion 6 and the bolt 14.

[0046] Note that, the configuration of the contact portion 6 is not limited to that in the above-described example and the contact portion 6 may have a different configuration as long as the contact portion 6 is a member of which an outer peripheral surface has a cylindrical shape and is provided to be movable in the radial direction at the piston 3. For example, the contact portion 6 may be provided with a shaft portion protruding in the axial direction and the shaft portion may be inserted into a recessed portion provided at the center portion of the piston 3. In this case, the outer diameter of the shaft portion is made smaller than the inner diameter of the recessed portion such that the contact portion 6 can move in the radial direction at the piston 3.

[0047] The outer diameter of the contact portion 6 is larger than the inner diameter of the plunger 22 and smaller than the inner diameter of the cartridge 20. Accordingly, when the contact portion 6 comes into contact with the inner peripheral surface of the plunger 22, the plunger 22 can be expanded outward and thus the plunger 22 can be reliably pressed against the inner peripheral surface of the cartridge 20. As a result, a gap between the plunger 22 and the inner surface of the cartridge 20 is less likely to be formed. In addition, since the outer diameter of the contact portion 6 is slightly larger than the inner diameter of the plunger, a problem that excessive piston. resistance may be generated and the cartridge 20 may burst does not occur.

[0048] It is desirable that the outer peripheral surface of the contact portion 6 is disposed on a back surface side of the sealing lip 23 formed on the cartridge 20 when the contact portion 6 is pressed against the inner peripheral surface of the plunger 22. Since the sealing lip 23 protruding in the outward direction at the outer peripheral surface of the plunger 22 is expanded in the outward direction, a gap between the plunger 22 and the inner surface of the cartridge 20 can be sealed. Accordingly, when the contact portion 6 comes into contact with the inner peripheral surface of the plunger 22, the sealing lip 23 can be expanded outward and thus the sealing lip 23 of the plunger 22 can be reliably pressed against the inner peripheral surface of the cartridge 20. As a result, a gap between the plunger 22 and the inner surface of the cartridge 20 is less likely to be formed.

[0049] The contact portion 6 is formed of, for example, metal (for example, stainless steel, steel, or like) or synthetic resin (for example, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), or like). Accordingly, the contact portion 6 has a favorable slipperiness and thus the contact portion 6 is easily inserted into the plunger 22 and is reliably installed inside the plunger 22.

[0050] When the tip of the piston 3 is inserted into the plunger 22 for installation, a space formed in a gap between the piston 3 and the plunger 22 is sealed, and air (gas) is compressed. Therefore, it is desirable that the air accumulated in the space is discharged to the outside. For example, the tip of the piston 3 may be provided with a through-hole 11 so that the air is discharged to the outside through a flow channel 12 penetrating the piston 3 in the axial direction. In addition, connecting the flow channel 12 and a vacuum pump (not shown) to each other may also be adopted in addition to simply making the air open to the outside air. Accordingly, the through-hole 11 formed at the tip of the piston 3 serves as a vacuum suction mechanism and thus a gas outside the piston 3 can be sucked. As a result, when the tip of the piston 3 is inserted into the plunger 22, the air in the space between the piston 3 and the plunger 22 is sucked and thus the contact portion 6 and the plunger 22 can be brought into close contact with each other more reliably.

[0051] Next, a method of discharging a sealant by using the sealant discharge apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment will be described.

[0052] First, the cartridge 20 into which the sealant 40 to be discharged is accommodated is prepared. Then, the cartridge 20 is fixed to the cartridge fixation portion 2 of the sealant discharge apparatus 1.

[0053] At this time, the piston 3 of the sealant discharge apparatus 1 is inserted into the plunger 22 of the fixed cartridge 20 and is installed therein. The contact portion 6 provided at the tip of the piston 3 is provided to be movable in the radial direction at the piston 3. Therefore, the central axis of the contact portion 6 is positioned to match the central axis of the plunger 22, that is, the cartridge 20 when the piston 3 presses the plunger 22 and the contact portion 6 is inserted into the plunger 22 even in a case where the axis of the piston 3 and the central axis of the cartridge 20 are positionally offset from each other. In addition, the outer diameter of the contact portion 6 is larger than the inner diameter of the plunger 22 and smaller than the inner diameter of the cartridge 20. Accordingly, when the contact portion 6 comes into contact with. the inner peripheral surface of the plunger 22, the plunger 22 is expanded outward and thus the plunger 22 is reliably pressed against the inner peripheral surface of the cartridge 20.

[0054] In addition, in a case where the through-hole 11 formed at the tip of the piston 3 can serve as a vacuum suction mechanism, the vacuum pump may be driven when the contact portion 6 is inserted into the plunger 22 so that air in a space between the piston 3 and the plunger 22 is sucked. As a result, the contact portion 6 and the plunger 22 can be brought into close contact with each other more reliably.

[0055] Next, the sealant discharge apparatus 1 to which the cartridge 20 is fixed is moved to a position facing an object (aircraft component or like) to which the sealant 40 is to be applied. Alternatively, the object is moved to an operation position of the sealant discharge apparatus 1.

[0056] In an operation of applying the sealant 40, the servomotor 7 is driven and the piston 3 is moved such that the sealant 40 is discharged from the nozzle 21 in accordance with the amount of movement of the piston 3. At this time, a discharge amount is adjusted in accordance with the amount of the sealant 40 required to be applied to the object. When the required amount of the sealant 40 is discharged, the movement of the piston 3 is stopped.

[0057] Then, a discharge operation is repeated at a place where the sealant 40 needs to be applied to the object. In a case where the sealant 40 accommodated in the cartridge 20 is emptied or the amount thereof is small, the cartridge 20 is replaced. In a case the cartridge 20 is to be removed, the piston 3 is moved in a direction opposite to a direction in which the piston 3 is moved at the time of discharge and then. the cartridge 20 is unfixed from the cartridge fixation portion 2 so that the cartridge 20 is removed. Then, the cartridge 20 is fixed to the cartridge fixation portion 2 again in the same manner as the above-described method.

[0058] In the related art, a piston 50 in a sealant discharge apparatus is one member having a substantially cylindrical shape as shown in FIG. 5. Therefore, in a case where the axis of the piston and the central axis of the cartridge 20 are positionally offset from each other, the plunger 22 unevenly applies a straining force with respect to the inner peripheral surface of the cartridge 20. Therefore, to prevent a sealant from leaking to a rear end side of the plunger 22, it is necessary to positionally align the axis of the piston 3 and the central axis of the cartridge 20 with each other.

[0059] On the other hand, according to the present embodiment, the contact portion 6 of which the outer peripheral surface has a cylindrical shape is provided at the tip of the piston 3 and the contact portion 6 can come into contact with the inner peripheral surface of the plunger 22 provided in the cartridge 20 as shown in FIG. 2. In addition, the contact portion 6 is provided to be movable in the radial direction at the piston 3. Accordingly, the central axis of the contact portion 6 is positioned to match the central axis of the cartridge 20 when the piston 3 presses the plunger 22 even in a case where the axis of the piston 3 and the central axis of the cartridge 20 are positionally offset from each other.

[0060] Therefore, even in a case where the axis of the piston 3 and the central axis of the cartridge 20 are positionally offset from each other, it is not necessary to positionally align the axis of the piston 3 and the central axis of the cartridge 20 with each other and the central axis of the contact portion 6 coincides with the central axis of the cartridge 20 since the contact portion 6 moves in the radial direction.

[0061] As a result, even in a case where the axis of the piston 3 and the central axis of the cartridge 20 are positionally offset from each other, the straining force generated by the contact portion 6 is substantially even in the circumferential direction and thus a gap between the plunger 22 and the inner surface of the cartridge 20 is less likely to be formed unlike the piston in the related art which is not provided with the contact portion 6.

[0062] In addition, the outer diameter of the contact portion 6 is larger than the inner diameter of the plunger 22 and smaller than the inner diameter of the cartridge 20. Accordingly, when the contact portion 6 comes into contact with the inner peripheral surface of the plunger 22, the plunger 22 can be expanded outward and thus the plunger 22 can be reliably pressed against the inner peripheral surface of the cartridge 20. Accordingly, a gap between the plunger 22 and the inner surface of the cartridge 20 is less likely to be formed. In addition, since the outer diameter of the contact portion 6 is smaller than the inner diameter of the cartridge 20, a problem that resistance received by the piston 3 may be increased or the cartridge 20 may burst does not occur.

[0063] It is desirable that the contact portion 6 is formed of metal or synthetic resin and it is desirable that the through-hole 11 is formed at the tip of the piston 3 and a gas can be sucked via the through-hole 11. Accordingly, the contact portion 6 is reliably installed in the plunger 22.

[0064] Accordingly, a gap between the plunger 22 and the inner surface of the cartridge 20 is less likely to be formed and thus the sealant 40 is prevented from leaking from the rear end side of the plunger 22 in an operation of discharging the sealant 40 in the sealant discharge apparatus 1. In addition, since a discharge amount is stable, the application quality of the sealant 40 is improved. In addition, since the sealant 40 does not adhere to the outer peripheral surface of the tip of the piston 3 when the piston. 3 is removed from the cartridge 20, it is not necessary to perform a cleaning operation of removing the sealant 40 adhering thereto.

[0065] Note that, in the above-described embodiment, a case where a material to be discharged is a sealant has been described. However, the present disclosure is not limited to this example and can be applied to a fluid material other than the sealant. For example, the fluid material may be synthetic resin such as an adhesive agent, or oils and fats such as grease or a rust preventive agent.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST

[0066] 1: sealant discharge apparatus

[0067] 2: cartridge fixation portion

[0068] 3: piston

[0069] 4: piston rod

[0070] 5: piston drive unit

[0071] 6: contact portion

[0072] 7: servomotor

[0073] 8: feed screw

[0074] 9: bracket

[0075] 10: shaft portion

[0076] 11: through-hole

[0077] 12: flow channel

[0078] 13: disk

[0079] 14: bolt

[0080] 20: cartridge

[0081] 21: nozzle

[0082] 22: plunger

[0083] 23: sealing lip

[0084] 24: dust wiper

[0085] 30: drive device

[0086] 40: sealant

[0087] 50: piston