Cable end holding device for holding a cable end of a cable, method for positioning a cable end of a cable, and cable assembly machine for assembling a cable

Abstract

A cable end holding device for holding a cable end of a cable for a crimp process includes a cable holding element for holding the cable end and a vertical position alteration device having two lever elements for altering the vertical position of the cable holding element in a manner decoupled from a movement of a stamp during the crimp process. The lever elements extend mutually parallel along a longitudinal direction of the lever elements and are arranged mutually offset in height and in a width direction perpendicular to the vertical and perpendicular to the longitudinal direction. The lever elements each are rotatably mounted about a first axis of rotation extending along the width direction, the two first axes of rotation extending mutually parallel.

Claims

1. A cable end crimping station comprising: a press for performing a crimp process on a cable end of a cable; and a cable end holding device for holding the cable end during the crimp process, the cable end holding device comprising: a cable holding element for holding the cable end; and a vertical position alteration device having two lever elements for altering, independent of a movement of a stamp of the press during the crimp process, a vertical position of the cable holding element in a vertical direction; wherein the lever elements extend mutually parallel along a longitudinal direction of the lever elements, the lever elements being arranged mutually offset in height and in a width direction perpendicular to the vertical direction and perpendicular to the longitudinal direction; and wherein the lever elements are each rotatably mounted about a respective first axis of rotation extending along the width direction, the two first axes of rotation extending mutually parallel.

2. The crimping station according to claim 1 wherein the cable holding device includes a longitudinal position alteration device for changing a position of the cable holding element along a direction perpendicular to the vertical direction.

3. The crimping station according to claim 1 wherein the cable end holding device includes a rotation device for rotating the cable holding element and the lever elements about an axis of rotation extending in the vertical direction.

4. The crimping station according to claim 1 wherein the vertical position alteration device includes a curved disk for changing the vertical position of the cable holding element.

5. The crimping station according to claim 4 wherein the curved disk is formed as at least one of an arithmetic spiral and an eccentric tappet.

6. The crimping station according to claim 1 wherein the cable end holding device includes a vertical position setter device for altering the vertical position of the cable end.

7. A cable assembly machine comprising: the crimping station according to claim 1; and a blade for cutting the cable.

8. A cable end holding device for holding a cable end of a cable for a crimp process, the cable end holding device comprising: a cable holding element for holding the cable end; a vertical position alteration device having: (i) two lever elements for altering a vertical position of the cable holding element in a vertical direction independent of a movement of a stamp during the crimp process, and (ii) a rotary cam disk against which one of the lever elements is pressed, which rotary cam disk changes the vertical position of the cable holding element; wherein the lever elements extend mutually parallel along a longitudinal direction of the lever elements, the lever elements being arranged mutually offset in height and in a width direction perpendicular to the vertical direction and perpendicular to the longitudinal direction; and wherein the lever elements are each rotatably mounted about a respective first axis of rotation extending along the width direction, the two first axes of rotation extending mutually parallel.

9. The cable holding device according to claim 8 including a longitudinal position alteration device for changing a position of the cable holding element along a direction perpendicular to the vertical direction.

10. The cable end holding device according to claim 8 including a rotation device for rotating the cable holding element and the lever elements about an axis of rotation extending in the vertical direction.

11. The cable end holding device according to claim 8 wherein the rotary cam disk is a curved disk for changing the vertical position of the cable holding element.

12. The cable end holding device according to claim 11 wherein the curved disk is formed as at least one of an arithmetic spiral and an eccentric tappet.

13. The cable end holding device according to claim 8 including a vertical position setter device for altering the vertical position of the cable end.

14. A cable assembly machine comprising: the cable end holding device according to claim 8; and a blade for cutting the cable.

15. A cable end processing machine for processing a cable end of a cable, the cable end processing machine comprising: a stamp for crimping a contact element to the cable end; and a cable end holding device for holding the cable end of the cable during the crimping, the cable end holding device comprising: a cable holding element for holding the cable end; a vertical position alteration device having two lever elements for altering, independent of a movement of the stamp during the crimping, a vertical position of the cable holding element in a vertical direction; wherein the lever elements extend mutually parallel along a longitudinal direction of the lever elements, the lever elements being arranged mutually offset in height and in a width direction perpendicular to the vertical direction and perpendicular to the longitudinal direction; and wherein the lever elements are each rotatably mounted about a respective first axis of rotation extending along the width direction, the two first axes of rotation extending mutually parallel.

Description

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) Hereinafter, embodiments of the invention are described with reference to the accompanying drawings, neither the drawings nor the description being intended to be interpreted as limiting the invention. In the drawings:

(2) FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the cable end holding device according to the invention;

(3) FIG. 2 is a side view of the cable end holding device of FIG. 1;

(4) FIG. 3 is a plan view of the cable end holding device of FIG. 1 and FIG. 2;

(5) FIGS. 4a-4d are details of a cable end during the process of connection to the contact element;

(6) FIG. 5 is a plan view of a part of the cable end holding device of FIGS. 1-3;

(7) FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the part of the cable end holding device of FIG. 5 along the line VI-VI;

(8) FIG. 7a is a sectional view of the part of the cable end holding device of FIG. 5 along the line VIIa-VIIa;

(9) FIG. 7b is a sectional view of the part of the cable end holding device of FIG. 5 along the line VIIa-VIIa, the lever elements being oriented substantially horizontally;

(10) FIG. 8 is a schematic view of the alteration of the vertical position in two different orientations of the lever elements;

(11) FIG. 9 is a perspective detail of an arithmetic spiral of the cable end holding device of FIGS. 1-3;

(12) FIG. 10 is a plan view of a known cable assembly machine; and

(13) FIG. 11 is a side view of the known cable assembly machine of FIG. 10; and

(14) FIG. 12 schematically depicts a feature of a further embodiment.

(15) The drawings are merely schematic and not to scale. Like reference numerals denote like or functionally equivalent features in the various drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(16) FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the cable end holding device 1 according to the invention.

(17) FIG. 2 is a side view of the cable end holding device 1 of FIG. 1.

(18) FIG. 3 is a plan view of the cable end holding device 1 of FIG. 1 and FIG. 2.

(19) The cable end holding device 1 has a pivot arm 2 and a cable holding element 15 for holding a cable end 25 or cable tip of a cable. The pivot arm 2 can rotate the cable holding element 15 about a vertical axis and alter it in a longitudinal direction (extending from left to right in FIG. 2) and in a vertical direction (extending from bottom to top in FIG. 2).

(20) The cable holding element 15 holds the cable end 25 or the cable tip, in other words the end of a cable. The outermost tip or outermost end of the cable protrudes from the cable holding element 15 on a side of the cable holding element 15 remote from the pivot arm 2.

(21) The cable end 25 or cable tip is normally not the outermost end of the cable. The cable end 25 or cable tip is a part of the cable located close to the outermost end of the cable. The outermost end of the cable may for example be spaced apart by for example approximately 0.5 cm to approximately 5 cm, in particular approximately 1 cm to approximately 3 cm, preferably approximately 1 cm to approximately 2 cm, from the part of the cable that is grasped or contained or enclosed in whole or in part by the cable holding element 15.

(22) The cable end holding device 1 additionally comprises a vertical position alteration device for altering the vertical position of the cable holding element 15 and thus for altering the vertical position of the cable end 25 held by the cable holding element 15. A reduction in the vertical position of the cable holding element 15 means that the cable holding element 15 is moved closer to the ground or lowered. An increase in the vertical position of the cable holding element 15 means that the cable holding element 15 is removed further from the ground (moved in the positive Z direction).

(23) The cable is fed to the cable end holding device 1 by a cable feed 3. The cable is arranged at least in part in a guide tube 16. The cable end is typically not arranged in the guide tube 16. The guide tube 16 is positioned in part on a plate-shaped disk or plate 17 of the cable end holding device 1 or is supported on the upper lever element 10a by the disk. The guide tube 16 usually does not extend on the disk or plate 17 in a straight line.

(24) The cable holding element 15 is arranged on the side of the cable end holding device 1 remote from the cable feed 3. The cable holding element 15 is mounted on the pivot arm 2. The cable holding element 15 comprises a gripper, which grips and holds the cable end 25 or the cable. The cable holding element 15 is fixed to the lever elements 10a, 10b of the pivot arm 2.

(25) The gripper or cable holding element 15 is mounted rotatably about a horizontally extending axis, in such a way that the cable end 25 always extends horizontally. The disk or plate 17 is placed on one of the lever elements 10a, 10b and changes the angular position thereof with respect to the cable holding element 15 as a function of the construction when the vertical position of the cable holding element 15 is changed.

(26) A blade 23 or double blade for stripping the cable end 25 and/or for cutting the cable is shown on the left in FIG. 1. The lever elements 10a, 10b are oriented in such a way that they extend horizontally. By means of the height setting device, the lever elements 10a, 10b and thus the cable holding element 15 are set to the desired or required height. The cable end 25 or cable tip is guided centrally between the two elements of the blade 23.

(27) Thereupon, the blade 23 is closed sufficiently that the insulation of the cable end 25 is cut through but not the metal core/conductor of the cable itself. Subsequently, the cable end 25 is moved away from the blade 23 or blades again in a longitudinal direction, in such a way that the insulation remains at the blade 23 and is detached from the remaining cable or from the cable end 25.

(28) The cable end holding device 1 comprises two lever elements 10a, 10b, also known as parallelogram lever elements. The two lever elements 10a, 10b are each mounted rotatably about a horizontally extending first axis of rotation 30, 31. The two first axes of rotation 30, 31 are located on the right side in FIG. 1. The two first axes of rotation 30, 31 extend mutually parallel and mutually vertically offset. In addition, the two lever elements 10a, 10b are each mounted rotatably about a horizontally extending second axis of rotation 40, 41. The two second axes of rotation 40, 41 are located on the left side in FIG. 1.

(29) The two lever elements 10a, 10b extend mutually parallel. The lever elements 10a, 10b are arranged mutually offset in height (Z direction) and in a direction extending perpendicular to the vertical direction and perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the two lever elements 10a, 10b (the longitudinal direction extending from left to right in FIG. 2 and in FIG. 3). This direction extends perpendicular to the plane of the drawing in FIG. 2. One lever element 10b is arranged further forward in FIG. 1 than the other lever element 10a.

(30) One lever element 10b (the front lever element in FIG. 1) is arranged in a vertical position that has a lower height than the vertical position of the other lever element 10a (the rear lever element in FIG. 1). The two lever elements 10a, 10b form parts or the longitudinal sides of a parallelogram.

(31) The upper part in FIG. 1 of the cable end holding device 1 comprising the lever elements 10a, 10b and the cable holding element 15 is rotatable about a vertically extending axis. For this purpose, the cable end holding device 1 has a rotation device 14 for rotating the lever elements 10a, 10b or the cable holding element 15. As a result, various processing stations or tools for processing the cable end 25 or cable tip can be approached. The rotation device 14 comprises a motor 21 for performing the rotational movement. The rotation device 14 can rotate the lever elements 10a, 10b about a vertically extending axis of rotation. The axis of rotation may in particular extend through the center of the disk or plate 17.

(32) The cable axis 20 extends along the primary extension direction of the cable end 25 and in FIG. 1 parallel to the longitudinal direction of the lever elements 10a, 10b or lever.

(33) FIG. 4a-4d are details of a cable end 25 during the process of connecting the cable end 25 to a contact element 26 using a press 5. The contact element 26 may for example be a crimp element. Initially, the cable end 25 is located closer to the contact element 26 than to the stamp 24 so as to prevent unnecessary movement of the cable end 25 (see FIG. 4a). Thereupon, the stamp 24 is moved toward the anvil 27 or the cable end 25, for example until the stamp 24 has as predetermined distance between the stamp 24 and the cable end 25 along the vertical direction (Z direction).

(34) Now, the stamp 24 and the cable end 25 are jointly moved toward the anvil 27 synchronously, in other words at the same speed (see FIG. 4b). In this context, the vertical position (position along the Z direction) of the cable end 25 is altered by altering the angle of the lever elements 10a, 10b with respect to the horizontal in that the lever elements 10a, 10b are rotated about the first axes of rotation 30, 31 thereof.

(35) Between FIG. 4b and FIG. 4c, the cable end 25 is moved synchronously with the stamp 24 in the direction of the anvil 27. In FIG. 4b, the cable end 25 is accelerated to the speed of the stamp 24. Shortly before the situation shown in FIG. 4c, the cable end 25 is braked, in such a way that the cable end 25 does not collide with the contact element 26. After a predetermined time period, during which the cable end 25 moves synchronously with the stamp 24, the movement of the cable end 25 is decoupled from the movement of the stamp 24 in that the movement of the cable end 25 is reduced after the predetermined time period.

(36) The alteration of the position of the cable end 25 along the longitudinal direction of the lever elements 10a, 10b or parallel to the horizontal as a result of the rotation of the lever elements 10a, 10b about the first axes of rotation 30, 31 is compensated by the longitudinal position alteration device 11. Thus, the lever elements 10a, 10b are moved along the longitudinal direction while the lever elements 10a, 10b are rotating about the first axes of rotation 30, 31 thereof.

(37) In this context, when the lever elements 10a, 10b pass through the horizontal position thereof, a forward movement and subsequently a rearward movement or vice versa take place in the longitudinal direction, in such a way that the cable end 25 only moves along the vertical direction (Z direction).

(38) Finally, the cable end 25 or cable tip touches the contact element 26 (see FIG. 4c). Shortly beforehand, in other words before the cable end 25 passes into a dip in the contact element 26, the speed of the movement of the cable end 25 toward the contact element 26 is reduced, in other words the cable end 25 is braked. As a result, the occurring forces when the cable end 25 strikes the contact element 26 are reduced. The cable end 25 is moved together with a part of the cable so as to prevent kinking or bending of the cable.

(39) The stamp 24 pushes the cable end 25 or cable tip and the contact element 26 against the anvil 27, and thus pushes the cable end 25 against the contact element 26 (see FIG. 4d). The protruding parts of the contact element 26 are deformed by the stamp 24, and a connection is thus formed between the cable end 25 or cable and the contact element 26. Subsequently, the stamp 24 is removed from the anvil 27 again and releases the cable end 25 comprising the contact element 26 connected to the cable end 25.

(40) FIG. 5 is a plan view of part of the cable end holding device 1 of FIGS. 1-3. FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the part of the cable end holding device 1 of FIG. 5 along the line VI-VI. FIG. 7a is a sectional view of the part of the cable end holding device 1 of FIG. 5 along the line VIIa-VIIa. FIG. 7b is a sectional view of the part of the cable end holding device 1 of FIG. 5 along the line VIIa-VIIa, the lever elements 10a, 10b being oriented substantially horizontally.

(41) The cable end holding device 1 comprises a longitudinal position alteration device 11. The longitudinal position alteration device 11 moves the upper part in FIG. 7b of the cable end holding device 1 comprising the lever elements 10a, 10b and the cable holding element 15 or pivot arm 2 right and left, in other words along the longitudinal direction of the lever elements 10a, 10b, if these are oriented horizontally (although this does not mean that movement of this type is only possible when the lever elements 10a, 10b are horizontally oriented).

(42) Since when the vertical position of the gripper or cable holding element 15 is altered the longitudinal position of the gripper or cable holding element 15 and thus of the cable end 25 changes (without corresponding compensation), the upper part of the cable end holding device 1 is moved correspondingly along the longitudinal direction (left and right in FIG. 7b) so as to compensate this change in the longitudinal position. As a result, the cable end 25 can be moved in such a way that the longitudinal position of the cable end 25 is substantially not altered, but rather only the vertical position of the cable end 25. This means that the movement of the cable end 25, which describes an arc as a result of rotation of the lever elements 10a, 10b about the first axes of rotation 30, 31 thereof, is compensated by the longitudinal position alteration device 11, in such a way that a pure upward or downward movement (Z direction) is achieved. The longitudinal position of the cable end 25 or cable tip may be set to a few hundredths of a millimeter, as is required for example in processing aluminum cables.

(43) The cable holding element 15 comprises a vertical position setting device 13. The vertical position setting device 13 allows fine-tuning of the vertical position of the cable end 25 in the Z direction. As a result, the lever elements 10a, 10b, in other words the longitudinal sides of the parallelogram, can always be oriented horizontally for the stripping, in such a way that the occurring forces during stripping can be absorbed particularly well by the parallelogram or the lever elements 10a, 10b, since the occurring forces act along the lever elements 10a, 10b.

(44) By means of the vertical position setting device 13, which serves as a fine-tuning device, the height of the cable end 25 can be particularly finely set or altered.

(45) Individual positions in which the cable end 25 has to be arranged for different processing stations or tools may be stored (for example in an EEPROM, on a hard disk and/or in the cloud) and retrieved again. Thus, when a tool is changed, the user can load or input the corresponding position (in the vertical direction and/or in the longitudinal direction and/or in the width direction) and/or the corresponding angle of rotation. Thus, the processing stations or tools do not have to be set in height, since the cable end holding device 1 correspondingly alters or adapts the position of the cable end 25.

(46) The longitudinal position alteration device 11 has a motor 22 for changing the longitudinal position of the cable holding element 15.

(47) FIG. 7b is a view along the same sectional plane as FIG. 7a. In FIG. 7a, the lever elements 10a, 10b, or more precisely the longitudinal directions of the lever elements 10a, 10b, are at a non-zero angle to the horizontal, the left end of the lever elements 10a, 10b being positioned lower than the right end of the lever elements 10a, 10b in FIG. 7a. In other words, the lower second axis of rotation 41 is located lower than the lower first axis of rotation 31 (FIG. 6), and the upper second axis of rotation 40 is positioned lower than the upper first axis of rotation 30. In FIG. 7b, the longitudinal directions of the lever elements 10a, 10b extend horizontally. In FIG. 7b, the upper first axis of rotation 30 is located at the same height as the upper second axis of rotation 40, and in FIG. 7b, the lower first axis of rotation 31 (FIG. 6) is located at the same height as the lower second axis of rotation 41. The cable end 25 extends horizontally both in FIG. 7a and in FIG. 7b.

(48) FIG. 8 is a schematic view of the alteration of the vertical position in two different orientations of the lever elements 10a, 10b. FIG. 9 is a perspective detail of an arithmetic spiral 19 of the cable end holding device 1 of FIGS. 1-3.

(49) FIG. 8 shows the parallelogram guide 9. In FIG. 8, it can be seen that a rotation of the lever elements 10a, 10b about the first axes of rotation 30, 31 thereof, which leads to a change in height of the cable holding element 15 of Pv, leads to an alteration to the position of the cable holding element 15 by a length of Ph. This alteration to the longitudinal position of the cable holding element 15 can be compensated by the longitudinal position alteration device 11, in such a way that only a change in height in the position of the cable holding element 15 takes place.

(50) The angle of the lever elements 10a, 10b to the horizontal (which extends from left to right in FIG. 7a and FIG. 7b) can be altered using a cam disk, in particular an arithmetic or Archimedean spiral 19. As a result, the lever elements 10a, 10b can be rotated about the first axes of rotation 30, 31 thereof in a technically simple manner.

(51) The cam disk can be driven using a stepper motor 12. Alternatively, an eccentric tappet 28 (schematically depicted in FIG. 12) is also conceivable. A spring element 18 (FIG. 6) pushes one of the lever elements 10a, 10b, specifically the upper lever element 10a, against the cam disk, in such a way that the contact between this lever element 10a and the cam disk always remains preserved.

(52) Alternatively, or in addition, an alteration to the angle of the lever elements 10a, 10b to the horizontal or rotation of the lever elements 10a, 10b about the first axes of rotation 30, 31 thereof using a motor-driven spindle, a linear motor and/or a controllable pneumatic cylinder is conceivable.

(53) Thus, for example a motor-driven spindle can push and pull one of the lever elements 10a, 10b upward and downward. As a result, the lever elements 10a, 10b each rotate about the first axis of rotation 30, 31 thereof and alter the angle thereof to the horizontal. As a result, the vertical position of the second axes of rotation 40, 41 can be adjusted by way of the motor-driven spindle.

(54) A linear motor may be arranged in such a way that it pushes/pulls the lever elements 10a, 10b upward and downward in such a way that the lever elements 10a, 10b rotate about the first axis of rotation 30, 31 thereof and alter the angle thereof to the horizontal.

(55) The lever elements 10a, 10b can also be rotated about the first axes of rotation 30, 31 thereof, and the angles of the lever elements 10a, 10b to the horizontal altered, using a controllable pneumatic cylinder.

(56) After the cable end 25 is connected to the contact element 26, the length of the cable is shortened to the desired length using the blade 23. Subsequently, the process can be continued on the other side of the blade 23 analogously to the previously described process. This means that the contact element 26 is guided by the blade 23 or the opening in the blade 23, and the cable is grasped on the other side by a further gripper or cable holding element 15. The cable is now cut. Subsequently, the free cable end of the cable, one cable end 25 of which is already connected to a contact element 26, can likewise be connected to a contact element 26, in particular in the manner described above.

(57) The lever elements 10a, 10b are always rotated through the same angles about the respective first axes of rotation 30, 31 thereof, in such a way that the lever elements 10a, 10b are always oriented mutually parallel.

(58) As a result, a cable assembly machine is also described, which comprises a or the described cable end holding device and a or the described blade.

(59) The lever elements may be of the same length.

(60) The first axes of rotation of the two lever elements are located at the same position in the longitudinal direction, which extends from left to right in FIG. 8.

(61) It is also conceivable that the cable feed 3 is mounted on the pivot arm 2.

(62) Finally, it should be noted that terms such as having, comprising etc. do not exclude the possibility of other elements or steps and terms such as a or one do not exclude a plurality. Further, it should be noted that features or steps that have been described with reference to one of the above embodiments may also be used in combination with other features or steps of other above-described embodiments.

(63) In accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes, the present invention has been described in what is considered to represent its preferred embodiment. However, it should be noted that the invention can be practiced otherwise than as specifically illustrated and described without departing from its spirit or scope.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMERALS

(64) 1, 1 Cable end holding device 2, 2 Pivot arm 3, 3 Cable feed 4 Blade block 5, 5 Press 6, 6 Additional station 7 Plunger 8 Height adjustment system 9 Parallelogram guide 10a, 10b Lever elements 11 Longitudinal position alteration device 12 Stepper motor for Z direction 13 Vertical position setting device 14 Rotation device 15 Cable holding element 16 Guide tube 17 Plate on the upper lever 18 Spring element 19 Arithmetic spiral 20 Cable axis 21 Motor for rotational movement 22 Motor for horizontal displacement 23 Blade 24, 24 Stamp 25 Cable end 26, 26 Contact element 27, 27 Anvil 30, 31 First axes of rotation 40, 41 Second axes of rotation Ph Horizontal change in position Pv Vertical change in position Z Z direction