DIE TEST/INSPECTION APPARATUS

Abstract

A test/inspection apparatus (10) for dies for electrical use, in particular for dies for cutting magnetic metal plates adapted to be stacked or superimposed one on the other to define layered packs for use in electrical machines, comprising interaction means with special functions (20) or mechanical elements of a cutting die (21), which enable/disable one or more cutting elements of said die, said apparatus being coupled to the cutting die (21) for testing it off a cutting press.

Claims

1. A test/inspection apparatus (10) for dies for electrical use, in particular for dies for cutting magnetic metal plates adapted to be packed or superimposed on top of one another to define layered packs for use in electric machines, said test/inspection apparatus being coupled to a cutting die (21) on the bench for testing/inspecting off a cutting press special functions (20) or mechanical elements of a cutting die (21) which enable/disable one or more cutting elements of said die, characterized in that it comprises a device (12), which comprises a box-like body (13), in which one or more solenoid valves (14) are arranged for enabling/disabling the actuation of one or more actuators (18) coupled directly to a special functions (20) or mechanical elements of a cutting die (21), one or more timing devices (15) connected to said one or more solenoid valves (14) for activating/deactivating them, and a power supply (16) for supplying power to said at least one solenoid valve (14) and said at least one timer (15).

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the actuators (18) comprise a double-acting piston.

3. The apparatus according to claim 2, characterized in that the pistons are of the pneumatic type.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the at least one solenoid valve (14) is connected to at least one actuator (18) by means of compressed air pipes (17) and is connected to the at least one timer (15) by means of cables (19).

5. The apparatus according to claim 4, characterized in that the solenoid valve (14) opens and closes the compressed air circuit as a function of the number and sequence of pulses selected by the timer (15) for an activation/deactivation of the actuator (18) synchronized with the number of pulses selected by the timer itself.

6. The apparatus according to claim 4, characterized in that the at least one timer (15) activates/deactivates the at least one solenoid valve (14) by means of an electrical pulse of on/off type to the solenoid valve (14), said current pulse being adjustable in time by adjusting the number of pulses per minute.

7. The apparatus according to claim 4, characterized in that the number of timers (15) is functional to the number of solenoid valves (14), which corresponds to the number of actuators 18 which is corresponding to the number of special functions (20) or mechanical elements of a cutting die to be tested.

Description

[0018] The constructional and functional features of the test/inspection apparatus for dies according to the present invention may be better understood from the detailed description which follows in which reference is made to the appended drawings which illustrate a preferred and non-limiting embodiment thereof and in which:

[0019] FIG. 1 diagrammatically shows an element of the die test/inspection apparatus of the present invention;

[0020] FIG. 2 diagrammatically shows a cutting die to which the test/inspection apparatus of the invention is coupled;

[0021] FIG. 3 diagrammatically shows the activation of a special function.

[0022] With reference to the above figures, the die testing/inspection apparatus of the present invention, indicated by reference numeral 10 as a whole in the figures, is defined by a device 12, which comprises a box-like body 13 inside which the functional components for the operation of the apparatus are arranged, which comprise one or more solenoid valves 14, one or more timing devices 15 connected to said one or more solenoid valves 14, and a power supply 16 for supplying said at least one solenoid valve 14 and at least one timing device 15.

[0023] The at least one solenoid valve 14 is connected to the at least one actuator 18 by means of compressed air pipes 17 and to the at least one timer 15 by means of cables 19.

[0024] The at least one actuator 18 is preferably defined by a double-acting piston, typically of pneumatic type and is directly connected to a special function 20 of a cutting die 21.

[0025] The single solenoid valve 14 controls the opening and closing of a compressed air circuit to activate/deactivate the actuation of at least one actuator 18.

[0026] The function the at of least one timer 15 is to enable/disable the at least one solenoid valve 14 and, consequently, enable/disable the operation of the at least one actuator 18.

[0027] More in particular, the timer 15 sends an on/off type electrical pulse to the solenoid valve 14, which, in turn, controls the activation/deactivation of the actuator 18; the current pulse of the timer is adjustable over time by adjusting the number of pulses per minute according to the specific testing requirements of the special functions.

[0028] The solenoid valve 14 opens and closes the compressed air circuit according to the number and sequence of pulses selected by the timer 15, so that the actuator is activated and deactivated synchronized with the number of pulses selected by the same timer, with said actuator activating and deactivating the special function 20 of the cutting die 21 according to said pulses.

[0029] The number of timers 15 is functional to the number of solenoid valves 14, the number of which, in turn, corresponds to the number of actuators 18, which correspond to the number of special functions to be tested.

[0030] The advantages that the test/inspection apparatus for dies of the present invention achieves are apparent from the foregoing description.

[0031] The die test/inspection apparatus of the present invention advantageously allows the special functions of a die to be tested on the bench, i.e., off the cutting press, with a considerable and important reduction in testing time; in particular, the apparatus of the invention allows the mechanical components, which are part of a special function of a die, to be tested on the bench and, thereby, reduces the probability of breakage of the special function being processed and, consequently, reduces the number of tests (which has repercussion on costs).

[0032] A further advantage of the apparatus of the invention is that it allows predicting some critical components that are part of the special function; indeed, the apparatus of the invention allows performing mechanical tests on the special functions of a die which, being movable components, are more subject to wear and fatigue, and by means of the testing apparatus, it is possible to predict the criticalities to which the die might be subjected in the course of production procedures.

[0033] Further advantageous is that the test/inspection apparatus of the invention allows the performance of stress tests or fatigue or wear tests of the special functions of a die to predict the production behavior of the die; indeed, by means of the at least one timer, it is possible to select the desired number of pulses per minute while also simulating possible speed conditions as well as cutting conditions.

[0034] Although the invention has been described above with particular reference to an embodiment thereof, given by way of non-limiting embodiment, many modifications and variations will be apparent to a person skilled in the art in light the above description. Therefore, the present invention aims to encompass all modifications and variants falling within the scope of the following claims.