CHUCK ADAPTED FOR AUTOMATED COUPLING

Abstract

A chuck for clamping workpieces or tools in a clamping space with a clamping force (F). The chuck includes at least two chuck jaws movable in translation along one clamping plane (E) in the direction of one center Z of the clamping space and a gear train located at least largely within the chuck for transfer of a driving torque of a drive motor, which can be coupled to the gear train by coupling means of the gear train, to the chuck jaws for movement of the chuck jaws. The coupling means able to be coupled to a corresponding coupling connection of the drive motor. The movement from the maximum size of the clamping space to the minimum size of the clamping space is executed via the gear train from the drive motor.

Claims

1. A chuck for clamping of workpieces or tools in a clamping space with a clamping force, the chuck comprising: at least two chuck jaws moveable in translation along a clamping plane in a direction of a center of the clamping space, the clamping space defined by faces of the chuck jaws; and a torque transfer member including coupling means, said torque transfer member located at least largely within the chuck for transferring a driving torque produced by a drive member which can be coupled to the torque transfer member by the coupling means to drive movement of the chuck jaws, wherein the clamping space is changeable solely by operation of the drive member via the torque transfer member and movement of the at least two chucks, the at least two chuck jaws moveable between a position defining a clamping space having a maximum size and a position defining a clamping space having a minimum size, wherein the coupling means of the torque transfer member is able to be coupled by automation to a corresponding coupling connection of the drive member, and wherein an opening width between the at least two chuck jaws and/or the clamping force is directly adjustable by operation of the drive member.

2. The chuck as claimed in claim 1, wherein the torque transfer member is a gear train.

3. The chuck as claimed in claim 2, wherein the chuck is purely mechanical.

4. The chuck as claimed in claim 1, wherein the drive member is a drive motor.

5. The chuck as claimed in claim 4, wherein the drive motor is a servomotor.

6. The chuck as claimed in claim 5, wherein current and voltage can be continuously read out via the servomotor.

7. The chuck as claimed in claim 4, wherein the drive motor is torque-controlled and/or position controlled.

8. The chuck as claimed in claim 1, wherein a clamping space is provided at a front side of the chuck and coupling means are provided at a back side of the chuck facing away from the front side of the chuck.

9. The chuck as claimed in claim 1, wherein the coupling means includes an elastically mounted drive shaft with a coupling element that acts positively and is located at a back side of the chuck, said coupling element for positive engagement with a corresponding coupling element of the drive member.

10. The chuck as claimed in claim 9, wherein the corresponding coupling element of the drive member is a component of a motor shaft.

11. The chuck as claimed in claim 9, wherein the coupling element is an internal tooth system provided on a drive side of the drive shaft.

12. The chuck as claimed in claim 1, wherein the coupling means include mechanical alignment means for automatic alignment when the chuck is coupled to the drive member.

13. The chuck as claimed in claim 12, wherein the mechanical alignment means includes at least one peripherally closed and/or ring-shaped approach bevel that surrounds a drive shaft of the coupling means.

14. A replaceable chuck system comprising: a chuck for clamping of workpieces or tools in a clamping space with a clamping force, the chuck comprising: at least two chuck jaws movable in translation along a clamping plane in a direction of a center of the clamping space, the clamping space defined by faces of the chuck jaws; and a torque transfer member including coupling means, said torque transfer member located at least largely within the chuck for transferring a driving torque produced by a drive member which can be coupled to the torque transfer member by the coupling means to drive movement of the chuck jaws, wherein the clamping space is changeable solely by operation of the drive member via the torque transfer member and movement of the at least two chucks, the at least two chuck jaws moveable between a position defining a clamping space having a maximum size and a position defining a clamping space having a minimum size, wherein the coupling means of the torque transfer member is able to be coupled by automation to a corresponding coupling connection of the drive member, and wherein an opening width between the at least two chuck jaws and/or the clamping force is directly adjustable by operation of the drive member, a chuck receiver for accommodating the chuck and/or the drive member; and a replacement means for replacing the chuck.

15. The replaceable chuck system as claimed in claim 14, wherein a motor shaft is elastically mounted in the chuck receiver.

16. The replaceable chuck system as claimed in claim 14, wherein the replacement means includes a robot arm.

17. The replaceable chuck system as claimed in claim 14, wherein the torque transfer member is a gear train.

18. The replaceable chuck system as claimed in claim 14, wherein the drive member is a drive motor.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0025] FIG. 1 shows a sectional view of a first embodiment of a chuck as claimed in the invention and a chuck receiver and

[0026] FIG. 2 shows a second embodiment of a chuck as claimed in the invention and a chuck receiver.

[0027] The same components or components with same action are provided with the same reference numbers in the figures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0028] FIG. 1 top shows a chuck 1 which can be accommodated on a chuck receiver 13 which is shown underneath in order to couple the chuck 1 to a drive motor 20 which is connected to the shaft.

[0029] On its front 1v the chuck 1 has several chuck jaws 2 which can be moved linearly or in translation along a clamping plane E by a spiral ring 3 which is located underneath the chuck jaws 2. The spiral ring 3 with a spiral 3s which is located on its surface 3o engages corresponding guide grooves 2f of the chuck jaws. The chuck jaws 2 are linearly guided by linear guides 4.

[0030] On a bottom 3u of the spiral ring 3 is a crown tooth system 3k which extends over the entire periphery of the spiral ring 3 on its bottom 3u. The crown tooth system 3k of the spiral ring 3 is a component of a purely mechanical gear train for transfer of a driving torque of the drive motor 20 which can be coupled to the gear train to the chuck jaws 2. Furthermore a component of the gear train is a splined shaft 5 which acts as an output shaft and which engages the crown tooth system 3k of the spiral ring 3 in order to set the spiral ring 3 into rotation. The chuck jaws 2 are uniformly moved in translation by the rotation of the spiral ring 3.

[0031] On the drive side the splined shaft 5 has a bevel gear 7 and the splined shaft 5 is mounted in a ball bearing 6; this constitutes the ideal manner of mounting. There are simpler versions as bearings or friction bearings. The axis R of rotation of the splined shaft 5 is parallel to the clamping plane E and via another bevel gear 9 of a drive shaft 8, which gear engages the bevel gear 7 of the splined shaft 5, the rotary drive motion is transformed into one longitudinal axis L of the chuck 1, which axis in this embodiment is orthogonal to the axis R of rotation or to the clamping plane E and moreover lies in the center of the chuck 1 which here coincides with the center Z of the clamping space 21. The axis of rotation of the drive shaft 8 coincides with the longitudinal axis L.

[0032] The drive shaft 8 is in turn ball-mounted and on the drive side has an internal tooth system 11 which is provided in a hole 12 and which is located in the interior of the chuck 1.

[0033] The drive shaft 8 on the drive sides ends in a recess 24 which is used at least partially as alignment means 22 for automatic alignment when the chuck 1 is coupled to the drive motor 20 or the chuck receiver 13. To do this, there is a ring-shaped approach bevel 23 which surrounds the drive shaft 8 and which acts as alignment means 22 during coupling with a corresponding ring-shaped approach bevel 25 of a projection 26 in the form of a tongue-in-groove connection.

[0034] A coupling 10 between the chuck 1 and the drive motor 20 or the chuck receiver 13 has not only the internal tooth system 11 which is provided in the hole 12, but also a head tooth system 16 which is provided on one coupling element 15, both of which are provided on the motor shaft 14. Furthermore, the motor shaft 14 as a coupling connection in addition to the coupling element 15 and the head tooth system 16 has a sleeve 17 on which there is a head tooth system 16 and which is used as a coupling element 15. In the sleeve 17 a helical spring 18 is guided against whose spring force the motor shaft 14 is supported. The maximum movement of the sleeve 17 relative to the motor shaft 14 is limited by a pin 19 which is guided in a slot 27.

[0035] The motor shaft 14 is driven by the servomotor 20.

[0036] The servomotor 20 thus on the one hand drives the motor shaft 14 via the coupling 10, the drive shaft 8 and the splined shaft 5 coupled to it and thus the spiral ring 3 as well as the chuck jaws 2. On the other hand, the current and voltage can be continuously read out via the servomotor so that for resistance on the chuck jaws 2 by a workpiece, via the output of the servomotor 20 or the change of the current curve and/or voltage curve, control/adjustment of the clamping force F is enabled after prior calibration of the servomotor 20 to the chuck 1. Instead of a servomotor 20, a drive motor can also be used which has mechanical/electrical feedback.

[0037] FIG. 2 shows a chuck 1 of a vise which has two jaws 2 between whose faces 2s and the opening width D the clamping space 21 is formed in which workpieces can be clamped. A translational movement of the jaws 2 along the clamping plane E takes place via a spindle 32 which on the output side translationally moves one of the two chuck jaws 2 as soon as the spindle 32 rotates. The rotation of the spindle 32 takes place on the output side by a chain drive 31 which is coupled to the spindle 32, the chain drive 31 on the drive side being driven by a shaft 33. The shaft 33 is in turn driven by a bevel gear 34 on a gear 35 of the shaft 33. The bevel gear 34 is located on the output side on a drive shaft 8 which is made on the drive side analogously to the embodiment shown in FIG. 1.

[0038] The chuck receiver 13 and the drive motor 20 as well as the coupling 10 are made identical to the ones in the first embodiment.

[0039] It is moreover common to the two embodiments as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 that the outside contours of the chuck receiver 13 and of the chuck 1 are flush so that it can be immediately recognized from the outside when the chuck 1 is not sitting correctly on the chuck receiver 13.

[0040] In particular a robot arm is suitable for replacement of the chuck 1.

REFERENCE NUMBER LIST

[0041] 1, 1 chuck

[0042] 1v, 1v front

[0043] 1r, 1r back

[0044] 2, 2 chuck jaw

[0045] 2s, 2s face

[0046] 2f guide grooves

[0047] 3 spiral ring

[0048] 3o top

[0049] 3k crown tooth system

[0050] 3s spiral

[0051] 4 linear guides

[0052] 5 splined shaft

[0053] 6 ball bearing

[0054] 7 bevel gear

[0055] 8, 8 drive shaft

[0056] 9 bevel gear

[0057] 10 coupling

[0058] 11 internal tooth system

[0059] 12 hole

[0060] 13 chuck receiver

[0061] 14 motor shaft

[0062] 15 coupling element

[0063] 16 head tooth system

[0064] 17 sleeve

[0065] 18 spring

[0066] 19 pin

[0067] 20 servomotor

[0068] 21 clamping space

[0069] 22 alignment means

[0070] 23 approach bevel

[0071] 24 recesses

[0072] 25 approach bevel

[0073] 26 projection

[0074] 27 slot

[0075] 31 chain drive

[0076] 32 spindle

[0077] 33 shaft

[0078] 34 bevel gear

[0079] 35 gear

[0080] E clamping plane

[0081] F clamping force

[0082] D opening width

[0083] Z center

[0084] R axis of rotation

[0085] L longitudinal axis