Electrode orientation checking apparatus and electrode orientation checking method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11440128-B2
Application number	US-201916724611-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 23, 2019
Priority date	Jan 9, 2019
Publication date	Sep 13, 2022
Grant date	Sep 13, 2022

Abstract

An electrode orientation checking apparatus includes a machine stand attached to a seam welding apparatus from which one roller electrode of a set has been removed, a positioning guide and a set of distance sensors that are provided on the machine stand, and a calculating section. A positioning surface of the positioning guide is fixed at a position corresponding to a portion of an outer circumferential surface of the one roller electrode before being removed, the portion lying on a line segment connecting rotational centers of the roller electrodes. The distance sensors are respectively fixed forward and backward of the positioning surface in a progression direction of the roller electrodes. The calculating section calculates data for acquiring a direction of the line segment relative to the stacked body.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An electrode orientation checking method that, for a seam welding apparatus that performs seam welding by sandwiching a stacked body comprising a plurality of stacked workpieces between a first roller electrode and a second roller electrode, checks an orientation of the first roller electrode and the second roller electrode to the stacked body, the electrode orientation checking method comprising:
a fixing step of detachably attaching a machine stand that includes a positioning guide to the seam welding apparatus from which the first roller electrode has been removed, and fixing a positioning surface of the positioning guide at a position that, when the stacked body is sandwiched between the first roller electrode before being removed and the second roller electrode, corresponds to a portion of an outer circumferential surface of the first roller electrode, the portion lying on a line segment connecting rotational centers of the first roller electrode and the second roller electrode;
a detection step of, with a set of distance sensors provided on the machine stand and respectively fixed farther forward than the positioning surface and farther backward than the positioning surface in a progression direction of the first roller electrode relative to the stacked body, detecting a distance, along an extension direction of the line segment, to the stacked body sandwiched by the positioning surface and the second roller electrode; and
a calculation step of calculating data for acquiring a direction of the line segment relative to the stacked body, based on detection results of the set of distance sensors.

2. The electrode orientation checking method according to claim 1 , wherein
in the fixing step, among the first roller electrode and the second roller electrode, the first roller electrode that is not rotationally driven by a rotational drive mechanism of the seam welding apparatus, is removed from the seam welding apparatus.

3. The electrode orientation checking method according claim to 1 , wherein
in the calculation step, in order to acquire an inclination angle between the extension direction of the line segment and a stacking direction of the stacked body, a difference between absolute values of the detection results of the set of distance sensors is calculated.

4. The electrode orientation checking method according to claim 1 , wherein
in the detection step, the detection by the set of distance sensors is performed continuously while the second roller electrode and the positioning surface are caused to progress relative to the stacked body, and
in the calculation step, the difference between the absolute values of the detection results of the set of distance sensors, being associated with elapsed time from when the second roller electrode and the positioning surface start progressing relative to the stacked body, is calculated continuously, based on the detection results of the set of distance sensors.

5. The electrode orientation checking method according to claim 1 , wherein
in the detection step, the detection by the set of distance sensors is performed continuously while the seam welding apparatus is operated using design teaching data that is set based on a design value of a shape of the stacked body and that indicates a positional relationship between the first roller electrode and the second roller electrode and the stacked body in a case where the difference between the absolute values of the detection results of the set of distance sensors becomes a target value.

Assignees

• Honda Motor Co Ltd

Inventors

• Kawai Yasuhiro
• Igaue Mitsutaka
• Kodama Tetsuya

Classifications

• B23K11/06

  using roller electrodes · CPC title

• B23K11/253 Primary

  the measured parameter being a displacement or a position · CPC title

• B23K11/31 Primary

  Electrode holders {and actuating devices therefor} · CPC title

• B23K11/3036

  Roller electrodes · CPC title

• B23K11/061

  for welding rectilinear seams · CPC title