Patent Description:
Conventionally, to a workpiece support table of a thermal processing machine such as a laser processing machine or a plasma processing machine, a plurality of plate-like workpiece support members are provided as supporting members for supporting a bottom surface of a sheet metal (workpiece) to be processed. The plurality of workpiece support members are arranged in a side-by-side manner at predetermined intervals on the workpiece support table with each plate surface thereof being perpendicular to a floor surface.

When the workpiece to be processed is placed on the workpiece support table on which the plurality of such workpiece support members are arranged, the upper end portion of each workpiece support member comes into contact with the bottom surface of the workpiece so that the workpiece is supported. <CIT> discloses a skid table for a finishing machine for supporting a lower surface of a workpiece with a tip of a supporting projected part of an upper end edge of a skid plate. The skid plate located in a position supporting the workpiece is arranged as the skid plate of the uppermost stage, and at its lower side, the skid plate to be used next is overlapped and arranged in a vertically standing posture and in such a state that the upper end edge of a lower skid plate is abutted to the lower end edge of an upper skid plate.

It is necessary to replace the above-described workpiece support members as appropriate because damage, which is caused by thermal processing to the supported workpiece, is unavoidable. At this time, if the workpiece support members are each composed of a single member, it is necessary to replace the entire member each time a workpiece support member is replaced, which causes problems that production cost is required and labor for replacement work is required.

This object is achieved with a workpiece support member according to claim <NUM>. One aspect of the present invention provides a workpiece support member for a thermal processing machine in which a portion that supports a workpiece to be thermally processed can be replaced efficiently and easily.

One aspect of the present invention is a workpiece support member for a thermal processing machine that is installed on a workpiece support table to support a workpiece to be thermally processed, and includes a base member formed of a plate-like member in a horizontally long shape and provided with a plurality of protruding supporting member attachment parts at predetermined distance intervals on an upper part thereof and a supporting member formed of a plate-like member of a carbon fiber in a horizontally long shape and installed in an attachable and removable state with a lower side thereof fitted alternately to a front surface and a rear surface in a front-rear direction, when the horizontally long direction is taken as the left-right direction, of each of the adjacent supporting member attachment parts of the base member.

According to one aspect of the present invention, it is possible to provide a workpiece support member for a thermal processing machine in which a portion that supports a workpiece to be thermally processed can be replaced efficiently and easily.

Hereinafter, a laser processing machine, which is a thermal processing machine, that uses a workpiece support table on which a workpiece support member according to one embodiment is installed will be described with reference to the attached drawings.

<FIG> is an external perspective view showing a laser processing machine <NUM> that uses a workpiece support member <NUM> of a thermal processing machine according to one embodiment. The laser processing machine <NUM> according to the present embodiment performs cutting processing, and as shown in <FIG>, a workpiece support table <NUM> for installing a workpiece W to be thermally processed is provided on a device base <NUM>. On the workpiece support table <NUM>, a plurality of workpiece support members <NUM> that support the workpiece W to be processed are arranged in the X direction. The material and shape of the respective workpiece support members <NUM> will be described later.

The laser processing machine <NUM> includes a gate-type frame <NUM> arranged in such a manner as to straddle the workpiece support table <NUM>. The frame <NUM> includes side frames <NUM> and <NUM> and an upper frame <NUM>.

A carriage <NUM> that is movable in the Y direction is provided in the upper frame <NUM>. A laser head <NUM> that emits a laser is attached to the carriage <NUM>. The laser head <NUM> is configured to move arbitrarily in the X and Y directions above the workpiece W when the frame <NUM> is moved in the X direction by a dedicated drive system (not shown) and the carriage <NUM> is moved in the Y direction by a dedicated drive system (not shown).

An NC device (numerical control device) <NUM> for controlling the laser processing machine <NUM> is attached to the frame <NUM>. The NC device <NUM> controls the laser processing machine <NUM> according to processing data (NC data: numerical controlling data) for processing the workpiece W. The NC device <NUM> is a control device that controls the laser processing machine <NUM>.

The workpiece W is cut when the laser head <NUM> irradiates the workpiece W with the laser while moving in the X direction or the Y direction by the frame <NUM> and the carriage <NUM>, under the control of the NC device <NUM>.

The workpiece support member <NUM> that is installed on the workpiece support table <NUM> will be described. Since damage caused by thermal processing to the supported workpiece W is unavoidable, it is necessary to replace the workpiece support member <NUM> as appropriate. At this time, production cost can be suppressed by configuring the workpiece support member <NUM> such that only a member of the damaged portion can be partially replaced.

As first and second configuration examples of the workpiece support member <NUM> in which a member can be partially replaced, but which does not conform to the invention, a workpiece support member 30A shown in <FIG> and a workpiece support member 30B shown in <FIG> will be described.

<FIG> shows the workpiece support member 30A that is the first configuration example of the workpiece support member, and does not conform to the invention. <FIG> is an external perspective view of the workpiece support member 30A, and <FIG> is a side view of the workpiece support member 30A. The workpiece support member 30A is formed of a base member <NUM> composed of a plate-like member made of a metal in a horizontally long shape, and a plate-like member of a carbon fiber. The workpiece support member 30A includes a plurality of supporting members 33a, 33b, 33c, 33d, and 33e connected to the upper portion of the base member <NUM> by connecting members <NUM>. The carbon fiber constituting the base member <NUM> will be described later. <FIG> shows a case in which the number of supporting members connected to the base member <NUM> is five, but the number is not limited to this. The number of supporting members may be two or more, and may be one if partial replacement is not performed.

Each of the supporting members 33a to 33e is composed of a long plate-like member including a long side shorter than that of the base member <NUM>, and as shown in <FIG>, is installed continuously along the upper side of the base member <NUM> in the lateral direction. <FIG> shows a case in which each of the supporting members 33a to 33e is connected to the base member <NUM> by three connecting members <NUM>, but the number of the connecting members <NUM> is not limited to this.

When the workpiece W to be processed is placed on the workpiece support table <NUM> on which a plurality of the workpiece support members 30A described above are arranged, the upper ends of the supporting members 33a to 33e of each workpiece support member 30A come into contact with the bottom surface of the workpiece W so that the workpiece W is supported. Then, the laser processing machine <NUM> executes the thermal processing to the supported workpiece W.

When the thermal processing is executed on the workpiece support table <NUM>, any of the supporting members 33a to 33e of any of the workpiece support members 30A may be damaged. In this case, an operator detaches only a damaged supporting member of the corresponding workpiece support member 30A from the connecting member <NUM> and attaches a new supporting member for replacement. As a result, the workpiece support table <NUM> can be maintained in an appropriate state.

Next, a workpiece support member 30B will be described. <FIG> shows the workpiece support member 30B that is the second configuration example of the workpiece support member, and does not conform to the invention. <FIG> is an external perspective view of the workpiece support member B, and <FIG> is a side view of the workpiece support member B. The workpiece support member 30B includes a base member <NUM> composed of a plate-like member made of a metal in a horizontally long shape and a plurality of supporting members 35a, 35b, 35c, 35d, and 35e composed of a plate-like member of a carbon fiber and installed at the upper portion of the base member <NUM>.

Each of the supporting members 35a to 35e is composed of a long plate-like member including a long side shorter than that of the base member <NUM>, and groove portions 351a to 351e into which the base member <NUM> can be fitted are respectively formed on the long side at the bottom part. These supporting members 35a to 35e are installed continuously in the lateral direction as shown in <FIG> by fitting the upper side of the base member <NUM> into the respective groove portions 351a to 351e.

When the workpiece W to be processed is placed on the workpiece support table <NUM> on which a plurality of the workpiece support members 30B described above are arranged, the upper ends of the supporting members 35a to 35e of each workpiece support member 30B come into contact with the bottom surface of the workpiece W so that the workpiece W is supported. Then, the laser processing machine executes the thermal processing to the workpiece W.

When any of the supporting members 35a to 35e of any of the workpiece support member 30B is damaged, the operator detaches only a damaged supporting member of the corresponding workpiece support member 30B from the base member <NUM> and attaches a new supporting member for replacement. As a result, the workpiece support table <NUM> can be maintained in an appropriate state.

By using the workpiece support member 30A or the workpiece support member 30B as described above for the workpiece support table <NUM>, it is possible to replace only the damaged supporting member and to regenerate the workpiece support member efficiently.

However, if the workpiece support member 30A is repeatedly used, the connecting members <NUM> and the supporting members 33a to 33e may come into contact with each other and wear or deformation is caused in any of the members, resulting in rattling of a connecting mechanism thereof. In the similar manner, if the workpiece support member 30B is repeatedly used, rattling may be caused in a connecting mechanism between the groove portions 351a to 351e and the base member <NUM>.

Further, since the workpiece support member 30A uses the connecting members <NUM>, the number of constituent members is large, which results in high production cost and high cost required for an attachment work. In addition, the workpiece support member 30B requires labor and production cost for processing the groove portions 351a to 351e when the supporting members 35a to 35e are produced.

A workpiece support member <NUM>, which is a third configuration example configured to solve these problems, will be described. <FIG> is an external perspective view of the workpiece support member <NUM> that is the third configuration example of the workpiece support member and a first embodiment of the invention. The workpiece support member <NUM>, which is the third configuration example, is installed on the workpiece support table <NUM> to support the workpiece W to be thermally processed, and includes a base member <NUM> formed of a plate-like member in a horizontally long shape and provided with a plurality of protruding supporting member attachment parts <NUM> to <NUM> at predetermined distance intervals on an upper portion thereof, and supporting members <NUM> to <NUM> formed of a plate-like member in a horizontally long shape and installed in an attachable and removable state with a lower side thereof fitted alternately to a front surface and a rear surface of each of the adjacent supporting member attachment parts <NUM> to <NUM> of the base member <NUM>. The supporting members <NUM> to <NUM> are formed of a carbon fiber. The supporting members <NUM> to <NUM> are each formed in a horizontally long shape including a long side shorter than that of the base member <NUM>, and are installed in multiple numbers on the base member <NUM>.

Hereinafter, the workpiece support member <NUM>, which is the third configuration example, will be described in detail. As shown in <FIG>, the workpiece support member <NUM> includes the base member <NUM> formed of a plate-like member made of a metal in a horizontally long shape, and the plurality of supporting members <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM> each formed of a plate-like member of a carbon fiber in a horizontally long shape including a long side shorter than that of the base member <NUM> and set up in a side-by-side manner on an upper part of the base member <NUM>.

The base member <NUM> is provided with the plurality of protruding supporting member attachment parts <NUM> to <NUM> at predetermined distance intervals narrower than those of the long sides of the supporting members <NUM> to <NUM>.

Specifically, the supporting member attachment part <NUM> is provided at one end of the upper portion of the base member <NUM>, and the supporting member attachment part <NUM> is provided at a position of the <NUM>/<NUM> length of the base member <NUM> from the end portion. Further, the supporting member attachment part <NUM> is provided at a position of the <NUM>/<NUM> length of the base member <NUM> from the end portion. The supporting member attachment part <NUM> is provided at a position of the <NUM>/<NUM> length of the base member <NUM> from the end portion. The supporting member attachment part <NUM> is provided at a position of the <NUM>/<NUM> length of the base member <NUM> from the end portion. The supporting member attachment part <NUM> is provided at a position of the <NUM>/<NUM> length of the base member <NUM> from the end portion. Further, the supporting member attachment part <NUM> is provided at the other end.

The supporting members <NUM> to <NUM> are each formed by cutting out a thin plate, which is obtained by plain weave of a string-shaped carbon fiber, for example, a C/C composite (carbon fiber reinforced carbon composite) material, into a long shape. Plain weave is a method of weaving in which fibers are crossed vertically and horizontally one by one. Note that the method of weaving the carbon fiber may be satin weave, twill weave, crepe weave, or irregular weave, as long as the fiber is woven in any structure. Since the C/C composite material is reinforced by impregnating the woven carbon fiber with various substances, elasticity is generated when the C/C composite material is formed in a thin plate shape.

The supporting members <NUM> to <NUM> are each formed in a horizontally long shape including a long side of about <NUM>/<NUM> of the long side of the base member <NUM>. Then, by utilizing the elasticity of the carbon fiber, each lower side is fitted so as to be alternately caught in the front surface and the rear surface of the plurality of adjacent supporting member attachment parts of the base member <NUM>.

Specifically, by the operator for the attachment work, the left end of the lower side of the supporting member <NUM> is caught in the front surface of the supporting member attachment part <NUM> of the base member <NUM>, the vicinity of the center thereof is caught in the rear surface of the supporting member attachment part <NUM> thereof, and the right end thereof is caught in the front surface of the supporting member attachment part <NUM> thereof, so that the supporting member <NUM> is fitted into the base member <NUM>. Further, the left end of the lower side of the supporting member <NUM> is caught in the front surface of the supporting member attachment part <NUM>, the vicinity of the center thereof is caught in the rear surface of the supporting member attachment part <NUM> thereof, and the right end thereof is caught in the front surface of the supporting member attachment part <NUM> thereof, so that the supporting member <NUM> is fitted into the base member <NUM>. Further, the left end of the lower side of the supporting member <NUM> is caught in the front surface of the supporting member attachment part <NUM> thereof, the vicinity of the center thereof is caught in the rear surface of the supporting member attachment part <NUM> thereof, and the right end thereof is caught in the front surface of the supporting member attachment part <NUM> thereof, so that the supporting member <NUM> is fitted into the base member <NUM>.

When the supporting members <NUM> to <NUM> are fitted into the base member <NUM> in this manner, the supporting members <NUM> to <NUM> hold the supporting member attachment parts <NUM> to <NUM> of the base member <NUM> by the elastic force, thereby allowing the supporting member attachment parts <NUM> to <NUM> to be attached in a stable state without rattling. Note that the supporting members <NUM> to <NUM> can be held as long as the supporting member attachment parts <NUM> to <NUM> are made of a material having an elastic property. Therefore, even if the supporting members <NUM> to <NUM> are formed of a conventional iron-based material or aluminum-based material, or copper-based material that is expensive, it is possible to attach the supporting member attachment parts <NUM> to <NUM> in a stable state. In the above-described embodiment, the string-shaped carbon fiber is used for the supporting members <NUM> to <NUM> because the string-shaped carbon fiber enables the supporting members <NUM> to <NUM> to be less likely weld to the workpiece W when the workpiece W is laser-cut and enables a dross generated when the workpiece W is cut to less likely adhere to the workpiece W, and the string-shaped carbon fiber is an elastic body.

A plurality of the workpiece support members <NUM> described above are arranged on the workpiece support table <NUM>, and while the workpiece W to be processed is placed on the workpiece support table <NUM>, the thermal processing is performed to the workpiece W. When any of the supporting members is damaged by the thermal processing, the operator pulls the corresponding supporting member of the corresponding workpiece support member <NUM> upward and removes the supporting member from the base member <NUM>. Then, a new supporting member is caught in the supporting member attachment part at the corresponding location to be attached. In this manner, each of the supporting members <NUM> to <NUM> is configured to be easily attached to and removed from the base member <NUM>.

By using the workpiece support member <NUM> described above for the workpiece support table <NUM>, it is possible to replace only the damaged supporting member and efficiently regenerate the workpiece support member in a stable structure. Since the supporting member to be produced as a replacement member has a simple structure, the supporting member can be easily produced by blanking, which can suppress the production cost.

In the workpiece support member <NUM> according to the third configuration example described above, by forming the supporting members <NUM> to <NUM> with the carbon fiber, it is possible to prevent metal, which is molten from the workpiece W during the thermal processing, from adhering. However, when the workpiece W is thick, the amount of the metal melted from the workpiece W during the processing is large. Therefore, there is a possibility that the dross adheres to a bottom surface of the workpiece W and sandwiches the workpiece support member <NUM> from above, resulting in the molten metal adhering to the supporting members <NUM> to <NUM>.

If the molten metal is adhered in this manner, the workpiece W and the supporting members <NUM> to <NUM> are in a state of being connected by the molten metal, and when the processed workpiece W is lifted by a forklift or the like, the corresponding supporting members <NUM> to <NUM> are also pulled upward. When the supporting members <NUM> to <NUM> are pulled upward, the supporting members <NUM> to <NUM> come off from the base member <NUM>, which causes inconvenience.

A workpiece support member <NUM>, which is a fourth configuration example configured to avoid this inconvenience, will be described. <FIG> is an external perspective view of the workpiece support member <NUM> that is the fourth configuration example of the workpiece support member, and second embodiment of the invention.

The workpiece support member <NUM> includes a base member <NUM> formed of a plate-like member made of a metal in a horizontally long shape, and a plurality of supporting members <NUM> and <NUM> each formed of a plate-like member of a carbon fiber in a horizontally long shape including a long side shorter than that of the base member <NUM> and set up in a side-by-side manner at an upper portion of the base member <NUM>. <FIG> show the workpiece support member <NUM> that is the fourth configuration example of the workpiece support member in the second embodiment. <FIG> is a front view of the base member <NUM>, and <FIG> is a front view of the supporting members <NUM> and <NUM>. The supporting members <NUM> and <NUM> of the workpiece support member <NUM>, which is the fourth configuration example, includes insertion holes 421a, 421b, 422a, and 422b at a lower part thereof, and the base member <NUM> includes hook portions <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM> to be caught in the insertion holes 421a, 421b, 422a and 422b.

Hereinafter, the workpiece support member <NUM>, which is the fourth configuration example, will be described in detail. As shown in <FIG> and <FIG>, the base member <NUM> includes, at the upper part thereof, the protruding hook portions <NUM> and <NUM> provided at corresponding positions of both ends of the supporting member <NUM> to be installed, and the hook portions <NUM> and <NUM> provided at corresponding positions of both ends of the supporting member <NUM>. Further, the base member <NUM> includes supporting member attachment parts <NUM> and <NUM> provided between the hook portion <NUM> and the hook portion <NUM>, and supporting member attachment parts <NUM> and <NUM> provided between the hook portion <NUM> and the hook portion <NUM>. <FIG> and <FIG> show a case in which there are two supporting member attachment parts provided between the hook portion <NUM> and the hook portion <NUM>, and two supporting member attachment parts provided between the hook portion <NUM> and the hook portion <NUM>. However, the number of the supporting member attachment parts is not limited to this, and may be one, or three or more.

The supporting member <NUM> is formed in a horizontally long shape including a long side of about <NUM>/<NUM> of the long side of the base member <NUM>, and includes the insertion holes 421a and 421b at both ends of the lower part thereof as shown in <FIG>. In the same manner, the supporting member <NUM> also includes the insertion holes 422a and 422b at both ends of the lower part thereof. Then, by utilizing the elasticity of the carbon fiber, the hook portions are inserted into the insertion holes at the both ends in a state in which the respective lower sides are caught in the supporting member attachment parts of the base member <NUM>.

Specifically, by the operator for the attachment work, the hook portion <NUM> of the base member <NUM> is inserted into the insertion hole 421a at the left end of the lower side of the supporting member <NUM>. Then, the central portion of the lower side is alternately caught in the front surface of the supporting member attachment part <NUM> and the rear surface of the supporting member attachment part <NUM>. Further, the hook portion <NUM> is inserted into the insertion hole 421b at the right end of the lower side, so that the supporting member <NUM> is fitted into the base member <NUM>.

Further, the hook portion <NUM> of the base member <NUM> is inserted into the insertion hole 422a at the left end of the lower side of the supporting member <NUM>. Then, the central portion of the lower side is alternately caught in the rear surface of the supporting member attachment part <NUM> and the front surface of the supporting member attachment part <NUM>. Further, the hook portion <NUM> is inserted into the insertion hole 422b at the right end of the lower side, so that the supporting member <NUM> is fitted into the base member <NUM>.

When the supporting members <NUM> and <NUM> are fitted into the base member <NUM> in this manner, the hook portions <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM> are caught in the insertion holes 421a, 421b, 422a, and 422b, respectively. Further, the supporting member attachment parts <NUM> and <NUM> are held by the lower side of the supporting member <NUM>, and the supporting member attachment parts <NUM> and <NUM> are held by the lower side of the supporting member <NUM>. As a result, the supporting members <NUM> and <NUM> are attached to the base member <NUM> in a stable state without being detached from the base member <NUM> even if the supporting members <NUM> and <NUM> are pulled upward.

A plurality of the workpiece support members <NUM> described above are arranged on the workpiece support table <NUM>, and while the workpiece W to be processed is placed on the workpiece support table <NUM>, the thermal processing is performed to the workpiece W. When any of the supporting members is damaged by the thermal processing, the operator detaches the hook portion of the corresponding supporting member of the corresponding workpiece support member <NUM> from the insertion hole and pulls the supporting member upward, so that the supporting member is removed. Then, while the new supporting member is being caught in the supporting member attachment part, the hook portion is inserted into the insertion hole at the corresponding location so as to be attached. In this manner, each of the supporting members <NUM> and <NUM> is configured to be easily attached to and removed from the base member <NUM>.

By using the workpiece support member <NUM> as described above for the workpiece support table <NUM>, it is possible to prevent the supporting members <NUM> and <NUM> from coming off from the base member <NUM> when the workpiece W is lifted even if the upper parts of the supporting members <NUM> and <NUM> of the workpiece support member <NUM> are sandwiched by the molten metal of the workpiece W during the thermal processing.

The present invention is not limited to the first and second embodiments described above, and various modifications can be made without departing from the invention, which is defined by the claims.

Claim 1:
A workpiece support member (<NUM>, 30A, 30B, <NUM>, <NUM>) for a thermal processing machine (<NUM>), the workpiece support member (<NUM>) being installed on a workpiece support table (<NUM>) to support a workpiece (W) to be thermally processed, comprising:
a base member (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>) formed of a plate-like member in a horizontally long shape, and provided with a plurality of protruding supporting member attachment parts (<NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>) at predetermined distance intervals on an upper part thereof; and
a supporting member (33a, 33b, 33c, 33d, 33e, 35a, 35b, 35c, 35d, 35e, <NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>) formed of a plate-like member in a horizontally long shape, and installed in an attachable and removable state with a lower side thereof fitted alternately to a front surface and a rear surface in a front-rear direction, when the horizontally long direction is taken as the left-right direction, of each of the adjacent supporting member attachment parts (<NUM>-<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>) of the base member (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>).