The present invention relates to a line guiding structure and more particularly to a line guiding structure employed in three-dimension.
There are many lines in various types of mechanical equipment such as cables, air pipes, oil pipes, water pipes, etc. Some of the lines are in movement when the mechanical parts are moving. The lines can be easily damaged by bending during movements. Conventionally, the lines are guided by a tank chain or an energy chain. However, this type of structure in mechanical equipment can only achieve planar guiding. The structure can only be employed in lines which are flexible in nature but not the harder lines which are difficult to be bent.
An objective of the present invention is to provide a line guiding structure which can overcome the drawbacks of the conventional technique by guiding a line in a three-dimensional space.
A technical solution provided by the present invention to overcome the above technical problems includes a line guiding structure for using in a mechanical equipment and a line connected to the mechanical equipment. The line guiding structure comprises: a round guiding shaft, the round guiding shaft comprising a fixing end and an open end disposed oppositely to the fixing end; a fixing unit used for fixing the round guiding shaft and the fixing unit comprising a fixing base and a bearing, the fixing base being disposed on the mechanical equipment, the bearing being disposed in the fixing base and being connected to the fixing end of the round guiding shaft; an elastic element sleeved on the round guiding shaft and the elastic element comprising a first end and a second end disposed oppositely to the first end, the first end being fixed on an end of the round guiding shaft near the fixing end; a linear bearing sleeved on the round guiding shaft and connected to the second end of the elastic element, a connecting piece connected to the linear bearing; and at least one wheel set comprising a fixing plate, a supporting frame connected on the fixing plate and two pulleys disposed on the supporting frame, the fixing plate being connected on the connecting piece, the two pulleys and the round guiding shaft having the same axial direction, a slide hole being formed in a space between two opposite pulley surfaces of the two pulleys for a line to go through.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the mechanical equipment has a first portion and a second portion which can move relatively to the first portion. The line is connected between the first portion and the second portion. The fixing base is disposed on the first portion of the mechanical equipment. Two ends of the line are connected to the first portion and the second portion respectively.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the round guiding shaft is a steel rail.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the elastic element is a retractable spring.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the fixing plate and the connecting piece are screwed together by bolts.
In an embodiment of the present invention, there is a plurality of the wheel sets and each of the wheel sets is disposed on the connecting piece sequentially along the axial direction of the round guiding shaft.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the pulley surfaces of the pulleys are smooth surfaces with a low friction coefficient.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the line includes cable, air pipe, oil pipe and water pipe. The mechanical equipment includes numerical control machine tool, electronic equipment, stone-working machinery, glass-working machinery, door and window machine, injection molding machine, manipulator, heavy-duty transportation equipment and auto-warehouse.
Comparing the conventional techniques with the line guiding structure of the present invention, by employing the round guiding shaft, the elastic element and the linear bearing sleeved on the surface of the round guiding shaft, and the wheel set connected to the linear bearing; the line can slide freely in the slide hole of the wheel set. Furthermore, because the linear bearing can rotate and move upward and downward freely on the round guiding shaft, the line can be guided three-dimensionally instead of the conventional way of dragging on a two-dimensional plane like a tank chain.
The present invention will become more fully understood by reference to the following detailed description thereof when read in conjunction with the attached drawings.
Reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiment of the present disclosure, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
Please refer to
Refer to
In an embodiment of the present invention, the line 20 includes cables, air pipes, oil pipes and water pipes. The mechanical equipment 10 includes numerical control machine tool, electronic equipment, stone-working machinery, glass-working machinery, door and window machine, injection molding machine, manipulator, heavy-duty transportation equipment and auto-warehouse.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the pulley surfaces 3531 of the pulleys 353 are smooth surfaces with a low friction coefficient.
In an embodiment of the present invention, there is a plurality of the wheel sets 35 and each of the wheel sets 35 is disposed on the fixing plate 351′ sequentially along the axial direction of the round guiding shaft 31. The fixing plate 351′ is connected to the connecting piece 341′.
In the line guiding structure 30 of the present invention, by employing the round guiding shaft 31, the elastic element 33 and the linear bearing 34 sleeved on the outer diameter of the round guiding shaft 31, and the wheel set 35 connected to the linear bearing 34; the line 20 can slide freely in the slide hole 354 of the wheel set 35. Furthermore, because the linear bearing 34 can rotate and move upward and downward freely on the round guiding shaft 31, the line 20 can be guided three-dimensionally.
Note that the specifications relating to the above embodiments should be construed as exemplary rather than as limitative of the present invention, with many variations and modifications being readily attainable by a person of average skill in the art without departing from the spirit or scope thereof as defined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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201210092743.7 | Mar 2012 | CN | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
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PCT/CN12/75629 | 5/17/2012 | WO | 00 | 12/10/2012 |