Patent Application
20090188107
1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to modularizing assemblies pertaining to manufacturing or processing mechanical devices. The modular assembly facilitates reducing the difficulty and complexity of assembling mechanical devices and stably positioning the mechanical devices so as to save designing and manufacturing costs for mechanical systems with different individualities.
2. Description of Related Art
Mechanical devices providing different functions may be arranged and assembled into a mechanical system that provides a particular systemic flow path and functions meeting practical needs. Later adjustment or rearrangement may be conducted to fit the assembled mechanical system for specific requirements of processing or manufacturing. Conventionally, existing stages, tracks, combining components and parts are typically adopted to realize the foregoing rearrangement or adjustment under consideration of saving expense of additional equipments. However, in repeated modifications, such existing equipments can consume considerable refitting costs. Moreover, repeated refitting and calibrating are time-consuming while the resultant “pieced-up” mechanical system is inferior in apparent integrity.
For example, a labeling machine at least comprises a conveying device, a label belt feeding device, a labeling device and a pressing device. In operation, a rolled-up label belt is installed in the label belt feeding device, and a plurality of objects to be labeled are transported successively on the conveying device. When a label is fed to the labeling device, one of the objects passing the labeling device is temporarily positioned at a labeling position so that the labeling device can accurately attach the label onto a surface of the object. Then, the label can be further fixed on the surface of the object under a pressure exerted by the pressing device. The devices of the label machine may be frequently rearranged and reassembled for fitting different label sizes, different object sizes, different label sites and so on. In addition, when more devices provide extra functions have to be added at the upstream, midstream and downstream segments of the systemic flow path. If the prior approach is implemented to deal with rearrangement and reassembly of the devices, the procrastinated production and the increased refitting cost may uneconomically happen.
The main objective of the present invention is to provide a modular assembly that removably combines mechanical devices so as to allow maneuverable arrangement and combination of mechanical devices with reduced assembling costs, convenient assembling, and lowered assembling complexity as well as difficulty and provides the resultant mechanical system with an apparent integrity.
A modular assembly comprises: at least one fixing seat formed with at least one slot thereon in which slot two sides adjacent to an opening thereof are formed as two opposite retaining portions and each of the retaining portion has a pressing surface at an inner side thereof, at least one positioning member, which is restricted in the slot by the retaining portion and has two propping surfaces corresponding to the two pressing surfaces, at least one moving seat, which has at least one combining portion in contact with the fixing seat, and at least one fastening elements, which penetrates and combines the combining portion and the positioning member so that when the fastening element is fastened, the propping surfaces of the positioning member press against the pressing surfaces of the slot and the combining portion presses against a surface of the fixing seat, thereby positioning the moving seat with respect to the fixing seat.
The invention as well as a preferred mode of use, further objectives and advantages thereof, will best be understood by reference to the following detailed description of an illustrative embodiment when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:
While a preferred embodiment is provided herein for illustrating the concept of the present invention as described above, it is to be understood that the extent of deformation or displacement of the components in these drawings are made for better explanation and need not to be made in scale.
A modular assembly of the present invention is as shown in
At least one fixing seat 10 or 50 is formed thereon with at least one slot 11 or 51. The slot 11 or 51 is parallel to an axis of the fixing seat 10 or 50 and has its two sides adjacent to an opening thereof are formed as two opposite retaining portions 12 or 52. At least one of the retaining portions 12 or 52 has a pressing surface 13 or 53 at an inner side thereof.
At least one positioning member 20 or 60 is restricted in the slot 11 or 51 by the retaining portions 12 or 52. The positioning member 20 or 60 has two propping surfaces 21 or 61 corresponding to the two pressing surfaces 13 or 53.
At least one moving seat 30 or 70 has at least one combining portion 32 or 72 in contact with the fixing seat 10 or 20.
And at least one fastening element 40 penetrates the combining portion 32 or 72 and the positioning-member 20 or 60.
Referring to
The fixing seat 10 depicted in
As shown in
As shown in
Referring back to
In
The fixing seat 10 is settled below and parallel to the conveying device 81. Each of the two ends thereof is assembled with the assembling board 86 and the assembling board 86 is further equipped with a support unit 87 for supporting a conveying mechanism 811 of the conveying device 81. The assembling board 86 may also allow a power mechanism 812 pertaining to the conveying device 81 to be installed thereon. The moving seat 30 on the fixing seat 10 has the assembling ends 37 of its bearing portions 31 receiving the label belt feeding device 82, therefore realizing as a heavy-load structure. The moving seat 30 and the label belt feeding device 82 installed thereon can be moved to and positioned at a proper position as mentioned above. Two said fixing seats 50 are settled at two sides of the conveying mechanism 811 and the moving seat 70 on each of the fixing seat 50 is equipped with a supporting unit 88 that further combines with a retaining board 85, therefore realizing a light-load structure. The two retaining boards 85 are provided at the two sides of the conveying mechanism 811 for restricting the objects transported on the conveying mechanism 81.
In the event that the label machine is to be applied for operations with different label sizes, different object sizes, different label sites and so on, the devices thereof may thus be rearranged and reassembled or additional devices providing extra functions may be added at the upstream, midstream and downstream segments of the systemic flow path. At this time, the modular assemblies of the present invention allow convenient and maneuverable rearrangement and recombination of the devices and contribute an apparent integrity to the overall system.
Although the particular embodiments of the invention have been described in detail for purposes of illustration, it will be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that numerous variations will be possible to the disclosed embodiments without going outside the scope of the invention as disclosed in the claims.
