Gm Global Technolgoy Operations, Inc.

Fanuc Robotics North America, Inc.

Gmf Robotics Corporation

Antoni J Malarz

Gerald C Rieck

Hadi A Akeel

Mohamed A Fetouh

William F Dais

Yhu-Tin Lin

Charles E Frost

Dolph D Wright

Eberhard E Wasserbaech

Alroy G Fabris

Frederick A Hekman

Gerlad C Rieck

Michael J Brink

Richard D Specht

A multi-axis electric spraying robot adapted for use in a hazardous environment includes a base having a first pressurized compartment and an arm assembly having a second pressurized compartment in which compartments electric motors are respectively located. The arm assembly is supported for movement on the base at one end thereof. The arm assembly includes a wrist adapted for connecting the opposite end of the arm assembly with a spraying tool. One electric motor is provided to drive each axis. The compartments are pressurized to prevent flammable gases or vapors from entering the first and second compartments during operation of the robot.

Electric robot for use in a hazardous location

A honing tool for elliptical bores uses a unique rotary to linear to radial translation mechanism to translate the primary rotary motion of the drive shaft into axial motion of rods and sleeves within the drive shaft, which ultimately wedge the honing stones out, and pull them rigorously back in, in the desired elliptical pattern, with no loss of bore accuracy. A cam sleeve rotating with the drive shaft has undulating cam grooves that push and pull a pair of cam followers together and apart with every quarter turn. The cam followers shift a rod and sleeve up and down to wedge the honing stones in and out. The shape of the cam groove and the angle of the wedges are predetermined so as to create the proper elliptical pattern.

Honing tool for elliptical cylinder bore

A telescoping die for use in place of a conventional fixed die in a multi-axis tube bender. The telescoping die provides a means of automatically varying the distance to the moveable die thereby increasing the range of possible bend radii that can be formed while maintaining a close positioning between the feed mechanism and the telescoping die.

Telescoping die for tube bending

A ring expander and assembly machine, having a loading station, a spreading station and assembly station, is operable to expand a spiral retaining ring in place on a workpiece. Spiral retaining rings with locking tabs and slots are transported on a shuttle from the loading station to the spreading station, at which location, scraper blades and fulcrum cams cooperate to spread the ring and remove the tabs from the slots so that an expansible collar assembly can be used to expand the ring. A transporter moves the collar assembly with the ring to the assembly station where a stripper sleeve removes the ring from the collar assembly to the workpiece.

Assembly machine for spiral locking rings

A method is disclosed for finishing a roughly shaped elliptical cylinder bore to an accurate final shape of predetermined major and minor axis. A circular cutter body with an effective diameter equal to the desired major axis. Then, a tilt angle is determined at which, when the circle of the cutter body is tipped away from the bore axis with the bore axis running through the center of the circle, a projection of the circle into a plane perpendicular to the bore axis will yield the desired minor axis. Then, the cutter body is powered about a secondary axis, at the tilt angle, relative to a bore primary axis and advanced linearly into the bore along the bore axis.

Method for machining an ellipitical bore

A pusher bar assembly for a multi-axis tube bender acts to insert and withdraw the bending support mandrel, as well as to push the tube through the bender. A hollow sleeve with a diameter equal to the tube has sufficient length to contain both the mandrel and a piloting plug, which can be inserted between the free ends of both the tube and sleeve. A mandrel bar is slidably received through the sleeve, and so can extend the mandrel out of a stored position of the sleeve into the tube and back. A stop means stops the mandrel bar to locate the mandrel at the proper place in the tube. A push pull means on the mandrel bar also pushes the plug to a point where it bridges the free ends of the tube and sleeve with the mandrel stops. Therefore, a high pushing force can be directed from the sleeve to the tube without the free ends collapsing inside one another.

Pusher apparatus for multi-axis tube bender

A connecting rod fracture machine for fracture separating the caps and bodies of integrally formed connecting rod workpieces includes a cryogenic cooling station for embrittling the large ends, a fracture station for fracture separation of the embrittled cap and body portions, a warming station for returning fractured assemblies to ambient temperature and transfer mechanism for moving the workpieces between stations. The fracture station includes separable pilots for receiving the large end bores of the pieces to be fractured, an impact separation ram for rapidly separating the pilots to effect fracture separation and anti-rotation clamp means movable with the respective pilots and requiring linear separating motions of the caps from the connecting rod bodies.

Connecting rod fracture machine

The present invention provides an apparatus and method of utilization of the same of a quick change tool coupling for a rotational metal working or like machine. The present invention provides a tool holding coupling for use with machines with an automatic tool exchanger. Use of the present invention allows the elimination of the drawbar mechanism commonly used in standard metal working machines, while providing axial bending rigidity for the tool.

Tooling quick release/change apparatus

Arrangements of four-axis adjustable connecting rod grinding machines are disclosed having four separately driven and adjustable grinding wheels carried in opposed pairs on opposite sides of a moving work support to grind simultaneously the opposite sides of both ends of a connecting rod or the like with sequential feeding of plural workpieces. Adjustable means supporting the grinding wheel pairs provide flexibility for setting up to process connecting rods of differing lengths in sequential batches or runs.

Adjustable double end grinding machine

A valve assembly is provided for a paint color change system for directing paint to spray guns from either of two supply lines selectively while connecting the other line to exhaust, and simultaneously controlling the paint pressure as a function of pilot air pressure. A valve block contains two pairs of poppet valves, each pair having a common inlet chamber connected to one of the paint supply lines and containing a pair of poppets each biased toward a seat for controlling flow to an outlet chamber, and a pilot air operated diaphragm in each outlet chamber coupled with a poppet for regulating the position of the poppet in accordance with the paint pressure in the outlet chamber and pilot air pressure. The outlet chambers are connected to an exhaust line and the paint spray guns respectively so that the two pairs of poppet valves acting in concert under control of two pilot air signals can control which paint line is connected to the spray gun or to the exhaust as well as regulate the pressure or volume of paint flowing to the spray guns.

Multiple function valve assembly

An injector is provided for injecting hardenable liquid polymer precursors from an accumulator into a mold in a reaction injection molding process. A specially adapted plunger is employed to eject the liquid precursor from an accumulator barrel. The plunger provides a constant fluid-flow relationship between the liquid precursor inlet and the accumulator barrel during its full stroke. The plunger structure prevents the introduction of air and substantially empties the accumulator on each molding cycle.

Injector for molding hardenable liquid precursors

A three-axis wrist mechanism has three independent rotational axes with a point of mutual intersection. A stationary housing contains one of the axes while another axis is disposed in a tool support member. An intermediate axis is disposed in an intermediate housing. A plurality of gear trains provide the independent rotation of components about the three axes to permit selective positioning of a tool mounting surface within a substantially hemispherical envelope. The gear trains are arranged so that an unobstructed gear passage is maintained between the stationary base and the tool support member for accommodating hoses and/or wires which are used to transmit fluid and power to a tool mounted on the mounting surface of the tool support member.

Three-axis wrist mechanism

A multi-axis load cell including a housing having a circular opening, a hub member having three radially extending arms is supported within the housing by a plurality of spring members and has a cylindrical portion located in the circular opening. A ring member forms a part of the housing and is provided with three circumferentially spaced posts each of which supports a screw connected to a spring member. The screw in each post is adapted to apply a radial force to the associated spring so as to achieve concentric positioning of the cylindrical portion relative to the circular opening. The housing also carries an adjustable force applier that engages the ring member for rotating the latter for achieving mechanical zero adjustment of arms formed on the hub member.

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Troy, MI, United States of America

Antoni J Malarz