Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha

Masayasu Arakawa

Yoshimasa Ohta

Yasuhiro Yamamoto

Toshio Suzuki

Koji Hatanaka

Shinichi Yoshimura

Hiroyoshi Nozaki

Hirofumi Hara

Hiroshi Mitsuyoshi

Kunio Nokajima

Hideharu Koizumi

Yoshimasa Ota

Masanao Yamamoto

Hisao Miyao

Kuniaki Ohkuma

Toshihiko Satake

Toyoaki Hayashi

Teruhisa Katsumata

Mituaki Hirasaka

Yuji Ikeda

Yoshimasa Oota

Reiji Nakagawa

Zenichi Aida

A production line for manufacturing automobiles, for example, has a plurality of movable carriages for carrying workpieces such as automotive bodies and a plurality of work stations for processing the automotive bodies such as by installing parts thereon or machining them. A controller which controls the work stations to process the automotive bodies has a memory having a plurality of storage areas for storing carriage identification data from the carriages that have arrived at the work stations and automotive body type data regarding the automotive bodies on the carriages, and also for storing carriage identification data transmitted from next carriages to arrive at the work stations and automotive body type data about the automotive bodies carried on the next carriages. When a carriage arrives at a work station, the carriage identification data about the carriage and the next carriage are transmitted from the carriage to the work station, and the controller transmits the automotive type data about the automotive bodies on the carriage and the next carriage to the work station. The automotive body in the work station can be processed based on the transmitted automotive body type data about the automotive body on the carriage and then the work station can be prepared based on the transmitted automotive body type data about the automotive body on the next carriage for the processing of the next automotive body which is to arrive next at the work station.

Production management system with simultaneous multiple data transmission

A production line for manufacturing automobiles, for example, has a plurality of self-propelled carriages for carrying workpieces respectively thereon, the self-propelled carriages having respective first emergency shutdown circuits, and a plurality of automatic machines for processing the workpieces on the self-propelled carriages, respectively, the automatic machines having respective second emergency shutdown circuits, respectively. When one of the self-propelled carriage malfunctions, the first emergency circuit thereon is energized to interrupt movement of the self-propelled carriage along the production line, and operation of the automatic machine which processes the work-piece on the stopped self-propelled carriage is stopped in response to a signal which energizes the first emergency shutdown means on the self-propelled carriage. Alternatively, the second emergency shutdown circuit on one of the automatic machines is energized to interrupt operation of the automatic machine, and movement of the malfunctioning self-propelled carriage which carries the workpiece processed by stopped automatic machine is stopped in response to a signal which energizes the second emergency shutdown circuit.

Method of and apparatus for emergency shutdown of production line

A conveying carrier is arranged to be self-propelled and move along a conveying passage having a pit formed therebelow. A track covers the top side of the pit flush with the road surface of the conveying passage. A plurality of wheels are attached to the conveying carrier with at least the front wheels being casters. A steering frame is pivotally supported on the conveying carrier and is turnable about a vertical steering axis line. A driving wheel and motor are attached to the steering frame, with the driving wheel being positioned to contact the track at a location substantially directly below the vertical steering axis line. A guide member is guided by a guide rail laid in the pit and connected to the steering frame through a slit in the widthwise center of the track. The pit is a substantially U-shaped track frame buried in the widthwise central portion. The track is formed of a pair of cover plates which are detachably mounted on the upper ends of side plates on both sides of the track frame as to leave the slit therebetween.

Automotive carrier type conveying apparatus

In a vehicle assembling line in which parts are assembled to a vehicle body while the body is passed through each of working stations by a plurality of transporting means, the vehicle body is positioned and supported by a pallet and transported by each of the transporting means, wherein transferring of the body between the transporting means is carried out through the pallet. A transporting path, on which a self-travel carriage as the transporting means travels, is laid within a pit concavely provided below a floor plate of a working floor. Arranged above the floor plate are a carriage frame, a lift table and a turn rest for supporting the pallet, which constitute an upper portion of the self-travel carriage. The transporting path is disposed substantially along the assembling line from its starting point to its terminal point, and an automated assembling zone and a manually assembling zone are coexistently disposed along the assembling line. An automatic machine is disposed in a working station of the automated assembling zone for advancing and retreating movement, and there is provided means for positioning and fixing the self-travel carriage together with the pallet in such working station. An overhead conveyor for transporting the self-travel carriage separated from the pallet in a hung manner is used as one of the transporting means.

Method and apparatus for transporting vehicle bodies, and vehicle

A supply line for supplying a sealant from a sealant supply source to a sealing robot has pressure sensors and is coupled to relief valves through branch lines. If the pressure in the supply line excessively rises or drops, then the relief valves are opened to release the pressure from the supply line and the supply pump is inactivated. The pipes, devices, and pump on the supply line are therefore protected from damage. The sealing robot has an sealant applicator gun movable with respect to an article to which the sealant is to be applied by the sealing robot. A pump driving device is controlled to vary the rate at which the sealant is discharged from the pump as a function of the speed of relative movement of the sealant applicator gun with respect to the article.

Coating agent to coating robot, including a method and arrangement for

An automatic parts feeder has a bed, a base movable on the bed in a first direction, a hopper assembly mounted on the base, a delivery mechanism, a transfer mechanism, and a supply mechanism for supplying parts to a processing machine. The supply mechanism supplies the parts in a second direction normal to the first direction, and includes a movable assembly movable in both the first and second directions, a swing arm pivotally supported on the movable assembly and angularly movable in a plane normal to the second direction between a substantially vertical upstanding position and an inclined position, and parts receivers detachably mounted on the swing arm for receiving, holding, and releasing the parts.

Automatic parts feeder

Growing community of inventors

Sayama, Japan

Masayasu Arakawa