Iwata Air Compressor Mfg. Co., Ltd.

Yoshio Matusita

Ikuya Shiraishi

Takeshi Mochizuki

Katsumasa Iwasawa

Kazuki Terafuji

Yukimitu Watanabe

A spraying method wherein the distance between a spray apparatus and an article is measured by a distance measuring means provided on the spray apparatus, and a spraying condition in which a substance is sprayed is varied in accordance with the measured distance. Also disclosed is a spray apparatus which is suitable for carrying out the above-described method. The apparatus has a supply passage for a substance which is to be sprayed, a nozzle for jetting out the spray substance, and a control valve means provided within the supply passage and adapted to control the flow rate of the spray substance flowing out through the nozzle. A distance measuring means is provided integral with the spray apparatus in one unit, the means being adapted to measure the distance between the spray apparatus and an article and output a signal corresponding to the measured distance. The degree of opening of the control valve means is determined on the basis of the signal output from the distance measuring means.

Spraying method and apparatus employed therefor

A spray gun with an automatic valve opening control means which enables remote and stepless control of a paint spraying operation has atomizing means provided at the front end thereof, a paint valve member which enables adjustment of the amount of paint jetted out from the atomizing means, and a spray pattern adjusting valve member adapted to adjust the spray pattern by controlling the amount of compressed air jetted out from the atomizing means. A threaded slider mechanism is provided on the proximal portion of a valve body of either the paint valve member or the spray pattern adjusting valve member (or both). A servo motor and an encoder are connected to a drive screw member of the threaded slider mechanism. The encoder is adapted to detect the rotational position of the servo motor and output a controlled variable of the motor, and the servo motor is controlled in response to an external signal.

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Kanagawa, Japan

Yoshio Matusita