JP2000127506A - Metallic material printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a metallic material printer wherein printing on a metallic material having powder paint coated thereon is executed by laser heating, improvement of clarity on a printed part and high speed printing can be achieved and an amount of the powder paint and a load of the printer at the collecting of the powder paint can be reduced. SOLUTION: This metallic material printer comprises a coating device 3 for coating powder paint 6 on a surface of a metallic material by controlling ejection or non-ejection thereof, a laser heating device 4 for scanning a laser 4a as a heating source in a character or the like and melting to coat the powder paint 6 on the metallic material 1 and a collecting device 5 that collects the powder paint by removing the powder paint 8 from the surface of the metallic material 1 except the printed part 7, separates the collected powder paint from a foreign material and circulates the separated powder paint 6 to the coating device 3.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a metal material printing apparatus which is effective for cutting, assembling, scribing for distribution, and printing a product number on a metal material, for example, a steel material such as a steel plate or a steel pipe. Things.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a device for cutting, assembling, distributing, or printing a product number on a metal material, for example, a steel material such as a steel plate or a steel pipe, an electrophotographic scoring device,
There are a laser printing device, an ink jet printing device and a gas spray printing device.

(1) Electrophotographic scoring device In an electrophotographic scoring device, an EPM (Ele) is generally used.
(Ctro Print Marking) apparatus is used. In this device, a powder mainly composed of photoconductive zinc oxide, that is, a photoner, is charged and dusted directly on the surface of a metal material in a dark room, the photoner is adsorbed on the metal material by electrostatic attraction, and the surface is projected by a projector. Reduces or eliminates the static charge of the photoner in the area where the scoring image is projected and exposed, removes the photoner from which the static charge has disappeared by air, and sprays the remaining photoner with a solvent to fuse it to the metal material and fix it. It is. And, for example, Japanese Patent Publication No. 38-2
It is represented by the invention disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 2645.

(2) Laser Printing Apparatus In a laser printing apparatus, printing is performed by directly irradiating the surface of an object with laser light and utilizing discoloration due to thermal processing such as heating, melting or evaporation. Some laser light sources use a YAG laser, a carbon dioxide laser, or an excimer laser.

(3) Ink jet printing apparatus In an ink jet printing apparatus, ink or paint in a pressure chamber is pressurized, and a nozzle for ejecting ink or paint is run to print on a metal material surface.

(4) Gas Spray Printing Apparatus In a gas spray printing apparatus, printing is performed on a metal material surface by injecting zinc dust or the like into a gas flame and running a gas torch nozzle for melting and adhering to the metal material surface. is there.

[0007]

An electrophotographic scoring apparatus, which is a conventional apparatus for printing a metal material as described above, employs an upper surface of a photoner particle and a lower surface of a photoner particle during image projection exposure. Since there is a difference in charge reduction between the non-printed surface and the non-printed surface, an accuracy error of the score line may occur. In addition, when fixing the photoner, it is dissolved and adhered with a solvent, and therefore, there is a limit in printing accuracy such as bleeding of a scribe line and a width of 1 mm or more. Furthermore, since an organic solvent is used when fixing the photoner, there are problems that measures against solvent odor, measures against the working environment or the air environment, and management on occupational health are required.

[0008] Laser printing apparatuses are usually used for printing on electronic parts, plastic parts or tools, and are rarely used for printing on metal materials such as steel materials. Further, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 61-195,893, a method of printing by dissolving and evaporating a range of about 0.1 mm depth of a shop primer coating applied to the surface of a steel sheet or a steel sheet is disclosed. However, when the steel material is unpainted or painted gray, the thermal discoloration of the printed part is slight and the color is black gray, so the color of the surface of the steel material and the color of the printed part are compared. There was a problem in the sharpness of the print, for example, the print was hardly readable. Further, in order to make the printing clearer, it is necessary to cause a large amount of thermal discoloration of the printing portion on the surface of the steel material. For this reason, there is a problem in that the heating time is lengthened in order to increase the amount of heating heat, which limits the increase in printing speed and lowers the working efficiency.

[0009] In the ink jet printing apparatus, the width of the printed scribe line is 1.5 mm or more, and there is a limit in improving the printing accuracy.

[0010] Further, in the gas thermal spray printing apparatus, as in the case of the ink jet printing apparatus, the width of the printed scored line is 1.5 mm or more, and there is a limit in improving the printing accuracy, and when printing characters, Printing speed was slow, and there was a limit to the improvement of work efficiency.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and the printing of a metal material coated with a powder coating is performed by laser heating, thereby improving the sharpness of the printed portion and the printing. To provide a high-efficiency and economical metal material printing device capable of increasing the speed, minimizing the amount of powder coating applied, and reducing the load on the device when collecting powder coating. It is intended for that purpose.

[0012]

A metal material printing apparatus according to the present invention comprises: a coating apparatus for applying a powder coating on the surface of a metal material while controlling discharge or non-discharge of the powder coating; A laser heating device that scans the laser linearly or in a letter shape to melt and adhere the powder coating to the metal material and prints, and removes and recovers the powder coating other than the printed portion from the surface of the metal material A collecting device for separating the collected powder coating material from foreign matter and returning the separated powder coating material to the coating device.

Further, the metal material printing apparatus according to the present invention comprises a plurality of discharging means for discharging a powder coating, which are provided in a coating apparatus in a width or length direction of the metal material, and a powder of each discharging means. Discharge control means for independently controlling discharge or non-discharge of body paint is provided.

The metal material printing apparatus according to the present invention has a plurality of discharge means which are provided in the width or length direction of the metal material and discharge the powder paint, and apply the powder paint to the surface of the metal material. A coating device that uses a laser as a heat source, a laser heating device that scans the laser linearly or in a letter shape to melt and adhere the powder paint to the metal material, and a powder material other than the printed portion. A collection device that removes and collects the powder coating material from the surface of the metal coating material, separates the collected powder coating material from foreign substances, and returns the separated powder coating material to the coating device. And a control device for calculating the coating information of the paint and automatically controlling the selection of the discharge means of the coating apparatus and the discharge or non-discharge of the discharge means based on the calculation result.

[0015] The metal material printing apparatus according to the present invention is equipped with a traveling device that is equipped with a coating device, a laser heating device, and a recovery device, and moves each device along the metal material.

Further, the metal material printing apparatus according to the present invention includes a holding device for holding the coating device, the laser heating device and the collecting device at predetermined positions, and a transport device for moving the metal material along the holding device. It is a thing.

According to the metal material printing apparatus of the present invention, the control device includes a print information generation device that generates at least print information corresponding to the metal material based on information from a higher-level system or manual input; A printing information recording device that holds, a coating information generation device that calculates and generates coating information on a metal material based on at least the printing information, a coating information recording device that holds coating information, a coating device that is based on the coating information, Control the traveling device or the transport device, a coating control device that applies the powder coating to the metal material, and control the laser heating device and the traveling device or the transport device based on at least the printing information and the signal from the coating control device,
A printing control device that melts and adheres the powder coating to the metal material to control printing, and controls a collection device and a traveling device or a conveyance device, and recovers the powder coating other than the printed portion from the surface of the metal material and collects the powder coating. A powder paint collection control device is provided for separating the powder paint from foreign matter and returning the separated powder paint to the coating device.

Further, in the metal material printing apparatus according to the present invention, the separating device separates the powder coating material collected from the surface of the metal material into a powder coating material and a foreign material for reuse, and a separating device. A return device is provided for returning the later powder paint to the coating device.

A metal material printing apparatus according to the present invention comprises: a coating apparatus for applying a powder coating on the surface of a metal material while controlling the discharge or non-discharge of the powder coating; Alternatively, a laser heating device that scans in a letter shape to melt and adhere the powder coating to the metal material and prints, a recovery device that removes and recovers the powder coating other than the printed portion from the surface of the metal material, The apparatus is provided with a separation device for separating the powder coating material from foreign matter, and a return device for returning the separated powder coating material to the coating device.

The metal material printing apparatus according to the present invention has a plurality of discharge means for discharging the powder paint, which are provided in the width or length direction of the metal material, and applies the powder paint to the surface of the metal material. A coating device that uses a laser as a heat source, a laser heating device that scans the laser linearly or in a letter shape to melt and adhere the powder paint to the metal material, and a powder material other than the printed portion. A collecting device that removes and collects the powder coating material from the surface, a separating device that separates the collected powder coating material from foreign matters, a return device that returns the separated powder coating material to the coating device, and at least a metal material. A control device for calculating the coating information of the powder coating material based on the printing information, and automatically selecting the discharge means of the coating apparatus and controlling discharge or non-discharge of the discharge means based on the calculation result. .

[0021]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiment 1 FIG. 1 is a side view of the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. In the figure, 1 is a non-painted metal material coated with a wash primer or an inorganic zinc-rich primer used as a shop primer,
Reference numeral 2 denotes a wheel 2b provided at the lower end of a leg 2a provided so as to straddle the mounting table 9, and a powder coating device 3, a laser scanning heating device 4, and a powder paint collecting device described below are provided above the leg 2a. The traveling device on which the metal member 1 is placed is moved by the wheels 2b on a rail 10 installed along the length direction of the mounting table 9 on which the metal material 1 is placed, so that each of the devices 3, 4, and 5 is made of metal. Run along material 1.

Reference numeral 3 denotes a powder coating device, which is an electrostatic coating gun 3a for discharging the powder coating material 6, and a high voltage, for example, 50 to 50
A charging electrode 3b for charging static electricity at a voltage of 100 kv, a coating booth 3c for preventing the powder coating 6 floating on the metal coating 1 from adhering to the surface of the metal coating 1, and a powder coating 6 for the electrostatic coating gun 3a. A powder paint supply device 3d that supplies a fixed amount, a charging device 3e that charges the charging electrode 3b with a high voltage, and a recovery device that collects the powder paint 6 floating from the coating booth 3c and returns it to the powder paint supply device 3d. 3f and electrostatic coating gun 3
a) The discharge control device 3g controls the discharge or non-discharge of the powder coating material 6a. The powder coating material 6 electrostatically charged is uniformly applied to the surface of the metal material 1 in a thin film and does not easily scatter. Adhere to the extent.

A plurality of portions including the electrostatic coating gun 3a, the charging electrode 3b and the coating booth 3c are provided in the width direction of the metal material 1 placed on the mounting table 9.
Each of the electrostatic coating guns 3a operates independently by controlling the discharge or non-discharge of the powder coating 6 by the discharge control device 3g, and discharges the powder coating 6 to a range or a portion of the metal material 1 where printing is performed. . And each electrostatic coating gun 3a
The operation control by the discharge control device 3g may be manually performed, or may be automatically performed by NC control using data in which positional information of a range or a portion to which the powder coating 6 is applied is input. Further, the coating booth 3c may not be separately provided, but may be a single booth surrounding the entire length of the metal material 1 in the width direction. Further, a plurality of portions including the electrostatic coating gun 3a, the charging electrode 3b, and the coating booth 3c may be provided in the length direction of the metal material 1.

Reference numeral 4 denotes a laser scanning heating apparatus using the laser 4a as a heat source. The laser coating 4a heats and fuses the powder coating material 6 at the portion to be printed while moving the heating point of the laser 4a in a line or a character. The printing portion 7 is formed by attaching the printing material 7 to the surface of the metal material 1. In the laser heating device,
It is also possible to provide a sheet-like heating source using a laser as a heat source and a shielding mask provided with a line or character-shaped hole between the metal material 1 and heat the line or character.

Reference numeral 5 denotes a powder coating material 8 other than the printing portion 7 which has not been melted and adhered, is removed from the surface of the metal material 1 and collected, and the collected powder coating material 8 is separated from foreign substances to obtain a separated powder coating material. 6 is returned to the powder coating device 3 in the powder coating recovery device.
One or a plurality of collection hoods 5a installed in the width direction, and a powder coating 6 for reusing the collected powder coating 8
Dust separating apparatus 5b for separating powder and foreign matter such as dust or dust, powder recovery tank 5c for temporarily storing powder coating 6 to be reused, powder coating 8 not fused and adhered
Sucker into the collection hood 5a, and further, a suction blower 5d for transporting the powder paint into the powder dust separation device 5b and a return device 5e for returning the powder paint 6 in the powder recovery tank 5c to the powder paint supply device 3d. It is constituted by. The recovery method is not limited to the suction method, and may be changed as appropriate, such as air blowing, sweeping with a brush or a rubber plate, or the like. Also, a plurality of collection hoods 5a may be provided in the length direction of the metal material 1 corresponding to the portion including the electrostatic coating gun 3a, the charging electrode 3b, and the coating booth 3c.

In the first embodiment configured as above, for example, when marking is printed on the metal material 1, first, the powder coating device 3 is set so that the powder coating 6 has an appropriate application amount density. The conditions are set in advance, and the traveling device 2 is caused to travel along the metal material 1 on the mounting table 9, and the powder coating device 3 applies the powder coating 6 uniformly and thinly on the surface of the metal material 1. At this time, each electrostatic coating gun 3a of the powder coating device 3
The discharge control device 3g operates independently of each other, and discharges the powder coating material 6 only to a range or a portion where the printing of the metal material 1 is performed. Further, since the powder coating 6 is electrostatically charged, it does not easily scatter due to wind or vibration from the surroundings, and is firmly attached to the surface of the metal material 1.

Next, the metal material 1 to which the powder coating 6 has been applied
On the other hand, the laser 4a of the laser scanning and heating device 4 is heated while moving in a scribed line shape, and only the powder coating material 6 in the portion 7 to be printed is melted and adhered to the surface of the metal material 1.

Next, the powder coating material 8 which is not adhered by melting except for the printing section 7 is sucked and collected in the collecting hood 5a while being removed from the surface of the metal material 1 by the suction blower 5d of the powder coating material collecting device 5. At this time, the powder coating 6 of the printing portion 7 that has melted and adhered to the surface of the metal material 1 remains, and the printing portion 7 is clearly shown as a clear line image. The powder paint 8 sucked and collected in the collection hood 5a is conveyed to the powder dust separation device 5b,
After being separated into the powder coating 6 to be reused and the foreign matter, the powder coating 6 to be reused is temporarily stored in the powder recovery tank 5c. Then, the powder paint 6 in the powder recovery tank 5c is returned to the powder paint supply device 3 of the powder coating device 3 by the return device 5e.
It is returned to d and used for the next printing.

As described above, while the powder coating device 3, the laser scanning and heating device 4, and the powder coating material collecting device 5 are moved along the metal material 1 by the traveling device 2, the powder coating device 3 Is applied to the surface of the metal material 1, and is linearly heated by the laser scanning heating device 4 to melt and adhere the powder coating material 6 in the portion 7 to be printed. 8 can be removed and collected, so that printing over the entire surface of the metal material 1 is possible, and clear printing can be obtained. In addition, powder coating 6
The amount of heat required for melting and adhering is sufficiently smaller than the amount of heat that causes thermal discoloration on the surface of the conventional metal material 1, so that the heating time can be reduced and the printing speed can be reduced to 1000.
It can be greatly increased to about mm / sec. Furthermore, since an organic solvent is not used in melting and adhering the powder coating material 6, there is no need to take measures against the working environment and the atmospheric environment, and a metal material printing apparatus that can improve working efficiency can be obtained.

The discharge control device 3g of the powder coating device 3
Each electrostatic coating gun 3a operates independently by the control of the discharge or non-discharge by the above, so that the powder coating 6 can be applied only to the area or the portion of the metal material 1 where printing is performed, 6 can be reduced to the minimum necessary amount, and the load on the powder coating material collecting device 5 when collecting the powder coating material 6 can be reduced. Further, the powder dust separation device 5b and the return device 5
e, the reusable powder coating material 6 containing no foreign matter can be returned to the powder coating device 3, and the overall usage of the powder coating material 6 can be suppressed, and the cost can be reduced. A metal material printing device can be obtained.

Embodiment 2 FIG. 3 is a side view of the second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a front view showing a partial cross section. The second embodiment is based on the traveling device 2 of the first embodiment.
And a rail 10 are omitted, and a holding device 11 for holding the powder coating device 3, the laser scanning heating device 4 and the powder coating material collecting device 5 at predetermined positions is provided, and the metal material 1 is used instead of the mounting table 9. A transfer device 12 for moving the metal material 1 in the length direction and along the holding device 11 is provided for applying, printing and collecting the powder coating material 6 while moving the metal material 1. Reference numeral 12a denotes a roller of the transport device 12.

With such a configuration, almost the same operation and effect as those of the first embodiment can be obtained, and a metal material printing apparatus with clear printing, high printing speed, and high working efficiency can be obtained. In addition, the powder coating material 6 can be applied efficiently without waste, and an economical metal material printing apparatus capable of reducing costs can be obtained.

Embodiment 3 FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a main part of the third embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of a printing range and a coating range of a metal material according to the third embodiment of the present invention. In the third embodiment, an automatic control device 13 is provided in the metal material printing device according to the first embodiment, and a CAD / CAM system 14 which is a higher order of the metal material printing device electrically connected to the automatic control device 13. Based on the design / manufacturing information input and stored in the device, the metal material 1 to be carried into the metal material printing device is automatically marked and marked with a serial number corresponding to the metal material 1. is there.

In FIG. 5, reference numeral 15 denotes a print information generating device which corresponds to the metal material 1 transported to the metal material printing device and placed on the mounting table 9 based on the design / manufacturing information from the CAD / CAM system 14. Material information such as the type of metal material and the metal material number to be printed, the printing start position ((x1, y1) in FIG. 6A), the character string to be printed, the character size, the character direction, etc. And print information corresponding to the metal material 1 including a print range (1a (Δx1, Δy1) in FIG. 6A) corresponding to. Reference numeral 16 denotes a print information recording device that holds the metal material information and print information generated by the print information generation device 15. Reference numeral 17 denotes a print control device, and the metal material information and print information from the print information recording device 16 and a paint The laser scanning heating device 4 and the traveling device 2 at the time of printing are controlled based on the signal from the control device (the signal of the end of the painting work), and the metal material 1 is printed such as scoring.

The laser scanning and heating device 4 includes an oscillating device 4b for emitting a laser 4a and a laser 4 for emitting the laser 4a.
a reflecting mirror driving device 4c for reflecting a in a desired direction and moving the heating point in a character shape or the like, and a width traveling device 4d for traveling the oscillation device 4b and the reflecting mirror driving device 4c in the width direction of the metal material 1. Each device 4b, 4c, 4
d is controlled by the print control device 17 based on print information and the like.

Numeral 18 denotes a coating information generating device, which is based on the metal material information and the printing information generated by the printing information generating device 15, and based on the coating start position ((x2, y in FIG. 6B)).
2)) and a coating range wider than the printing range 1a (FIG. 6)
It calculates and generates the coating information including 1b (Δx2, Δy2) of (b). The calculation method is as follows. Application start position: x2 = x1-a, y2 = y1-b Application range: Δx2 = Δx1 + c, Δy2 = Δy1 + d Note that a, b, c, and d are predetermined set values, and FIG.
As shown in (b), the application start position (x2, y2) is closer to the origin ((x0, y0) in FIG. 6B) on the traveling coordinate axis than the print start position (x1, y1). The application range 1b is calculated to be wider than the printing range 1a.

Reference numeral 19 denotes a coating information recording device that holds the coating information generated by the coating information generating device 18. Reference numeral 20 denotes a coating control device, which controls the powder coating device 3 and the traveling device based on the coating information from the coating information recording device 19. The apparatus 2 is controlled to apply the powder coating 6 to the metal material 1. In the third embodiment, for example, four parts including the electrostatic coating gun 3a, the charging electrode 3b, and the coating booth 3c are provided in the width direction of the metal material 1, and each of the electrostatic coating guns 3a
Operate independently by selecting the electrostatic coating gun 3a corresponding to the application range 1b of the coating control device 20 and controlling discharge or non-discharge of the powder coating material 6. Further, the discharge control device 3g according to the first embodiment is omitted.

Numeral 21 denotes a powder paint collection control device which controls the powder paint collection device 5 and the traveling device 2 after receiving a signal (print work end signal) from the print control device 17, and The body paint 8 is collected, separated from foreign matter, and the powder paint 6 is returned to the powder coating device 3.

The automatic control device 13 includes the print information generating device 15, the print information recording device 16, the print control device 17, the coating information generating device 18, and the coating information recording device 1 described above.
9. Coating control device 20 and powder paint collection control device 21
A CAD / CAM system 14 as an upper system, an automatic control device 13, a traveling device 2, a powder coating device 3, a laser scanning heating device 4, and a powder coating material collecting device 5 are connected, for example, by a LAN. Connected by a communication line.

Next, the operation of the third embodiment will be described.
The operation will be described with reference to the operation explanatory view of the main part of FIG. 7 and the flowchart of FIG. Metal material 1 carried into metal material printing device
7A, when printing is performed at, for example, three places (printing range 1a), first, when the metal material 1 is mounted on the mounting table 9 (S1, S2 in FIG. 8), The print information generating device 15 of the automatic control device 13 is configured to print the metal material information corresponding to the metal material 1 placed on the mounting table 9 based on the design / manufacturing information from the CAD / CAM system 14 at three places. Then, print information including the print start position and the print range 1a is generated (S3), and the metal material information and the print information are transmitted to the print information recording device 16 and the coating information generating device 18.

Next, based on the metal material information and the print information from the print information generating device 15, the coating information generating device 18 includes a coating starting position and a coating range 1b corresponding to the three printing ranges 1a. The information is calculated and generated (S4), and the coating information is transmitted to the coating information recording device 19. The coating information recording device 19 holds the generated coating information and transmits it to the coating control device 20. The coating control device 20 moves the traveling device 2 based on the coating information from the starting end of the metal material 1 in FIG. (From left to right in the figure), and at the same time, the powder coating device 3 is controlled to apply the powder coating 6 uniformly and thinly on each application range 1b (S5).

At this time, as shown in FIG. 7A, four powder coating apparatuses 3 (3
A to 3D) correspond to the respective sections divided into four sections (A to D) of the metal material 1, and the traveling device 2 causes the powder coating apparatus 3 (3A to 3D) to be divided into the respective sections A to 3D. When the vehicle is moved to the application start position of the application range 1b in the area D, for example, the application areas 1b of the sections B and D, the coating control device 20
The powder coating apparatuses 3B and 3D corresponding to the sections B and D of the individual powder coating apparatuses 3 (3A to 3D) are selected, and as shown in FIG. The powder coating 6 is discharged by operating 3D. Then, when reaching the coating end position of each coating range 1b, the powder coating devices 3B and 3D are stopped. Further, as shown in FIG.
b, for example, when the powder coating device 3 is moved to the application start position of the application range 1b of the sections B and C, the coating control device 20
Selects the powder coating apparatuses 3B and 3C corresponding to the sections B and C, and as shown in FIG.
C is operated to discharge the powder coating material 6, and when the application end position of each application range 1b is reached, the powder coating devices 3B and 3C are stopped.

Next, when the painting operation is completed (S6) and the traveling device 2 returns to the original position, that is, the starting end of the metal material 1, the print control device 17 of the automatic control device 13 causes the print information recording device 16 to operate. Metal material information and printing information transmitted via
Based on the signal of the end of the painting operation from the painting control device 20, the laser scanning heating device 4 is controlled while the traveling device 2 is traveling toward the end of the metal material 1, and each of the coatings on which the powder coating material 6 has been applied is controlled. Printing is performed in the printing range 1a corresponding to the range 1b (S7). When the printing operation is completed (S8), the traveling device 2 returns to the original position.

Next, the powder paint collection control device 21 of the automatic control device 13 controls the traveling device 2 to travel toward the end of the metal material 1 based on the signal of the printing operation completion from the printing control device 17. The body paint recovery device 5 is controlled to recover the powder coating material 8 on the metal material 1 that is not adhered by melting (S
9). When the collection operation is completed (S10), the traveling device 2 returns to the original position. Further, in the powder coating material collecting device 5, the collected powder coating material 8 is separated into the powder coating material 6 to be reused and foreign substances, and the powder coating material 6 to be reused is returned to the powder coating device 3. You.

When all operations are completed, the metal material 1 is carried out to another place such as a storage place (S11), and the next metal material 1 is transferred.
Is carried into the mounting table 9, the above-described coating, printing, and collecting operations are performed by the automatic controller 13 in the same manner.

As described above, the traveling device 2, the powder coating device 3, the laser scanning heating device 4 and the powder coating material recovery device 5 are controlled by the automatic control device 13, and the metal material 1 placed on the mounting table 9 is Since the painting, printing, and collection operations corresponding to the metal material 1 are automatically performed, clear printing can be performed on the metal material 1, the work can be saved, and the work efficiency can be greatly improved. And a metal material printing device that can perform the printing.

Although the third embodiment has been described with reference to the case where the present invention is applied to the first embodiment, the present invention can also be applied to the second embodiment. In this case, the transport device 12 is controlled by the automatic control device 13. Then, the same effect as that of the third embodiment is obtained.

In the third embodiment, the traveling device 2
Shows a case where a powder coating device 3, a laser scanning heating device 4, and a powder coating material collecting device 5 are mounted on the first traveling device, but the present invention is not limited to this. The body coating recovery device 5 is mounted, and the laser scanning heating device 4 is mounted on the second traveling device. For example, the traveling devices are divided according to the traveling speed for the work of each device. It can be changed as appropriate, such as mounting on separate traveling devices, or mounting the devices 3, 4, and 5 on a plurality of traveling devices in a combination other than the above.

Further, in the above-described third embodiment, an example is shown in which the scribing and the printing of the serial number and the like are automatically performed on the metal material 1 based on the design and manufacturing information from the higher-order CAD / CAM system 14. CAD / CA
The M system 14 is omitted and the automatic control device 13
Alternatively, a manual input device for manually inputting design / manufacturing information is provided in the print information generating device 15, and printing is automatically performed on the metal material 1 based on the design / manufacturing information from the manual input device. Good. In this case, the same effect can be obtained.

In the first to third embodiments described above, the case where the powder paint collecting apparatus 5 is provided with the powder dust separating apparatus 5b and the recirculating apparatus 5e has been described.
b and the return device 5e may be provided separately from the powder paint recovery device 5. In this case, a control device corresponding to each device 5b, 5e may be provided.
The control may be performed by one control device. In these cases, a similar effect is obtained.

[0051]

As described above, the metal material printing apparatus according to the present invention comprises: a coating apparatus for applying a powder coating on the surface of a metal material while controlling the discharge or non-discharge of the powder coating; A laser heating device that scans the laser linearly or in a letter shape to melt and adhere the powder coating to the metal material and prints, and removes and recovers the powder coating other than the printed portion from the surface of the metal material A collecting device that separates the collected powder coating material from foreign substances and returns the separated powder coating material to the coating device, and is installed in the coating device in the width or length direction of the metal material. A plurality of discharge means for discharging the paint, and a discharge control means for independently controlling discharge or non-discharge of the powder paint of each discharge means are provided. Also,
Separation device for separating powder paint and foreign matter for reuse from powder material recovered from the surface of metal material in the collection device or separately from the collection device, and powder coating material after separation in the coating device A return device is provided for returning.

With this configuration, in addition to high printing precision, clear printing can be obtained by melting and adhering a powder coating having a color that is in contrast to the color of the metal material surface. And a metal material printing device capable of improving the sharpness and legibility of the metal material. In addition, since the amount of heat required for melting and adhering the powder coating is small enough, the heating time can be shortened, the printing speed can be remarkably increased, and the metal material can be improved in working efficiency. A printing device can be obtained. Further, by independently operating a plurality of discharge means by the discharge control means of the coating apparatus, the powder paint can be applied only to a range or a portion where the printing of the metal material is performed, and the application amount of the powder paint can be minimized. And the load on the collecting device when collecting the powder coating can be reduced. In addition, the separation device and the return device allow the re-used powder paint containing no foreign matter to be returned to the coating device, thereby reducing the overall amount of powder paint used and reducing costs. A metal material printing device can be obtained.

Further, the metal material printing apparatus according to the present invention has a plurality of discharge means for discharging the powder paint which are provided in the width or length direction of the metal material, and the powder paint is provided on the surface of the metal material. A laser heating device that uses a laser as a heat source, scans the laser linearly or in a character shape, melts and adheres the powder coating to the metal material, and prints the powder coating other than the printed part. A recovery device that removes and recovers the metal powder from the surface of the metal material, separates the recovered powder coating from foreign matter, and returns the separated powder coating to the coating device, based on at least printing information corresponding to the metal material. Calculates the coating information of powder paint,
A control device for automatically selecting a discharge means of the coating apparatus and automatically controlling discharge or non-discharge of the discharge means based on a calculation result. In addition, a coating device, a laser heating device, and a recovery device are mounted, and a traveling device that moves each device along the metal material is provided, or a holding device that holds the coating device, the laser heating device, and the recovery device in a predetermined position. And a transfer device for moving the metal material along the holding device. The control device includes a print information generation device that generates at least print information corresponding to the metal material based on information from a higher-level system or manual input, a print information recording device that holds at least print information, and at least print information. A coating information generation device that calculates and generates coating information for metal materials based on the coating information, a coating information recording device that holds the coating information, and a coating device and a traveling device or a transport device that are controlled based on the coating information. A coating control device that applies a powder coating to a laser, and a laser heating device and a traveling device or a transport device are controlled based on at least printing information and a signal from the coating control device to melt and adhere the powder coating to a metal material. Controls the printing control device for printing, the collection device and the traveling device or the transport device, and removes the powder coating other than the printed portion from the surface of the metal material. To yield,
And a printing control device for separating the collected powder coating material from foreign matters and returning the separated powder coating material to the coating device.

With this configuration, it is possible to automatically perform a painting operation, a printing operation, and a collection operation corresponding to the carried-in metal material, perform clear printing on the metal material, and save labor. Thus, it is possible to obtain a metal material printing apparatus capable of greatly improving work efficiency.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view of a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a side view of a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a front view of a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a main part according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of a printing range and a coating range of a metal material according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is an operation explanatory view of a main part of a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the operation of the third embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Metal material 1a Printing range 1b Application range 2 Traveling device 3, 3A, 3B, 3C, 3D Powder coating device 3a Electrostatic coating gun 3g Discharge control device 4 Laser scanning heating device 4a Laser 5 Powder coating material recovery device 5b Powder Dust separation device 5e Returning device 6 Powder coating 7 Printing unit 8 Powder coating that has not adhered (collected) 9 Mounting table 10 Rail 11 Holding device 12 Transport device 13 Automatic control device 14 CAD / CAM system 15 Printing Information generation device 16 Print information recording device 17 Print control device 18 Painting information generation device 19 Painting information recording device 20 Painting control device 21 Powder paint collection control device

──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification FI FI Theme Court ゛ (Reference) B41M 1/28 B41M 1/28 (72) Inventor Toshiyuki Yasui 1-2-1, Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo Sun F-term in Honko Co., Ltd. (reference) 4F040 AA02 AA06 AA31 AB04 AB15 DB12 DB18 DB22 4F042 AA03 AA27 AB03 BA01 CC03 CC07 CC09 CC21 DB17 EC01

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. A coating apparatus for applying a powder coating on the surface of a metal material while controlling the discharge or non-discharge of the powder coating, and a laser as a heat source which scans the laser in a linear or character form. A laser heating device for melting and adhering the powder coating to the metal material, and removing and collecting the powder coating from the surface of the metal material except for the printed portion, and collecting the collected powder coating; A metal material printing device comprising: a collection device that separates the powder coating material separated from the foreign matter and returns the separated powder coating material to the coating device. 2. A plurality of discharge means which are installed in a coating device in a width or length direction of the metal material and discharge the powder paint, and discharge or non-discharge of the powder paint by each discharge means. 2. A metal material printing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an ejection control means for controlling each of the ink jet printing apparatus independently. 3. A coating apparatus which has a plurality of discharge means disposed in the width or length direction of the metal material and discharges the powder coating material, wherein the coating device applies the powder coating material on the surface of the metal material, and a laser. A laser heating device that scans the laser in a linear or character shape to fuse and adhere the powder coating to the metal material and prints the powder coating other than the printed portion with the metal material. A collecting device that separates the collected powder coating material from foreign matters and returns the separated powder coating material to the coating device, based on at least printing information corresponding to the metal material. And a control device for automatically selecting the discharge means of the coating apparatus and automatically controlling discharge or non-discharge of the discharge means based on the calculation result. Metal material printing device. 4. A traveling device equipped with a coating device, a laser heating device, and a recovery device, and a traveling device for traveling each of the devices along the metal material.
The metal material printing device according to any one of the above. 5. A holding device for holding a coating device, a laser heating device and a collecting device at predetermined positions, and a transport device for moving the metal material along the holding device. The metal material printing device according to any one of claims 1 to 3. 6. A print information generation device for generating at least print information corresponding to the metal material based on information from a higher-level system or manual input to a control device, and a print information recording device holding at least the print information A coating information generation device that calculates and generates coating information on the metal material based on at least the printing information; a coating information recording device that holds the coating information; and the coating device and traveling based on the coating information. A coating control device that controls a device or a transport device and applies a powder coating to the metal material, and the laser heating device and the traveling device or the transport device based on at least the printing information and a signal from the coating control device. A printing control device for controlling and causing the powder coating material to melt and adhere to the metal material for printing; and a collection device and a traveling device or a conveyance device. Controlling the device, the powder coating other than the printed portion is collected from the surface of the metal material,
6. A powder paint collection control device for separating the collected powder paint from foreign matter and returning the separated powder paint to the coating device. Metal printing equipment. 7. A separating device for separating the powder coating material collected from the surface of the metal material into a powder coating material and a foreign substance for reuse, and a coating device for separating the separated powder coating material into the coating device. 7. The metal material printing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a return device for returning the metal material. 8. A coating apparatus for applying a powder coating on the surface of a metal material while controlling discharge or non-discharge of the powder coating, and a laser as a heat source, which scans the laser in a linear or character form. A laser heating device that melts and adheres the powder coating to the metal material and prints; a collection device that removes and recovers the powder coating other than the printed portion from the surface of the metal material; A metal material printing apparatus, comprising: a separation device for separating a body paint from foreign matter; and a return device for returning the separated powder paint to the coating device. 9. A coating device which is provided in a width or length direction of a metal material and has a plurality of discharge means for discharging a powder coating material, wherein the coating device applies the powder coating material to a surface of the metal material, and A laser heating device that scans the laser in a linear or character shape to fuse and adhere the powder coating to the metal material and prints the powder coating other than the printed portion with the metal material. A collecting device that removes and collects the powder coating material from the surface, a separating device that separates the collected powder coating material from foreign matter, a return device that returns the separated powder coating material to the coating device, A control device that calculates the coating information of the powder coating material based on at least the corresponding printing information, and automatically selects the discharge unit of the coating device and automatically controls discharge or non-discharge of the discharge unit based on the calculation result. Characterized by having Metal material printing device.