WO1997011619A1

WO1997011619A1 - Installation for the manufacture of shoe inserts

Info

Publication number: WO1997011619A1
Application number: PCT/CH1996/000337
Authority: WO
Inventors: Hans-Rudolf Rickli
Original assignee: Rickli Hans Rudolf
Priority date: 1995-09-27
Filing date: 1996-09-27
Publication date: 1997-04-03
Also published as: AU6983196A; CA2233220A1; EP0852470A1; KR19990063754A; JPH11511368A; AU718646B2; BR9610653A; DE19680816D2; CN1198082A

Abstract

The invention concerns an installation for the largely automatic manufacture of orthopaedic shoe inserts, the installation comprisisng a device for measuring the sole of the foot, a device for producing the inserts using the results of the measurement and a data-processing unit which takes the measurement results, and processes them, e.g. by smoothing them, if necessary and converts them into control data for the insert-production device. The measurement device scans the sole of the foot essentially line by line, thus establishing the topography of the sole in the form of vertical slices. To this end, one or more electro-mechanical sensors (13) travel in the longitudinal direction over the sole, following its vertical profile. The motion of the sensors (13) is converted by linear potentiometers (25) into electrical signals. The insert-production device has a machining head, e.g. a milling cutter, which is moved in a spiral over the insert blank. The cutter height-control data is determined largely automatically from the sole-measurement results by the data-processing unit.

Description

PLANT FOR THE PRODUCTION OF INSOLES IN SHOES

The present invention relates to a system for producing shoe inserts according to the preamble of claim 1, in particular also a device for

Detection of the topography of feet according to the preamble of claim 2 and a device for producing such shoe inserts according to the preamble of claim 8.

For the production of orthopedic shoe inserts, devices for measuring the feet, in particular the topography of the sole of the foot, and devices for producing the shoe inserts according to the measurement are required, on the one hand, possibly including desired corrections. For an efficient production of shoe insoles, it is desirable to coordinate the measurement method and production.

A device is known from EP-A-0 071 386 in which the shape of the sole of the foot is first scanned on a measuring device.

The measuring device essentially consists of a large number of measuring pins which are pressed upwards under spring pressure. A foot is placed from above on this area covered with pins, whereby the pins are pressed down according to the shape of the sole of the foot. The pins are now fixed in this position by a clamping device, after which the surface formed by the upper ends of the pins represents a negative of the sole of the foot. The templates thus obtained are then inserted into a device and scanned line by line in the XY plane by a sensor. A milling device is moved over a blank shoe insert in synchronism with this movement in the XY plane of the sensor. The one sensed by the sensor Height information of the template is mechanically transferred to the milling device. In sync with the scanning of the template by the feeler, the shoe insert is also milled out line by line from the blank.

This known device has various disadvantages. The template with its large number of pins and the clamping device is quite complicated. Among other things, it is necessary that the pins run as well as possible and are under the same spring pressure in order to obtain matching measuring conditions at all measuring points. Any errors are transferred directly to the shoe insert due to the mechanical coupling to the milling device and, if recognizable, have to be eliminated laboriously by hand.

The templates must be inserted in the fixed form in the manufacturing facility. This presupposes that the measuring process takes place in close proximity to the manufacturing facility in order to avoid the risk of the templates being changed during transport.

Manufacturing by line-by-line milling harbors the risk that the raw material will break out at the end of a line when the milling cutter passes from the material into the open. Milling devices that work in rows also have the disadvantage that, in the case of high-quality machining, the work is carried out only in one feed direction and after each milling of a row, an empty return of the milling device must first be switched on. Finally, there is in particular the risk that the last remaining rib of the blank on the edge of the insert shape will be carried away by the milling cutter. The resulting, torn edge of the The shoe insert must then also be subjected to post-processing.

An object of the present invention is to provide a system for the production of shoe insoles, in which the result of the measurement of the sole of the foot is obtained in a form which is easier to transfer and process and which, after largely automatic implementation, serves to control a device for the production of shoe insoles.

Another object is to provide a measuring device which has a simpler structure and preferably delivers the measurement result in the form of electrical signals.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a device for the production of shoe insoles, in which at least one of the disadvantages of the known devices of this type is avoided.

Such a system is specified in claim 15. The devices for measuring the soles of the feet and the production of shoe insoles, which are particularly suitable for this system, form the subject matter of claims 1 and 8, respectively. Preferred embodiments are specified in the respective dependent claims.

Accordingly, the system consists of the measuring device according to the invention, the shoe sole manufacturing device according to the invention and a data processing system which converts the data supplied by the measuring device into control data for the manufacturing device and, if necessary, also permits post-processing, e.g. B. smoothing or orthopedic corrections. The measuring device is characterized in that the sole of the foot is scanned line by line by one or more sensors which slide over the sole of the foot. Preferably, a single pass z. B. from the heel to the toes, for which purpose a correspondingly large number of sensors is arranged side by side.

According to the invention, the manufacturing device operates essentially in a spiral shape. The described problem of the thin rib to be removed in the end is reduced to a central, less critical cone.

The invention will be further described using an exemplary embodiment with reference to figures.

FIG. 1 shows an isometric representation of the entire manufacturing device,

FIG. 2 shows an isometric representation of the actual manufacturing device,

FIG. 3 shows an isometric representation of a sensor and its surroundings,

FIG. 4 shows an isometric representation with a section of a support model,

FIG. 5 shows a simplified top view with indicated feet,

FIG. 6 shows an isometric representation of the electromechanical function of the manufacturing device, FIG. 7 shows an isometric representation of the electromechanical function of the manufacturing device,

FIG. 8 is an isometric representation of the workflow,

FIG. 9 shows a representation of the geometry of the tool engagement,

Figure 10 is an isometric view of the detail of the

Machining on the rotary table with a blunt cone as a conclusion,

Figure 11 is an isometric view of the processing from the inside or outside, and

Figure 12 Disadvantages of line-by-line machining on a cross table.

The external shape of the measuring device results from two side boxes 1, 2, the actual measuring device that lies between them, and front and rear covers 3 and 4.

The mutually facing walls of boxes 1, 2 support the measuring apparatus, consisting of the functional groups wire rope grating A and sensor unit B described below.

The wire rope grating A consists of a tension axis 5, a deflection axis 6, two directional axes 7, 8 and a wire rope 9.

Deflection axis 6 and the alignment axes 7, 8 are supported with their end journals in bores in the walls of the boxes 1, 2. The tension axis 5 is received there in longitudinal holes and over two screws 10 opposite ribs 11, 12 on the boxes 1, 2 adjustable.

The adjustability serves to pretension the wire rope 9, which is anchored in the tensioning axis 5 and the deflection axis 6, and is pulled into a tight grid. The straightening axes 7, 8, profiled with recesses, ensure the parallel running of the run of the rope 9, so that a regular grid pattern of rope runs 9 and spaces is created. This wire rope grating A forms the measuring platform on which the foot to be measured comes to be centered and the longitudinal axis of the foot is aligned with the wire rope axis. The other foot of the test person is placed on one of the two boxes 1, 2 next door.

Through the interstices of the wire rope grating A, sensors measure 13 longitudinal footbed sections.

The sensors 13 are part of the underlying sensor unit B, which operates as follows:

A base body 14, designed as a slide with ball bushings 15, running on two guide axes 16, 17 and pulled by a toothed belt 18, carries two bearing plates 19 with an axis 20 on which the twenty-four sensors 13 are rotatably mounted.

The sensors 13, spaced from spacers 21, are pulled into the working position by tension springs 22. The tension springs are biased against an axis 23. To measure, each individual sensor 13 connects a linkage 24 to a linear potentiometer 25.

The guide axes 16, 17 are screwed at their ends to angles 26, 27, which in turn are mounted on the boxes 1, 2 with screws and nuts. One of the angles 26 also carries the stepper motor 28, the other 27 the deflection wheel 29 (see Figure 1).

Two levers 30, 31, which are connected to two rods 32, 33 and can be pivoted by bolts 34, 35 in pillow blocks 36, 37, are deflected in the two end positions by rollers 38, 39 and thereby sink the sensors during the idle stroke of sensor system B. 13. The rollers 38, 39 are mounted with screws on one of the two box walls 2.

If the stepper motor 28 pulls the sensor system B from the heel 41 under the foot through to the toes 43, each sensor 13 records the foot profile of its cut on the longitudinal potentiometer 25. The measurement data are read out synchronously with the stepper motor 28 and converted from analog to digital. The other foot 44 is placed on one of the boxes 1 or 2.

The device stores the topography of a foot in the form of the cuts in a file.

The feet can be placed orthopedically corrected for measurement with thin-walled support models 40 which are open at the bottom. The sensors 13 also detect the inner shape of the support models 40 and read in the correction.

Conceivable are other than the specified electromechanical sensors such. B. contactless, in which the measurement is carried out by light reflection or by sound, and / or other type of converter of the height values into electrical signals, for. B. by contactless working, incremental or absolute measuring, working on inductive, optical, or capacitive principle. It is also conceivable to provide a small number, in the extreme case only one sensor, which then pass through the measurement sections several times and in each case scan a different line on the sole of the foot.

It is also conceivable to use 9 strands of different material instead of wires, or also stronger rods for the grid A.

The measured values supplied by the measuring device, which are initially still analog, are recorded by a data processing system (not shown) and converted into control data for the manufacturing device described below. Known for this data processing system

Standard components are used, such as A / D converters and small computers (PCs). In the simplest case, a commercially available small computer with standard interface cards for measured value acquisition and machine control is used for this. It is also conceivable to connect a processing system to the measuring device, the data being stored on a portable data carrier. This data is read in on a suitably equipped control which is connected to the manufacturing device. The necessary conversions and possibly post-processing of the data are carried out on one or the other system. Instead of a portable data carrier, any type of data transmission can also take place.

In addition to the mere conversion of the measured values into the control information for the production device, programs known per se can also be used to carry out a visual check on a screen, post-processing in the sense of orthopedic corrections of the footbed and / or Smoothing or other meaningful data manipulation.

The manufacturing device for the shoe insoles is shown in FIGS. 6 to 12.

The machine stand, consisting of a base 101 and two tower-like structures 102, 103, is screwed closed by four covers 104, 105, 106, 107 and takes the functional groups

- rotary table with drive C

- Radial axis with drive D and

- Interpolation axis with drive E screwed on.

In addition, the cover 106 carries a field of control buttons 108 and behind the cover 105 the box with the electrical control 109 is hidden.

The rotary table with drive C is a two-stage

Belt drive driven. A stepper motor 110, which is screwed onto a support bracket 111, opposite the base 101, drives the toothed belt 113 of the first transmission stage with the drive wheel 112. A two-stage intermediate gear 114 is driven, which runs on a fixed bearing journal 115. The bearing journal 115 is screwed into its structure 103 via its flange. The intermediate wheel 114 is held axially by an adjusting ring 116. In the second gear stage, the toothed belt 117 connects the idler gear 114 to the drive gear 118 of the rotary table shaft 119.

Two ball bearings 120 support the rotary table shaft 119 in the structure 103. It is designed as a hollow shaft and has a flat flange 121 at the front end, on which the rotary table 122 is placed by passing it through its central hole 170 over a washer with an internal thread 123, which can be clamped by a spindle with a star grip 124.

The rotary table 122 is supported in the work area by a support roller 125 with its support 126, which is mounted on the structure 103 on the outside. The same carrier 126 also receives a sensor 127, which is used to index the angle of the rotary table 122 by means of a hole 171 in it.

The radial axis with drive D is driven by a stepper motor 128, which is fastened to the base 101 with screws via a support bracket 129. The drive mechanism consists of a trapezoidal screw 130 and nut 131. The former is pinned to the motor shaft and is supported by an axial bearing 132 on the motor face, the latter is screwed to a slide 133 which guides the radial movement.

The slide 133 runs by means of slide bearings 134 on two guide shafts 135, 136, which are screwed to ribs in the machine base 101, and carries the stepper motor 138, which drives the interpolation axis E, on a standpipe 137. The radial position of the machining tool is indexed to a limit switch 39 by the slide 33.

The interpolation axis with drive E consists of a rocker 140 which is pivotably mounted on one of the guide shafts 135, 136 in slide bearings 134 and is axially guided between the bearing plates 133a of the slide 133. At the lower end, the rocker 140 carries a platform on which the spindle drive motor 141 is mounted.

A flat belt pulley 142 is mounted on the shaft of the motor 141 and drives the belt wheel 144 on the tool spindle 145 via a flat belt 143. The tool spindle 145 is hollow and on two ball bearings in the spindle housing 146 stored, which is attached to a platform 140a on the rocker 140 with two screws 147. The tool spindle 145 receives the machining tool 148, a cylindrical hard metal grinding body with a spherical end, on its forehead, which is pulled into the spindle 145 by a screw 149.

The stepper motor 138, pivotably screwed to the standpipe 137 of the slide 133 by means of an axle screw 151 via a fork piece 150 and provided with a thrust bearing 152 on the end face, rotates the trapezoidal threaded spindle 153 pinned on its shaft, which in turn moves a pivotable nut which in the bearings 154 in the rocker 140 is pivotally mounted.

The fork piece 150 on the standpipe 137 carries the limit switch 155, which indexes the position of the rocker 140 and thus the interpolation factor E.

The round table 122 can be easily removed from the machine onto a work table for loading the blanks. The blanks 156 are fixed on the markings for the corresponding insert sizes on the rotary table 122 by means of double-sided adhesive tape. The rotary table 122 is then inserted into the machine and tightened by means of a spindle 124, disk 123.

A file with the topographies of two feet is loaded into the controller via a data interface.

If you start the work process, all axes are zeroed first, whereupon the controller 109 first starts the spindle motor 141, then the rotary table 122 and finally the radial axis D. While the rotary table C with the two blanks 56 rotates slowly (arrow 157), at the same time the radial axis D runs slowly from the periphery 159 of the rotary table 122 towards its center 160: the machining process describes a spiral on the rotary table C (similar to the way one works Turntable).

As soon as the path of the tool affects the geometry of the footbed topographies, the interpolation axis E begins to incorporate the specified footbed into the blanks 156.

So that the machining tool 148 is unable to tear the blanks 156 off the rotary table 122, the axis of the spindle 145 is inclined at an angle 161 of at least 15 ° to the rotary table axis, so that the cylindrical portion of the machining tool 148 causes the blanks 156 to be driven by a force component 162 of the Chip pressure 172 presses on the rotary table 122.

Depending on the suitability of the material of the blanks 156, the machining can be carried out in the same direction 157 or in the opposite direction 158 of the feed and tool rotation direction.

At the end of the working process, the generally highest point of the pair of blanks 156, the blunt cone 163, formed from the two foot arches, is machined, so that, because of the small depth of cut, there is also a slight tendency to tear the material. In addition, the last batch to be machined forms an arc 164 and is therefore also more stable on the blank 156 than a straight strip 165 in the case of linear rectilinear machining on a cross table 166. Working on the rotary table also allows work processes to begin from inside 167 or outside 159.

It is also conceivable to move the tool spirally and to keep the blanks on a table at rest. The spiral movement could also be realized by combining two linear movements, which are preferably directed perpendicular to one another. The movement of tools and the other of the table could also be adjusted.

From the previous description of the

Manufacturing device also has the advantage that two shoe inserts can now be produced in one operation instead of a single shoe insert.

The foregoing description makes modifications to the invention available to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention.

Claims

claims

1. Device for detecting the topography of a foot (42) with at least one sensor (13), characterized in that the sensor can be moved in a measuring surface along essentially parallel paths and during such a movement from the sensor values for the distance of the foot sole a foot (42), which is located in the detection area of the sensor (13), can be determined from a predetermined base area in order to determine the topography of the sole of the foot (42) in the form of data, the essentially parallel cuts through the foot represent.

2. Device according to claim 1, characterized in that a plurality of sensors of the same type (13) are present and a measurement can be carried out in that the sensors (13) simultaneously run through the measurement area from a start to an end once.

3. Device according to one of claims 1 to 2, characterized in that each sensor (13) lies against the sole of the foot during a measurement, is arranged movably and is pressed against the sole of the foot, preferably by a spring element (22), so that the sensor (13) executes a movement following the shape of the sole of the foot and the movement of the sensor can be converted by an transducer (25) into an electrical signal.

4. The device according to claim 3, characterized in that the converter (25) generates an analog signal and at least one analog-to-digital converter is present, which converts the analog signal from one or more sensors (13) into a digital signal.

5. Device according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that a grid (A) is present which consists essentially of parallel, tensioned or rigid strands, preferably tensioned wires (9), and on which the foot to be measured (42) can be switched off, and that each sensor (13) projects through a gap between two strands in the grid (A) and can be moved along the gap in order to carry out the measurement.

6. Device according to one of claims 2 to 5, characterized in that at the beginning and at the end of the paths of the sensors (13) there is a stationary control element (38 or 39), the sensors (13) have an extension and a moving with the sensors moving actuator (30-38) is present, which by the

Driving over one (38) or another control element (39) into one or the other of two positions and thereby making an active connection with the extension of the sensors (13), as a result of which the sensors (13) between an active measuring division and a passive one Position can be moved back and forth, the sensors (13) in the passive position when moving along their path do not touch a foot located on the device in the measuring position, so that the sensors (13) can freely return to the starting position of a measurement is.

7. Device according to one of claims 2 to 6, characterized by a wire cable grid (A) on which the foot (42) to be measured can be placed, wherein a deflecting (6) and a clamping axis (5) of screws (10) pulled the wire rope grid A and two directional axes (7, 8) hold the wire rope strand (9) in a grid by a sensor unit (B), which is driven by a stepper motor (28) via a toothed belt (18) along two guide axes (16, 17) is pulled from the heel to beyond the toes, sensors (13), mounted on a common axis (20), drawing longitudinal sections via rods (24) on longitudinal potentiometers (25), which are converted from analog to digital can be saved by means of two levers (30, 31) with two axes (32,

33), can be pivoted by means of bolts (34, 35) in pillow block bearings (36, 37) and are deflected by rollers (38, 39) in the two end positions of the measuring stroke, so that the sensors (13) during the idle stroke in the wire rope grille ( A) remain sunk, by thin-walled support models (40) that are open to the bottom

Foot for orthopedic correction can be underlaid prior to measurement, so that the sensors record the correction during measurement and the apparatus records corrected footbed data.

8. Device for the automatic production of shoe inserts from at least one blank (156) with a material removal device (148), characterized in that an abrasive tool (148) can be moved in one plane with respect to the blank (156) on a substantially spiral path and can be raised and lowered at least obliquely and preferably essentially perpendicular to this plane in order to generate a predetermined topography of the shoe inserts on the blank.

9. The device according to claim 8, characterized in that at least one pair of blanks (156) can be arranged such that the tool (156) on the spiral path runs over all blanks (156) during a 360 "revolution to pairs of shoe insoles manufacture at the same time.

10. The device according to claim 9, characterized in that the blanks (156) can be fastened on a table (122) in such a way that the part of the shoe inserts corresponding to the arch of a person's foot is last processed by the tool (156).

11. The device according to one of claims 8 to 10, characterized in that the blanks on a table

(122) can be fastened and the abrasive surface or edge of the tool (156) is at an angle of at least 15 ° to the plumb on the table in order to generate a force component during the machining of a blank, which the blank (156) onto the Presses table (122).

12. The device according to one of claims 8 to 11, characterized in that a table (122) with rotary drive (C) for receiving the blanks (156) is present and the tool with an interpolation drive (E) for movement at least approximately vertically to the table (122) and a radial drive for a reciprocating movement between the periphery (159) and the center (160) of the table.

13. Device according to one of claims 8 to 11, characterized in that a controller is present, from which a data record can preferably be read in via an input from a data carrier and automatic processing of the blank (156) can be carried out according to the data record.

14. Device according to one of claims 8 to 13 for the fully automatic processing of footbeds

Pairs of shoe inserts, characterized by a rotary table with drive (C) which picks up and rotates the blanks (156), by a radial axis with drive (D), which the tool spindle (145) in the radial direction of the rotary table

(122) leads through an interpolation axis with drive (E), which carries tool spindle (145) and spindle drive motor (141), the blank being varied by varying the distance between machining tool (148) and rotary table (122)

(156) the topography of the footbeds is transmitted and the processing tool (148) has an angle (161) to the axis of the rotary table (122) which, with a force component (162) of the chip pressure, the blanks

(156) presses on the rotary table (122).

15. Plant for the production of shoe insoles with a first device according to one of claims 1 to 7

Detection of the topography of human feet (42) and a second device according to one of claims 8 - 13 for the creation of inlays by material-removing processing of blanks (156), characterized in that

- The topography can be detected by the first device by essentially cell-shaped scanning of the sole of the foot (42) and can be output in the form of measurement data, in particular of a digital nature, - The second device performs an essentially spiral processing of the blank according to inputable control data ,

- And that a data processing system is available, which converts the measurement data of the first device into control data for the second device.

16. Use of the device according to one of claims 8 to 14, characterized in that a pair of blanks approximately according to the natural foot position and symmetrical to the center of the spiral path of the tool (148) be arranged in the machining area of the tool (148).