JP6350605B2 - Method for manufacturing working medium control mechanism - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a manufacturing method of a working medium control mechanism for controlling supply of a working medium to a hydraulic actuator or the like, and belongs to the field of fluid control technology.

  Generally, an automatic transmission mounted on a vehicle generates, supplies and discharges fastening hydraulic pressure to and from a plurality of frictional engagement elements constituting a transmission mechanism, supplies lubricating oil to each part in the transmission case, and a torque converter. A hydraulic control device is provided for controlling the supply of oil to the vehicle.

  For example, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, a conventional hydraulic control device forms a plurality of layers of valve body constituting members constituting a valve body by casting such as aluminum die casting, and solenoid valves are formed on these valve body constituting members. After a control valve such as a spool valve is assembled, each valve body component is stacked with a separate plate between the mating faces, and these are fastened with bolts to form a unit.

  At this time, the valve body constituting member of each layer is formed with a hole into which the valve is inserted, a hydraulic oil inlet / outlet, an oil passage for communicating these, and the like at the time of molding. In the conventional manufacturing method in which molding is performed by casting, the handling of the oil passage is complicated due to restrictions at the time of die-cutting, and the number of parts is increased due to the need for the separate plate and a large number of bolts. There are problems such as an increase in the size of the hydraulic control device and an increase in weight.

  In response to this, it is conceivable to form the valve body integrally by a three-dimensional additive manufacturing method instead of casting. In that case, as a three-dimensional additive manufacturing method, based on CAD data etc., the powder layer formed by thinly laying a powder of metal or the like is irradiated with a laser to partially melt and solidify the powder layer, and a new powder is formed thereon. It is possible to use a method of manufacturing a three-dimensional shaped object in which a plurality of layers are laminated and integrated by repeating layering and melting and solidification by laser irradiation. According to this method, the valve insertion hole A valve body having a hollow portion such as a hydraulic passage and a complicated internal structure can be integrally formed, and a reduction in size and weight of the hydraulic control device can be expected.

JP 2013-253653 A

  In the three-dimensional additive manufacturing method, in order to reliably support the part that has already been solidified and buried in the powder during modeling, support for the columnar shape, wall shape, etc. that supports this is done simultaneously with the modeling of the product part A method is used in which the subsequent portion is sequentially layered while forming the portion and supporting the portion solidified earlier by the support portion.

  In addition, when modeling a product having a hollow portion such as the valve body, if the upper wall portion of the hollow portion is wide in the horizontal direction, it is difficult to accurately model the upper wall portion. It may be shaped into a shape. That is, as shown in FIG. 7, the stacking direction is an upward direction from the modeling substrate 130, and the upper wall portion of the hollow portion such as the oil passage having a large cross-sectional area of the valve body 101 or the valve insertion hole is in the horizontal direction. The product part 110 and the support part 120 are shaped in a tilted posture.

  However, depending on the shape or the like of the hollow part, it may be difficult to accurately shape the upper wall part of the hollow part simply by inclining the product. It is conceivable that the support part is shaped and the upper wall part of the hollow part is shaped while being supported by the support part.

  In that case, the support part is separated from the product part after modeling and discharged to the outside, but if the passage area of the communication part for communicating the inside of the hollow part and the outside is smaller than the support part, the separated support part It will be difficult to discharge to the outside and will remain in the product.

  As a result, for example, in the valve body for an automatic transmission, a part of the support portion remaining in the hollow portion is broken down finely due to the vibration of the vehicle after the vehicle is mounted or the vibration due to the operation of the control valve. It is conceivable that the oil is discharged and mixed into the hydraulic oil stored in the oil pan in which the valve body is stored. This causes a malfunction of the hydraulic control device and may cause an increase in shift shock. Further, the support part mixed in the hydraulic oil clogs the oil passage for supplying the lubricating oil of the automatic transmission, thereby causing poor lubrication of the transmission mechanism and possibly causing seizure.

  Therefore, the present invention provides a method capable of reliably removing the support part while ensuring modeling accuracy as a method of manufacturing a working medium control mechanism such as the valve body using a three-dimensional additive manufacturing method. The task is to do.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, a method of manufacturing a working medium control mechanism according to the present invention is configured as follows.

First, the invention described in claim 1
A manufacturing method of a working medium control mechanism used for supply / discharge control of a working medium,
A working medium control mechanism having a hollow portion surrounded by a peripheral wall and a communication portion that communicates the hollow portion with the outside is formed by a three-dimensional additive manufacturing method while forming a support portion that supports the upper wall portion of the hollow portion. Modeling process to do,
After the modeling process, the support part modeled in the hollow part is separated from the product part, and has a support part removing process for discharging to the outside from the communication part,
In the modeling step, a weakened portion for splitting and breaking the support portion into a size that can be discharged from the communication portion in the support portion removing step is provided.

The invention according to claim 2 is the invention according to claim 1,
In the modeling step, the weak part for splitting and breaking the support part is provided in a different part from the weak part for separating the product part and the support part.

The invention according to claim 3 is the invention according to claim 1 or 2,
The working medium control mechanism includes an introduction part for introducing a fluid for separating and breaking the support part from the product part and into the hollow part in the support part removing step,
In the support part removing step, the pressurized fluid is introduced into the hollow part from the introduction part.

The invention according to claim 4 is the invention according to claim 3,
In the support part removing step, a fluid containing an abrasive is used as the fluid.

The invention according to claim 5 is the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The working medium is working oil for an automatic transmission,
The working medium control mechanism is a valve body including an oil passage and a control valve insertion hole for controlling the automatic transmission,
The working medium control mechanism is housed in a working oil reservoir provided in the automatic transmission.

  First, according to the manufacturing method of the working medium control mechanism according to the first aspect of the invention, in the modeling process, the upper wall portion of the hollow portion is accurately modeled integrally with the working medium control mechanism by the three-dimensional layered modeling method. A support portion is formed for this purpose, and the support portion is provided with a weak portion for splitting and breaking so that the hollow portion and the outside can be discharged from the communication portion. As a result, in the support part removing step, the support part is separated from the working medium control mechanism as the product part and divided and broken, and can be discharged to the outside even when the passage area of the communication part is small.

  For example, in a valve body for an automatic transmission, if the support part remains in the hollow part, a part of the support part collapses after being mounted and enters a working medium stored in an oil pan. Although it is conceivable to cause a lubrication failure of the transmission mechanism, the above-mentioned problems can be prevented by splitting and breaking the support portion from the hollow portion.

  According to the invention described in claim 2, since the weak part for splitting and breaking the support part is provided in a different part from the weak part for separating the product part and the support part, split splitting is provided. The subsequent fragment can be made to have an arbitrary size smaller than the case where the fragile portion is provided only between the product portion and the support portion. Thereby, the support part modeled in the hollow part of the said working-medium control mechanism can be removed more reliably.

  Furthermore, according to the invention described in claim 3, the communication portion of the working medium control mechanism is provided with an introduction portion for introducing a fluid for dividing and breaking the support portion, and is pressurized from the introduction portion. By introducing the fluid, the support part can be separated from the product part and can be divided and broken and discharged to the outside. That is, it is possible to remove the support portion at a part that cannot be removed by mechanical work or manual work from the outside of the working medium control mechanism.

  According to the invention of claim 4, the removal fluid in the support part removing step includes an abrasive, so that the product part and the support part after removal are separated while removing the support part. The part can be polished. Accordingly, in the manufacturing process of the working medium control mechanism, it is possible to perform a polishing process in the hollow part or the communication part of the working medium control mechanism at the same time as the support part removing process. Can be improved and the manufacturing process can be shortened.

  According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, when the working medium control mechanism is a valve body of an automatic transmission, the effect of the first to fourth aspects of the valve body can be obtained with respect to the valve body. The inconvenience described above due to the collapse of a part of the support part after being mounted on the vehicle and mixing with the hydraulic oil in the storage part is prevented. In addition, by modeling by the three-dimensional additive manufacturing method, separate plates and bolts are not required, and the valve body can be reduced in size and weight compared to a conventional structure in which cast components are stacked.

It is a perspective view which shows the working medium control mechanism which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a side view which shows the manufacturing method of the working-medium control mechanism which concerns on the said embodiment. It is sectional drawing of the AA cross section in FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the weak part of the support part in FIG. It is an expanded sectional view of the BB cross section in FIG. It is an enlarged view of the C section in FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the manufacturing method of the working-medium control mechanism by a three-dimensional additive manufacturing method.

  Hereinafter, the manufacturing method of the valve body 1 which concerns on embodiment of this invention is demonstrated.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the valve body 1 is composed of a single member formed by a three-dimensional additive manufacturing method, and is used for controlling hydraulic pressure supplied to an automatic transmission or a torque converter mounted on a vehicle. And assembled in a transmission case (not shown) in a state of being housed in an oil pan.

  The valve body 1 includes a plurality of oil passages 11... 11, a plurality of valve insertion holes 12... 12 communicated with these oil passages 11. The oil passage 14, communication holes 15 to 15 with the oil passage of the transmission case, bolt holes 16 to the attachment 16 to the transmission case, and the like are provided. Solenoid valves and spool valves are assembled in the valve insertion holes 12... 12, and these valves together with the oil passages 11.

  The valve body 1 configured as described above is manufactured by the following manufacturing method.

  As shown in FIG. 2, in this embodiment, all parts including hollow portions such as the oil passages 11... 11 and the valve insertion holes 12. A modeling process is performed to integrally laminate and model.

  Here, in the three-dimensional additive manufacturing method according to this embodiment, the powder layer is partially melted and solidified by irradiating a laser on a powder layer in which metal powder is thinly spread based on CAD data or the like. By stacking a new powder layer and repeating solidification by laser irradiation, a three-dimensional shaped object in which a plurality of layers are stacked and integrated is manufactured.

  In the modeling of the valve body 1 by the three-dimensional additive manufacturing method, the stacking direction is an upward direction. As shown in FIG. 2, in this embodiment, the valve body 1 has oil passages 13 and 14 having a particularly large cross-sectional area. In order to accurately model the hollow portions such as the valve insertion holes 12 and the like, the upper wall portions of these hollow portions are modeled in a posture inclined with respect to the horizontal direction.

  In that case, the support part 20 is modeled in the site | part which becomes the predetermined part of the product part 10 used as the valve body 1 prior to modeling of the site | part. Like the product unit 10, the support unit 20 is stacked so as to rise one layer at a time from the upper surface of the modeling substrate 30 or the upper surface of the product unit 10 that has been previously modeled. The support portion 20a rising from the upper surface of the product portion and the support portion 20b rising from the upper surface of the product portion 10 are formed.

  The support portion 20 is shaped like a column or a wall, and a connecting portion 10a between the end portion of the support portion 20 and the product portion 10 is provided with a fragile portion X for easily separating them.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the valve body 1 includes not only the hollow portions such as the oil passages 11... 11, 13, 14 and the valve insertion holes 12. There is a portion from which meat has been removed (hereinafter referred to as “thinning portion”). As this thinning portion 17, an outer thinning portion 17 a exposed to the outside of the valve body 1 and an inner side that becomes a hollow portion of the valve body 1 There is a meat removal portion 17b. In the example of FIG. 3, communication holes 18 and 19 are provided at both end portions of a predetermined inner thinning portion 17 b for communicating the thinning portion with the outside of the valve body 1. A support portion 20c for supporting is provided. Here, the support portion of the outer thinning portion 17a is shaped as a support portion 20b that rises from the upper surface of the product portion 10 in FIG.

  Next, the structure of the support portion 20c provided in the predetermined hollow portion (inner wall removal portion) 17b of the valve body 1 will be described with reference to FIG.

  In this embodiment, the support portion 20c has a wall state 22 or a column state 23 in which a plurality of rhombus pieces 21 having a predetermined thickness are connected, and is configured by combining them. Specifically, the wall state 22 is formed by connecting the top and bottom vertices 21a of the fragment 21 and the left and right vertices 21b, and the column state 23 is connected by the top and bottom vertices 21a of the fragment 21. Is formed.

  A plurality of the wall states 22 are arranged in parallel at regular intervals, and the column state 23 is in a direction perpendicular to the wall states 22 ... 22 between the wall states 22 ... 22 provided in parallel. The center of the diagonal of the corresponding fragments 21... 21 of the wall states 22... 22 and the vertices 21 b.

  Further, a fragile portion X is provided at the connecting portion 10a between the apex 21a of the fragment 21 and the product portion 10, and a connecting portion between the apexes 21a in the vertical direction of the fragment 21 and a connecting portion between the apexes 21b in the left-right direction are provided. A weakened portion Y is provided at the connecting portion between the center of the diagonal line of the fragment 21 in the wall state 22 and the corresponding vertex 21b in the left-right direction of the fragment 21 in the column state 23 corresponding thereto.

  Furthermore, the said fragment | piece 21 is modeled by the magnitude | size which can pass the communicating hole 19 used as the discharge | emission side in the support part removal process mentioned later. For example, the longest dimension of the fragment 21 is formed smaller than the passage area of the communication hole 19.

  With the above configuration, the valve body 1 is formed by a three-dimensional additive manufacturing method.

  Next, the support part removal process which concerns on embodiment of this invention is demonstrated.

  As shown in FIG. 3, in the support part removing step, introduction for introducing a pressurized fluid (for example, water, oil, gas, etc.) into the valve body 1 in order to remove the support parts 20 c... 20 c. A communication hole 18 used as a part, and a communication hole 19 used as a discharge part from which the removed support parts 20c... 20c and fluid are discharged are provided. Further, a pipe b is connected to the communication hole 18 via, for example, a screwed joint a.

  With the above configuration, the support part removing step for removing the support part 20 is performed. In the support portion removing step, first, the shaped product is cut off from the shaped substrate 30 by, for example, wire cutting or the like, and the outer support portion 20a is removed from the product portion 10 by manual work or the like.

  Next, a pressurized air supply pipe b is connected to the communication hole 18 as the introduction portion at one end of the hollow portion 17b of the valve body 1 through a screwed joint a, and the pressurized portion is pressurized into the hollow portion 17b. Supply air.

  Thereby, as shown in FIG.5 and FIG.6, the weak part of support part 20c ... 20c is divided and fractured | ruptured to the fragment | piece 21 ... 21 by the pressure of pressurized air. Here, the support parts 20c... 20c are separated from the product part 10 by weak parts X... X provided in the connecting parts 10a... 10a of the support parts 20c. The support portion itself is finely divided and broken into, for example, diamond-shaped pieces 21... 21 by the weakened portions Y... Y, and this support portion piece 21 is broken and broken finer than the passage area of the communication hole 19. The air is discharged outside through the communication hole 19 together with the pressurized air.

  As a result, the support portions 20c... 20c formed in the hollow portion 17b of the valve body 1 are mounted on the vehicle while remaining without being removed, and the hydraulic oil stored in the oil pan is partly broken by vibration. Mixing can be prevented.

  In addition, it is also possible to use a liquid instead of pressurized air as the fluid, and in this case, an abrasive (for example, a soft amoeba-like polymer resin and silicon carbide, a polymer resin and an artificial diamond, etc.) is included. By using a thing, the isolation | separation part of the product part and support part after removal of a support part can be grind | polished, removing a support part. As a result, in the manufacturing process of the working medium control mechanism, it becomes possible to perform the polishing process in the hollow part or the communication part of the working medium control mechanism at the same time as the support part removing process, and the surface accuracy of the inner surface of the hollow part is improved. And the manufacturing process can be shortened.

  In the above-described embodiment, the shape of the fragment of the support portion is rhombus, and it is exemplified that it is smaller than the passage area of the communication hole. However, this support portion is formed by connecting a plurality of fragments with a weak portion. It is only necessary to have a fragile part for separation from the product part and a fragile part for splitting and breaking the support part itself, and it is sufficient that the brittle part can be split and broken and discharged from the communication hole. Even if it is larger than the passage area, the shape can be removed from the communication hole, for example, a cylindrical shape, the diameter is smaller than the communication hole, and the length is longer than the communication hole. Therefore, the shape of the fragment of the support portion is not limited to the shape of the embodiment.

  In the support part removing step in the above-described embodiment, the method for removing the support part using the fluid is exemplified, but other than this, the product part and the support part can be removed by heating or vibration from outside without using the fluid. It is also possible to remove the support part by separating the weak part provided in the connecting part and splitting and breaking the weak part provided in the support part.

  Moreover, in the above-mentioned embodiment, although the hollow part was illustrated by the thinning part, the same manufacturing method is possible also when the support part is provided in hollow parts, such as an oil path. In particular, when the support portion is formed in the valve insertion hole or the oil passage by the method of the present invention and the support portion is removed, the valve insertion hole or the oil passage can be accurately formed. Thereby, for example, in the valve insertion hole for the spool, it is possible to realize the smooth movement of the spool, and when applied to the oil passage, it is possible to suppress the resistance to the hydraulic oil passing through the oil passage.

  Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the product part to be modeled by the three-dimensional additive manufacturing method is implemented in an inclined posture, but even if it is not necessary to incline the product part, it is supported by the three-dimensional additive manufacturing method. The present invention is effective in a modeling method in which the part is formed integrally with the product part and the removal process is necessary.

  In the above-described embodiment, the valve body is used as the working medium control device. However, the present invention can be applied to the general manufacturing process of the working medium control device that requires the support part formed by the three-dimensional additive manufacturing method. is there.

  As described above, according to the present invention, when the valve body is layered by the three-dimensional layered manufacturing method, the support portion that is integrally molded can be removed, and the remaining support portion can be prevented from being mixed into the hydraulic oil. Therefore, there is a possibility that the automatic transmission having the hydraulic control device and the vehicle equipped with the automatic transmission are suitably used in the manufacturing industry.

1,101 Valve body (working medium control mechanism)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10,110 Product part 10a Connection part 11 Oil path 12 Valve insertion hole 13 Hydraulic oil intake oil path 14 Hydraulic oil discharge oil path 15 Communication hole with the oil path of a transmission case 16 Bolt hole 17 Thinning part 17a Outside thinning part 17b Inside thinning part 18 Communication hole (introduction part)
19 Communication hole (discharge section)
20,120 Support part 20a Support part rising from the modeling substrate 20b Support part rising from the upper surface of the product part 20c Support part provided in the thinning part 21 Fragment 21a, 21b Connecting part 22 Wall state 23 Column state 30,130 Modeling board a Joint b Pipe X Weak part Y Weak part

Claims (5)

A manufacturing method of a working medium control mechanism used for supply / discharge control of a working medium,
A working medium control mechanism having a hollow portion surrounded by a peripheral wall and a communication portion that communicates the hollow portion with the outside is formed by a three-dimensional additive manufacturing method while forming a support portion that supports the upper wall portion of the hollow portion. Modeling process to do,
After the modeling process, the support part modeled in the hollow part is separated from the product part, and has a support part removing process for discharging to the outside from the communication part,
In the modeling process, a weak part for splitting and breaking the support part into a size that can be discharged from the communication part in the support part removing process is provided.   2. The operation according to claim 1, wherein, in the modeling step, the weak part for splitting and breaking the support part is provided in a different part from the weak part for separating the product part and the support part. A method for manufacturing a medium control mechanism. The working medium control mechanism includes an introduction part for introducing a fluid for separating and breaking the support part from the product part and into the hollow part in the support part removing step,
The method for manufacturing a working medium control mechanism according to claim 1, wherein in the support portion removing step, a pressurized fluid is introduced from the introduction portion into the hollow portion.   The method for manufacturing a working medium control mechanism according to claim 3, wherein in the support portion removing step, a fluid containing an abrasive is used as the fluid. The working medium is working oil for an automatic transmission,
The working medium control mechanism is a valve body including an oil passage and a control valve insertion hole for controlling the automatic transmission,
5. The working medium control mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the working medium control mechanism is housed in a reservoir of the working oil provided in the automatic transmission. 6. Production method.

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