Clamping device and method of clamping
AssigneeGROB-WERKE GmbH & Co. KG
InventorAlfred Höbel
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The invention refers to a clamping device and a method for clamping an article, wherein a clamping means connected with the article interacts with clamping elements of the clamping device by a clamping motion for the releasable clamping of the article, and the at least one clamping element can be moved by a clamping drive along a clamping direction, and additionally the clamping element is movable in a compensation direction differing from the clamping direction, in order to allow centering and afterwards clamping of the article.
Claims16
Clamping device for indirectly or directly clamping at least one article, such as, for example, a work piece or tool, wherein a clamping means connected indirectly or directly with the article interacts with one or more clamping elements of the clamping device by a clamping movement for releasable clamping of the article, and the at least one clamping element can move by a clamping drive along a clamping direction, and additionally the at least one clamping element can move in a preferably rectangular compensation direction differing from the clamping direction to allow in a first step of the clamping motion, before the actual clamping, centering of the article or the clamping means relatively to the clamping device or the at least one clamping element in the direction of compensation, wherein free motion of the at least one clamping element is provided in compensation direction, in particular wherein the clamping element is designed as clamping ball or clamping jaw, and/or the clamping device has also several types of clamping elements each configured differently, and the different types of clamping elements serve for different purposes, for example a first type of clamping elements for centering and a second type of clamping elements for clamping.
Method for the releasable clamping of an article, for example a work piece or tool, with a clamping device, in particular according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein during a clamping motion at least one clamping element of the clamping device is moved by a clamping drive along a clamping direction in such a way, that the at least one clamping element interacts with a clamping means connected indirectly or directly with the article, wherein in a first step of the clamping motion the at least one clamping element moves in a in particular rectangular compensation direction differing from the clamping direction, for centering the article or the clamping means relatively to the clamping direction, and in a second step following the first step of the clamping motion the clamping means is clamped by the at least one clamping element, in particular by a motion of the at least one clamping element in clamping direction.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.