Friction stir welding apparatus

1. A friction stir welding apparatus comprising:

a mounting member on which a processing target member is mounted;

a welding tool having a probe, a holder having a coefficient of thermal expansion larger than that of the probe and holding the probe detachably, a drive mechanism that can drive the holder holding the probe to freely move the probe vertically with respect to a processing target side surface of the processing target member and can freely rotate with respect to the processing target member, and a detector that can freely detect a length of a member including the holder and the probe as the drive mechanism moves the holder holding the probe downward;

a movement mechanism having an arm to which a fitting jig fitted with the welding tool is fixed so as to be able to freely move the welding tool with respect to the processing target member by moving the arm; and

a probe detection mechanism that can freely detect a tip length, which is a length of a member of only the probe, as the drive mechanism moves the holder holding the probe downward,

wherein the probe detection mechanism has a block member whose position is fixed and a displacement sensor fixed to the block member side, and at a time of detecting the tip length of the probe, after the movement mechanism moves the arm so that the welding tool faces the block member, the drive mechanism moves down the holder holding the probe to press an upper surface side of the block member by a tip of the probe, and a contact member of the displacement sensor comes in contact with an abutment member of the welding tool and is moved, thereby detecting displacement of the contact member.

2. The friction stir welding apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the detector can freely detect an amount of vertical movement of the holder and the probe held by the holder by the drive mechanism, and detects the length of the member including the holder and the probe based on the amount of movement after the movement mechanism moves the arm so that the welding tool faces the block member until the holder holding the probe is moved down by the drive mechanism to press the upper surface side of the block member by the tip of the probe.

3. The friction stir welding apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising a supplementary support mechanism that supports the mounting member by a support member to supplementarily support only a vertical position of the processing target member,

wherein the supplementary support mechanism is fitted to the arm, and at a time of detecting the length of the member including the holder and the probe and the tip length of the probe, the welding tool is moved down so that the tip of the probe presses the upper surface side of the block member, and the support member supports the lower surface side of the block member.

4. The friction stir welding apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising a probe cleaning mechanism that cleans the probe,

wherein the probe cleaning mechanism has a roughing unit and a final polishing unit, and at a time of cleaning the probe, after the movement mechanism moves the arm so that the welding tool faces the roughing unit, the welding tool is moved down to accommodate the tip of the probe in the roughing unit, and the welding tool is rotated to rough the tip, and after the movement mechanism moves the arm so that the welding tool faces the final polishing unit, the welding tool is moved down to accommodate the tip of the probe in the final polishing unit, and the welding tool is rotated to polish the tip.

5. A friction stir welding apparatus comprising:

a mounting member on which a processing target member is mounted;

a welding tool having a probe, a holder having a coefficient of thermal expansion larger than that of the probe and holding the probe detachably, a drive mechanism that can drive the holder holding the probe to freely move the probe vertically with respect to a processing target side surface of the processing target member and can freely rotate with respect to the processing target member, and a detector that can freely detect a length of a member including the holder and the probe as the drive mechanism moves the holder holding the probe downward;

a movement mechanism having an arm to which a fitting jig fitted with the welding tool is fixed so as to be able to freely move the welding tool with respect to the processing target member by moving the arm; and

a probe detection mechanism that can freely detect a tip length, which is a length of a member of only the probe, as the drive mechanism moves the holder holding the probe downward,

wherein the detector can freely detect the amount of vertical movement of the holder and the probe held by the holder by the drive mechanism, and detects the amount of movement after the movement mechanism moves the arm so that the welding tool faces a mounting surface of the mounting member until the welding tool is moved down to press the mounting surface of the mounting member by the tip of the probe.

6. The friction stir welding apparatus according to claim 5 , further comprising a supplementary support mechanism that supports the mounting member by a support member to supplementarily support only a vertical position of the processing target member,

wherein at a time of detecting the amount of movement after the movement mechanism moves the arm so that the welding tool faces the mounting surface of the mounting member until the welding tool is moved down to press the mounting surface of the mounting member by the tip of the probe, the welding tool is moved down to press the mounting surface of the mounting member by the tip of the probe and the support member supports an opposite side to the mounting surface of the mounting member.

7. A friction stir welding apparatus comprising:

a mounting member on which a processing target member is mounted;

a welding tool having a probe, a holder having a coefficient of thermal expansion larger than that of the probe and holding the probe detachably, a drive mechanism that can drive the holder holding the probe to freely move the probe vertically with respect to a processing target side surface of the processing target member and can freely rotate with respect to the processing target member, and a detector that can freely detect a length of a member including the holder and the probe as the drive mechanism moves the holder holding the probe downward;

a movement mechanism having an arm to which a fitting jig fitted with the welding tool is fixed so as to be able to freely move the welding tool with respect to the processing target member by moving the arm;

a probe detection mechanism that can freely detect a tip length, which is a length of a member of only the probe, as the drive mechanism moves the holder holding the probe downward;

a pressing member that can freely press the processing target member mounted on the mounting member; and

a processing-member detection mechanism having a displacement sensor fixed to the mounting member side,

wherein when the pressing member presses an upper surface of the processing target member, the contact member of the displacement sensor comes in contact with the pressing member side and is moved, thereby detecting an amount of displacement of the contact member.

8. The friction stir welding apparatus according to claim 7 , wherein the processing target member has a lower member and an upper member, and when the pressing member presses an upper surface of the lower member mounted on the mounting member, the contact member of the displacement sensor comes in contact with the pressing member side and is moved, thereby detecting the amount of displacement of the contact member, or when the pressing member presses an upper surface of the upper member mounted on the lower member, the contact member of the displacement sensor comes in contact with the pressing member side and is moved, thereby detecting the amount of displacement of the contact member.

9. The friction stir welding apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising:

a probe cleaning mechanism that cleans the probe; and

a processing-member detection mechanism having a displacement sensor fixed to the mounting member side,

wherein the probe cleaning mechanism has a roughing unit and a final polishing unit, and at a time of cleaning the probe, after the movement mechanism moves the arm so that the welding tool faces the roughing unit, the welding tool is moved down to accommodate the tip of the probe in the roughing unit, and the welding tool is rotated to rough the tip, and after the movement mechanism moves the arm so that the welding tool faces the final polishing unit, the welding tool is moved down to accommodate the tip of the probe in the final polishing unit, and the welding tool is rotated to polish the tip, and

wherein the probe detection mechanism, the processing-member detection mechanism, the probe cleaning mechanism, and the processing target member mounted on the mounting member are arranged within a movable range of the welding tool defined by the movement of the arm by the movement mechanism.

10. The friction stir welding apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the movement mechanism is an industrial robot.

11. The friction stir welding apparatus according to claim 5 , further comprising:

a probe cleaning mechanism that cleans the probe; and

a processing-member detection mechanism having a displacement sensor fixed to the mounting member side,

wherein the probe cleaning mechanism has a roughing unit and a final polishing unit, and at a time of cleaning the probe, after the movement mechanism moves the arm so that the welding tool faces the roughing unit, the welding tool is moved down to accommodate the tip of the probe in the roughing unit, and the welding tool is rotated to rough the tip, and after the movement mechanism moves the arm so that the welding tool faces the final polishing unit, the welding tool is moved down to accommodate the tip of the probe in the final polishing unit, and the welding tool is rotated to polish the tip, and

wherein the probe detection mechanism, the processing-member detection mechanism, the probe cleaning mechanism, and the processing target member mounted on the mounting member are arranged within a movable range of the welding tool defined by the movement of the arm by the movement mechanism.

12. The friction stir welding apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein the movement mechanism is an industrial robot.

13. The friction stir welding apparatus according to claim 7 , further comprising a probe cleaning mechanism that cleans the probe,

wherein the probe cleaning mechanism has a roughing unit and a final polishing unit, and at a time of cleaning the probe, after the movement mechanism moves the arm so that the welding tool faces the roughing unit, the welding tool is moved down to accommodate the tip of the probe in the roughing unit, and the welding tool is rotated to rough the tip, and after the movement mechanism moves the arm so that the welding tool faces the final polishing unit, the welding tool is moved down to accommodate the tip of the probe in the final polishing unit, and the welding tool is rotated to polish the tip, and

wherein the probe detection mechanism, the processing-member detection mechanism, the probe cleaning mechanism, and the processing target member mounted on the mounting member are arranged within a movable range of the welding tool defined by the movement of the arm by the movement mechanism.

14. The friction stir welding apparatus according to claim 7 , wherein the movement mechanism is an industrial robot.