JPS6231267Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] The present invention relates to an industrial robot that performs operations such as welding, screw tightening, and sealer filling.

This type of robot is generally equipped with a work tool at the end of its arm to perform a specific task, and is configured to automatically perform the movements necessary for that task under the control of a control device. . These conventional work robots do not have the ability to transport the objects they are working on, and workers must carry the objects into and out of predetermined positions. Ta. Also,
If these operations were to be automated, a separate transport robot or a dedicated transport device such as a conveyor would be required, which would inevitably increase equipment costs.

The present invention was made with the purpose of providing a work robot with the function of transporting work objects in order to eliminate the drawbacks of the conventional technology. A holder for holding the object to be worked on is installed at the tip of the arm of the robot so that it can move in a direction approximately parallel to the longitudinal direction of the arm, and the holder can be moved between the operating position on the arm tip side and the operating position. Necessary for installing a cylinder that moves the base end of the arm to the retracted position and in a posture almost along the arm, and for the control device of the work robot to perform work on the arm with the holder moved to the retracted position. While making them perform certain actions,
The purpose is to cause the arm to perform operations necessary to convey the workpiece while the holder is moved to the operating position. Note that the term cylinder is used here to include not only fluid pressure cylinders such as air cylinders and hydraulic cylinders, but also electric cylinders.

In this way, a holder and a cylinder for moving the holder between the working position and the retreat position are added to the work robot, and the arm of the work robot is given not only movement for work but also movement for transportation. By allowing the work robot to perform the same tasks, it becomes possible to have the work robot also function as a transport robot, and it is possible to significantly reduce equipment costs compared to installing a dedicated transport robot, etc. It becomes. Furthermore, when using a work robot and a transport robot, it is necessary to install them so that they do not interfere with each other, which imposes restrictions on the configuration of the work line. On the other hand, if one robot performs the work and transport, this problem does not occur, the work line can be simplified, and the space required for the line can be saved. Moreover, when transporting the work object, the holder is moved to the working position and can easily hold the work object, and when the work is carried out with the work tool, the holder is moved to the working position. Since interference with the work tool or work object due to movement to the retracted position is avoided, work can be performed without any hindrance. In addition, since the cylinder is installed almost along the arm, there is less interference with surrounding components when the arm is activated, and this effectively avoids the narrowing of the work robot's movable range due to the arrangement of the cylinder. can do.

Hereinafter, a case in which the present invention is applied to a welding robot will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a welding and transporting robot which is an embodiment of the present invention, and includes a mechanism section 2 and a control section 3.
It consists of. A workpiece stand 4, belt conveyors 6 and 8, a positioning jig 10, and a workpiece stand 12 are arranged around the robot mechanism section 2. The workpiece stand 4 is for aligning and supporting the large parts 14 sent from the previous process, and the belt conveyors 6 and 8 are for aligning and supplying the small parts 16 and 18. The robot 1 transports the large part 14 from the workpiece table 4 and places it on the positioning jig 1.
At the same time, the small parts 16 and 18 are taken out from the belt conveyors 6 and 8 and positioned at a predetermined position on the large part 14, and then after welding them, the welded parts 2
0 to the workpiece table 12. The workpiece stand 4 on which the large part 14 before welding is placed and the workpiece stand 12 on which the welded part 20 is placed are arranged in a straight line, and the robot mechanism section 2 is installed at an intermediate position between them.
Belt conveyors 6, 8 and a positioning jig 10 are arranged on the sides thereof. When the robot 1 is used exclusively for transport, the welding robot is usually installed on the opposite side with the positioning jig 10 in between. The welding robot will be installed so as to protrude greatly in the right angle direction, resulting in wasted space within the factory. In contrast, the welding line of this embodiment has a compact structure as shown in FIG.

FIG. 2 shows details of the robot mechanism section 2. The mechanism section 2 is equipped with a rotating table 24 that is rotatably provided around a vertical axis on a stand 22 fixed to the floor surface, and this rotating table 24 can be rotated at any angle by a rotary actuator (not shown). It will be done.
A first arm 26 is attached to the rotary table 24 so as to be rotatable around a horizontal axis.
A second arm 28 is further attached to 6 so as to be rotatable around a horizontal axis. The first arm 26 is rotated by an electric cylinder 30 attached to the rotating table 24, and the second arm 28 is rotated by an electric cylinder (not shown) attached to the first arm 26. A welding torch 32 is attached to the tip of the second arm 28 so as to be rotatable around a horizontal axis, and can be rotated by a rotary actuator 34 at an arbitrary angle.

An air cylinder 36 is fixed to the second arm 28 by brackets 38 and 40. The air cylinder 36 is arranged parallel to the second arm 28, and its piston rod 42 is arranged parallel to the second arm 28.
It is adapted to extend toward the tip side of the arm 28. A work holder 46 is fixed to the tip of the piston rod 42 via a coupling member 44, and as the piston rod 42 expands and contracts, it protrudes from the tip of the arm 28 in a direction substantially parallel to the longitudinal direction of the arm 28. working position and arm 28
It is arranged to move to a retracted position below. As is clear from FIGS. 3 and 4, the workpiece holder 46 has two parts arranged at regular intervals.
It consists of two fingers 48 and 50, electromagnets 52 and 54 fixed to their lower surfaces, respectively, and positioning pins 56 and 58 erected on their upper surfaces. The coupling member 44 also includes a third
As is clear from the figure, a guide rod 60 is fixed, and the guide rod 60 is slidably passed through the lug 62 extending from the bracket 40, thereby attaching the work holder 4.
6 is prevented from rotating about the axis of the piston rod 42. The workpiece conveyance mechanism 63 is constituted by each of the above members. The robot control section 3 described above is configured to also control the workpiece transport mechanism 63, but the control section of the workpiece transport mechanism 63 is provided separately from the control section of the robot main body, and there is no communication between the two control sections. It is also possible to interlock electrically, in which case both control sections will work together to constitute the control section for the entire robot.

The positioning jig 10 includes a support base 64 and a pair of columns 66 erected on the upper surface of the support base 64 at a constant interval.
and a positioning pin 6 erected on the top surface of each support column 66.
8, and the large part 14 is positioned at a predetermined position by fitting the positioning pin 68 into the positioning hole 70 of the large part 14 shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 5, the workpiece stand 4 includes a pair of support rails 72 inclined at an angle greater than the static friction angle, a pair of guide rails 74 disposed on the sides of the support rails 72, and a pair of guide rails 74 arranged on the sides of the support rails 72. It is provided with a stopper 76 fixed at each tip, and is used to align and support the large parts 14 sent from the previous process. Further, the workpiece stand 12 for supporting welded parts has a similar configuration.

As shown in FIG. 6, the belt conveyor 6 includes a belt 80 wound around a roller 78, a pair of guide rails 82 provided on both sides of the belt 80, and a stopper 84 fixed to the tips of these guide rails 82. The small parts 16 are conveyed by the belt 80, and the first small part is moved to the stopper 8.
4, this is detected by a limit switch (not shown) or the like and the operation is automatically stopped. The configuration of the belt conveyor 8 is also similar.

Next, the operation will be explained.

First, based on a command from the robot control section 3, the rotary table 24 of the robot mechanism section 2 is rotated to a rotation position where the arm 28 extends toward the workpiece table 4. At this time, the welding torch 32 has been rotated to the retracted position shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG.
At the same time, the piston rod 42 of the air cylinder 36 is contracted and the workpiece holder 46 is also in the retracted position.

When a detection device (not shown) detects that the second arm 28 has rotated to a predetermined position, a command is issued from the control unit 3 based on the detection signal, and the piston rod 42 of the air cylinder 36 is extended. It will be done. When the workpiece holder 46 fixed to the tip of the piston rod 42 reaches the operating position and is positioned below the large component 14 on the workpiece stand 4, the second arm 28 is rotated upward. The positioning pins 56, 58 fit into the positioning holes 86 of the large part 14 to position it, and the fingers 48, 50 contact the lower surface of the large part 14 to lift it.

After that, the rotating table 24 is rotated by a predetermined angle,
When the electromagnets 52 and 54 are directly above the small parts 16 and 18 on the belt conveyors 6 and 8, respectively, the rotary table 24 is stopped and the electromagnet 5
2 and 54 are excited and the second arm 2
8 is lowered and the electromagnets 52 and 54 attract the small parts 16 and 18.

After suction, the second arm 28 is rotated upward and the rotary table 24 is rotated to remove the parts 14, 16, and 18 held by the workpiece holder 46.
is brought above the positioning jig 10. Then, the second arm 28 is rotated downward, and the large component 14 supported by the fingers 48 and 50 is spanned over the pair of supports 66 of the positioning jig 10. At this time, the positioning pin 68 fits into the positioning hole 70 of the large component 14 to accurately position it. Next, the second arm 28 and the first arm 26
The fingers 48 and 50 are moved from a position below the large part 14 to a position above the large part 14, and the small parts 16, 18, which are attracted to the electromagnets 52, 54 fixed to the lower surface of the fingers 48 and 50, are moved to the large part 14. brought above. Then, the second arm 28 is rotated downward again, and the small parts 16 and 1
8 is positioned at a predetermined position on the large part 14,
Electromagnets 52 and 54 are demagnetized and second arm 2
8 is rotated upward. Further, the work holder 46 is moved to the retracted position by the operation of the air cylinder 36.

Subsequently, the welding torch 32 is rotated by the rotary actuator 34 to the position shown by the solid line in FIG.
Weld to. After welding, the welding torch 32 is switched to the second
The fingers 48 and 50 are moved below the welded part 20 by the rotation of the arms 26 and 28 and the operation of the air cylinder 36, and the second Arm 2
8 lifts up the welded part 20.

Next, as the rotary table 24 rotates, the arm 28 is rotated to a position where it extends toward the workpiece table 12, and is further rotated downward to deliver the welded part 20 to the workpiece table 12. Thereafter, the work holder 46 is moved to the retracted position by the air cylinder 36, and the robot mechanism 2 is returned to the state shown in FIG. 1 by the rotation of the arms 26 and 28 and the rotation of the rotary table 24. One cycle of welding work is completed.

All of the above operations are performed automatically based on commands from the control section 3, and the robot 1 performs both the welding operation and the transportation operation.

Above, one embodiment of the present invention has been explained in detail.
This is literally an example, and the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, various workpiece holders can be used depending on the shape of the object to be transported, such as a finger 88 bent into an approximately U-shape as shown in FIG. It is also possible to employ a device that holds the object by suction or the like. Further, the cylinder does not necessarily need to be attached completely parallel to the arm of the robot, but may be attached in a direction inclined at a small angle with respect to the arm depending on the object, positioning jig, etc.

Furthermore, other types of robots may be used as long as the robot is equipped with an arm with a working tool attached to the tip, and the work to be performed by one robot is not limited to one process. The present invention can also be applied to a robot that performs multiple processes with one robot.

In addition, it goes without saying that the present invention can be implemented with various modifications and improvements based on the knowledge of those skilled in the art without departing from the gist thereof.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a welding line including a welding and transporting robot according to an embodiment of the present invention. Second
The figure is a plan view of the mechanism section of the robot. Third
The figure is a plan view of the workpiece conveyance mechanism provided in the robot, and FIG. 4 is a side view as well. FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of a workpiece stand used in the welding line of FIG. 1, and FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view of the belt conveyor. FIG. 7 is a front view of main parts showing another embodiment of the present invention. 1: Welding and conveyance robot, 2: Mechanical part of the robot, 3: Control part of the robot, 4, 12: Workpiece stand, 6, 8: Belt conveyor, 10: Positioning jig, 22: Stand, 24: Rotating table , 26: first arm, 28: second arm, 32: welding torch, 36: air cylinder, 46: work holder,
48, 50, 88: finger, 52, 54: electromagnet, 56, 58: positioning pin, 63: workpiece conveyance mechanism.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claim for Utility Model Registration] An industrial robot that is equipped with a work tool at the end of its arm to perform predetermined work such as welding, screw tightening, sealant filling, etc., and that automatically performs the operations necessary for the work under the control of a control device. At the tip of the arm, a holder for holding the object to be worked on together with the working tool is provided so as to be movable in a direction substantially parallel to the longitudinal direction of the arm, and the holder is moved by the action on the arm's tip side. A cylinder that is moved from the operating position to the retracted position on the proximal end side of the arm is provided in a posture substantially along the arm,
and causing the control device to cause the arm to carry out operations necessary for performing the work with the holder moved to the retreat position, while transporting the workpiece to the arm with the holder moved to the working position. An industrial robot characterized by being capable of performing operations necessary for the purpose of the robot.