JP2012109100A - Touch detection sensor, movable part, and bed - Google Patents

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to provide a contact detection sensor that can detect contact at any location without a dead zone.
A contact detection sensor includes a first conductive sheet 11, a first insulating spacer 15 laminated on one side of the first conductive sheet 11, and having an opening 17 penetrating in a thickness direction, and a first insulating spacer 15. The second conductive sheet 14a laminated on the surface opposite to the surface in contact with the first conductive sheet 11 and the second conductive sheet 14a laminated on the other surface of the first conductive sheet 11 and having an opening 19 penetrating in the thickness direction. An insulating piece comprising a second insulating spacer 16 and a third conductive sheet 14b laminated on a surface opposite to the surface in contact with the first conductive sheet 11 with respect to the second insulating spacer 16; Reference numeral 18 overlaps the opening 19 and the conductive sheet in the stacking direction, and the insulating piece 20 constituting the second insulating spacer 16 overlaps the opening 17 and the conductive sheet in the stacking direction.
[Selection] Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a contact detection sensor that detects that an object has been touched.

  A nursing bed used in a hospital facility, a nursing facility, or the like has a driving unit for tilting a floor on which a care recipient lies. An industrial robot used in a factory or the like has a drive unit that moves an arm in order to perform assembly work in cooperation with an operator. In addition to nursing beds and industrial robots, there are driving devices that include a driving unit and move movable members such as an arm and a floor.

  In such a driving apparatus, when a person enters the movable range of the movable member, the movable member may hit the person. In order to ensure safety, when the movable member comes into contact with a person in this way, the movable member must be stopped immediately.

  Conventionally, there has been proposed a contact detection sensor that attaches a plate-like contact detection sensor to the outer peripheral side surface of an industrial robot and stops the arm of the industrial robot when something touches the contact detection sensor.

  FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a conventional contact detection sensor 1. The contact detection sensor 1 includes an insulating spacer 3 having a large number of holes 2, two conductive sheets 4 and 5 disposed with their conductive surfaces facing each other through the insulating spacer 3, and a flexible insulator that covers the conductive sheet 4. And a sheet 6.

  Conductive wires 7 and 8 are connected to both ends of the conductive sheets 4 and 5. The conducting wires 7 and 8 are connected to a DC power source through a current detection circuit. With such a configuration, since the current changes when the flexible sheet 6 is touched, the detection circuit detects that the contact is generated by the contact detection sensor 1.

  FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of the contact detection sensor at the time of contact. Details of the contact detection operation of the contact detection sensor 1 will be described with reference to FIG. 9.

  The contact detection sensor 1 is attached to the insulating side surface 9 of the industrial robot. When something touches the contact detection sensor 1, a pressing force F acts on the flexible sheet 6. The flexible sheet 6 and the conductive sheet 4 are deformed by the pressing force F and enter the inside of the hole 2. The conductive sheet 4 is in close contact with the conductive sheet 5. As a result, the conducting wires 7 and 8 are short-circuited and the current changes. Based on the changed current, the detection circuit determines whether or not the contact detection sensor 1 is in contact.

  By using such a contact detection sensor 1, contact from the outside can be detected in a wide range (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2007-102719 A

  However, the conventional contact detection sensor 1 has the insulating spacer 3 between the conductive sheets 4 and 5 when contact occurs at a place other than the opening (hole 2) of the insulating spacer 3. Will not short circuit. That is, it is a problem that the conventional contact detection sensor 1 has a dead zone region (a portion other than the opening) where external contact cannot be detected.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a contact detection sensor that can detect contact in a state where the influence of the dead zone region is reduced.

  In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a first conductive sheet, a first insulating spacer that is laminated on one surface of the first conductive sheet, and has an opening penetrating in the thickness direction, and the first conductive sheet. A second conductive sheet laminated on the surface of the first insulating spacer opposite to the surface in contact with the first insulating spacer, and a second insulating spacer laminated on the other surface of the first conductive sheet and having an opening penetrating in the thickness direction And a third conductive sheet laminated on the surface of the second insulating spacer opposite to the surface in contact with the first conductive sheet, and the second conductive sheet and the third conductive sheet are electrically connected The insulating piece constituting the first insulating spacer overlaps the opening of the second insulating spacer in the stacking direction of the second conductive sheet and the first conductive sheet, and the insulating piece constituting the second insulating spacer is In the first conductive sheet and the stacking direction of the third conductive sheet, characterized in that the overlap with the opening of the first insulating spacer.

  The present invention can provide a contact detection sensor that can detect contact in a state where the influence of the dead zone region is reduced.

It is a figure which shows the contact detection sensor in Embodiment 1 of this invention, (a) Perspective view, (b) AA 'sectional view taken on the line It is a figure which shows the 1st electroconductive sheet which fixed the insulating spacer in this Embodiment 1, (a) Top view, (b) Partial top view It is sectional drawing of the contact detection sensor at the time of the contact in this Embodiment 1, (a) Sectional drawing when an object contacts on an insulation piece, (b) Sectional drawing when an object contacts an opening, The top view of the 1st electroconductive sheet which fixed the insulating spacer in Embodiment 2 of this invention The top view of the 1st electroconductive sheet which fixed the insulating spacer in Embodiment 3 of this invention The perspective view of the bed for care in Embodiment 4 of this invention Rear view of back bottom of nursing bed in the fourth embodiment A perspective view of a conventional contact detection sensor Sectional view at the time of contact of a conventional contact detection sensor

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the same component and description may be abbreviate | omitted. In addition, for easy understanding, the drawings schematically show each component mainly.

(Embodiment 1)
1A and 1B are diagrams showing a contact detection sensor 10 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. FIG. 1A is a perspective view of the contact detection sensor 10. FIG.1 (b) is the sectional view on the AA 'line of Fig.1 (a).

  As shown in FIGS. 1 (a) and 1 (b), the contact detection sensor 10 has a laminated body interposed between bent conductive sheets 14 obtained by bending a conductive sheet. This laminated body is obtained by laminating a first insulating spacer 15, a first conductive sheet 11, and a second insulating spacer 16.

  The bent conductive sheet 14 includes a second conductive sheet 14a, a third conductive sheet 14b, and a bent portion that connects them. Here, the second conductive sheet 14 a is a conductive sheet on the first insulating spacer 15 side with respect to the first conductive sheet 11. The third conductive sheet 14 b is a conductive sheet on the second insulating spacer 16 side with respect to the first conductive sheet 11.

  Explaining the configuration in detail, the contact detection sensor 10 includes a first conductive sheet 11, a first insulating spacer 15 provided on one side of the first conductive sheet 11, and the first conductive sheet 11 with respect to the first insulating spacer 15. The second conductive sheet 14 a disposed on the surface opposite to the surface in contact with the first conductive sheet 11, the second insulating spacer 16 laminated on the other surface of the first conductive sheet 11, and the first conductive sheet 11 with respect to the second insulating spacer 16. And a third conductive sheet 14b laminated on the surface opposite to the surface in contact with the surface.

  The first insulating spacer 15 has an opening 17 that penetrates in the thickness direction. The second insulating spacer 16 has an opening 19 that penetrates in the thickness direction.

The first conductive sheet 11, the second conductive sheet 14a, and the third conductive sheet 14b are conductive cloths. The conductive cloth is an extremely thin metal-plated fabric on the surface of the organic fiber and has excellent flexibility. In the first embodiment, a conductive cloth that is a PET woven fabric impregnated with copper and having a thickness of 0.09 mm, a resistance of 0.05 Ω / sq was used as the conductive cloth. Further, as the insulating spacers 15 and 16, urethane sponge having a cell range of 70 pieces / 25 mm or more, an elongation rate of 200% or more, and a tensile strength of 1.5 kgf / cm ² was used.

  As shown in FIG. 1B, the insulating piece 18 constituting the first insulating spacer 15 is located at a position overlapping the opening 19 of the second insulating spacer 16 when the conductive cloth is viewed from above. Moreover, the insulating piece 20 which comprises the 2nd insulating spacer 16 is located in the place which overlaps with the opening 17 of the 1st insulating spacer 15 when a conductive cloth is seen from the top.

  When any object contacts the second conductive sheet 14a and a pressing force is applied in the thickness direction, the contact detection sensor 10 causes the second conductive sheet 14a and the first conductive sheet 11 to be short-circuited, or the third The conductive sheet 14b and the first conductive sheet 11 are short-circuited. At that time, the contact detection circuit 21 connected to the first conductive sheet 11 and the third conductive sheet 14b of the contact detection sensor 10 detects a change in current or resistance caused by a short circuit, thereby detecting the contact of the contact detection sensor 10. Presence / absence can be determined.

  Next, the arrangement relationship between the insulating pieces 18 of the first insulating spacer 15 and the insulating pieces 20 of the second insulating spacer 16 will be described in detail.

  FIGS. 2A and 2B are views showing the first conductive sheet 11 to which the insulating spacer in the first embodiment is fixed. FIG. 2A is a plan view of the first conductive sheet 11, and FIG. 2B is a partial plan view of the first conductive sheet 11.

  As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, a plurality of insulating pieces 18 are attached to the upper surface of the first conductive sheet 11, and a plurality of insulating pieces 20 are attached to the lower surface.

  And the 1st insulating spacer 15 forms the opening 17 between the adjacent insulating pieces 18 by affixing the some insulating piece 18 on the 1st conductive sheet 11 at equal intervals. Further, the surface opposite to the region where the opening 17 exists is the region of the insulating piece 20. The insulating piece 20 has a size included in the opening 17.

  Similarly, the second insulating spacer 16 attaches the adjacent insulating pieces 20 to the first conductive sheet 11 at equal intervals, thereby opening the openings 19 (see FIG. 1B) between the adjacent insulating pieces 20. Form). Further, in the first conductive sheet 11, the surface opposite to the region where the opening 19 exists is a region of the insulating piece 18. The insulating piece 18 has a size included in the opening 19.

  In order to make the sensitivity of the entire contact detection sensor 10 uniform, it is desirable that the sizes of the openings 17 and 19 and the insulating pieces 18 and 20 are the same. However, when the positions of the insulating pieces 18 and 20 are slightly shifted, the opening 17 and the insulating piece 20 (or the opening 19 and the insulating piece 18) are overlapped to form a dead zone region. Therefore, the area of the openings 17 and 19 needs to be larger than the area of the insulating pieces 18 and 20 in order not to form a dead zone region. In order not to greatly impair the uniformity, it is desirable that the openings 17 and 19 have a large area of about 1 to 4 mm with respect to the insulating pieces 18 and 20.

  Further, in order to make the sensitivity of the entire sensor close to uniform, the insulating pieces 18 and 20 are squares having the same size (area). Here, in order to make the detection sensitivity uniform in the entire contact detection sensor 10, it is desirable that the size (area) of the insulating pieces 18 and 20 is as small as possible. However, if the size of the insulating pieces 18 and 20 is too small, the structure becomes complicated, and the productivity of the contact detection sensor 10 may be reduced.

  In addition, the detection sensitivity may vary greatly depending on the size (area) and thickness of the insulating pieces 18 and 20. In the first embodiment, in order to reliably detect contact with a person, the size of the insulating pieces 18 and 20 is an 8 mm square, and the size of the openings 17 and 19 is a 10 mm square. Moreover, the thickness of the insulating pieces 18 and 20 (openings 17 and 19) was about 2 to 3 mm.

  Next, the operation of the contact detection sensor when contact occurs in the contact detection sensor will be described in detail.

  3A and 3B are cross-sectional views of the contact detection sensor 10 at the time of contact according to the first embodiment. FIG. 3A is a cross-sectional view when an object contacts the insulating piece 18. FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view when an object contacts the opening 17.

  As shown in FIG. 3A, in the contact detection sensor 10, when a pressing force F is applied to the location of the insulating piece 18 from the outside via the second conductive sheet 14 a, the insulating piece 18 laminates the first conductive sheet 11. Push in the direction. The first conductive sheet 11 passes through the opening 19 and is short-circuited with the third conductive sheet 14b.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 3B, when a pressing force F is applied from the outside to the location of the opening 17 through the second conductive sheet 14a, the second conductive sheet 14a passes through the opening 17 and passes through the first conductive sheet. 11 is short-circuited. Therefore, even if a contact occurs at a place where the insulating piece 18 is present, the contact can be detected at any place without the insulating piece 18 becoming a dead zone region.

  In addition, the 2nd conductive sheet 14a and the 3rd conductive sheet 14b may be formed from a separate conductive sheet, and the 2nd conductive sheet 14a and the 3rd conductive sheet 14b may be electrically connected with a conducting wire etc.

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 4 is a plan view of the first conductive sheet 30 to which the insulating spacer according to the second embodiment of the present invention is fixed. FIG. 4 also shows a state in which the second conductive sheet 14a and the third conductive sheet 14b are removed from the contact detection sensor. In the second embodiment, the first conductive sheet 30 is used instead of the first conductive sheet 11 of the first embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the plurality of insulating pieces 31 constituting the first insulating spacer are circular. Similarly, the plurality of insulating pieces 32 constituting the second insulating spacer are circular. Even if the insulating pieces 31 and 32 are circular, the contact detection sensor can provide a contact detection sensor that is less affected by the dead zone region.

(Embodiment 3)
FIG. 5 is a plan view of the first conductive sheet 40 to which the insulating spacer according to the third embodiment of the present invention is fixed. FIG. 5 also shows a state in which the second conductive sheet 14a and the third conductive sheet 14b are removed from the contact detection sensor. In the third embodiment, the first conductive sheet 40 is used instead of the first conductive sheet 11 of the first embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the plurality of insulating pieces 33 constituting the first insulating spacer have a circular shape. One insulating piece 34 constituting the second insulating spacer has a plurality of circular openings 35 larger than the insulating piece 33. And the insulation piece 33 overlaps with the opening 35 and the lamination direction of a conductive sheet.

  Further, the insulating piece 34 overlaps the opening of the first insulating spacer in the stacking direction of the conductive sheets. Note that the opening of the first insulating spacer in the third embodiment is a space portion where the insulating piece 33 does not exist between the first conductive sheet 11 and the second conductive sheet 14a.

  Even if the contact detection sensor is an insulating spacer having an opening 35 in the insulating piece 34, it is possible to provide a contact detection sensor that is less affected by the dead zone region.

(Embodiment 4)
FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the nursing bed 61 according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 7 is a rear view of the back bottom of the nursing bed 61 according to the fourth embodiment.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the care bed 61 has a configuration in which the contact detection sensor 10 is mounted on the surface of the housing.

  The care bed 61 includes a mat 62 on which a care recipient lies, a bottom portion 63 that supports the mat 62, a drive unit (not shown) that changes the inclination of a back bottom 63a that is a part of the bottom unit 63, and a drive unit. And a bed frame 65 that supports the bottom portion 63 below.

  The care bed 61 can raise and lower the mat 62 by moving the back bottom 63a by operating a remote controller (not shown) connected to the control unit 64, for example. For example, when performing a meal, the caregiver can raise (back up) the back bottom 63a as shown in FIG. Further, when sleeping, the back bottom 63a can be tilted (lowered down) so that the mat 62 can be brought into a flat state (back-down state) with no inclination.

  However, in the conventional nursing bed, when the back bottom is lowered and transformed into a flat state, something may be sandwiched between the back bottom and the bed frame. Specifically, since the back bottom moves while the cared person or caregiver is in the vicinity, the fingers or hands of the cared person or caregiver get caught between the back bottom and the bed frame and pinched. There is a possibility.

  On the other hand, the nursing bed 61 of the fourth embodiment has the contact detection sensor 10 mounted on the back surface of the back bottom 63a. By using this contact detection sensor 10, it can be detected that a human body has contacted the back surface of the back bottom 63a. When the contact detection sensor 10 detects a human contact, the control unit 64 detects a short circuit of the contact detection sensor 10 and the control unit 64 stops the operation of the drive unit.

  Therefore, in the care bed 61 of the fourth embodiment, even if a part of the human body enters between the back bottom 63a and the bed frame 65, the contact detection sensor 10 detects the contact of the human body, Because it stops, safety is high.

  Although the nursing bed 61 has been described as an example of the movable part, the movable part may be an industrial robot or the like that moves the arm part.

  Since the contact detection sensor according to the present invention detects that an object has come into contact with any part, it is useful for a movable part such as a hospital or a care facility that operates near a person.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Contact detection sensor 11, 30, 40 1st conductive sheet 14 Bent conductive sheet 14a Second conductive sheet 14b Third conductive sheet 15 First insulating spacer 16 Second insulating spacer 17, 19, 35 Opening 18, 20, 31, 32, 33, 34 Insulation piece 21 Contact detection circuit 61 Bed for care 62 Mat 63 Bottom part 63a Back bottom 64 Control part 65 Bed frame

Claims (7)

A first conductive sheet;
A first insulating spacer laminated on one surface of the first conductive sheet and having an opening penetrating in the thickness direction;
A second conductive sheet laminated on the surface of the first insulating spacer opposite to the surface in contact with the first conductive sheet;
A second insulating spacer laminated on the other surface of the first conductive sheet and having an opening penetrating in the thickness direction;
A third conductive sheet laminated on the surface of the second insulating spacer opposite to the surface in contact with the first conductive sheet,
The second conductive sheet and the third conductive sheet are electrically connected,
The insulating piece constituting the first insulating spacer overlaps the opening of the second insulating spacer in the stacking direction of the second conductive sheet and the first conductive sheet,
The contact detection sensor which the insulation piece which comprises said 2nd insulation spacer overlaps with the opening of said 1st insulation spacer in the lamination direction of said 1st conductive sheet and said 3rd conductive sheet. The contact detection sensor according to claim 1, wherein the second conductive sheet and the third conductive sheet are formed of a bent conductive sheet obtained by bending a single conductive sheet. The contact detection sensor according to claim 1, wherein an area of the opening is larger than an area of the insulating pieces overlapping in the stacking direction. The contact detection sensor according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the openings and the insulating pieces are alternately arranged in a grid pattern in the first insulating spacer and the second insulating spacer. The contact detection sensor according to claim 1, wherein the opening and the insulating piece are square.   The movable part which mounted | wore the surface of the housing | casing with the contact detection sensor of any one of Claim 1 to 5.   A bed having the movable part according to claim 6.

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