JP7174942B2 - control unit - Google Patents

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an article moving apparatus system that is used for manufacturing, assembly, transportation, etc. in the field of manufacturing, and that moves an article with a slight operating force while maintaining weight balance with the assistance of a motor when moving the article.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in factories where industrial products are assembled and transported, industrial robots have been used to move articles such as products and semi-finished products. In such factories, robots are used in the production line, for example, which are composed of multi-joint arms and have end effectors at the ends of the arms. The joint mechanism of the robot has a servomotor such as an AC servomotor or a DC brushless servomotor, and a speed reducer on the output side of the servomotor to obtain high output torque. Connected and configured.

There is a demand for high-mix low-volume production that handles articles of different sizes and weights using such robots.

JP-A-06-231867 JP 2003-266252 A

Therefore, in order to handle articles of different sizes and weights, there are known inventions in which a plurality of robots adapted to target articles are installed (Patent Documents 1 and 2). When a plurality of robots are installed in this way, there is a problem that the footprint becomes large. Therefore, if we reduce the number of robots and increase versatility in order to reduce the footprint, it is necessary to use a robot that matches the object with the largest outer shape and the largest weight among the target objects, and the problem of increasing the size of the robot. There is

Also, in the production line, if there is a need to handle items that exceed the size and weight of the robots that are already installed, it will be necessary to replace them with larger robots. The layout of the line will also be changed, and there is also the problem that the time required for this installation and layout change is enormous.

In view of such problems, the present invention provides an article moving apparatus system that can efficiently move articles of various weights while suppressing an increase in the footprint and size of the apparatus. purpose.

In order to achieve the above object, the control unit of the present invention
a locking member that locks an article to be lifted;
a lifting operation unit that lifts and lowers the locking member;
a motor portion of a driving source connected to the lifting operation portion;
a weight detection unit that detects the weight applied to the lifting operation unit and outputs a weight value;
an abutment member provided to abut on at least one of the article and the locking member;
a moving part that moves the contact member by power;
a force detection unit disposed between the contact member and the moving unit for detecting an applied force applied to the contact member and outputting an applied force value;
A control unit for controlling the movement of the article, comprising:
The control unit
generating a control value by calculating based on the weight value and the applied force value when the contact member is in contact with at least one of the article and the locking member;
When the motor section is controlled based on the control value so that the locking member or the article is in a balanced state, and the moving section is brought into contact with the article or the locking member to move the article, the applied force value is equal to or less than the predetermined value. Control the moving part so that

Also, the control unit
When the applied force including the vertically downward component is obtained from the force detection unit, the control value is obtained by subtracting the vertically downward component of the applied force value from the weight value,
When the applied force including the vertically upward component is obtained from the force detection unit, the sum of the weight value and the vertically upward component value of the applied force value is taken as the control value,
The motor section is controlled based on the control value so that the locking member or the article is in a balanced state.

Further, the control section controls the moving section so that the applied force value is equal to or less than a predetermined value when the moving section is brought into contact with the article or the locking member to move the article.

Further , the engaging member is configured to have an attaching/detaching portion for attaching/detaching the article by moving the abutting member by the moving portion.

a link chain in which the lifting operation part is formed by alternately connecting elliptical rings composed of semicircular arc parts and linear parts connected thereto, and one end of which is connected to the locking member;
a rotating member around which the link chain is wound and rotated by the drive of the motor;
It has

According to the control unit of the present invention , since the control unit performs control so that the motor unit cancels the weight of the article based on the outputs from the weight detection unit and the force detection unit, it is possible to easily move the article. It can be performed. Therefore, the moving part can be a small robot that handles light weight articles, so the footprint is small and the increase in size can be suppressed. In addition, even if the weight of the article changes, there is no need to change the layout without changing the moving part, and production efficiency can be improved.

In addition, the control unit calculates the net weight of the locking member and the article, and based on this, the suspension main unit controls the motor unit to cancel the weight of the article, so that the state of balance can be controlled. Goods can be moved while being kept in good condition.

In addition, even if the weight of the moving part exceeds the weight that can be moved by itself, the moving part can move the item while maintaining a small force.

In addition, the attachment and detachment between the article and the locking member can be easily performed by the moving portion moving the contact member with a slight force.

In addition, it is possible to suspend the article from above by the suspension section and assist the movement of the article by the moving section, thereby suppressing the expansion of the footprint of the device.

1 is a perspective configuration diagram of an entire article moving device system according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. FIG. 2 is a perspective configuration view of the article moving device system according to the embodiment of the present invention, with a part of the suspension section omitted; It is a schematic diagram which shows operation|movement of the goods moving apparatus system which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows operation|movement of the goods moving apparatus system which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows operation|movement of the goods moving apparatus system which concerns on embodiment of this invention.

An article moving device system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective configuration diagram of the entire article moving apparatus system that is an embodiment of the present invention.

The article moving device system 1 includes a suspension main body 11 for controlling the suspension of an article 30, and a position extending downward from the suspension main body 11 along the link chain 6 to suspend the article 30. It is composed of a locking member 8 that stops, a contacting member 42 that contacts the locking member 8, and a moving portion 40 that disposes the contacting member 42 at its tip and moves the contacting member 42. As shown in FIG. The hanging main body 11 is provided with a hanging hook 9 on the top surface, and can be hung from a structure such as a beam of a building or a slide block 33 that can move horizontally on a rail 32 for use. (See Figure 3).

A first control unit 10 is housed inside the suspension main unit 11 . The first control unit 10 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), other storage devices and input/output devices. It controls the vertical movement of the .

An operation unit 22 electrically connected to the first control unit 10 is provided at a position extending downward along the link chain 6 from the suspension main unit 11 . The operation part 22 moves up and down together with the link chain 6 that moves up and down by the suspension body part 11, and is used by the operator to operate the locking member 8 up and down.

The locking member 8 is a member that connects to one end of the link chain 6 and locks the article 30 . In this embodiment, the article 30 is, for example, a container with a flange on the top and a part contained therein. It consists of a substantially U-shaped member and a hook-shaped member.

The moving part 40 is a robot composed of, for example, arms arranged in series and 6-axis moving part motors 40a to 40f for rotating the arms between the arms. The moving part 40 is not limited to this as long as it moves at least in the vertical direction.

The abutting member 42 is a so-called end effector provided at the tip of the moving portion 40, and has a structure for sandwiching the locking member 8 in this embodiment. The abutment member 42 is not limited to this, and is appropriately selected according to the shape of the locking member 8, and can be modified such as being connected to the locking member 8 via a universal joint. The contact member 42 is provided to contact at least one of the locking member 8 and the article 30 , and may have a shape and structure to contact both the locking member 8 and the article 30 .

The force detection unit 41 is provided between the contact member 42 and the moving unit 40, detects at least the vertical component of the applied force applied to the contact member 42, and outputs an applied force value. The force detection unit 41 is, for example, a multi-force meter, and the operation of the moving unit 40 can be controlled based on this. The force detection unit 41 and the moving unit motors 40a to 40f are electrically connected to the second control unit 43 by wiring passing through a hollow portion in the moving unit 40, and communication of various signals and supply of power are performed. will be

The second control unit 43 is provided, for example, in a base portion of the moving unit 40, and includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), other storage devices and inputs. It has an output device. The second control section 43 is electrically connected to the operation section 44 and the like, and includes drive circuits for the moving section motors 40a to 40f. The first control unit 10 and the second control unit 43 are connected by a cable 45 to enable communication. The cable 45 may have a plurality of wires such as an input wire and an output wire. In addition, in FIG. 1, the cable 45 is shown as one line for convenience. Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the control of the hanging main body 11 is provided by the first control unit 10, and the control of the moving unit 40 is provided by the second control unit 43. It may be arranged as a control unit integrated in one of the units 40 side, or may be provided outside separately from these.

The operation section 44 is for manually moving the moving section 40 by the moving section motors 40a to 40f and teaching the movement of the moving section 40. FIG. In the present embodiment, the operation of the hanging body 11 is performed by the operation unit 22, and the operation of the moving unit 40 is performed by the operation unit 44. However, the first control unit 10 and the second control Since it is connected to the unit 43 by the cable 45 and is capable of communication, it may be possible to operate only with the operation unit 44 by switching the button of the operation unit 44 . Further, in the present embodiment, the operation unit 44 is connected to the second control unit 43 by wire, but the connection is not limited to this, and may be wireless connection.

FIG. 2 shows a part of the internal structure of the suspension main body 11 of the article moving device system 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention, with the cover omitted.

A speed reducer is attached to the load side of the motor of the drive source, and the motor unit 2 is configured together with the motor. This motor is, for example, an AC servomotor.

The speed reducer reduces the rotation speed of the motor to a predetermined speed. The reducer is, for example, a strain wave gear reducer. The strain wave gear reducer has a wave generator with an elliptical outer periphery, and a large number of external teeth formed on the outer periphery of the wave gear reducer. It consists of a deformable flexspline and a circular spline provided with inner teeth on the outer peripheral side of the flexspline and fitted with the outer teeth of the flexspline. The power is taken out and transmitted to a rotation output shaft 3 to which the flexspline is connected as a rotation output. By using a reducer with a small amount of backlash, such as a strain wave gear reducer, for the reducer of this device, when the motor is frequently switched between forward and reverse rotations to move up and down, the uncontrollable area during switching is eliminated. It eliminates it and realizes a smooth operation feeling.

The rotation output shaft 3 is a rotating shaft whose speed is reduced by a speed reducer, and is connected to the elevation operation section 7 to continuously rotate the elevation operation section 7 in forward and reverse directions.

A hanging hook 9 is fixed to the top surface of the hanging body portion 11 . The hanging hook 9 is attached to a rail 32 provided on the building structure via a horizontally movable slide block 33 (see FIG. 3). The hanging hook 9 is provided near the center of gravity of the hanging main body 11 in the horizontal direction.

The link chain 6 is formed by intersecting and alternately connecting elliptical rings composed of semicircular arc portions and linear portions connected thereto. side) is housed in the link chain housing portion 12 .

The up-and-down operation unit 7 includes a rotary member that rotates by transmission of power from the motor unit 2 of the driving source, and a link chain 6 connected to the locking member 8 . In this embodiment, the rotating member of the lifting operation part 7 has a cylindrical shape, is connected to the rotation output shaft 3, winds the link chain 6, and winds the link chain 6 and sends it out. The position where the link chain 6 is wound is approximately vertically below the suspension hook 9 and is provided near the center of gravity of the suspension main body 11 . The link chain 6 is fitted into a pocket groove provided in the rotating member of the lifting operation part 7 and wound about 180 degrees. In the present embodiment, the link chain 6 is used to be connected to the locking member 8 and wound around the elevation operation part 7, but the wire rope is not limited to this. At that time, the up-and-down operation part 7 is drum-shaped, and the wire rope is fixed at one end and wound around the rotating member.

A position detection unit 4 for detecting the rotation angle position of the motor is connected to the motor unit 2 on the opposite side of the motor unit 2 from the load. The position detector 4 is a so-called absolute encoder, which optically detects the rotation angle position of the motor and outputs a position signal. The position detection unit 4 can detect the extension position, that is, the elevation position of the locking member 8 .

The weight detection unit 5 includes a strain-generating member and a strain gauge attached to the strain-generating member so that the force transmitted from the link chain 6 wound around the lifting operation unit 7 can be detected as a reaction force. The strain gauge is incorporated in a Wheatstone bridge circuit that converts the strain generated in the strain-generating body according to the weight into an electrical signal. do.

A first control unit 10 is arranged in the suspending main body 11 in the vicinity of the elevation operation unit 7 . The first control section 10 controls the motor section 2 based on the position signal from the position detection section 4 and the weight signal from the weight detection section 5 . The electrical parts including the first control part 10 are arranged inside the cover so that the hanging body part 11 can be used in a place where powder particles and water droplets are splashed.

In this embodiment, the position detection unit 4 is arranged on the anti-load side of the motor unit 2, but it is not limited to this. may be provided in Furthermore, it is not limited to the optical type, and may be a magnetic type, a capacitance type, or the like.

The weight detector 5 only needs to be able to detect the weight applied to the locking member 8, and a rotary structure that detects torque from the twist of a rotating shaft provided between the speed reducer and the lifting operation unit 7, or a motor unit. It may have a drum-shaped structure for detecting the reaction force received by 2 . Furthermore, not only the strain gauge type but also the capacitance type or the like may be used.

The locking member 8 is composed of a hook connected to the link chain 6 and a substantially U-shaped member in this embodiment. A bolt having a ring, for example, is attached to the top surface of the substantially U-shaped member so that a hook can be connected thereto, while a bent shape is attached to the lower end so as to engage the collar of the article 30. A detachable portion 14 is provided. By moving the locking member 8 in the horizontal direction A, the article 30 can be engaged with the attachment/detachment portion 14 and can be attached to or detached from the locking member 8 .

3 to 5 are schematic diagrams showing the operation of the article moving device system 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 shows a state before the suspending main body 11 lifts an article 30 placed on a fixed structure 31 such as a floor with the locking member 8 . The abutment member 42 sandwiches the locking member 8, and the moving part 40 is about to move the locking member 8 downward. The moving part 40 can generate a force for moving the locking member 8 up and down by the contact member 42 , and the load and direction can be detected by the force detecting part 41 . The first control unit 10 obtains the load W1 applied to the elevation operation unit 7 based on the output from the weight detection unit 5, and the second control unit 43 controls the applied force applied to the contact member 42 in the vertical downward direction. It is a component, and its component value P1 is obtained based on the output from the force detection unit 41. FIG. The first control unit 10 subtracts the vertically downward component value P1 of the applied force applied to the contact member 42 from the load W1 applied to the lifting operation unit 7 . The first control unit 10 registers and stores the subtracted value as the control value of the controlled object. The first control unit 10 controls the motor unit 2 by regarding the control value as the net load of the locking member 8 .

On the other hand, the second control unit 43 adjusts the output detected by the force detection unit 41 so that the applied force generated by the contact member 42 is equal to or less than a predetermined value within the allowable range that can be handled by the moving unit 40. Based on this, the moving part 40 is controlled by moving part motors 40a to 40f.

Therefore, by controlling the motor portion 2 based on the control value calculated and generated by the first control portion 10, the locking member 8 is brought into a balanced state, and the moving portion 40 moves through the contact member 42 to the locking member. 8 can be moved with a slight force.

FIG. 4 shows the state just before the locking member 8 lifts the article 30. FIG. That is, in FIG. 3 , the moving part 40 moves the locking member 8 in the direction B via the contact member 42 , and the detachable part 14 of the locking member 8 is positioned near the collar of the article 30 . Along with this movement, the suspension main body 11 is also horizontally moved by the slide block 33 . In this state, the article 30 is not lifted in the same manner as shown in FIG. This is a state in which the locking member 8 is about to be locked to the article 30 . At this time, a load W2 is applied to the lifting operation portion 7, and a component value P2 of the force applied to the contact member 42 is generated in the vertically upward direction. The first control unit 10 obtains the load W2 applied to the lifting operation unit 7 based on the output from the weight detection unit 5, and the second control unit 43 controls the applied force applied to the contact member 42 in the vertical upward direction. It is a component, and its component value P2 is obtained based on the output from the force detection unit 41. FIG. The first control unit 10 adds the vertically upward component value P2 of the applied force applied to the contact member 42 to the load W2 applied to the lifting operation unit 7 . The first control unit 10 registers and stores the added value as the control value of the controlled object. The first control unit 10 controls the motor unit 2 by regarding the control value as the net load of the locking member 8 . The first control unit 10 performs control to keep the balance of the locking member 8 as in FIG. The moving operation of the moving unit 40 may be performed by the operator using the operation unit 44, or may be performed by the moving unit 40 based on a pre-programmed operation.

FIG. 5 shows the state when the locking member 8 and the article 30 are lifted. After this, the locking member 8 and the article 30 can be moved by causing the moving section 40 to bring at least one of the locking member 8 and the article 30 into contact with the contact member 42 and move them. When the locking member 8 and the article 30 are moved downward by the moving portion 40 and the abutting member 42, the first control portion 10 detects the load W3 applied to the elevation operation portion 7 from the output from the weight detecting portion 5. On the other hand, the second control section 43 obtains the vertically downward component value P3 of the applied force applied to the contact member 42 based on the output from the force detection section 41 . Then, the first control unit 10 subtracts the component value P3 applied to the contact member 42 from the load W3 applied to the elevation operation unit 7 .

When the locking member 8 and the article 30 are moved upward by the moving portion 40 and the contact member 42, the first control portion 10 detects the load W4 applied to the elevation operation portion 7 from the output from the weight detection portion 5. On the other hand, the second control section 43 obtains based on the output from the force detecting section 41 that the applied force applied to the contact member 42 is upward and its component value P4. The first control unit 10 then adds the component value P4 applied to the contact member 42 to the load W4 applied to the lifting operation unit 7 .

The first control unit 10 regards the value of the result of this subtraction or addition as the net weight of the locking member 8 and the article 30 and registers and stores it, and controls the motor unit 2 . Therefore, the engaging member 8 and the article 30 are always in a balanced state, and the engaging member 8 and the article 30 can be raised and lowered by moving the contact member 42 with a slight force.

On the other hand, the second control unit 43 adjusts the output detected by the force detection unit 41 so that the applied force generated by the contact member 42 is equal to or less than a predetermined value within the allowable range that can be handled by the moving unit 40. Based on this, the moving unit 40 is controlled. Therefore, even if the weight of the locking member 8 and the article 30 exceeds the weight range that the moving section 40 can handle, the moving section 40 can move the article 30 by controlling the applied force within the allowable range of the moving section 40 . It can be performed.

Therefore, even if the weight of the article exceeds the weight that can be handled by the moving section, the lifting main body assists in lifting the article. It can be carried out. Since the suspension main body is provided with a weight detection section and a force detection section is provided near the contact member at the tip of the moving section, the vertical component of the external force applied to the locking member and the article by the moving section is eliminated. Since the net weight of the locking member and the article can be detected, the hanging body can control the balance of the locking member and the article.

Although the present invention has been described above based on preferred embodiments, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention.

As an application example of the present invention, it can be applied to an article moving device that moves articles.

Reference Signs List 1: Article moving device system 2: Motor section 3: Rotation output shaft 4: Position detection section 5: Weight detection section 6: Link chain 7: Elevation operation section 8: Locking member 9: Hanging hook 10: First Control unit 11 : Suspension main unit 12 : Link chain storage unit 14 : Detachable unit 22 : Operation unit 30 : Article 31 : Fixed structure 32 : Rail 33 : Slide block 40 : Moving units 40a to 40f : Moving unit motor 41 : Force detection unit 42 : contact member 43 : second control unit 44 : operation unit 45 : cable

Claims (3)

a locking member that locks an article to be lifted;
a lifting operation unit that lifts and lowers the locking member;
a motor portion of a drive source connected to the elevation operation portion;
a weight detection unit that detects the weight applied to the lifting operation unit and outputs a weight value;
a contact member provided to contact at least one of the article and the locking member;
a moving unit that moves the contact member by power;
a force detection unit disposed between the contact member and the moving unit for detecting an applied force applied to the contact member and outputting an applied force value;
A control unit that controls the movement of the article, comprising:
The control unit
generating a control value by calculating based on the weight value and the applied force value when the contact member is in contact with at least one of the article and the locking member;
When the motor section is controlled based on the control value so that the locking member or the article is in a balanced state, and the moving section is brought into contact with the article or the locking member to move the article, A control unit that controls the moving unit so that the applied force value is equal to or less than a predetermined value . 2. The control unit according to claim 1, wherein the control unit is arranged in a suspending body unit including the elevation operation unit, the motor unit, and the weight detection unit. 2. The control unit according to claim 1, wherein the control unit is arranged on the moving unit.

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