JPH0577183A - Robot controller - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Purpose] The purpose is to improve the operability and safety of the robot by devising the arrangement of switches for operating the robot. [Structure] A switch box 10 provided with switches for controlling a slave arm 2 is provided separately from the control stick 5 of the master arm 1, and switches are provided on both the control stick 5 and the switch box 10. The master arm 1, the slave arm 2, and the switch box 10 are provided with electric cables 4a, 4b, 4c.
It is connected to the controller 3 via. The control stick 5 has switches 7 and 8 related to the operation of the slave arm 2.
Only placed, switch box 10 has slave arm 2
Operation switches 11, 12, 13, and 14 related to the function of are arranged. As a result, the switch box 10 can be handled not only by the robot operator but also by workers other than the robot operator, and can be handled anywhere. Therefore, the operability and safety of the robot are improved.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a robot controller for controlling the functions of a robot such as a manipulator.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Various robots such as industrial robots and master / slave manipulators are provided with a control device for controlling the operation of the robot, and a control rod or the like allows the operator to control the robot. ..

For example, in a master / slave manipulator that performs work in a place where humans cannot enter, instead of humans, a human (pilot) moves a master arm so that the slave arms are driven in response to this movement. Controlled by.

However, in recent years, there has been a tendency for the robot to have a large number of accessory functions for the purpose of further improving the operability of the robot. Accordingly, the operator is required to simply operate the robot and at the same time handle many switches for controlling the robot.

When about two or three switches are added to the control stick of the control device, the operator can handle the switches while operating the robot. Therefore, there is an advantage that workability is good. However, in the future, more switches will be required, and accordingly, there is a possibility that switches exceeding the operation limit will be arranged on the control stick, and it is necessary to consider the problem of erroneous operation of switches. That is, in a configuration in which many switches are arranged on the control stick, the possibility of erroneous operation of the switches increases, and the operability and safety of the robot are limited.

On the other hand, there is also a configuration method in which only the minimum necessary switches (about three at maximum) are provided on the control stick, and the other switches are arranged on the controller side of the robot. Since the controller is generally arranged at a position away from the work area of the robot, the switch on the controller side is not handled by the robot operator, but is handled by a worker other than the robot operator. However, with such a configuration, the operator who can best know the work situation of the robot cannot handle the controller side switch, and even when the worker handles it, the location of the controller is limited, so the movement of the robot It is not always possible to handle switches while looking. That is, in the configuration in which the switches are arranged on the controller side, there is a high possibility that the switch operation will be delayed in case of emergency, and again the operability and safety of the robot are limited.

[0007]

As described above, even if the switches for controlling the robot are all provided on the control stick or a part of them are provided on the controller side, the operability and safety are inevitable. There was a big problem that it was missing.

[0008] Therefore, the present invention is intended to solve such problems and improve the operability and safety of the robot by devising the arrangement of switches for operating the robot.

[0009]

In order to achieve the above object, in the present invention, a controller for controlling a work robot, a control device connected to the controller for operating the work robot, and a controller connected to the controller. And a switch box for controlling the work robot, both of which are provided in both the control device and the switch box.

[0010]

The switch box provided with the switches for controlling the work robot is provided separately from the control device, and the switches can be arranged in both the control device and the switch box to disperse the arrangement of the switches. ..
As a result, the switch box can be handled not only by the robot operator but also by workers other than the robot operator, and can be handled at any place. Therefore, the operability and safety of the robot can be improved.

[0011]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overall configuration in the case where the present invention is applied to a master / slave manipulator, FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a master arm control stick, and FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a switch box.

Reference numeral 1 is a master arm (control device) on the side operated by the operator, and 2 is a slave arm (work robot) on the side for performing work. The master arm 1 and the slave arm 2 are connected to the controller 3 via the electric cables 4a and 4a.
It is connected to and controlled by a bilateral servo system. Both the master arm 1 and the slave arm 2 have the same structure with 6 degrees of freedom here, but may have different structures with different degrees of freedom.

The control stick 5 of the master arm 1 has a start / stop section 6
And operation switches 7 and 8. Start-stop section 6
Is a contact sensor, and is configured to be automatically turned on when the operator grips (grips) the control stick 5, and is automatically turned off when the grip is released (released). There is. When the grip of the control stick 5 is released, the master arm 1 and the slave arm 2 are braked so as to stop at that position / posture, and if the control stick 5 is gripped, the work can be restarted from that position / posture. Also, the start / stop unit 5
May comprise, for example, a photoelectric sensor. On the other hand, the operation switch 7 opens and closes the finger portion 9 of the slave arm 2, and the operation switch 8 turns on and off the operation of the dedicated tool when the finger portion 9 holds the dedicated tool.

The switch box 10 has operation switches 11,
12, 13, 14 are provided and are connected to the controller 3 via an electric cable 4c. Below, operation switches 11, 12,
Each function of 13 and 14 will be described.

The operation switch 11 is a master-slave mode switch. This is for detecting the drive amount of each axis of the master arm 1 to control the position of the slave arm 2 and drive the tip of the slave arm 2. On the other hand, the operation switch 12 is a rate mode switch. This detects the force (torque) applied to the 6-axis torque sensor attached near the control stick 5 of the master arm 1, and the slave arm 2
Is applied to the direction of the force to drive the tip of the slave arm 2. That is, the operator can press the operation switch 11 or the operation switch 12 to select an arbitrary operation mode.

The operation switch 13 is an origin shift switch. This is for correcting the size of the work area of the master arm 1 and the slave arm 2, and functions only in the master-slave mode.

The operation switch 14 is the slave arm 2
This is an emergency stop switch. When the emergency stop switch 14 is pressed, the power supply to the master arm 1 and the slave arm 2 is cut off.

According to the present invention having the above structure, the master arm 1 is provided with the operation switches 7 and 8, and the switch box 10 is provided with the operation switches 11, 12, 13 and 14. Since the operation switches 7 and 8 are arranged on the control stick 5 of the master arm 1, they are handled by the operator, but since the operation switches 11, 12, 13 and 14 are extended from the controller 3 by the electric cable 4c. It can be handled by a robot operator or a worker other than the robot operator, and can be handled at any place. When the operator handles the controller 3, it may be operated by the operator's hand that does not grip the control stick 5 or by once releasing the hand from the control stick 5.

Further, in this embodiment, only the operation switches related to the movement of the robot, which are the minimum necessary for the robot work, are arranged on the master arm 1 side, while the operation switches related to the functions of the robot which are not used so frequently are arranged. Is located on the switch box 10 side. Therefore, there is almost no risk that the operator mistakenly operates the switch, and the operability and safety of the robot are improved. Subsequently, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. In addition, hereinafter, the same components as those in the first embodiment are designated by the same reference numerals, and a duplicate description will be omitted.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a switch box according to the second embodiment. As described above, the origin shift switch is used only in the master / slave mode, and cannot be used in the rate mode. Therefore, the switch box 10 of the present embodiment has a function display means for instantaneously determining which mode is currently selected.
15 are provided.

Specifically, the master-slave mode switch
11 and the rate mode switch 12 are provided with display lamps 15a and 15b, which are function display means, respectively, and the display lamp of the currently set mode is turned on.

With such a configuration, the operator can instantly grasp the current work mode, which may lead to deterioration of workability and
Various dangers due to misidentification of the work mode can be prevented.

Further, the switch box 10 of this embodiment adopts a wireless system, and signals are transmitted / received to / from the controller 3 via the antenna 16. As a result, the working space using the switch box 10 is greatly expanded.

Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described.
The switch box 10 shown in FIG. 5 is provided with a mode changeover switch 17 in which the master-slave mode switch and the rate mode switch described above are integrated. That is, since the master / slave mode and the rate mode are not used at the same time in the robot work, only one of them needs to be selected by the mode changeover switch 17. Further, the mode changeover switch 17 has two built-in display lamps (function display section), and the display lamps in the areas corresponding to the current mode are turned on.

Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described.
The switch box 10 shown in FIG. 6 is provided with a function display section 18 for displaying the current mode of the work robot and the like.
The function display unit 18 is composed of, for example, a liquid crystal display panel, and displays the currently set function (current selection mode) by the switch box 10. In addition, various information such as the state of the slave arm 2 side (working state of the slave arm, failure location and cause at the time of abnormality) and the setting state of operation switches on the control stick 5 are displayed via the controller 3. Other,
It is also possible to display work procedures by the robot.

With such a configuration, the current operation and setting function of the robot can be known only by looking at the function display section 18. Therefore, the operation details of the robot operator can be transmitted to workers other than the robot operator. Also, the operability and safety of the robot are further improved. The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention, as shown below.

Although the working example of the single-arm type master / slave manipulator is shown in the above embodiment, the present invention may be applied to the dual-arm type master / slave manipulator. Even when working with a dual-arm type master arm, the operator does not always use both hands, and thus the operator can perform work using the switch box. Of course, not only the master-slave manipulator but also the present invention can be applied to teaching of a general industrial robot.

The number of switch boxes is not limited to one, and two or more switch boxes may be provided. In this case, two or more switch boxes having the same function may be prepared, or switch boxes having different functions may be prepared. If one is used by the robot operator and the other is used by a worker other than the robot operator, the operability and safety of the robot are further improved.

As for the operation switch, even if it is an ON-OFF type fixed switch, if it is released while it is ON while it is being pressed.
It may be a momentary switch that turns off or a rotary dial switch. Particularly, since the function of the origin shift switch ends in a very short time, it is preferable to be a momentary switch.
Further, each operation switch can be arranged on either the control stick side or the switch box depending on the type of work.

Further, an operation switch other than the above may be provided. For example, a force reflection ratio setting switch that changes the reflection ratio of the force from the slave arm to the master arm and a motion transmission ratio setting switch that changes the transmission ratio of the motion from the master arm to the slave arm are provided, which can be set according to the work mode. May be set to.

In the above embodiment, the switch box is directly connected to the controller, but the switch box may be connected to the controller via the master arm.

[0033]

As described above, according to the present invention, some of the switches for controlling the robot are arranged on the side of the separate switch box, so that the operability and safety of the robot are improved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overall configuration of the present invention applied to a master / slave manipulator.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a master arm control stick.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a switch box.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a switch box according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a switch box according to a third embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a switch box according to a fourth embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Master Arm (Control Device) 2 Slave Arm (Work Robot) 3 Controller 4 Electric Cable 5 Control Stick 6 Start / Stop Unit 7, 8, 11, 12, 13, 14, 14, 17 Operation Switch 10 Switch Box 15 Function Display 16 Transmission / Reception The antenna 18 function display means

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A controller for controlling a work robot, a control device connected to the controller for operating the work robot, and a switch box connected to the controller, wherein both the control device and the switch box are provided. A control device for a robot, comprising switches for controlling the work robot. 2. The control device is provided with switches for controlling the operation of the work robot, and the switch box is provided with switches for controlling the function of the work robot. The robot controller according to claim 1. 3. The switch box and the controller are wirelessly connected to each other.
The robot control device described. 4. The robot controller according to claim 1, wherein the switch box is provided with a function display section for displaying the operation, function and state of the work robot. 5. The robot controller according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the switch boxes are provided.