Partition plate and protection member for linear member

Abstract

Aim is to protect the cable wiring inside the robot mechanism, and to improve the workability of the cable wiring work for the worker, and to make the quality of the robot uniform. A partition plate (3) is used to separate the cable (200) from the construction components (11, 13) housed in the housing (10). A recess (31a) is provided on the back side of the partition plate opposite the construction components, so as to be fitted with the construction components. A groove (33) is provided on the surface side of the partition plate opposite the cover of the housing to accommodate and wind the cable. The groove is formed by a part (32b) on the surface side avoiding the protrusion on the surface side caused by the recess provided on the back side, protruding to the cover side of the housing.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to a partition plate and a protective component for linear components. Background Technology

[0002] In recent years, due to advancements in robotics technology, robots have been used in various fields. This has placed numerous demands on robot manufacturers. Among these demands, the requirements for miniaturization and weight reduction in robots have been increasing year by year. The overall miniaturization and weight reduction of robots narrows the space for cables within the mechanism, making it difficult for sheathed cables to pass through. Cables without exposed insulation have weaker physical contact compared to sheathed cables, thus requiring protection against the influence of the robot's internal structural components.

[0003] Existing technical documents

[0004] Patent documents

[0005] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2010-264525. Summary of the Invention

[0006] The problem the invention aims to solve

[0007] One known method for protecting cables is the use of a guide tube (e.g., Patent Document 1). Others, such as... Figure 17 As shown, another method involves attaching a thin resin sheet 500 to the inside of the housing 10 to separate the cable from the internal structural components 11 and 13. However, this method of attaching the thin resin sheet is difficult to achieve a proper fit between the sheet and the internal structural components, resulting in poor workability. Furthermore, in cases where connectors are needed to secure cables, the cable forming may be inaccurate depending on the operator's skill or understanding, as they are pushed into and secured in confined spaces. This cable forming error poses a risk of the sheet or cable being trapped during the installation of the housing. Therefore, it is desirable to protect the internal wiring of the robot mechanism, improve the workability of cable routing operations, and ensure uniform robot quality.

[0008] means for solving problems

[0009] One aspect of the separator disclosed herein is applicable to robot structural members including a housing, structural components housed within the housing, and a cover of the housing. The separator is used to separate cables from the structural components. A recess and a protrusion are provided on the rear side of the separator opposite the structural components, allowing for engagement with the structural components. A groove is provided on the surface side of the separator opposite the cover of the housing to receive and wind cables. The groove is formed by a portion of the surface side protruding toward the cover side of the housing, this portion of the surface side avoiding the protrusion caused by the recess on the rear side.

[0010] Invention Effects

[0011] According to one method, it is possible to protect the internal wiring of the robot mechanism with cables, improve the operability of the operator in cable wiring work, and make the quality of the robot more uniform. Attached Figure Description

[0012] Figure 1 This is an external view of the robot's joints.

[0013] Figure 2 It is being decomposed Figure 1 A perspective view of the partition plate of the first embodiment is shown in the state of the robot's joints.

[0014] Figure 3 It is being decomposed Figure 1 A top view of the partition plate of the first embodiment is shown in the state of the robot's joints.

[0015] Figure 4 yes Figure 3 A-A' sectional view.

[0016] Figure 5 It will be installed Figure 1 A cross-sectional view of the internal partitions of the robot's joints, shown together with the cables.

[0017] Figure 6 It shows along Figure 2 A three-dimensional diagram of the cables laid in the trenches of the partition plate.

[0018] Figure 7 It shows along Figure 2 A top view of the cable routing in the trenches of the partition plate.

[0019] Figure 8 It shows that Figure 2 A three-dimensional view showing the partition plate assembled inside the housing and the cabling of the cables.

[0020] Figure 9 This is a perspective view showing a modified example of the partition plate of the first embodiment.

[0021] Figure 10 It is shown Figure 9 A cross-sectional view of the connector storage section.

[0022] Figure 11 It is being decomposed Figure 1 A perspective view of the protective member of the line component of the second embodiment is shown in the state of the robot's joints.

[0023] Figure 12 It shows that it has been decomposed. Figure 11 A top view of the robot's joints.

[0024] Figure 13 It was decomposed Figure 12 A B-B' sectional view of the state of the robot's joints.

[0025] Figure 14 It is assembled Figure 13 A cross-sectional view showing the state of the robot's joints along with the cables.

[0026] Figure 15 It will be Figure 11 A perspective view showing the state of the partition plate covered with a partition cover, along with the cable.

[0027] Figure 16 This is a cross-sectional view of the protective member of the line member, showing a modified example of the second embodiment.

[0028] Figure 17 This is a three-dimensional diagram showing an existing example.

[0029] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures

[0030] 1: Joint, 10: Outer shell, 11, 13: Structural components, 15: Insertion hole, 20: Outer shell cover, 3: Divider plate. Detailed Implementation

[0031] The following is a reference to the appendix. Figure 1 The partition plate of the first embodiment and the protective member for the linear component of the second embodiment will be described. Both the partition plate and the protective member for the linear component are components used to protect the linear component, which is wired inside the robot mechanism, from the influence of the structural components housed inside the robot mechanism. In the first and second embodiments, the linear component is described as a cable. However, the linear component is not limited to a cable. Any linear component that is wired inside the robot mechanism can be used, such as a pipe or wire. In the first and second embodiments, a cable wired to the joint of the robot is used as an example for description. However, the partition plate and the protective member for the linear component can be used at any location where the linear component inside the robot mechanism is wired, and can also be applied to any location of the robot's constituent components.

[0032] In the following description, the same reference numerals are used for constituent components that have substantially the same function and structure, and the descriptions are repeated only where necessary.

[0033] (First Implementation)

[0034] like Figures 1-5 As shown, the robot's joint 1 has a cylindrical outer shell 10, first and second structural members 11 and 13 housed within the outer shell 10, and a shell cover 20 covering the outer shell 10. Insertion holes 15 and 17 for inserting a cable 200 are provided on the side and bottom surfaces of the outer shell 10. The cable 200 is introduced into the interior of the outer shell 10 through the insertion hole 15 on the side surface, wound around the partition plate 3 inside the outer shell 10, and pulled out to the outside of the outer shell 10 through the insertion hole 17 on the bottom surface. The first and second structural members 11 and 13 can be any internal structures of the robot mechanism. Examples of the first and second structural members 11 and 13 include motors, reducers, gears, shafts, motor drivers, etc. Here, the first structural member 11 protrudes further towards the shell cover 20 than the second structural member 13. This protrusion length is D. The partition plate 3 in the first embodiment is a component used to separate the cable 200 from the first and second structural members 11 and 13. By using the separator 3 to physically separate the cable 200 from the first and second structural components 11 and 13, the risk of damage caused by friction between the cable 200 and the first and second structural components 11 and 13 can be avoided.

[0035] The following is for reference Figure 3-8 The specific form of the partition plate 3 in the first embodiment will be described.

[0036] The partition plate 3 is a plate-shaped member having a planar shape that matches the cross-sectional shape of the outer casing 10. Hereinafter, for clarity, the surface of the partition plate 3 opposite to the outer casing cover 20 will be referred to as the surface, and the surface of the partition plate 3 opposite to the first and second structural members 11 and 13 will be referred to as the back surface.

[0037] Typically, the partition plate 3 is integrally molded from rigid resin. By using the partition plate 3 as a molded product, it is easy to form an embedded structure with the first structural component 11, and manufacturing costs can be suppressed. In addition, since the partition plate 3 is rigid, deviations in the installation position of the partition plate 3 caused by operators can be suppressed, and the partition plate 3 can be easily and reliably installed inside the housing 10.

[0038] The partition plate 3 can be formed from a resin that is transparent to visible light or a resin that is not transparent to visible light. Either material can be selected based on its respective effects, as shown below. By making the partition plate 3 transparent or semi-transparent, operators can visually confirm the fitting status of the partition plate 3 with the first and second structural components 11 and 13. This improves the workability of installing the partition plate 3. With the partition plate 3 installed, the status of the first and second structural components 11 and 13 can be visually confirmed, thus contributing to improved workability of maintenance operations. On the other hand, by making the partition plate 3 opaque, the first and second structural components 11 and 13 are not visible due to the partition plate 3. This emphasizes the cable 20 routed along the grooves of the partition plate 3, making it easier to visually confirm the routing status of the cable 200, thereby improving the workability of the cable 200 routing operation.

[0039] A through hole 35 is provided in the center of the partition plate 3. The through hole 35 is used to allow the cable 200, which is routed along the groove 33 provided on the surface of the partition plate 3, to pass from the surface side of the partition plate 3 to the back side. If the cable 200 only needs to be routed on the surface side of the partition plate 3, the through hole 35 is not required.

[0040] A recessed portion 3 is provided on the back side of the partition plate 3 to engage with the structural member. In the first embodiment, a recessed portion 31a is provided on the back side portion of the partition plate 3 opposite to the first structural member 11 to engage with the first structural member 11. Viewed from the housing 10, the recessed portion 31a is recessed toward the housing cover 20. In this case, the back side portion of the partition plate 3 opposite to the first structural member 11 corresponds to the recessed portion, and the back side portion opposite to the second structural member 13 corresponds to the protrusion. Typically, the recessed portion 31a has an internal shape that matches the cross-sectional shape of the first structural member 11, and its depth is based on the height of the back side portion of the partition plate 3 opposite to the second structural member 13 and is equal to the protrusion length D of the first structural member 11 relative to the second structural member 13. Therefore, by simply aligning the partition plate 3 with the first structural member 11 in a position that matches the recess 31a, and pushing it towards the first and second structural members 11 and 13, the recess 31a engages with the first structural member 11, thereby fixing the position of the partition plate 3 inside the housing 10. By making the partition plate 3 a structure that can be embedded into the structural members 11 and 13 contained in the housing 10, deviations in the installation position of the partition plate 3 caused by the operator can be suppressed, achieving uniformity of quality. In addition, during the installation of the partition plate 3, the recess 31a also functions as a guide for installing the partition plate 3 inside the housing 10, thus improving the operability of the operator in installing the partition plate 3. Furthermore, since there is no need for bolts or other fasteners to fix the partition plate 3 relative to the housing 10 or the first and second structural members 11 and 13, the number of component points can be reduced, and the operation steps can be shortened.

[0041] In the above-described configuration, although the partition plate 3 will not move in a direction perpendicular to the direction in which it is pushed toward the first and second structural members 11 and 13, the possibility of it detaching from the first and second structural members 11 and 13 cannot be ruled out. Therefore, in order to completely fix the position of the partition plate 3 inside the housing 10, the recess 31a can be configured to be slightly smaller than the cross-sectional shape of the first structural member 11, and the partition plate 3 can be pressed toward the first and second structural members 11 and 13 for assembly. Alternatively, a locking claw or a receiving part for receiving the locking claw can be provided on the outer peripheral surface of the partition plate 3 or the inner peripheral surface of the recess 31a, and a receiving part or locking claw for receiving the locking claw can be provided on the inner peripheral surface of the housing 10 or the outer peripheral surface of the first structural member 11. By engaging the claws, the position of the partition plate 3 inside the housing 10 can be completely fixed.

[0042] Furthermore, regarding the direction perpendicular to the direction in which the partition plate 3 is pushed towards the first and second structural members 11 and 13, as long as the position of the partition plate 3 can be fixed, the recess 31a does not need to be completely fitted with the first structural member 11, and its shape is not limited to the above. In the plane perpendicular to the direction in which the partition plate 3 is pushed towards the first and second structural members 11 and 13, as long as there are at least two contact points between the inner side of the recess 31a and the outer side of the first structural member 11, the partition plate 3 will not move in the direction perpendicular to the direction in which the partition plate 3 is pushed towards the first and second structural members 11 and 13. Therefore, the internal shape of the recess 31a only needs to be configured such that, in the plane perpendicular to the direction in which the partition plate 3 is pushed towards the first and second structural members 11 and 13, there are at least two contact points between the inner side of the recess 31a and the outer side of the first structural member 11.

[0043] Depending on the number of structural components housed in the outer casing 10, the partition plate 3 can have a structure with more than two recesses.

[0044] On the surface side of the partition plate 3, a groove 33 is provided as a cable receiving portion for accommodating and winding the cable 200. From the viewpoint of workability and formability of accommodating and winding the cable 200, the cable receiving portion is typically the groove 33. However, as a cable receiving portion, the partition plate 3 may also have an insertion hole for inserting the cable 200 along the cable path, or a cable clamp may be provided. The groove 33 is formed by a portion of the surface side of the partition plate 3 protruding towards the cover side of the housing. The shape and length of the groove 33 are arbitrary depending on the cable path, but the protrusion 32b constituting the groove 33 is preferably formed to avoid the protrusion 31b on the surface side caused by the recess 31a provided on the back side of the partition plate 3. As a result, the thickness of the partition plate 3 can be suppressed, thereby suppressing the enlargement of the joint 1 caused by the introduction of the partition plate 3.

[0045] In the first embodiment, the groove 33 is configured such that one end connects to the insertion hole 15 on the side of the housing 10, bends around the central through hole 35 of the partition plate 3, and the other end reaches a position close to the central through hole 35 of the partition plate 3. Thus, by providing the groove 33 for winding the cable 200 on the surface side of the partition plate 3, even if the cable 200 moves inside the joint 1 as the joint 1 moves, the cable 200 is physically separated from the first and second structural members 11 and 13, thereby reducing the risk of damage from contact with the first and second structural members 11 and 13. Furthermore, since operators only need to lay the cable 200 along the groove 33, deviations in the winding of the cable 200 caused by operators can be suppressed, achieving uniform quality. Typically, the cross-sectional shape of the groove 33 is rectangular, but it can also be a trapezoidal shape where the groove width narrows towards the bottom. This prevents the cable 200 contained in the groove 33 from easily falling out of the groove 33.

[0046] When wiring cables into the internal structure of a robot, multiple cables are sometimes connected in series via connectors. Therefore, a connector storage section can be provided in the groove 33 of the partition plate 3 to house the connectors. For example... Figure 9 As shown, the connector housing 34 has a recess in the bottom plate 33a of the groove 33, having an internal shape that matches at least a portion of the outer shape of the connector 300. The connector 300 refers to the entire connector assembly in the state where the first connector 300a at the end of the first cable 200a is inserted into the second connector 300b at the end of the second cable 200b. The connector housing 34 can be provided on the side plate of the groove 33, or it can be provided across the side plate from the bottom plate 33a of the groove 33. Figure 10 As shown, by providing the connector storage section 34, the operator can fix the position and orientation of the connector 300 simply by storing the connector 300 in the connector storage section 34. This suppresses cable routing deviations caused by the operator, achieves uniform quality, and improves workability. Furthermore, the connector storage section 34 has an internal shape that matches the external shape of the connector 300, so even if force is applied to the connector 300 in the direction it might detach for some reason, the connector 300 is restrained by the connector storage section 34, thus preventing the connector 300 from disengaging.

[0047] (Second Implementation)

[0048] The following is for reference Figures 11-16 The protective member 7 of the line member in the second embodiment will be described.

[0049] The protective member 7 of the line component in the second embodiment includes the partition plate 3 of the first embodiment and the partition cover 5 covering the partition plate 3. The partition plate 3 separates the cable 200 from the first and second structural components 11 and 13, and the partition cover 5 separates the cable 200 from the outer casing 20, thereby avoiding the risk of damage caused by friction between the cable 200 and the first and second structural components 11 and 13 and the outer casing 20 inside the outer casing 10. In the second embodiment, the partition cover 5 will be mainly described, and the description of the partition plate 3 will be omitted. The side of the partition cover 5 opposite to the partition plate 3 is designated as the back side of the partition cover 5, and the side of the partition cover 5 opposite to the outer casing 20 is designated as the surface side of the partition cover.

[0050] The partition cover 5 is a cover-like component that covers at least a portion of the groove 33 provided in the partition plate 3. The partition cover 5 has a cross-sectional shape that matches the planar shape of the partition plate 3. By covering at least a portion of the groove 33 of the partition plate 3 with the partition cover 5, the risk of damage to the cable 200 from contact with the outer cover 20 when it is pulled out of the groove 33 of the partition plate 3 can be reduced. At least one protrusion may also be provided on the surface of the partition cover 5 so that at least one point on the surface of the partition cover 5 contacts the inner surface of the outer cover 20. Thus, the position of the partition plate 3 and the partition cover 5 can be fixed inside the outer cover 10 while the outer cover 20 is covering it.

[0051] Typically, the separator cover 5 is made of a rigid resin that is transparent to visible light. By constructing a structure in which the transparent or translucent separator cover 5 covers the separator plate 3, operators can check whether the cable 200 is sandwiched between the separator plate 3 and the separator cover 5 while the separator cover 5 is covering the separator plate 3. This reduces the risk of damage to the cable 200.

[0052] like Figure 11 As shown, the partition cover 5 has a notch 51 for the first structural member 11 to pass through and a through hole 55 provided at a position matching the through hole 35 of the partition plate 3. Additionally, as... Figure 15 As shown, a pull-out notch 53 is provided, which is used to pull the cable 200 out from the groove 33 of the partition plate 3 when the partition cover 5 is covering the partition plate 3. Of course, in order to physically and completely separate the cable 200 from the outer cover 20, as... Figure 16 As shown, the partition cover 5 can be configured to cover the entire surface of the partition plate 3 except for the protrusion 31b.

[0053] While some embodiments of the invention have been described, these embodiments are provided by way of example and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These embodiments can be implemented in various other ways, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. These embodiments or variations thereof are included in the scope or spirit of the invention, and similarly are included in the scope of the invention as described in the claims and its equivalents.

Claims

1. A separator suitable for a robot component comprising a housing, a structural member housed within the housing, and a cover for the housing, for separating a cable from the structural member, wherein, The partition plate has a back side opposite to the structural component and a surface located on the opposite side of the back side and opposite to the cover of the housing. A hollow, columnar structure with a bottom protrudes from the surface of the partition plate. The bottomed hollow columnar structure has an opening on the back side of the partition plate opposite to the structural component, and has an internal space with one end closed on one side of the surface. The internal space of the hollow columnar structure with a bottom and the opening form a recess that fits into the structural component. Grooves are provided on the surface of the separator to accommodate and wind the cable. The groove is formed to avoid the bottomed hollow columnar structure.

2. The partition plate according to claim 1, wherein, In addition to the bottomed hollow columnar structure, the partition plate is also provided with holes or notches for the cable housed in the groove to pass between the back side and the surface side.

3. The partition plate according to claim 1 or 2, wherein, The groove is provided with a recess for inserting a connector of the cable, the recess having an internal shape that matches at least a portion of the outer shape of the connector.

4. A protective component for linear components, wherein, It has the partition plate as described in claim 1 or 2; as well as A partition cover fits into the partition plate from the cover side of the outer casing, covering at least a portion of the grooves disposed on the surface of the partition plate.

5. The protective member for the linear component according to claim 4, wherein, The partition cover is transparent to visible light.

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