Assembly process recording system and method

Abstract

An assembly process recording system (1) comprises: an image capture device (3) and an image capture device control system (5), wherein the image capture device control system (5) is configured to: determine whether the position of the image capture device (3) satisfies a position condition relative to a reference position at a manufacturing site, and / or whether the orientation of the image capture device (3) satisfies an orientation condition relative to a reference orientation at the manufacturing site, and when the position satisfies the position condition and / or the orientation satisfies the orientation condition, set the image capture device (3) to an enabled state.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention generally relates to the recording of component assembly in manufacturing. Background Art

[0002] Assembly of components of objects in manufacturing, for example, may involve tightening nuts or screws using a power tool (eg, a nut runner or screwdriver).

[0003] The assembly process may also involve attaching stickers providing information to the object.

[0004] The operator may need to record certain steps of the assembly process. In some cases, this record may, for example, require taking a picture of each nut, bolt, and / or screw that has been tightened, or reading a barcode or QR code of a sticker that has been attached to the component.

[0005] Current recording methods rely entirely on the operator. However, operators can make mistakes when recording the assembly process. For example, when recording the tightening of a certain nut or screw on an object, an operator may accidentally take a picture of the wrong nut or screw, or read the wrong barcode or QR code. Summary of the invention

[0006] An object of the present invention is to provide an assembly process recording system and method that solves or at least alleviates the problems of the prior art.

[0007] According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an assembly process recording system comprising: an image capture device and an image capture device control system, wherein the image capture device control system is configured to: determine whether the position of the image capture device satisfies a position condition relative to a reference position at a manufacturing site, and / or whether the orientation of the image capture device satisfies an orientation condition relative to a reference orientation at the manufacturing site, and set the image capture device to an enabled state when the position satisfies the position condition and / or the orientation satisfies the orientation condition.

[0008] Thus, the image capture device will only be set to an enabled state if its position and / or orientation meets the respective predetermined conditions. This reduces the risk that, for example, an operator accidentally takes a picture of an object other than the one intended to be recorded, or reads a wrong barcode or QR code.

[0009] The object may be a component that has undergone an assembly operation, ie, a component to be recorded. The assembly operation may be, for example, a tightening operation or the attachment of a sticker.

[0010] In some cases, it may be sufficient to determine whether the position satisfies the position condition. This may be the case when stickers are to be recorded and only one sticker can be photographed at a specific position, taking into account all directions.

[0011] In some cases, it may be sufficient to determine whether the orientation satisfies the orientation condition. For example, this may be the case when the position of the image capture device is fixed or substantially fixed in space, but the image capture device may be arranged in different orientations.

[0012] In some cases, it may be necessary to determine that both the position condition and the orientation condition are met in order to set the image capture device to an enabled state. For example, this may be the case if each nut of a plurality of closely arranged bolt connections is recorded by the image capture device.

[0013] An “enabled state” refers to a state in which the image capture device is set to be able to capture images that are recorded or stored for recording the assembly process of an object.

[0014] The reference location may be, for example, the location of an object at a manufacturing site or an area or point within a manufacturing site.

[0015] The reference orientation may be, for example, the orientation of the object at the manufacturing site or the direction pointing to the object, or a certain face of the object within a predetermined angle range.

[0016] The manufacturing location may be, for example, a manufacturing plant or an assembly location where an object is being assembled. The assembly location may be, for example, a location where an object (eg, a wind turbine tower) is being assembled and installed, and may be remote from the manufacturing plant.

[0017] According to one embodiment, the image capture device control system is configured to place or maintain the image capture device in a disabled state if the position does not satisfy the position condition and / or the orientation does not satisfy the orientation condition.

[0018] According to one embodiment, the assembly process documentation system is configured to determine a position of the image capture device and / or an orientation of the image capture device.

[0019] For example, an image capture device may be used to determine the position and / or orientation. The image capture device may, for example, repeatedly capture images of its surroundings, compare these images with reference images in a database, and thereby determine the position and / or orientation of the image capture device. For example, the position and / or orientation may be determined when an image or sequence of images matches a reference image or sequence of reference images in a database of reference images of a manufacturer.

[0020] This process should not be confused with an image capture device in an enabled state, in which an image is captured by the image capture device for recording. In this case, the image captured by the image capture device is stored in, for example, a database and can be associated with an object or a part of an assembly process.

[0021] Alternatively or additionally, other known means may be used to determine the position, such as triangulation techniques based on signals sent by the assembly process recording system and / or using a Global Positioning System (GPS).

[0022] Alternatively or additionally, orientation may be determined using, for example, accelerometers and / or gyroscopes.

[0023] One embodiment includes a power tool wherein an image capture device is mounted to or integrally formed with the power tool.

[0024] The orientation of the image capture device may be the orientation of the power tool. The direction in which the image capture device points may, for example, be the direction in which the front end of the power tool points.

[0025] The position of the image capture device may be the position of the power tool and / or the orientation of the image capture device may be the orientation of the power tool. Therefore, in the case where the image capture device is mounted to or formed integrally with the power tool, the assembly process recording system may use the position of the power tool as the position of the image capture device and / or the assembly process recording system may use the orientation of the power tool as the orientation of the image capture device.

[0026] According to one embodiment, the image capture device control system is configured to obtain a reference position and / or a reference orientation based on an identifier of the image capture device or the power tool.

[0027] The identifier identifies the image capture device or the power tool. Thus, in an example where the power tool is used for certain purposes, such as tightening nuts or screws at a certain station or area of ​​a manufacturing site, or for performing tightening operations at different stations or areas of a manufacturing site according to a certain sequence, a reference position and / or a reference orientation can be determined based on the identifier.

[0028] According to one embodiment, the image capture device control system forms part of the power tool.The image capture device control system may, for example, be arranged externally to the power tool, or it may be formed integrally with the power tool.

[0029] Alternatively, the image capture device control system may be located remotely from the power tool.

[0030] According to one embodiment, the power tool is battery powered. Thus, according to some examples, the power tool may be portable in the sense that it is not powered by a power cord.

[0031] According to one embodiment, the power tool is a nut runner or a screwdriver.

[0032] One embodiment includes a wireless transmitter configured to transmit images captured by the image capture device to an external recording device for quality assurance.

[0033] The image may be, for example, a photograph or a scan of a barcode or QR code.

[0034] According to one embodiment, the wireless transmitter is configured to transmit a time stamp associated with the image to the external recording device. Thus, the image can be recorded together with a time stamp (ie, the time when the image was captured).

[0035] According to one embodiment, the wireless transmitter is configured to transmit an identifier of the image capture device or the power tool to an external recording device.

[0036] According to one embodiment, the wireless transmitter is configured to transmit the position and / or orientation of the image capture device together with the image when the image is captured to the external recording device.

[0037] Thus, the image may be stored together with its time stamp, and / or position and / or orientation, and / or identifier in an external recording device, such as a database.

[0038] According to one embodiment, the image capture device is configured to automatically capture images when set to an enabled state.

[0039] According to one embodiment, the image capture device is one of: a camera and an optical scanner, such as a barcode reader or a QR code reader.

[0040] According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for controlling an image capture device of an assembly process recording system, the method comprising: a) determining whether a position of the image capture device satisfies a position condition relative to a reference position at a manufacturing site, and / or whether an orientation of the image capture device satisfies an orientation condition relative to a reference orientation, and b) setting the image capture device to an enabled state when the position satisfies the position condition and / or the orientation satisfies the orientation condition.

[0041] One embodiment includes placing or maintaining the image capture device in a disabled state if the position does not satisfy the position condition and / or the orientation does not satisfy the orientation condition.

[0042] One embodiment includes determining a position of an image capture device and / or an orientation of an image capture device.

[0043] One embodiment includes obtaining a reference position and / or a reference orientation based on an identifier of the image capture device or the power tool.

[0044] Generally, unless otherwise expressly defined herein, all terms used in the claims should be interpreted according to their ordinary meaning in the technical field. Unless otherwise expressly stated, all references to "a / an / the element, device, component, means, etc." should be openly interpreted as referring to at least one instance of an element, device, component, means, etc. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0045] Specific embodiments of the present inventive concept will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0046] Figure 1 A block diagram schematically illustrates an example of an assembly process recording system;

[0047] Figure 2 Schematically shows the Figure 1 A perspective view of an example of an electric tool in an assembly process recording system;

[0048] Figure 3 A flow chart of a method for measuring axial force in a power tool; and

[0049] Figure 4a-4c An example situation in which an assembly process recording system is used is schematically illustrated. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0050] The inventive concept will be described more fully below with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which exemplary embodiments are shown. However, the inventive concept can be implemented in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided by way of example so that the present invention will be thorough and complete and will fully convey the scope of the inventive concept to those skilled in the art. Throughout the specification, the same reference numerals refer to the same elements.

[0051] Figure 1 An example of the assembly process recording system 1 is shown.

[0052] The assembly process recording system 1 includes an image capturing device 3 and an image capturing device control system 5 .

[0053] The image capturing device 1 and the image capturing device control system 5 may be included in the same unit, or they may be arranged in different units in a distributed manner.

[0054] The image capture device 3 is configured to capture images. The image capture device 3 may be, for example, a camera, a barcode reader, or a QR code reader.

[0055] According to one example, the image capture device 3 may form part of a smartphone or tablet. Alternatively, the image capture device 3 may be a dedicated image capture device 3 mounted to or integrally formed with the power tool.

[0056] The image capture device 3 is configured to switch between a disabled state and an enabled state.

[0057] In the disabled state, the image capture device 3 cannot capture images, or at least the assembly process recording system 1 cannot store images captured by the image capture device 3 or cannot send images captured by the image capture device 3 to an external recording device (e.g., a database) for storage to ensure quality.

[0058] In the enabled state, the image capture device 3 is activated to capture images, which may be stored by the assembly process recording system 1 or sent to an external recording device (eg, a database) for storage for quality assurance.

[0059] Whether the image capture device 3 is in a disabled state or an enabled state depends on the location and / or orientation of the image capture device 3 in the manufacturing plant.

[0060] Briefly, the image capture device control system 5 is configured to determine whether the position of the image capture device 3 satisfies a position condition relative to a reference position at a manufacturing site, and / or to determine whether the orientation of the image capture device 3 satisfies an orientation condition relative to a reference orientation at a manufacturing site.

[0061] If the position satisfies the position condition, the image capture device control system 3 may set the image capture device 1 from the disabled state to the enabled state. Alternatively or additionally, if the orientation satisfies the orientation condition, the image capture device control system 3 may set the image capture device 1 from the disabled state to the enabled state.

[0062] The location condition may be, for example, that the location of the image capture device 3 must be within a predetermined distance from an object or point located at the manufacturing site, or that the location of the image capture device 3 must be within a predetermined area at the manufacturing site.

[0063] The orientation condition may for example be that the image capture device 3 must be pointing at the object within a certain angle range in space (eg within a cone). The orientation of the object determines the angle. The maximum angle of the cone may be predetermined.

[0064] The image capture device control system 5 includes a storage medium 5a containing computer code and a processing circuit 5b configured to execute the computer code, thereby causing the assembly process recording system 1 to perform the method disclosed herein.

[0065] The storage medium 5a can be implemented as a memory, such as a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), or an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), and more specifically as a non-volatile storage medium of a device in an external memory such as a USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory or a flash memory (e.g., compact flash).

[0066] The processing circuit 5b may, for example, use any combination of one or more suitable central processing units (CPUs), multiprocessors, microcontrollers, digital signal processors (DSPs), application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), etc.

[0067] The image capture device 3 may be arranged on the power tool or formed integrally with the power tool, for example. According to some examples, the image capture device control system 5 may be arranged on the same power tool as the image capture device 3 or formed integrally with the same power tool as the image capture device 3. Alternatively, only the image capture device 3 may be arranged on the power tool or formed integrally with the power tool, and the image capture device control system 5 may be arranged away from the power tool.

[0068] The assembly process recording system 1 may include a wireless transmitter 6 configured to wirelessly transmit data from the assembly process recording system 1 to an external recording device. The data may include, for example, images captured by the image capture device 3, a timestamp associated with the captured image, an identifier of the image capture device, and a position and / or orientation of the image capture device 3.

[0069] Figure 2 An example of a power tool 7 is shown, in which example the power tool 7 is a nut runner, but could alternatively be a screwdriver, for example.

[0070] The power tool 7 may be cordless and battery powered, or the power tool 7 may be powered by a cord.

[0071] The power tool 7 has a body 9 and a tool head 11. The tool head 11 is attached to the body 9. The tool head 11 is angled in the example, but may alternatively be straight.

[0072] The tool head 11 has an output shaft 11a. The output shaft 11a is configured to be rotatably driven and engage with a fastener such as a nut, a bolt or a screw.

[0073] like Figure 2 As shown, the image capture device 3 may be provided on the power tool 7. Thus, the image capture device 3 may be used to capture images or scan images in conjunction with a tightening or assembly operation.

[0074] The orientation of the image capturing device 3 may be defined, for example, by the direction in which the tool head 11 points, for example, along the longitudinal axis of the power tool 7 .

[0075] The image capture device control system 5 may be provided in or on the electric tool 7 , or may be remotely arranged relative to the electric tool 7 .

[0076] Now refer to Figure 3 and Figure 4a-4c A method of controlling the image capture device 3 by the image capture device control system 5 for recording an assembly process is described.

[0077] In step a), it is determined whether the position of the image capture device 3 satisfies a position condition, and / or whether the orientation of the image capture device 3 satisfies an orientation condition.

[0078] Figure 4a A simplified two-dimensional situation is depicted, in which a power tool 7 is arranged within a predetermined distance from a reference position, which in this example is the center of an object 15 located at a manufacturing site. The predefined distance is shown by a circle 13 centered at the reference position. The circle 13 has a predefined radius and corresponds to a position condition in this example. Since the power tool 7 is within the circle 13, the position condition is met. A power tool 7 'of the same type as the power tool 7 is outside the circle 13, and therefore the position condition is not met.

[0079] Figure 4b A situation is depicted where a power tool 7 is arranged in a first orientation relative to an object 15 in a manufacturing plant. A power tool 7' is arranged in a second orientation relative to the object 15. In this two-dimensional example, there is a triangular area bounded by two dotted lines 17 and 19 that emanate from the object 15 with a predefined angle α between them. In this example, straight lines emanating from the object 15 between the dotted lines 17 and 19 that do not intersect the dotted lines define a set of reference orientations. Therefore, in the case where the power tool has an orientation aligned with such straight lines, the orientation satisfies the orientation condition. In this example, the first orientation of the power tool 7 satisfies the orientation condition. A power tool 7' of the same type as the power tool 7 and that rotates about a rear end that coincides with the rear end of the power tool 7 has a second orientation that does not satisfy the orientation condition.

[0080] Figure 4c The case where the power tool 7 satisfies both the position condition and the orientation condition is shown. The power tool 7' satisfies only the position condition.

[0081] It may be predetermined and may be determined, for example, application dependent, whether only one (and in this case which one) of the position condition and the orientation condition has to be fulfilled, or both, in order to enable the image capture device 3 .

[0082] Prior to step a), the image capture device control system 5 may be configured to determine the position and / or orientation of the image capture device 3. Alternatively, another device may be configured to determine the position and / or orientation of the image capture device 3 and provide it to the image capture device control system 5.

[0083] The image capture device control system 5 may be configured to obtain a reference position and / or a reference orientation based on an identifier of the image capture device 3 or the power tool 7 and / or based on the position and / or orientation of the image capture device 3. For example, based on an assembly schedule that may be associated with the power tool 7, the reference position and / or the reference orientation may be determined, for example, by checking the position or station at the manufacturing site where the image capture device or the power tool 7 should be at the moment using the identifier of the image capture device or the power tool 7. For example, it may be found that the image capture device 3 or the power tool 7 should be located at a specific position at a specific station based on the assembly schedule. Alternatively, using the position of the image capture device 3 or the power tool 7, the position of an object near the image capture device 3 may be selected as a reference position.

[0084] In step b), the image capture device 3 is set to an enabled state in case the position satisfies the position condition and / or the orientation satisfies the orientation condition.

[0085] The user can only capture and store images when the image capture device 3 is enabled.

[0086] In the case where the position does not satisfy the position condition and / or the orientation does not satisfy the orientation condition, the image capture device control system 5 is configured to set or maintain the image capture device 3 in a disabled state. In this case, the user cannot take any images, or at least the images cannot be stored inside or outside the assembly process recording system 1 for quality assurance.

[0087] When the image has been captured, the wireless transmitter 6 may transmit the captured image to an external recording device for quality assurance.

[0088] The wireless transmitter 6 may be configured to transmit a time stamp associated with the image to an external recording device.

[0089] The wireless transmitter 6 may be configured to transmit an identifier of the image capture device 3 or the power tool 7 together with the image to an external recording device.

[0090] The wireless transmitter 6 may be configured to transmit the position and / or orientation of the image capture device 3 when the image capture device 3 is capturing an image to an external recording device.

[0091] The inventive concept has mainly been described above with reference to a few examples. However, as readily appreciated by a person skilled in the art, other embodiments than the ones disclosed above are equally possible within the scope of the inventive concept as defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. An assembly process recording system (1), comprising: - Power tools (7, 7'), - an image capture device (3) mounted to or integrally formed with the power tool (7, 7'), and - an image capture device control system (5), The assembly process recording system (1) is configured to determine the position of the image capture device (3), Wherein, the image capture device control system (5) is configured as follows: determining whether the determined position of the image capture device (3) satisfies a position condition relative to a reference position at the manufacturing site, and In the case where the position satisfies the position condition, setting the image capture device (3) to an enabled state, whereby whether the image capture device is in a disabled state or an enabled state depends on the position of the image capture device in the manufacturing site; wherein the image capture device control system (5) is configured to set or maintain the image capture device (3) in a disabled state if the position does not satisfy the position condition; wherein the reference position is determined by checking the position or station at the manufacturing site where the image capture device (3) or the power tool (7, 7') should be at that moment, based on an assembly schedule associated with the power tool (7, 7'); When the electric tool (7, 7') is arranged within a predetermined distance from the reference position, it is determined that the position condition is satisfied.

2. The assembly process recording system (1) according to claim 1, wherein: The image capture device control system (5) forms part of a power tool (7, 7').

3. The assembly process recording system (1) according to claim 2, wherein: The electric tool (7, 7') is battery powered.

4. The assembly process recording system (1) according to claim 3, wherein: The electric tool (7, 7') is a nut wrench or a screwdriver.

5. The assembly process recording system (1) according to claim 1, comprising a wireless transmitter, wherein the wireless transmitter is configured to transmit the image captured by the image capture device (1) to an external recording device for quality assurance.

6. The assembly process recording system (1) according to claim 5, wherein: The wireless transmitter is configured to transmit a time stamp associated with the image to an external recording device.

7. The assembly process recording system (1) according to claim 5, wherein: The wireless transmitter is configured to transmit an identifier of the image capture device (3) or the power tool (7, 7') to an external recording device.

8. The assembly process recording system (1) according to claim 5, wherein: The wireless transmitter is configured to transmit the position and / or orientation of the image capture device (3) together with the image when the image is captured to an external recording device.

9. The assembly process recording system (1) according to claim 1, wherein: The image capture device (3) is configured to automatically capture images when set to an enabled state.

10. The assembly process recording system (1) according to claim 1, wherein: The image capture device (3) is one of the following: a camera and an optical scanner.

11. A method for controlling an image capture device (3) of an assembly process recording system (1) according to claim 1, the method comprising: determining a position of the image capture device and / or an orientation of the image capture device, determining whether the determined position of the image capture device (3) satisfies a position condition relative to a reference position at the manufacturing site, and / or whether the determined orientation of the image capture device (3) satisfies an orientation condition relative to a reference orientation, and In case the position satisfies the position condition and / or the orientation satisfies the orientation condition, setting the image capture device (3) to an enabled state, whereby whether the image capture device is in a disabled state or an enabled state depends on the position and / or orientation of the image capture device in the manufacturing location; The image capture device control system (5) is configured to set or maintain the image capture device (3) in a disabled state when the position does not satisfy the position condition and / or the orientation does not satisfy the orientation condition.

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