Monitoring device and robot monitoring system

Abstract

The purpose of the present invention is to propose a technology by which it is possible to monitor an operator to change information relating to production work by a robot. A monitoring device (10) according to the present embodiment is provided with: a first reception means (15) for receiving, from a robot control device (50) for controlling a robot, an execution history including the start date and time and the end date and time of a production job, on the basis of a production program for causing the robot to execute a prescribed production job; a second reception means (15) that receives a change history including the date and time at which the production program or the variable is artificially changed; and a determination unit (123) that determines whether or not the point in time at which the production program or the variable is artificially changed is in the production job by querying the change history in the execution history.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Embodiments of the present invention relate to a monitoring device and a robot monitoring system having a function of monitoring changes in information related to production work of a robot. Background Art

[0002] A large number of robots are used in the production lines of factories. Monitoring the operating status of these robots has become an important technology from the perspective of maintaining manufacturing efficiency and manufacturing quality. For example, a technology for monitoring the operating status of a large number of robots located in a remote location is known (for example, Patent Document 1). However, the previous technology monitors the occurrence of abnormalities such as robot failures through a pre-set monitoring algorithm, and notifies the occurrence of abnormalities to the person in charge of robot management, the person in charge of system management, etc.

[0003] Prior art literature

[0004] Patent Literature

[0005] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2015-131381 Summary of the invention

[0006] Problem that the invention aims to solve

[0007] However, the monitoring algorithm does not take into account the changes made by the operator. Therefore, it is impossible to detect the changes made by the operator to the robot's program, the changes to variables such as the motion speed, and the changes to the system variables through the monitoring program, and the person in charge of the robot management and the person in charge of the system management cannot be informed of these changes made by the operator. However, regardless of whether the changes made by the operator are made correctly, they may become the main cause of abnormalities in the robot's production operations. Therefore, the person in charge of the robot management and the person in charge of the system management should grasp the changes made by the operator as risks of abnormalities. In this context, it is desirable to propose a technology that can monitor the changes made by operators to information related to the robot's production operations.

[0008] Means used to solve problems

[0009] The monitoring device of this embodiment comprises: a first receiving unit, which receives an execution history including a start date and an end date of a production operation from a robot control device that controls the robot according to a production program for causing the robot to execute a prescribed production operation; a second receiving unit, which receives a change history including a date and time when a production program or a variable is artificially changed; and a judgment unit, which judges whether the time point when the production program or a variable is artificially changed is in the production operation by querying the change history in the execution history. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] Figure 1 This is a diagram showing a robot monitoring system including the monitoring device according to the present embodiment.

[0011] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 Functional block diagram of the robot control device.

[0012] Figure 3 It is shown Figure 1 A diagram of an example of a production program stored in a robot control device.

[0013] Figure 4 It is shown Figure 1 FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of an execution history management table stored in a robot control device.

[0014] Figure 5 It is shown Figure 1 A diagram showing an example of a change history management table stored in a robot control device.

[0015] Figure 6 This is a functional block diagram of the monitoring device according to this embodiment.

[0016] Figure 7 It is shown Figure 6 A diagram of an example of a change history management table stored in a monitoring device.

[0017] Figure 8 This is a diagram showing an example of a notification screen provided from the monitoring device of this embodiment to the user terminal.

[0018] Fig. 9 This is a flowchart showing an example of the procedure of the monitoring process of the monitoring device according to the present embodiment.

[0019] Fig.10 It is shown Figure 1 FIG. 2 is a diagram of other examples of production programs stored in a robot control device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0020] Hereinafter, the monitoring device of the present embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the same reference numerals are attached to components having substantially the same function and structure, and repeated description will be given only when necessary.

[0021] The monitoring device of this embodiment is a computer device having the following functions: in the production operation of the robot, it is possible to determine whether the production program used to enable the robot to perform a specified production operation, the variables used in the production program, and other information related to the production operation of the robot have been artificially changed; and it is possible to notify a pre-set user terminal of the situation in which the information related to the production operation of the robot has been artificially changed during the production operation.

[0022] In the present embodiment, "information related to the production operation of the robot" includes information related to the production program, setting information of variables used in the production program, and other information directly related to the movement of the robot. Variables used in the production program include movement speed, standby time, movement form, interpolation form, etc. Changes to the production program include changes, additions, deletions of action instructions or changes, additions, deletions of teaching positions. Action instructions include movement instructions, holding instructions, welding instructions, and standby instructions. "Information related to the production operation of the robot" is not limited to information directly related to the movement of the robot, but also widely includes various information that affects the overall production operation of the robot. As such information, there are system variables inside the robot control device, such as variables related to the sending and receiving of data. In the present embodiment, "variables" not only represent numerical values, but also represent data that can be processed as numerical values ​​or codes inside the robot control device, such as character strings.

[0023] In this embodiment, "in the production operation of the robot" means in the execution of the production program. The time when the robot is stationary according to the standby instruction included in the production program is also included in the production operation of the robot. In addition, in the case where the production operation of the robot is interrupted in the middle of a process and restarted from the process, the period of interruption of the production operation of the robot is also included in the production operation of the robot. On the other hand, in the case where the robot repeatedly performs the production operation, typically, the intervals between the production operations are not included in the production operation of the robot. Of course, the intervals between the production operations can also be treated as included in the production operation.

[0024] In this embodiment, in order to obtain the start date and end date of the robot's production operation, an identifier is written into the production program. The identifier is used to record the date and time of the read time point, and can also be the execution command itself, or a mark used by other programs to record the date and time. In this embodiment, the identifier is called a command.

[0025] Figure 1A robot monitoring system 1 including a monitoring device 10 of the present embodiment is shown. The robot monitoring system 1 includes a robot 40, a robot control device 50 for controlling the robot 40, and the monitoring device 10 connected to the robot control device 50 via a network 90. ​​A user terminal 80 operated by a user who is responsible for managing the robot 40 is connected to the robot control device 50 and the monitoring device 10 via the network 90 or the like.

[0026] The user terminal 80 is a computer device having a function of displaying a notification screen provided by the monitoring device 10, a function of displaying a control screen of the robot 40 provided by the robot control device 50, and a function of sending various information input according to user operations on the user terminal 80 to the robot control device 50. The user terminal 80 is provided by a smart phone, a tablet computer, a PC (Personal Computer), etc. For example, the various information provided by the user terminal 80 to the robot control device 50 includes information related to the production operation of the robot 40 and its modification information, information related to adding an identifier to a production program, information related to deleting an identifier written in a production program, and information related to modifying an identifier written in a production program.

[0027] Figure 2 is a block diagram showing the functions of the robot control device 50. Figure 2 As shown, the robot control device 50 is configured by connecting hardware such as an operation unit 53, a display unit 54, a communication unit (first and second receiving units) 55, and a storage unit 56 to a processor 52 such as a CPU. The robot control device 50 is provided by a common information processing terminal such as a PC or a tablet.

[0028] The operation unit 53 has input devices such as a keyboard, a mouse, and a knob. The input device may be provided by a touch panel that also serves as the display unit 54, or may be provided by a dedicated operation device (suspended controller) of the robot control device 50. The user can input information related to the production operation of the robot 40 and its modification information, information related to adding an identifier to the production program, information related to deleting an identifier written in the production program, and information related to modifying an identifier written in the production program to the robot control device 50 via the operation unit 53.

[0029] The operation unit 53 has an interrupt button for interrupting the production operation of the robot 40. The interrupt button can be implemented by software. The robot control device 50 controls the robot 40 according to the operation of the interrupt button by the user. Specifically, the robot control device 50 interrupts the production operation of the robot 40 when the interrupt button is pressed, and restarts the interrupted production operation of the robot 40 when the interrupt button is pressed again.

[0030] The display unit 54 has a display device such as an LCD, and displays a control screen, etc. The communication unit 55 controls the data transmission and reception with the monitoring device 10 and the user terminal 80. Through the processing of the communication unit 55, the robot control device 50 can receive various information from the user terminal 80. In addition, the robot control device 50 can send the execution history data managed by the execution history management table and the change history data managed by the change history management table to the monitoring device 10.

[0031] The storage unit 56 has a storage device such as a HDD (Hard Drive) or an SSD (Solid State Drive). The storage unit 56 stores a monitoring program for the robot control device, a production program for causing the robot 40 to perform production operations, variables used in the production program, and system variables related to the internal processing of the robot control device 50. In addition, the storage unit 56 stores an execution history management table and a change history management table.

[0032] Figure 3 An example of a production process is shown below. Figure 3 As shown, the production program is provided in text form, and is obtained by writing action instructions in each line according to the order of the process. Action instructions include movement instructions to move to the teaching position, holding instructions to hold the workpiece, release instructions to release the workpiece, welding instructions, and standby instructions. For example, the command "position [1]" written in the second line of the production program indicates a movement instruction to move to the teaching position "1". The command "standby" written in the eighth line indicates a standby instruction.

[0033] In this embodiment, a recording instruction for recording date and time information is written into the production program. Typically, the recording instruction is written into a position read before the first action instruction of the production program and a position read after the last action instruction is read. Specifically, the second line of the production program is the first action instruction. Therefore, the command "start date and time" recorded as the recording instruction together with the code for determining the start date and time is written into the first line read before the first action instruction. Similarly, the tenth line of the production program is the last action instruction. Therefore, the command "end date and time" recorded as the recording instruction together with the code for determining the end date and time is written into the eleventh line read after the last action instruction.

[0034] like Figure 2 As shown, the monitoring program for the robot control device stored in the storage unit 56 is executed by the processor 52, so the robot control device 50 functions as a production program changing unit 521, a system variable changing unit 522, an execution history updating unit 523, and a change history updating unit 524.

[0035] The production program changing unit 521 changes the production program and variables used in the production program based on the change information on the information related to the production work of the robot 40 input via the operation unit 53 and the communication unit 55 .

[0036] The system variable changing unit 522 changes the system variable based on the change information of the system variable input via the operation unit 53 and the communication unit 55 .

[0037] The execution history update unit 523 creates a record that summarizes the product ID, date and time, code, robot name, and program name based on the reading of the identifier written in the production program, and adds it to the execution history management table.

[0038] Figure 4 An example of an execution history management table is shown. The execution history management table manages the production start date and time of the robot 40 and the production end date and time. Figure 4 As shown, by executing a record in the history management table, the product ID of the product to be produced, the code of the identifier written in the production program to be individually determined, the date and time, the robot name of the robot 40 to be used to be individually determined, and the program name of the program to be used to be individually determined are managed.

[0039] For example, the product ID is production object information for individually identifying the production object, and corresponds to the number of repetitions when the production operation is repeated. The code "1001" is a code for determining the start date and time, and the code "2001" is a code for determining the end date and time. Therefore, the date and time "2022 / 01 / 03 10:11:33" corresponding to the product ID "001" and the code "1001" indicates the production start date and time of the first produced product. The date and time "2022 / 01 / 03 10:13:21" corresponding to the product ID "001" and the code "2001" indicates the production end date and time of the first produced product. That is, it means that the period from the date and time "2022 / 01 / 03 10:11:33" to the date and time "2022 / 01 / 03 10:13:21" is the production operation of the robot.

[0040] The change history update unit 524 creates a record summarizing the change date and time, the robot name, the change code, and the change content based on the change information of the information related to the production operation of the robot 40 input through the operation unit 53 or the communication unit 55, and adds it to the change history management table. The change date and time when the information related to the production operation of the robot 40 is changed is managed through the change history management table. Specifically, Figure 5As shown, in one record of the change history management table, a change number, a change date and time, a robot name for individually identifying the robot 40 of the change target, a change code for individually identifying the changed item, and specific change contents are managed.

[0041] Figure 6 is a block diagram showing the functions of the monitoring device 10. Figure 6 As shown, the robot control device 50 is configured by connecting hardware such as a communication unit 15 and a storage unit 16 to a processor 12 such as a CPU. Typically, the monitoring device 10 is provided by a server device.

[0042] The communication unit 15 controls the transmission and reception of data between the robot control device 50 and the user terminal 80. Through the processing of the communication unit 15, the monitoring device 10 can receive the execution history data and the change history data from the robot control device 50. In addition, the monitoring device 10 can send the notification screen created by the notification screen creation unit 124 to the user terminal 80.

[0043] The storage unit 16 has a storage device such as an HDD or an SSD. The storage unit 16 stores a monitoring program for the monitoring device. In addition, the storage unit 16 stores an execution history management table (see Figure 4 ) and the change history management table (refer to Figure 7 ).

[0044] The monitoring program for the monitoring device stored in the storage unit 16 is executed by the processor 12 , whereby the monitoring device 10 functions as an execution history update unit 121 , a change history update unit 122 , a determination unit (determination means) 123 , and a notification screen creation unit 124 .

[0045] The execution history update unit 121 adds the execution history data received from the robot control device 50 to the execution history management table. Figure 4 The contents held by the robot control device 50 shown are the same, so the description thereof is omitted.

[0046] The modification history updating unit 122 adds the modification history data received from the robot control device 50 to the modification history management table, and adds a production operation in progress flag corresponding to the determination result of the determination unit 123 described later to the modification history.

[0047] Figure 7 FIG. 2 shows an example of a modification history management table stored in the monitoring device 10. Figure 7As shown, the change history management table managed by the monitoring device 10 is a table in which the item "production operation flag" is added to the change history management table managed by the robot control device 50. The production operation flag indicates whether the corresponding change has been made in the production operation. Among them, the production operation flag "0" indicates that no change has been made in the production operation, and the production operation flag "1" indicates that a change has been made in the production operation.

[0048] The determination unit 123 can determine whether the robot 40 is in the middle of a production operation when the information related to the production operation is changed by searching the modification history in the execution history.

[0049] For example, Figure 7 The change date and time of the change number "1" in the change history management table shown is "2022 / 01 / 03 / 09:05". If the execution history management table maintained by the monitoring device 10 is queried, the change date and time "2022 / 01 / 03 / 09:05" is the date and time before the start of production. Therefore, the judgment unit judges that the change corresponding to the change number "1" is not performed in the production operation. Therefore, the in-production operation flag "0" indicating that it is not a change in the production operation is written in the record corresponding to the change number "1".

[0050] Figure 7 The change date and time of the change number "3" in the change history management table shown is "2022 / 01 / 03 / 10:23". If the execution history management table maintained by the monitoring device 10 is queried, the change date and time "2022 / 01 / 03 / 10:23" is the date and time in the production operation of the product ID "002". Therefore, the judgment unit judges that the change corresponding to the change number "3" is performed in the production operation. Therefore, the production operation flag "1" indicating that it is a change in the production operation is written in the record corresponding to the change number "1".

[0051] The notification screen creation unit 124 creates a notification screen for notifying the user that the information related to the production work of the robot 40 has been changed. Figure 8 FIG. 8 shows an example of a notification screen displayed on the user terminal 80. Figure 8 As shown, the notification screen includes information indicating that information related to the production operation of the robot 40 has been changed during the production operation, the robot name to be changed, the product ID, the change code indicating the change item, and the specific change content. By viewing the notification screen, the user can understand that the information related to the production operation of the robot 40 has been changed during the production operation, the products produced at the time of the change, the changed item, and the specific content of the change.

[0052] Figure 81 is a flowchart showing an example of the steps of the monitoring process of the monitoring device 10. Figure 8 As shown, the monitoring process of the monitoring device 10 starts to wait before receiving the execution history, in other words, before the robot control device 50 starts to control the robot 40 (S11: No). If the execution history record starts to be received (S11: Yes), the monitoring process by the monitoring device 10 starts. The monitoring device 10 receives the execution history (S12) and adds the received execution history to the execution history management table (S13). If the monitoring device 10 receives the change history (S14: Yes), it searches the execution history management table for the change history and determines whether the change represented by the change history is in the production operation of the robot 40. If it is determined that the change is in the production operation of the robot 40 (S15: Yes), the monitoring device 10 adds the received change history to the change history management table with the flag "1" in the production operation (S16). Then, the monitoring device 10 creates a notification screen (S17) and sends the created notification screen to the user terminal 80 (S18). If it is determined that the modification is not in the production operation of the robot 40 (S15: No), the monitoring device 10 adds the received modification history to the modification history management table with the flag "0" in the production operation (S19).

[0053] The processing of step S12 to step S19 is repeatedly executed until the reception of the execution history is completed, in other words, until the robot control device 50 ends the control of the robot 40 (S20: No). When the reception of the execution history is completed (S20: Yes), the monitoring process of the monitoring device 10 ends.

[0054] According to the monitoring device 10 of this embodiment, the following effects are achieved.

[0055] The monitoring device 10 of this embodiment can determine whether the information related to the production operation of the robot 40 has been changed in the production operation of the robot 40 based on the execution history and the change history provided by the robot control device 50. As a result, the user can grasp the changes in the information related to the production operation of the robot 40 in the production operation of the robot 40, which is particularly likely to be related to production defects. In addition, the monitoring device 10 can send a notification screen notifying the situation of changes in the production operation to the user terminal. The notification screen includes text information indicating changes in the production operation, the robot name, the product ID, the changed items, and the content. The risk of production defects varies depending on the changed items and the changed content. For example, compared with the change of system variables, the change of the production program directly related to the production operation of the robot 40 and the change of variables have a higher risk of production defects for the robot 40. In addition, there is also a case where the user manages multiple robots 40. Through the notification screen, the change items and the change content can be grasped, and thus the user can respond in order from the situation with a high risk of production defects, and can efficiently manage the entire production operation of multiple robots 40. In addition, by understanding the products produced or the robots performing production operations at the time of the change, when an abnormality actually occurs in the product, it is possible to more quickly understand which robot has the abnormality and which product the abnormality started.

[0056] In this embodiment, in order to obtain the start date and end date of the production operation of the robot 40, as shown in FIG. Figure 3 As shown, the start command is written in the position read before the first action instruction in the production program, and the end command is written in the position read after the last action instruction. Thus, the production operation of the robot 40 can be defined by the date and time output by the start command and the date and time output by the end command, and by referring to the date and time of change of information related to the production operation of the robot 40, it can be determined whether the change of information related to the production operation of the robot 40 has been changed in the production operation. However, the start date and time or the end date and time of at least one of the multiple processes constituting the production program can also be obtained. For example, in order to obtain the start date and time of each of the multiple processes constituting the production program, as shown in FIG. Fig.10 As shown, a command to obtain the date and time is written in the line between the action instructions of each line written according to the order of the process. In this way, not only the start date and end date of the production operation can be obtained, but also the start date (end date) of each process can be obtained, and it can be determined that the information related to the production operation of the robot 40 has been changed during the production operation, and it can also be determined in which process the change was implemented. By understanding which process in the production operation has been changed, the user can analyze and understand the risk of production defects in more detail.

[0057] The monitoring device 10 of this embodiment has a function of creating a notification screen for notifying that information related to the production operation of the robot 40 has been changed during the production operation, and sending it to the user terminal 80. However, regardless of whether the production operation is in progress, depending on the robot 40 and the content of the production operation, the change of information related to the production operation of the robot 40 may become a risk of production defects. Therefore, regardless of whether the production operation is in progress, the monitoring device 10 can create a notification screen for notifying that information related to the production operation of the robot 40 has been changed, and send it to the user terminal 80.

[0058] In the present embodiment, the monitoring program installed in the robot control device 50 and the monitoring device 10 may be recorded and distributed in a removable medium, or may be distributed by downloading to a user's computer via a network.

[0059] The embodiments of the present disclosure are described in detail, but the present disclosure is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments. These embodiments can be variously added, replaced, changed, partially deleted, etc. within the scope of the main idea of ​​the invention or derived from the contents recorded in the claims and their equivalents without exceeding the scope of the idea and main idea of ​​the present invention. For example, in the above-mentioned embodiments, the order of each action or the order of each process is shown as an example, but it is not limited to this. In addition, the same is true when numerical values ​​or formulas are used in the description of the above-mentioned embodiments.

[0060] Description of Reference Numerals

[0061] 10 ... monitoring device, 12 ... processor, 121 ... execution history updating unit, 122 ... change history updating unit, 123 ... determination unit, 124 ... notification screen creating unit, 15 ... communication unit, 16 ... storage unit.

Claims

1. A monitoring device, wherein: have: A first receiving unit receives an execution history including a start date and an end date of a predetermined production operation from a robot control device that controls the robot according to a production program for causing the robot to execute the predetermined production operation; A second receiving unit receives, from the robot control device, a change history including a date and time when the production program or variable is artificially changed; as well as The judgment unit is configured to judge whether the time point at which the production program or variable is artificially changed is during the production operation by querying the change history in the execution history.

2. The monitoring device according to claim 1, wherein: The monitoring device further includes a unit for notifying a user of a situation in which the production program or variable is artificially changed during the production operation of the robot.

3. The monitoring device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein: The execution history includes production object information for individually identifying the production object, The monitoring device further includes a determination unit that determines a production target when the change is made in the production work of the robot based on the production target information.

4. The monitoring device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein: The production operation includes multiple processes. The first receiving unit receives, from the robot control device, an execution history including a start date and an end date of the production operation and a start date and an end date of the process, The determination unit determines a process in which the production program or the variable is artificially changed among the multiple processes constituting the production operation by searching the modification history in the execution history.

5. A robot monitoring system, wherein: have: a robot control device for controlling the robot according to a production program for causing the robot to perform a prescribed production operation, and A monitoring device connected to the robot control device; The monitoring device comprises: A first receiving unit receives an execution history including a start date and an end date of the production operation, The second receiving unit receives a change history including a date and time when the production program or variable is artificially changed, The judgment unit is configured to judge whether the time point at which the production program or variable is artificially changed is during the production operation by querying the change history in the execution history.

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