Miniaturized joint module and robot controller

Abstract

The miniaturized joint module comprises a shell, a speed reducer assembly, an encoder assembly, a rear cover shell, a motor and a bearing, the speed reducer assembly and the rear cover shell are arranged at the two ends of the shell correspondingly, the encoder assembly and the motor are both arranged in the shell, the encoder assembly is located outside the motor, and an output shaft of the motor is sleeved with the bearing; the encoder assembly comprises an input rotary encoder and an output rotary encoder, and the output rotary encoder is annularly arranged outside the input rotary encoder, so that the input rotary encoder and the output rotary encoder are located on the same plane. The miniaturized joint module provided by the invention is suitable for the movable joint of the wrist part of the humanoid robot, the output rotary encoder is embedded on the input rotary encoder, so that the encoder assembly has a butt joint plane, the output rotary encoder and the input rotary encoder are positioned on the same plane, the length of the module is reduced, the structure is simpler, and the cost is lower. And meanwhile, the product can be miniaturized.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to a miniaturized joint module and a robot controller. Background Art

[0002] The joint module is a highly integrated integrated design module joint, which is the basic unit for controlling the joint movement of the robot. By controlling the coordinated movement of multiple joints, the robot can quickly achieve the functional requirements and practical goals of the robot. In order to enable the robot or robot exoskeleton controller to complete the required actions, many rotatable joints are set in the robot or robot exoskeleton controller, and the two ends of the joint are respectively connected to different parts of the robot or robot exoskeleton controller, and these different parts can form a rotatable connection through the joint module. In recent years, scientific research institutions at home and abroad have been committed to developing modular joint modules with light weight, large load-to-weight ratio, low power and low power consumption in the corresponding application fields. The joint module has a large load / weight ratio. The main reason is that the two encoders in the existing joint module require two control boards respectively, plus the motor controller, that is, 3 PCB boards need to be installed, and the product cannot be made into a flat shape and cannot be miniaturized. Summary of the invention

[0003] The main purpose of the present invention is to provide a miniaturized joint module to solve the above-mentioned technical problems.

[0004] To achieve the above-mentioned purpose, the present invention proposes a miniaturized joint module including a shell, a reducer assembly, an encoder assembly, a rear cover shell and a motor, the reducer assembly and the rear cover shell are respectively arranged at two ends of the shell, the encoder assembly and the motor are both arranged inside the shell, and the encoder assembly is located outside the motor, the encoder assembly includes an input rotary encoder and an output rotary encoder, the output rotary encoder ring is arranged outside the input rotary encoder, so that the input rotary encoder and the output rotary encoder are located on the same plane.

[0005] In one embodiment, the input rotary encoder is annular and has a cavity, and the output rotary encoder is disposed in the cavity.

[0006] In one embodiment, the housing has a predetermined axis, and the motor has an output shaft colinear with the predetermined axis.

[0007] In one embodiment, the miniaturized joint module further includes a rotor mounted on the inner wall of the shell and a stator disposed inside the rotor, wherein the stator is provided with a motor winding.

[0008] In one embodiment, the output rotary encoder is a magnetic encoder or an optical encoder.

[0009] In one embodiment, the miniaturized joint module further includes a brake disposed in the housing and arranged axially, and the brake is disposed on a side of the input rotary encoder away from the output rotary encoder.

[0010] In one embodiment, the miniaturized joint module further includes a drive controller disposed in the housing and arranged along the axial direction, and the drive controller is disposed on a side of the output rotary encoder away from the input rotary encoder.

[0011] In addition, the present invention also provides a robot controller, which includes at least one miniaturized joint module as described above.

[0012] In the technical solution of the present invention, the miniaturized joint module includes a housing, a reducer assembly, an encoder assembly, a rear cover shell, a motor and a bearing. The reducer assembly and the rear cover shell are respectively arranged at the two ends of the housing, the encoder assembly and the motor are both arranged inside the housing, and the encoder assembly is located outside the motor, the bearing sleeve is arranged outside the output shaft of the motor, and the encoder assembly includes an input rotary encoder and an output rotary encoder, and the output rotary encoder ring is arranged outside the input rotary encoder so that the input rotary encoder and the output rotary encoder are located on the same plane. In the present application, by arranging the output rotary encoder ring outside the input rotary encoder so that the input rotary encoder and the output rotary encoder are located on the same plane, the module length is reduced, the structure is simpler, and the product can be miniaturized at the same time, and the existing structure that the encoder and the controller need to rely on a communication cable and have poor anti-infection ability is changed. No cables are required, and internal communication between the same PCB is achieved without interference, thereby improving the precision control of the joint. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the description of the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on the structures shown in these drawings without paying creative work.

[0014] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the disassembled structure of a miniaturized joint module according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0015] Figure 2 It is a schematic cross-sectional structure diagram of a miniaturized joint module according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0016] Explanation of the accompanying drawings: 10, housing; 20, reducer assembly; 30, encoder assembly; 31, input rotary encoder; 32, output rotary encoder; 33, cavity; 40, rear cover shell; 50, brake; 60, drive controller; 70, stator; 80, motor winding; a, preset axis.

[0017] The realization of the purpose, functional features and advantages of the present invention will be further explained in conjunction with embodiments and with reference to the accompanying drawings. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0018] The following will be combined with the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention to clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0019] It should be noted that all directional indications in the embodiments of the present invention (such as up, down, left, right, front, back, etc.) are only used to explain the relative position relationship, movement status, etc. between the components under a certain specific posture (as shown in the accompanying drawings). If the specific posture changes, the directional indication will also change accordingly.

[0020] In addition, in the present invention, descriptions such as "first", "second", etc. are only used for descriptive purposes and cannot be understood as indicating or implying their relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of the indicated technical features. Therefore, the features defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include at least one of the features. In the description of the present invention, the meaning of "plurality" is at least two, such as two, three, etc., unless otherwise clearly and specifically defined.

[0021] Furthermore, the technical solutions between the various embodiments of the present invention may be combined with each other, but this must be based on the fact that they can be implemented by ordinary technicians in the field. When the combination of technical solutions is contradictory or cannot be implemented, it should be deemed that such combination of technical solutions does not exist and is not within the scope of protection required by the present invention.

[0022] The invention provides a miniaturized joint module.

[0023] like Figure 1-2As shown, the miniaturized joint module provided by the embodiment of the present invention includes a shell 10, a reducer assembly 20, an encoder assembly 30, a rear cover shell 40, a motor and a bearing. The reducer assembly 20 and the rear cover shell 40 are respectively arranged at both ends of the shell 10, the encoder assembly 30 and the motor are both arranged inside the shell 10, and the encoder assembly 30 is located outside the motor, the bearing sleeve is arranged outside the output shaft of the motor, the encoder assembly 30 includes an input rotary encoder 31 and an output rotary encoder 32, and the output rotary encoder 32 is arranged outside the input rotary encoder 31 so that the input rotary encoder 31 and the output rotary encoder 32 are located on the same plane.

[0024] In this embodiment, the housing 10 has a preset axis a, and the motor has an output shaft that is colinear with the preset axis a.

[0025] The input rotary encoder 31 is used to measure one or more parameters of the output rotary motion of the motor (e.g., the speed or rotational position of the rotor of the motor). For example, the input rotary encoder 31 can be connected to the rotor. The input rotary encoder 31 can be an incremental encoder or an absolute encoder. In some examples, the input rotary encoder 31 can be a magnetic encoder or an optical encoder.

[0026] The output rotary encoder 32 is used to measure one or more parameters of the rotational motion of the output shaft (e.g., the speed or rotational position of the output shaft). For example, the output rotary encoder 32 can be connected to the output shaft. The output rotary encoder 32 can be an incremental encoder or an absolute encoder. The output rotary encoder 32 can be a magnetic encoder or an optical encoder. In some examples, the output rotary encoder 32 can be mounted around the output shaft and coaxially mounted therewith.

[0027] In the present application, the motor may be a servo motor (e.g., a frameless servo motor). In other embodiments, the motor may be other types of motors, such as a stepper motor. The motor includes a stator 70 and a rotor. In some embodiments, current may flow through the windings of the stator 70 to generate a rotating magnetic field, causing the rotor to rotate relative to the stator 70 and rotate around a preset axis a.

[0028] In the present application, the output rotary encoder 32 is arranged outside the input rotary encoder 31 so that the input rotary encoder 31 and the output rotary encoder 32 are located on the same plane, thereby reducing the module length, making the structure simpler, and enabling the product to be miniaturized.

[0029] Please refer to Figure 2, the input rotary encoder 31 is annular and has a cavity 33, and the output rotary encoder 32 is arranged in the cavity 33. Therefore, in this embodiment, since the output rotary encoder 32 is arranged inside the input rotary encoder 31, the encoder assembly 30 is located on the same plane, so that the module length can be reduced, the structure can be further simplified, and the defects of the existing structure that the encoder and the controller need to rely on communication cables and have poor anti-infection ability are changed. No cables are required, and internal communication between the same PCB is achieved without interference, thereby improving the precise control of the joint.

[0030] In the above embodiments, the motors typically have a relatively high output speed (e.g., in the range of 5-10K RPM) and relatively low torque. Rapid rotation is not suitable for the movement of robot joints because the robot joints may rotate too fast due to the low torque. In the present application, the miniaturized joint module includes a gear reducer that couples the rotational motion of the rotor to the output shaft. The gear reducer proportionally increases the output torque of the motor while reducing the output speed of the motor, thereby enabling the output shaft to rotate with a relatively high torque and a relatively low speed. In some examples, the gear reducer may include a strain wave gear (e.g., a harmonic Strain wave gears) that can achieve high gear reduction ratios and zero backlash in a small volume.

[0031] Please refer to Figure 1 The motor includes a stator 70 and a rotor. In some embodiments, current can flow through the motor winding 80 of the stator 70 to generate a rotating magnetic field, so that the rotor rotates relative to the stator 70 and rotates around a preset axis a.

[0032] The miniaturized joint module further includes a brake 50 and a controller arranged in the housing 10 and arranged axially. The joint module provided in the present application is suitable for movable joints of the waist, arms and other parts of a humanoid robot, with an integrated overall design, a built-in harmonic reducer, a 19-bit dual encoder, and a zero-temperature holding brake 50. It has a compact structure, high integration, small size, large torque and high precision.

[0033] The brake 50 mainly serves to stop the vehicle and provide protection during power failure.

[0034] The 19-bit dual encoder code disc is used to detect the rotation angle, moving distance and selection and moving speed. Its working principle is to engrave the information on the code disc and convert the mechanical angle of the code disc into pulse or digital output through the principle of photoelectromagnetism.

[0035] The drive controller 60 generally includes FOC drive control, encoder, brake 50, and high-integration controller. It is the overall control hub of the drive and controls the modules according to various requirements through the connection program.

[0036] Furthermore, the present invention also provides a robot controller, the robot controller comprising at least one miniaturized joint module as described above. Since the robot controller adopts all the technical solutions of all the above embodiments, it has at least all the beneficial effects brought by the technical solutions of the above embodiments, which will not be described one by one here.

[0037] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention, and does not limit the patent scope of the present invention. All equivalent structural changes made by using the contents of the present invention specification and drawings under the concept of the present invention, or directly / indirectly applied in other related technical fields are included in the patent protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A miniaturized joint module, characterized in that: The miniaturized joint module comprises a housing (10), a reducer assembly (20), an encoder assembly (30), a rear cover shell (40), a motor and a bearing. The reducer assembly (20) and the rear cover shell (40) are respectively arranged at two ends of the housing (10). The encoder assembly (30) and the motor are both arranged inside the housing (10), and the encoder assembly (30) is located outside the motor. The bearing sleeve is arranged outside the output shaft of the motor. The encoder assembly (30) comprises an input rotary encoder (31) and an output rotary encoder (32). The output rotary encoder (32) is arranged outside the input rotary encoder (31) so that the input rotary encoder (31) and the output rotary encoder (32) are located on the same plane.

2. The miniaturized joint module according to claim 1, characterized in that: The input rotary encoder (31) is annular and has a cavity (33), and the output rotary encoder (32) is arranged in the cavity (33).

3. The miniaturized joint module according to claim 1, characterized in that: The housing (10) has a preset axis (a), and the motor has an output shaft colinear with the preset axis (a).

4. The miniaturized joint module according to claim 3, characterized in that: The miniaturized joint module also includes a rotor mounted on the inner wall surface of the housing (10) and a stator (70) disposed inside the rotor, wherein a motor winding (80) is disposed on the stator (70).

5. The miniaturized joint module according to claim 4, characterized in that: The output rotary encoder (32) is a magnetic encoder or an optical encoder.

6. The miniaturized joint module according to claim 1, characterized in that: The miniaturized joint module further comprises a brake (50) which is arranged in the housing (10) and arranged along the axial direction, and the brake (50) is arranged on a side of the input rotary encoder (31) away from the output rotary encoder (32).

7. The miniaturized joint module according to claim 1, characterized in that: The miniaturized joint module further comprises a drive controller (60) disposed in the housing (10) and arranged along the axial direction, wherein the drive controller (60) is disposed on a side of the output rotary encoder (32) away from the input rotary encoder (31).

8. A robot controller, characterized in that: The robot controller comprises at least one miniaturized joint module as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 7.

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