Flexible plugging mechanism and use method thereof

Abstract

The invention relates to the field of automation, in particular to a flexible inserting and pulling mechanism and a using method thereof.The flexible inserting and pulling mechanism comprises a part taking and deviation adjusting assembly, a head assembly and a positioning tool, the head assembly is installed on a mechanical arm of a robot through a fixing connector, and the part taking and deviation adjusting assembly is installed on one side of the head assembly; the positioning tool is installed on the main board, the head assembly comprises an assembly body, a force sensor, a flexible actuator, a visual unit and a server clamping jaw assembly, the flexible actuator can flexibly grab a workpiece, and the using method comprises five steps. The positioning tool and the visual unit guarantee that the position of the workpiece clamping jaw is accurate during insertion, the mechanical quantity of the workpiece during insertion and extraction is accurately controlled through the force sensor and the flexible actuator, flexible insertion and extraction are achieved, and therefore the workpiece insertion and extraction can be achieved in a full-automatic mode, and the yield is 95% or above.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to the field of automation, and in particular to a flexible plug-in mechanism and a use method thereof. Background Art

[0002] In the era of big data and cloud computing, servers are more widely used and the configuration requirements for servers are getting higher and higher, resulting in higher and higher demand for memory and hard disk capacity. The number of memory sticks, solid-state drives, PCI / PXI slots on server motherboards is also increasing. During the R&D and production testing and verification process, it is often necessary to plug and unplug memory sticks, which is not only time-consuming but also very likely to cause damage to the operator's fingers in the process of frequently prying open the memory slot hooks.

[0003] Taking the memory stick as an example, most of the existing server motherboard memory stick insertion and removal methods are manual insertion and removal operations. When inserting the memory stick, the memory stick clips at both ends of the memory stick slot are first pried outward, and the memory stick is pressed forcefully into the memory stick slot until the memory stick clips return to their original positions, thereby completing the insertion of the memory stick; when removing the memory stick, the memory stick clips are first pried outward forcefully, and the memory stick can be ejected from the memory stick slot.

[0004] The existing manual insertion and removal method of memory sticks has certain defects: the insertion and removal efficiency of the manual insertion and removal method of memory sticks is not high, a large force is required to press the memory stick, the operator is prone to fatigue, and it is very easy to be touched by the surroundings during the operation. The edge devices may scratch your fingers; manually plugging and unplugging memory sticks can easily cause unstable plugging and unplugging, which can easily lead to interruption during testing. In addition, manually inserting memory sticks can easily damage the memory sticks and memory stick slots. Therefore, it is necessary to develop a robot with an automatic plugging and unplugging mechanism to meet the needs. Summary of the invention

[0005] In order to solve the deficiencies in the prior art, the present invention provides a flexible plug-in mechanism and a method for using the same.

[0006] The technical solution of the present invention is: On the basis of the multi-axis robot, a flexible plug-in and pull-out mechanism is added to realize the full automation of the robot from picking up parts, inserting parts, and pulling parts out.

[0007] The invention provides a flexible plug-in and pull-out mechanism, comprising a piece removal and deviation adjustment component, a head component and a positioning tool.

[0008] The head assembly is installed on the robot's mechanical arm through a fixed interface, the picking and adjusting assembly is installed on one side of the head assembly, and the positioning tooling is installed on the main board.

[0009] The robot controls the displacement of the plugging and unplugging mechanism, including up and down, forward, backward, rotation and other actions.

[0010] The head assembly includes a component body, a force sensor, a flexible actuator, a visual unit, and a server gripper assembly; the flexible actuator can flexibly grasp the workpiece.

[0011] Furthermore, the force sensor, the flexible actuator, the vision unit, and the server gripper assembly are mounted on the assembly body, and the assembly body is connected to the mechanical arm of the robot via a fixed interface.

[0012] Furthermore, force sensors can detect mechanical quantities such as tension, pulling force, pressure, weight, torque, internal stress and strain.

[0013] Furthermore, the flexible actuator includes an electric cylinder, a workpiece clamp, and a force sensor connected to the electric cylinder and the workpiece clamp. The force sensor can monitor the mechanical quantities of the electric cylinder and the workpiece clamp in real time and transmit the mechanical quantities to the flexible actuator and the control system. The flexible actuator can adjust the mechanical quantities of the electric cylinder and the workpiece clamp according to the real-time mechanical quantities and preset values.

[0014] Furthermore, the vision unit includes a distance sensor and an industrial camera.

[0015] Furthermore, the head assembly is also provided with a positioning cylinder, which is installed on the assembly body. The positioning cylinder assists the head assembly in accurately positioning the pickup and deviation adjustment assembly and the positioning tooling.

[0016] Furthermore, the piece picking and deviation adjustment assembly includes a positioning support and a positioning seat.

[0017] Furthermore, the positioning tooling includes a top plate and a base.

[0018] Furthermore, the top surface of the top plate is a smooth plane with a height difference of no more than 0.02 mm, and the top plate is provided with positioning holes.

[0019] Furthermore, the base can be fixedly mounted on the mainboard.

[0020] Further, the server clamp assembly can pull out or push the motherboard.

[0021] The method of using the present invention is that the flexible plug-in mechanism is installed on the robot's mechanical arm, the robot controls the displacement of the flexible plug-in mechanism, the flexible actuator controls the workpiece clamp to clamp the workpiece, the server clamp assembly can pull the mainboard to the specified position, the flexible plug-in mechanism accurately inserts the workpiece into the mainboard through the positioning tooling that has been fixed on the mainboard, and when all the workpieces on a mainboard are fully inserted, the server clamp assembly pushes the mainboard to the specified position, the server starts working, and when the work is completed, the server clamp assembly can pull the mainboard to the specified position, and the flexible actuator controls the workpiece clamp of the plug-in mechanism to pull out the workpiece on the mainboard.

[0022] The picking and adjusting component ensures the accuracy of picking, the positioning tooling and vision unit ensure the accurate position of the workpiece clamp during insertion, and the mechanical quantities of the workpiece during insertion and removal are accurately controlled through force sensors and flexible actuators to achieve flexible insertion and removal.

[0023] The beneficial effects achieved by the present invention are: The present invention ensures the accuracy of picking up parts through the picking and adjusting component, and the positioning tooling and visual unit ensure the accurate position of the workpiece clamp during insertion. The mechanical quantities of the workpiece during insertion and removal are accurately controlled through force sensors and flexible actuators to achieve flexible insertion and removal. Therefore, the present invention not only realizes the insertion and removal of workpieces fully automatically, but also has a yield rate of more than 95%. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024] Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of the present invention; Figure 2 It is a schematic diagram of one side of the head assembly of the present invention; Figure 3 It is a schematic diagram of the other side of the head assembly of the present invention; Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the object picking and deviation adjustment component and the packaging box of the present invention; Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the mainboard of the present invention; Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the positioning tooling of the present invention; Figure 7 Schematic diagram of monitoring parameters of the force sensor of the present invention.

[0025] In the figure: 1. Robot; 2. Head assembly; 3. Pick-up and deviation adjustment assembly; 4. Positioning tooling; 5. Packing box; 6. Workpiece; 7. Aging box; 101. Robotic arm; 102. Workbench; 201, component body; 2011, fixed interface; 202, force sensor; 203, flexible actuator; 2031, electric cylinder; 2032, workpiece clamp; 204, visual unit; 2041, distance sensor; 2042, industrial camera; 20421, camera light range; 205, server clamp assembly; 206, positioning cylinder; 2061, expansion pin; 2062, positioning pin; 301, positioning support; 302, positioning seat; 401, top plate; 4011, positioning hole; 402, base; 501, feeding packaging box; 502, receiving packaging box; 701, handle; 702, main board; 7021, fixing hole. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0026] To facilitate those skilled in the art to understand the present invention, specific implementations of the present invention are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0027] The workpiece 6 in this embodiment is a memory stick, the slot is a memory stick slot, the process is an aging test, the mainboard 702 is installed in an aging box 7, and a plurality of aging boxes 7 form a server cabinet.

[0028] Structure introduction: like Figures 1 to 6 As shown, the present invention provides a flexible plug-in mechanism, including a pick-up and deviation adjustment component 3, a head component 2, and a positioning tool 4.

[0029] Figure 1 Multiple head components 2 are shown in FIG. , which shows the working state of the head components 2 .

[0030] The head assembly 2 is mounted on the mechanical arm 101 of the robot 1 through a fixed interface 2011 , and the piece picking and deviation adjustment assembly 3 can be placed separately on one side of the head assembly 2 , or on the workbench 102 of the robot 1 .

[0031] In this embodiment, the picking and deflecting adjustment component 3 is installed on the workbench 102 of the robot 1 , and the packaging box 5 is placed on one side of the picking and deflecting adjustment component 3 .

[0032] The positioning tool 4 is pre-installed on the main board 702 . The main board 702 is provided with a fixing hole 7021 . The base 402 of the positioning tool 4 can be fixed to the main board 702 by screws, rivets, expansion screws, etc. A handle 701 is installed on one side of the main board 702 .

[0033] The robot 1 controls the displacement of the plugging and unplugging mechanism, including up and down, forward, backward, rotation and other actions, so that the head component 2 of the plugging and unplugging mechanism moves to a specified position.

[0034] The head assembly 2 includes a assembly body 201 , a force sensor 202 , a flexible actuator 203 , a vision unit 204 , and a server clamp assembly 205 .

[0035] The force sensor 202 , the flexible actuator 203 , the vision unit 204 , and the server gripper assembly 205 are installed on the assembly body 201 , and the assembly body 201 is connected to the mechanical arm 101 of the robot 1 via a fixed interface 2011 .

[0036] The function of the force sensor 202 is to detect mechanical quantities such as tension, pulling force, pressure, weight, torque, internal stress and strain of the flexible actuator 203 .

[0037] In this embodiment, the force sensor 202 is a six-dimensional force sensor, which adopts the method of simultaneously loading forces in three directions and moments in three directions. Each set of test loads must be a random combination of Fx, Fy, Fz, Mx, My and Mz, meet the requirements of non-correlation and be relatively evenly distributed in the sample space.

[0038] The flexible actuator 203 includes an electric cylinder 2031 and a workpiece clamp 2032. The force sensor 202 is connected to the electric cylinder 2031 and the workpiece clamp 2032. The force sensor 202 can monitor the mechanical quantities of the electric cylinder 2031 and the workpiece clamp 2032 in real time, and transmit the mechanical quantities to the flexible actuator 203 and the control system. The flexible actuator 203 can adjust the mechanical quantities of the electric cylinder 2031 and the workpiece clamp 2032 according to the real-time mechanical quantities and preset values.

[0039] The cooperation between the force sensor 202 and the flexible actuator 203 realizes flexible plugging and unplugging, which is different from manual plugging and unplugging. The present invention can adjust the plugging and unplugging force in real time according to parameters such as insertion distance and resistance size, and combine with early warning settings to discover problems in advance.

[0040] Referring to 2-3, in this embodiment, the visual unit 204 is provided with a plurality of distance sensors 2041 and an industrial camera 2042. The camera optical range 20421 of the industrial camera 2042 is referred to as Figure 3 .

[0041] The multiple distance sensors 2041 can measure the distance from the head assembly 2 to the top surface of the top plate 401 of the positioning tool 4 in real time, and adjust the level of the head assembly 2 and the descending height.

[0042] The function of industrial camera 2042 is to correct deviation and identify server barcodes.

[0043] Deviation correction: Take photos before picking up the workpiece and after plugging in the workpiece, and send them to the control system. The control system automatically calculates the coordinates and angle compensation of the workpiece to ensure the success rate of picking up the workpiece.

[0044] The head assembly 2 is also provided with a positioning cylinder 206, which is installed on the assembly body 201. The positioning cylinder 206 is provided with a positioning pin 2062, and the positioning pin 2062 is used to position the head assembly 2 and the piece removal and adjustment assembly 3, as well as to position the head assembly 2 and the positioning tooling 4.

[0045] The specific implementation method of positioning the head assembly 2 and the picking and adjusting assembly 3 by the positioning pin 2062 is: the robotic arm 101 drives the head assembly 2 to the top of the picking and adjusting assembly 3, the robotic arm 101 drives the head assembly 2 to descend, and the positioning pin 2062 is inserted into the positioning support 301 of the picking and adjusting assembly 3.

[0046] The specific implementation method of positioning the head assembly 2 and the positioning tooling 4 is: the robotic arm 101 drives the head assembly 2 to the top of the positioning tooling 4, the robotic arm 101 drives the head assembly 2 to descend, and the positioning pin 2062 is inserted into the positioning hole 4011 of the top plate 401. In order to achieve a better fixing effect and ensure the accuracy of flexible plugging and unplugging, in this embodiment, at least one positioning pin 2062 is an expansion pin 2061. Under the action of the positioning cylinder 206, the end of the expansion pin 2061 becomes larger to better fix the head assembly 2.

[0047] The function of the picking and adjusting component 3 is to adjust the workpiece 6 when picking up the workpiece. Because the workpiece 6 in the packaging box 5 is easy to tilt and have problems such as uneven height, the workpiece clamp 2032 of the head component 2 has a clamping deviation problem when grabbing the workpiece 6. When grabbing the workpiece 6, the force sensor 202 can usually detect the deviation problem by monitoring the difference in mechanical quantities on both sides of the workpiece clamp 2032.

[0048] When there is a problem of object picking deviation, the control system of the robot 1 controls the robotic arm 101 to drive the head assembly 2 to the top of the object picking deviation adjustment assembly 3, the robotic arm 101 drives the head assembly 2 to descend, and at the same time the workpiece clamp 2032 appropriately releases the workpiece 6, the workpiece 6 is adjusted by the workpiece 6 slot of the positioning seat 302, and the workpiece clamp 2032 re-clamps the workpiece 6.

[0049] The piece picking and deviation adjusting assembly 3 comprises a positioning support 301 and a positioning seat 302 . The positioning support 301 is provided with a hole. The positioning support 301 is fixed on the positioning seat 302 . The positioning seat 302 is provided with a slot for a workpiece 6 .

[0050] It should be explained that the workpiece 6 slot of the positioning seat 302, the slot of the packaging box 5, and the workpiece 6 slot on the mainboard 702 are similar but different.

[0051] The function of the positioning tool 4 is to assist the robot arm 101 to accurately position the workpiece clamp 2032 .

[0052] The positioning tool 4 includes a top plate 401 and a base 402 . The top surface of the top plate 401 is a smooth plane with a height difference of no more than 0.02 mm. The top plate 401 is provided with a positioning hole 4011 . The top plate 401 is mounted on the base 402 , and the base 402 can be fixedly mounted on the main board 702 .

[0053] Furthermore, the server clamp assembly 205 can clamp the handle 701 and pull out or push the mainboard 702 .

[0054] The specific method of using the present invention is: 1. Take the workpiece: Take the workpiece 6 from the loading packaging box 501 and put it into the mainboard 702 of the aging box 7 During initial production, after the equipment is turned on automatically, the robotic arm 101 moves to the top of the loading packaging box 501. After the industrial camera 2042 takes a picture, the control system automatically calculates the coordinates and angle compensation of the workpiece 6 to ensure the success rate of picking up the workpiece 6. The two workpiece clamps 2032 at the bottom of the head component 2 clamp the workpiece 6 and place it in the picking and adjusting component 3 for secondary positioning (this station can be spot-checked), and then the arm re-clamps the workpiece 6.

[0055] 2. Plug-in: Plug workpiece 6 into the slot of mainboard 702 The mechanical arm 101 of the robot 1 moves the head component 2 to the corresponding cabinet position, and the industrial camera 2042 reads the barcode of the server cabinet that needs to work to ensure that the working position is correct. Then the mechanical arm 101 pulls out the server motherboard 702 to expose the workpiece 6 slot, and then the head component 2 moves to the top of the positioning fixture 4. After the industrial camera 2042 takes a picture, it identifies the feature points and calculates the coordinate compensation amount of the inserted workpiece 6. At the same time, multiple distance sensors 2041 measure three points on the top surface of the positioning fixture 4, and fit to generate a virtual plane as a reference for horizontal compensation of the clamp to ensure that the workpiece clamp 2032 is parallel to the slot when pressed down, and does not damage the workpiece 6. After the head component 2 is pressed into place, the positioning cylinder 206 extends to ensure the stability of the workpiece clamp 2032 and the positioning fixture 4 to ensure insertion accuracy. The positioning pin 2062 fixes the head assembly 2 on the positioning tooling 4, and then the electric cylinder 2031 extends out to insert the workpiece 6 into the slot. During the insertion process, the force sensor 202 monitors the pressure in real time. When the pressure reaches the set value, the clamp will consider that the insertion is completed. The pressure monitoring can play a protective role to prevent hard insertion and damage to the workpiece 6. Then the corresponding electric cylinder 2031 controls the clamp to open and lift respectively. After the clamp completes the insertion of the two workpieces 6, the positioning cylinder 206 is released, and the robotic arm 101 cycles the above actions and continues to take materials from the packaging box 5, and then puts the materials into the server. Each server can insert more than 16 workpieces 6, and 16 pieces are used in this embodiment. After all the workpieces 6 are inserted, the server clamp assembly 205 closes the aging box 7 and pushes the drawer back. At this point, the work of a server cabinet plug-in is completed.

[0056] 3. Pull out: Get artifacts from the server 6 After the aging of the workpiece 6 is completed, a signal is sent to the robot 1, and the robot 1 moves to the pick-up and placement point of the corresponding station. The server gripper assembly 205 pulls out the corresponding server motherboard 702, and then opens all the aging boxes 7 in turn to expose the workpiece 6 that has been aged. Then the head assembly 2 moves to the top of the positioning tooling 4, and the industrial camera 2042 takes pictures, identifies the feature points, and calculates the coordinate compensation amount of the pulled workpiece 6. At the same time, three height sensors measure three points on the tooling surface, and fit to generate a virtual plane as a reference for the horizontal compensation of the workpiece gripper 2032 to ensure When the workpiece clamp 2032 is pressed down, it is parallel to the slot and does not damage the workpiece 6. After the head assembly 2 is pressed into place, the positioning cylinder 206 extends to ensure the stability of the workpiece clamp 2032 and the positioning tooling 4 to ensure the extraction accuracy. Then the electric cylinder 2031 extends. After extending to the set position, the electric cylinder 2031 controls the clamping jaws to clamp. During the extraction process, the force sensor 202 monitors the pressure in real time. When the pressure reaches the set value or reaches the set extraction distance, the workpiece clamp 2032 will consider that the extraction is completed. Pressure monitoring can play a protective role to prevent hard extraction and damage to the workpiece 6.

[0057] 4. Place the workpiece: Place the workpiece 6 into the receiving packaging box 502 The head assembly 2 moves to the photographing position of the material receiving packaging box 502, identifies the feature points, calculates the coordinate compensation amount of the workpiece 6 placed in the material receiving packaging box 502, ensures that the workpiece 6 is accurately placed in the material receiving packaging box 502, and then the workpiece clamp 2032 accurately places the workpiece 6 in the material receiving packaging box 502.

[0058] 5. Complete the entire server cabinet The head component 2 repeats steps 1-4, taking and placing alternately, and when all the slots are filled with unaged workpieces 6, the head component 2 closes the aging box 7 and pushes the server cabinet back, and the robot 1 completes its work in the current server cabinet.

[0059] The above-described embodiments of the present invention do not constitute a limitation on the protection scope of the present invention. Any modification, equivalent substitution and improvement made within the spirit and principle of the present invention shall be included in the protection scope of the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. A flexible plug-in mechanism, characterized in that: The invention comprises a piece picking and deflection adjusting component (3), a head component (2), and a positioning tool (4); the head component (2) is installed on a mechanical arm (101) of a robot (1) via a fixed interface (2011); the piece picking and deflection adjusting component (3) is installed on one side of the head component (2); the positioning tool (4) is installed on a main board (702); the head component (2) comprises a component body (201), a force sensor (202), a flexible actuator (203), a visual unit (204), and a server gripper component (205); the flexible actuator (203) can flexibly grasp a workpiece (6).

2. A flexible plug-in mechanism according to claim 1, characterized in that: The piece removal and deviation adjustment component (3) comprises a positioning support (301) and a positioning seat (302). The positioning support (301) is provided with a hole. The positioning support (301) is fixed on the positioning seat (302). The positioning seat (302) is provided with a workpiece (6) slot.

3. A flexible plug-in mechanism according to claim 1, characterized in that: The positioning tool (4) comprises a top plate (401) and a base (402); the top surface of the top plate (401) is a smooth plane with a height difference of no more than 0.02 mm; the top plate (401) is provided with a positioning hole (4011); the top plate (401) is mounted on the base (402); and the base (402) can be fixedly mounted on the main board (702).

4. A flexible plug-in mechanism according to claim 1, characterized in that: The force sensor (202), the flexible actuator (203), the visual unit (204), and the server clamp assembly (205) are mounted on the component body (201); the flexible actuator (203) includes an electric cylinder (2031) and a workpiece clamp (2032); and the server clamp assembly (205) can pull out or push the mainboard (702).

5. A flexible plug-in mechanism according to claim 4, characterized in that: The force sensor (202) is connected to the electric cylinder (2031) and the workpiece clamp (2032). The force sensor (202) can monitor the mechanical quantities of the electric cylinder (2031) and the workpiece clamp (2032) in real time, and transmit the mechanical quantities to the flexible actuator (203) and the control system. The flexible actuator (203) can adjust the mechanical quantities of the electric cylinder (2031) and the workpiece clamp (2032) according to the real-time mechanical quantities and preset values.

6. A flexible plug-in mechanism according to claim 4, characterized in that: The visual unit (204) is provided with a distance sensor (2041) and an industrial camera (2042); the distance sensor (2041) can measure the distance from the head component (2) to the top surface of the positioning tool (4) in real time; and the industrial camera (2042) is used for deviation correction and server barcode recognition.

7. A flexible plug-in mechanism according to claim 4, characterized in that: The head assembly (2) is further provided with a positioning cylinder (206), wherein the positioning cylinder (206) is mounted on the assembly body (201), and the positioning cylinder (206) assists the head assembly (2) in accurately positioning the pickup and deviation adjustment assembly (3) and the positioning tool (4), and the positioning cylinder (206) is provided with a positioning pin (2062), and at least one positioning pin (2062) is an expansion pin (2061).

8. A method for using a flexible plug-in mechanism, characterized in that: A flexible plug-in mechanism according to any one of claims 1 to 7 is used, the flexible plug-in mechanism is installed on a mechanical arm (101) of a robot (1), the robot (1) controls the displacement of the flexible plug-in mechanism, the flexible actuator (203) controls the workpiece clamp (2032) to clamp the workpiece (6), the server clamp assembly (205) can pull the mainboard (702) to a specified position, the flexible plug-in mechanism accurately inserts the workpiece (6) into the mainboard (702) through a positioning tool (4) fixed on the mainboard (702), and when all the workpieces (6) on a mainboard (702) are fully inserted, the server clamp assembly (205) pushes the mainboard (702) to the specified position, the server starts working, and when the work is completed, the server clamp assembly (205) can pull the mainboard (702) to the specified position, and the flexible actuator (203) controls the workpiece clamp (2032) of the plug-in mechanism to pull out the workpiece (6) on the mainboard (702).

9. A method for using a flexible plug-in mechanism according to claim 8, characterized in that: The picking and adjusting component (3) ensures the accuracy of picking, the positioning tool (4) and the visual unit (204) ensure the accurate position of the workpiece clamp (2032) during insertion, and the mechanical quantities of the workpiece (6) during insertion and removal are accurately controlled through the force sensor (202) and the flexible actuator (203), thereby achieving flexible insertion and removal.

10. The method for using the flexible plug-in mechanism according to claim 8, characterized in that: The head assembly (2) moves to the top of the positioning fixture (4). After the industrial camera (2042) takes a picture, it identifies the feature points and calculates the coordinate compensation of the inserted workpiece (6). At the same time, multiple distance sensors (2041) measure three points on the top surface of the positioning fixture (4) and generate a virtual plane by fitting, which serves as a reference for the horizontal compensation of the workpiece clamp (2032). After the head assembly (2) is pressed down into place, the positioning cylinder (206) extends, and the positioning pin (2062) fixes the head assembly (2) on the positioning fixture (4). Then the electric cylinder (2031) extends to insert the workpiece (6) into the slot. During the insertion process, the force sensor (202) monitors the pressure in real time. When the pressure reaches the set value, the workpiece clamp (2032) will consider that the insertion is completed. The pressure monitoring can play a protective role to prevent hard insertion and damage to the workpiece (6).

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