A one-to-three gantry type feeding and discharging mechanical arm system and a control method thereof

Abstract

The application relates to the technical field of automatic processing equipment, and particularly discloses a one-to-three gantry type feeding and discharging mechanical arm system and a control method thereof. The system comprises three vertical lathes, a single-arm truss mechanical arm, a feeding bin, a finished product bin, a positioner, an end effector with a visual positioning system and a control system. The truss mechanical arm is arranged above the three vertical lathes, adopts a gear and rack transmission, and the moving assembly, the lifting assembly and the end effector are respectively driven by independent servo motors. The visual positioning system identifies the position of a blank and calculates the grabbing position coordinates and the offset compensation. The control method identifies the blank through visual positioning and compensates the grabbing coordinates, selects a target lathe according to the processing state of each lathe, realizes automatic feeding and discharging by signal interaction with the lathe, automatically completes workpiece turning over through the positioner, and simultaneously realizes real-time monitoring of the position of the end effector and safety interlocking with the lathe starting signal.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of automated processing equipment, and in particular to a one-to-three gantry-type loading and unloading robot system and its control method. Background Technology

[0002] In the field of heavy machinery processing, vertical lathes are core equipment for machining large disc-shaped, sleeve-shaped, and short-shaft parts. With the continuous development of automation technology, more and more processing enterprises are introducing gantry robots or industrial robots into the loading and unloading process of vertical lathes to replace traditional manual hoisting operations, thereby reducing labor intensity and improving production safety. However, in existing technologies, the pairing of gantry robots with vertical lathes is mostly a one-to-one independent configuration, that is, each vertical lathe is equipped with a dedicated loading and unloading robot. This one-to-one configuration has high equipment investment costs, large footprint, and when multiple lathes are operating in parallel, the robots are independent of each other and cannot achieve coordinated scheduling, resulting in low equipment utilization. Especially for large workpieces with long processing cycles, the robots are idle for most of the time, resulting in resource waste. In addition, although some existing solutions attempt to use one robot to serve multiple machines, they often use articulated robots with external walking axes, which have limited load-bearing capacity and cannot meet the handling needs of heavy workpieces. Moreover, the system structure is complex, difficult to control, and has high maintenance costs.

[0003] Furthermore, existing multi-tasking loading and unloading systems still have significant shortcomings in terms of intelligence and safety. Regarding workpiece positioning, most systems still rely on manual placement of blanks in fixed positions or simple mechanical stops, lacking visual guidance. When there are deviations in the placement of the blanks, the robotic arm cannot automatically identify and compensate, easily leading to gripping failures or workpiece drops. During loading and unloading, the signal interaction between the robotic arm and the machine tool is not perfect, lacking a safety interlock mechanism that prevents the machine tool from starting when the robotic arm is inside the machine tool, posing a safety hazard of collision between the robotic arm and the machine tool spindle. Simultaneously, for workpieces requiring multi-stage processing, existing systems often require manual intervention for workpiece flipping between processes, failing to achieve fully automated flow and hindering the fully automated operation of the entire production line. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The present invention aims to address the technical problems of the prior art, namely, the lack of vision-guided automatic grasping and the imperfect signal interaction between the robotic arm and the machine tool during the loading and unloading process. To solve these problems, the present invention proposes the following technical solution:

[0005] A three-gantry-type loading and unloading robot system includes: three vertical lathes, one side of each vertical lathe is provided with a loading bin, the other side of each vertical lathe is provided with a finished product bin, a positioner is provided between the loading bin and the vertical lathes, and a gantry robot is provided on the upper part of the vertical lathes, the loading bin, the finished product bin and the positioner, the gantry robot being a single-arm structure;

[0006] The truss manipulator includes a truss frame, and the truss frame is equipped with a manipulator;

[0007] The end effector of the robotic arm is provided with a vision positioning system.

[0008] It also includes a control system, which is electrically connected to each component.

[0009] Furthermore, the visual positioning system includes an industrial camera, which is fixedly mounted on the side of the end effector;

[0010] The industrial camera is surrounded by a ring light source;

[0011] The visual positioning system also includes an image acquisition card and an image processing module, and the industrial camera is electrically connected to the image acquisition card;

[0012] The image acquisition card is electrically connected to the image processing module;

[0013] The visual positioning system also includes a calibration module, which is used to establish a mapping relationship between the industrial camera pixel coordinate system and the gantry robot world coordinate system.

[0014] Furthermore, the upper part of the truss frame is provided with a rack component;

[0015] The upper part of the rack component is equipped with a robotic arm;

[0016] The robotic arm includes a moving component that is connected to a rack and pinion component via a transmission connection.

[0017] Furthermore, the bottom of the movable component is provided with a movable part;

[0018] The moving part is connected to the rack and pinion component via a transmission.

[0019] Furthermore, the robotic arm also includes a lifting assembly, which is movably connected to the moving assembly;

[0020] The end of the lifting assembly is connected to the end effector;

[0021] The moving component, lifting component, and end effector are each driven by an independent servo motor.

[0022] Furthermore, the control system includes a motion controller and a servo drive system;

[0023] The motion controller has built-in teaching software that supports multi-axis composite motion control and teaching editing of various motion trajectories;

[0024] The control system also supports jogging, individual positioning, homing, manual adjustment, and workpiece gripping / releasing operations for each axis.

[0025] A control method for a one-to-three gantry-type loading and unloading robot system includes the following steps:

[0026] Step 1: Acquire images of the blank parts in the loading hopper using the vision positioning system, identify and calculate the gripping position coordinates of the blank parts;

[0027] Step 2: The control system drives the gantry robot to move according to the gripping position coordinates, so that the end effector reaches the gripping position to grip the blank and receives a gripping confirmation signal; if no gripping confirmation signal is received, the gripping action is re-executed.

[0028] Step 3: The control system selects one of the three vertical lathes that is idle or has issued a completion signal as the target vertical lathe based on the processing status of the three vertical lathes, and outputs an automatic door opening signal to the target vertical lathe.

[0029] After the automatic door opens, the drive gantry robot moves the blank to the machining position of the target vertical lathe and outputs a chuck clamping signal to the vertical lathe. After receiving the chuck clamping feedback signal, the end effector releases the workpiece and exits the internal machining area of ​​the vertical lathe. Then, it outputs an automatic door closing signal to the vertical lathe. After the automatic door closes, it outputs a start signal to control the vertical lathe to start machining.

[0030] Step 4: After processing is completed, the control system receives the processing completion signal from the vertical lathe and outputs an automatic door opening signal to the vertical lathe.

[0031] After the automatic door opens, the control end effector enters the machining position and outputs a chuck release signal to the vertical lathe;

[0032] After receiving the chuck release feedback signal, the control end effector clamps the finished part and exits the internal machining area of ​​the vertical lathe.

[0033] Step 5: The control system drives the gantry robot to move the finished part to the finished product silo and release it;

[0034] In steps three and four, the control system monitors the spatial position of the end effector in real time. If it determines that the end effector is located within the internal machining area of ​​the vertical lathe, it prohibits the output of a start signal to the vertical lathe, thus forming a safety interlock.

[0035] Furthermore, between step one and step two, a grasping position compensation step is also included: the image processing module of the visual positioning system calculates the center offset and angle offset of the blank based on the acquired image;

[0036] The control system compensates for the deviation of the gripping position coordinates in step one based on the center offset and angle offset, and drives the gantry robot to perform the gripping action in step two with the compensated gripping position coordinates.

[0037] Between steps three and four, there is also a flipping step: after the vertical lathe completes the first-order processing, the control system drives the gantry robot to transfer the semi-finished part to the positioner for flipping, and after flipping, it is transferred back to the vertical lathe to start the second-order processing in the manner of step three.

[0038] Furthermore, the image processing module calculates the gripping position coordinates of the blank part by the following steps: extracting the centroid coordinates of the blank part's contour as the reference gripping point;

[0039] If there are multiple blanks in the feeding hopper at the same time, the image processing module calculates the gripping position coordinates of each identified blank and generates a gripping priority list according to preset rules, so that the control system can perform gripping in sequence.

[0040] The preset rules are based on the distance from the robotic arm from near to far, or according to the order of the material bins.

[0041] Compared with existing technologies, the advantages of this invention are as follows: This invention uses a single-arm gantry robot to simultaneously serve three vertical lathes, combined with a layout of two sets of loading bins and two sets of finished product bins, achieving efficient collaborative operation among multiple machines, significantly improving production efficiency and equipment utilization, and reducing equipment investment costs and floor space. The gantry robot adopts a rack and pinion transmission structure with a rack and pinion component and a gear component, driven by a servo motor, which has the advantages of smooth transmission, strong load-bearing capacity, and high positioning accuracy, and can meet the handling requirements of heavy workpieces. The moving component, lifting component, and end effector are each driven by an independent servo motor, realizing independent and precise control of each motion axis, further improving the positioning accuracy and motion flexibility of the system. The coordinated design of the lifting component and the end effector gives the robot flexible lifting and gripping capabilities, adapting to the loading and unloading needs of workstations at different heights. The control system has built-in teaching software, supporting the editing of various motion trajectories and multi-axis composite motion control, making operation flexible and convenient, effectively reducing programming difficulty and debugging time. The vision positioning system enables automatic identification, positioning, and gripping of blank parts. Combined with a gripping position compensation step, it compensates for offset deviations, effectively improving gripping accuracy and adaptability. Even if the blank parts are misaligned in the hopper, it can still be gripped accurately. Signal interaction control between the end effector and the machine tool chuck enables automatic clamping and releasing of the chuck, ensuring the accuracy and reliability of loading and unloading operations. The gantry truss of this invention has a load capacity of 5 tons, classifying it as a heavy-duty gantry truss.

[0042] The control method provided by this invention ensures the reliability of workpiece clamping during the loading and unloading process through the interaction of chuck clamping signals and feedback signals, thus helping to avoid machining accidents caused by improper clamping. The control system automatically selects the target lathe based on the machining status of the three vertical lathes and schedules the robot arm to serve it, realizing parallel automatic loading and unloading of multiple lathes. By real-time monitoring of the spatial position of the end effector and forming a safety interlock with the machine tool start signal, the machine tool is prohibited from starting when the robot arm is inside, fundamentally eliminating the safety risk of collision between the robot arm and the machine tool spindle. The positioner, combined with the flipping step of the control system, enables the system to automatically complete the workpiece posture adjustment and flipping in multi-sequence machining, realizing fully automatic flow between the first and second machining sequences without manual intervention, further improving the automation level and continuous operation capability of the production line. Attached Figure Description

[0043] Figure 1 This is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of the one-to-three gantry-type loading and unloading robot system of the present invention;

[0044] Figure 2 This is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of the robotic arm of the present invention;

[0045] Figure 3This is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of the visual positioning system of the present invention;

[0046] Figure 4 This is a flowchart of the system control method of the present invention.

[0047] Reference numerals: 1. Vertical lathe; 2. Gantry robot; 3. Loading hopper; 4. Finished product hopper; 5. Positioner; 6. End effector; 7. Vision positioning system; 21. Gantry frame; 22. Rack assembly; 23. Robot; 24. Moving assembly; 25. Moving part; 26. Lifting assembly; 71. Industrial camera; 72. Ring light source. Detailed Implementation

[0048] To better understand the purpose, structure, and function of this invention, the following detailed description, in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, provides an explanation of a one-to-three gantry-type loading and unloading robot system and its control method.

[0049] Example 1

[0050] like Figure 1-4 As shown in the figure, this embodiment provides a one-to-three gantry-type loading and unloading robot system, including three vertical lathes 1, arranged in a straight line for processing blanks. Each vertical lathe 1 has a loading bin 3 on one side and a finished product bin 4 on the other side. The loading bin 3 stores blanks to be processed, and the finished product bin 4 stores finished products. A positioner 5 is provided between the loading bin 3 and the vertical lathes 1, used for adjusting the workpiece's posture.

[0051] A gantry robot 2 is mounted across the upper part of three vertical lathes 1, a loading hopper 3, a finished product hopper 4, and a positioner 5. The gantry robot 2 is a single-arm structure used for loading and unloading materials from the three vertical lathes 1. The gantry robot 2 includes a gantry frame 21, with a rack component 22 on its upper part; a robot arm 23 is mounted on the upper part of the rack component 22. The robot arm 23 includes a moving component 24, which is connected to the rack component 22. The moving component 24 includes a moving part 25, with a gear component at its bottom; the moving part 25 is equipped with a first servo motor; the first servo motor is connected to the gear component, which is connected to the rack component 22. The first servo motor drives the gear component to rotate, causing the moving part 25 to reciprocate horizontally along the rack component 22. The robot arm 23 also includes a lifting component 26, which is connected to the moving component 24 and is driven by a second servo motor to achieve vertical lifting motion. The end of the lifting assembly 26 is connected to the end effector 6, which is driven by a third servo motor and is used to perform the action of gripping or releasing the workpiece. The moving assembly 24, the lifting assembly 26, and the end effector 6 are each driven by an independent servo motor, realizing independent and precise control of each motion axis.

[0052] An end effector 6 is mounted at the end of the gantry robot 2 for gripping workpieces. A vision positioning system 7 is installed on the end effector 6. The vision positioning system 7 includes an industrial camera 71, which is fixedly mounted to the side of the end effector 6. Its lens optical axis is perpendicular to the workpiece placement plane of the loading bin 3, used to acquire images of the blank workpiece. A ring light source 72 is provided around the industrial camera 71 to provide uniform, shadowless illumination to the loading bin 3 area, ensuring that the industrial camera 71 can acquire clear workpiece images under different ambient lighting conditions. The vision positioning system 7 also includes an image acquisition card and an image processing module. The industrial camera 71 is electrically connected to the image acquisition card, and the image acquisition card is electrically connected to the image processing module. The image acquisition card converts the image signals acquired by the industrial camera 71 into digital signals and transmits them to the image processing module. The image processing module is integrated into the control system and uses a visual positioning algorithm based on template matching or deep learning to preprocess, threshold segment, extract contours, and match features from the acquired images, identifying the blank workpiece from the image and calculating its gripping position coordinates. The visual positioning system 7 also includes a calibration module, which is used to pre-establish the mapping relationship between the pixel coordinate system of the industrial camera 71 and the world coordinate system of the gantry robot 2. The calibration module is calibrated by hand and eye through a calibration plate, and the pixel coordinates identified in the image are converted into spatial position coordinates that can be recognized by the robot to ensure the accuracy of visual positioning.

[0053] This embodiment also includes a control system, which is electrically connected to each component and used to coordinate and control the actions of each component. The control system includes a motion controller and a servo drive system. The servo drive system is electrically connected to each servo motor and used to drive the operation of each servo motor. The motion controller has built-in teaching software that supports editing linear, rotary, telescopic, polygonal, curved, gripping, and feeding trajectories, as well as multi-axis composite motion control. The control system also supports functions such as jogging, individual positioning, individual homing, simultaneous homing of multiple axes, manual single-step debugging, manual reverse debugging, and workpiece gripping and releasing operations, facilitating on-site debugging and operation.

[0054] The control system is equipped with chuck interaction confirmation logic: when the end effector 6 feeds material onto the vertical lathe 1, the control system first outputs a chuck clamping signal and waits to receive a chuck clamping feedback signal before controlling the end effector 6 to release the workpiece; when the end effector 6 removes material from the vertical lathe 1, the control system first outputs a chuck release signal and waits to receive a chuck release feedback signal before controlling the end effector 6 to clamp the workpiece. The control system also interacts with the three vertical lathes 1 via signal interaction interfaces. These signal interactions include at least spindle positioning signals, start signals, machining completion signals, chuck clamping signals, chuck release signals, automatic door opening signals, and automatic door closing signals. The signal interaction interfaces use aviation plugs or heavy-duty connectors to achieve pluggable connections between the control system and the vertical lathes 1.

[0055] Example 2

[0056] This embodiment provides a control method for a one-to-three gantry-type loading and unloading robot system, which is based on the system described in Embodiment 1 above and includes the following steps:

[0057] Step 1: The visual positioning system 7 acquires images of the blanks in the loading hopper 3, identifies and calculates the gripping position coordinates of the blanks. Specifically, the industrial camera 71 in the visual positioning system 7 takes pictures of the blanks in the loading hopper 3. The image processing module preprocesses, thresholds, extracts contours and matches features on the acquired images, identifies the contours and center positions of each blank, calculates the gripping position coordinates (including X, Y, and Z coordinate values) of each blank, and sends the calculated gripping position coordinates to the control system.

[0058] Between Step 1 and Step 2, there is also a grasping position compensation step: the image processing module in the vision positioning system 7 calculates the center offset and angular offset of the blank based on the acquired image. The image processing module compares the contour center coordinates of the blank in the actual acquired image with its theoretical center coordinates, and calculates the center offsets ΔX and ΔY in the X and Y directions; at the same time, it calculates the deviation between the posture angle of the blank in the actual image and its theoretical placement angle, as the angular offset Δθ. The control system compensates for the deviation of the grasping position coordinates in Step 1 based on the center offset and angular offset, generates compensated grasping position coordinates, and drives the gantry robot 2 to perform the grasping action in Step 2 with the compensated grasping position coordinates.

[0059] Step 2: Based on the compensated gripping position coordinates, the control system drives the gantry robot 2 to move, causing the end effector 6 to reach the gripping position to grip the blank and receive a gripping confirmation signal; if no gripping confirmation signal is received, the gripping action is re-executed. Specifically, after the end effector 6 grips the workpiece, it confirms successful gripping through its built-in sensors (such as pressure sensors or proximity switches) and sends a gripping confirmation signal back to the control system.

[0060] Step 3: Based on the machining status of the three vertical lathes 1, the control system selects one of the lathes that is idle or has issued a machining completion signal as the target vertical lathe 1, and outputs an automatic door opening signal to the target vertical lathe 1. After the automatic door opens, the drive gantry robot 2 moves the workpiece to the machining position of the target vertical lathe 1 and outputs a chuck clamping signal to the target vertical lathe 1. After receiving the chuck clamping feedback signal, the end effector 6 releases the workpiece and exits the internal machining area of ​​the vertical lathe 1. Then, it outputs an automatic door closing signal to the vertical lathe 1. After the automatic door closes, it outputs a start signal to control the vertical lathe 1 to start machining.

[0061] Between steps three and four, a flipping step is also included: after the vertical lathe 1 completes the first-order machining, the control system drives the gantry robot 2 to transfer the semi-finished part to the positioner 5 for flipping. After flipping, it is transferred back to the vertical lathe 1, and the second-order machining is started in the same manner as in step three. Through the flipping operation of the positioner 5, the system can automatically complete the workpiece posture adjustment in multi-order machining, realizing fully automatic flow between the first and second-order machining.

[0062] Step 4: After machining is completed, the control system receives the machining completion signal from the vertical lathe 1 and outputs an automatic door opening signal to the vertical lathe 1. After the automatic door opens, the control end effector 6 enters the machining position and outputs a chuck release signal to the vertical lathe 1. After receiving the chuck release feedback signal, the control end effector 6 clamps the finished part and exits the internal machining area of ​​the vertical lathe 1.

[0063] Step 5: The control system drives the gantry robot 2 to transfer the finished part to the finished product bin 4 and release it. After release, the control system drives the gantry robot 2 back to the standby position, ready to execute the next work cycle.

[0064] In steps three and four, the control system monitors the spatial coordinates of the end effector 6 in real time via the encoder of the servo motor. The control system has a built-in safety interlock logic judgment module, which continuously compares the real-time position of the end effector 6 with the preset boundaries of the internal machining areas of each vertical lathe 1. If it determines that the end effector 6 is within the internal machining area of ​​the vertical lathe 1, it prohibits the output of a start signal to that vertical lathe 1. Even if the user presses the start button through the operating interface, the control system will not send a start command to the machine tool, thus forming a safety interlock and effectively preventing the robot arm from colliding with the machine tool spindle.

[0065] In addition, the image processing module calculates the gripping position coordinates of the blank part through the following steps: extracting the centroid coordinates of the blank part's outline as the reference gripping point; if multiple blank parts exist simultaneously in the loading bin 3, the image processing module calculates the gripping position coordinates of each identified blank part and generates a gripping priority list according to preset rules, which the control system executes in sequence. The preset rules are based on proximity to the robot arm or according to the bin arrangement order. For example, when multiple rows of blank parts are placed simultaneously in the loading bin 3, the image processing module prioritizes the blank part closest to the gantry robot arm 2 as the primary gripping target and grips them sequentially from nearest to farthest; or grips them sequentially according to the bin arrangement order (such as from left to right or from front to back), ensuring that the gripping process is carried out in an orderly manner.

[0066] Example 3

[0067] This invention provides a one-to-three gantry-type loading and unloading robot system for serving three vertical lathes 1, realizing automated loading and unloading operations for heavy workpieces.

[0068] This embodiment includes three vertical lathes 1 arranged in a straight line for turning workpieces. Each vertical lathe 1 is equipped with automatic chuck clamping / unclamping, automatic door opening / closing, and spindle stop functions, and features a heavy-duty connector (aviation plug) as the physical interface for signal interaction with the control system. The worktable height of each vertical lathe 1 is 1135mm, which increases to 1200mm with shims. For the 1.6-meter vertical lathe 1, the distance from the chuck center to the rear ram guard is 380mm; for the 1.2-meter vertical lathe 1, the distance is 320mm. The highest clearance point of the vertical lathe 1 is 5100mm, and the actual usable height is 3300mm.

[0069] In this embodiment, the gantry robot 2 adopts a single-arm structure, spanning above three vertical lathes 1, and is used for loading and unloading operations on the three vertical lathes 1. The gantry robot 2 includes a gantry frame 21, which is fixedly installed on the workshop floor using expansion bolts and chemical anchors. A rack component 22 extending horizontally is provided on the upper part of the gantry frame 21. The columns of the gantry frame 21 are made of H-beams (HW450×450), and the reinforcing ribs are made of rectangular tubing (350×350). The crossbeams (X-axis) of the gantry frame 21 are made of H-beams (450×450) or rectangular tubing (450×450), the Y-axis crossbeams are made of rectangular tubing (400×250), and the vertical beams (Z-axis) are made of steel square tubing (250×250).

[0070] In this embodiment, a robotic arm 23 is mounted on the upper part of the rack component 22, and the robotic arm 23 can move back and forth along the rack component 22 in the horizontal direction. Specifically, the robotic arm 23 includes a moving component 24, which is convexly connected to the rack component 22. The moving component 24 includes a moving part 25, a gear component is mounted on the bottom of the moving part 25, and a first servo motor is mounted on the upper part of the moving part 25. The output shaft of the first servo motor is convexly connected to the gear component, and the gear component meshes with the rack component 22. The first servo motor drives the gear component to rotate, thereby causing the moving part 25 to reciprocate along the rack component 22 in the horizontal direction (X-axis). The X-axis moving speed is 30 m / min.

[0071] The robotic arm 23 in this embodiment also includes a lifting assembly 26, which is fixedly connected to the moving assembly 24 and can move horizontally together with the moving assembly 24. The end of the lifting assembly 26 is fixedly connected to the end effector 6. The lifting assembly 26 is driven by a second servo motor and reciprocates vertically (Z-axis) at a speed of 30 m / min. The end effector 6 is driven by a third servo motor and is used to perform the action of gripping or releasing workpieces. The repeatability of the gantry robotic arm 2 is ±1 mm, and the maximum lifting capacity is 5000 kg (i.e., 5 tons). The moving assembly 24, the lifting assembly 26, and the end effector 6 are each driven by an independent servo motor, realizing independent and precise control of each motion axis.

[0072] In this embodiment, the end effector 6 is located at the end of the lifting assembly 26 (i.e., the end of the robotic arm 23) and is used to grip the workpiece. A vision positioning system 7 is mounted on the end effector 6. The vision positioning system 7 includes an industrial camera 71, a ring light source 72, an image acquisition card, an image processing module, and a calibration module. The industrial camera 71 is fixedly mounted to the side of the end effector 6, with its lens optical axis perpendicular to the workpiece placement plane of the loading bin 3, for acquiring images of the blank workpiece. The ring light source 72 is coaxially mounted around the lens of the industrial camera 71, providing uniform, shadowless illumination to the area of ​​the loading bin 3. The image acquisition card is electrically connected to the industrial camera 71 and is used to convert the image signals acquired by the camera into digital signals and transmit them to the image processing module. The image processing module is integrated into the control system and sequentially performs preprocessing, threshold segmentation, contour extraction, and feature matching on the acquired images to identify the blank workpiece from the image and calculate its gripping position coordinates. The calibration module is used to pre-establish the mapping relationship between the 71-pixel coordinate system of the industrial camera and the 2-world coordinate system of the gantry robot. The calibration module is calibrated by hand and eye through the calibration board, and the pixel coordinates identified in the image are converted into spatial position coordinates that can be recognized by the robot to ensure the accuracy of visual positioning.

[0073] In this embodiment, two sets of loading bins 3 are arranged on one side of the travel range of the gantry robot 2 to store blank parts to be processed. The loading bins 3 adopt a two-row arrangement structure, with the blank parts neatly arranged in two rows within the bins. The vision positioning system 7 can locate and identify the blank parts in each row, allowing the control system to select which to grasp. Two sets of finished product bins 4 are arranged alternately with the loading bins 3 to store finished parts that have been processed. The finished product bins 4 adopt a single-layer stacking structure, with finished parts arranged in a single layer within the bins, facilitating the AGV carts to drag and transport the entire bin. In this embodiment, AGV carts are provided on-site, with a carrying capacity of 10T. They are manually operated and do not require automatic program control. The AGV rack dimensions are 2900×1700×1500mm, and the AGV cart dimensions are 2500×1300×520mm.

[0074] In this embodiment, a positioner 5 is provided and arranged between the feeding bin 3 and the vertical lathe 1. It is used to adjust the posture of the workpiece according to the processing requirements so that the end effector 6 can grab or place the workpiece from different angles.

[0075] The control system in this embodiment is electrically connected to the gantry robot 2, the feeding hopper 3, the finished product hopper 4, the positioner 5, the end effector 6, the vision positioning system 7, and the three vertical lathes 1, respectively, to coordinate and control the movements of each component. The control system includes a motion controller and a servo drive system. The servo drive system is electrically connected to each servo motor to drive its operation. The motion controller has built-in teaching software, which provides logic control and motion logic functions, supporting the editing of linear, rotary, telescopic, polygonal, curved, gripping, and feeding trajectories, and supports multi-axis composite motion control. Simultaneously, the motion controller supports jogging operations on each axis, individual positioning operations, individual homing operations, simultaneous homing operations on multiple axes (with 12 built-in homing modes), manual single-step debugging operations, manual reverse debugging operations, workpiece gripping operations, and workpiece release operations, facilitating on-site debugging and operation.

[0076] In this embodiment, the control system communicates with the three vertical lathes 1 via a signal interface. The signal interface uses aviation plugs (or heavy-duty connectors) to achieve a pluggable connection between the control system and the vertical lathes 1. The signal communication includes at least the following signals: spindle positioning signal, start signal, machining completion signal, chuck clamping signal, chuck release signal, automatic door opening signal, and automatic door closing signal. The vertical lathes 1 have a spindle stop function and provide a corresponding electrical signal interface.

[0077] The control system of this embodiment is equipped with chuck interaction confirmation logic: when the end effector 6 feeds material onto the vertical lathe 1, the control system first outputs a chuck clamping signal and waits to receive a chuck clamping feedback signal before controlling the end effector 6 to release the workpiece; when the end effector 6 removes material from the vertical lathe 1, the control system first outputs a chuck release signal and waits to receive a chuck release feedback signal before controlling the end effector 6 to clamp the workpiece.

[0078] The control system in this embodiment has built-in safety interlock logic. When the end effector 6 is located in the internal machining area (i.e., the chuck working area) of the vertical lathe 1, the control system prohibits the output of a start signal to the corresponding vertical lathe 1, thereby preventing the end effector 6 from colliding with the machine tool spindle or chuck.

[0079] The control system in this embodiment also includes a prohibited area function, which includes at least the internal interference area of ​​each vertical lathe 1. The prohibited area is preset by the operator using teaching software. When the end effector 6 enters the prohibited area, the control system triggers a deceleration protection action or a stop protection action to further ensure safety.

[0080] In addition, the workshop is equipped with a gantry crane, and the workshop ceiling height is 13-15 meters, facilitating equipment installation and maintenance. The control system uses a three-phase 380V power supply with a voltage fluctuation range of ±10% and a frequency of 50Hz. The control cabinet is equipped with an independent air switch, and each control cabinet must be individually grounded with a grounding resistance of less than 1Ω. There are no corrosive gases in the work area.

[0081] Example 4

[0082] Based on the system described in Embodiment 3 above, the present invention also provides a control method for a one-to-three gantry-type loading and unloading robot system, comprising the following steps.

[0083] Step 1 (Visual Positioning and Grabbing Position Calculation): After the control system is started, the visual positioning system 7 acquires images of the blanks in the feeding hopper 3. The industrial camera 71 of the visual positioning system 7 takes pictures of the blanks in the two rows of feeding hoppers 3. The image processing module preprocesses, performs edge detection and feature extraction on the acquired images, identifies the contour and center position of each blank, and calculates the gripping position coordinates (including X, Y, and Z coordinate values) of each blank. The calculated gripping position coordinates are then sent to the control system.

[0084] Specifically, the image processing module calculates the gripping position coordinates of the blank part using the following steps: extracting the centroid coordinates of the blank part's outline as the reference gripping point. If multiple blank parts exist simultaneously in the loading bin 3, the image processing module calculates the gripping position coordinates for each identified blank part and generates a gripping priority list according to preset rules, which the control system executes in sequence. The preset rules are based on proximity to the robot arm 23, or according to the bin arrangement order. For example, when multiple rows of blank parts are placed simultaneously in the loading bin 3, the image processing module prioritizes the blank part closest to the gantry robot arm 2 as the primary gripping target, gripping them sequentially from closest to furthest; or gripping them sequentially according to the bin arrangement order (e.g., from left to right, from front to back), ensuring the gripping process proceeds in an orderly manner.

[0085] Between Step 1 and Step 2, there is also a gripping position compensation step: the vision positioning system 7 further calculates the center offset (ΔX, ΔY) and angular offset (Δθ) of the blank based on the acquired images. The center offset refers to the deviation between the actual center and the theoretical center of the blank in the X and Y directions, and the angular offset refers to the deflection angle of the blank in the horizontal plane. Based on the calculated center offset and angular offset, the control system performs deviation compensation on the gripping position coordinates calculated in Step 1, generating compensated gripping position coordinates. For example, when there is a positional deviation in the blank placed in the hopper, the control system corrects the target gripping point of the end effector 6 through compensation calculation to ensure that the end effector 6 can accurately grip the blank.

[0086] Step Two (Gripping the Blank): Based on the compensated gripping position coordinates, the control system drives the moving component 24 of the gantry robot 2 to move horizontally along the X-axis beam, and simultaneously drives the lifting component 26 to move up and down along the Z-axis beam, so that the end effector 6 precisely reaches the gripping position. The control system outputs a gripping signal, driving the end effector 6 to move and grip the blank. After gripping the workpiece, the end effector 6 confirms successful gripping through its built-in sensors (such as pressure sensors or proximity switches) and sends a gripping confirmation signal back to the control system. If no gripping confirmation signal is received, the control system controls the end effector 6 to re-execute the gripping action.

[0087] Step 3 (Loading and Machining): Based on the machining status of the three vertical lathes 1, the control system selects one of them—either idle or having already issued a machining completion signal—as the target vertical lathe 1. The control system first outputs an automatic door opening signal to the target vertical lathe 1 via the signal interface. Upon receiving the signal, the vertical lathe 1 opens the automatic door. Once the automatic door is fully open, the control system drives the gantry robot 2 to move the workpiece to the machining position of the target vertical lathe 1, feeding the workpiece into the chuck position inside the machine tool. The control system then outputs a chuck clamping signal to the vertical lathe 1. Upon receiving this signal, the vertical lathe 1 drives the chuck to automatically clamp the workpiece. After the chuck is fully clamped, the vertical lathe 1 sends a chuck clamping feedback signal back to the control system. Upon receiving the chuck clamping feedback signal, the control system controls the end effector 6 to release the workpiece and exit the machining area inside the machine tool. After the end effector 6 has completely retracted, the control system outputs an automatic door closing signal to the vertical lathe 1. After the automatic door is closed, the control system outputs a start signal to control the vertical lathe 1 to start machining.

[0088] Between steps three and four, a flipping step is also included: after the vertical lathe 1 completes the first-order machining, the control system drives the gantry robot 2 to transfer the semi-finished part to the positioner 5 for flipping. After flipping, it is transferred back to the vertical lathe 1, and the second-order machining is started in the same manner as in step three. Through the flipping operation of the positioner 5, the system can automatically complete the workpiece posture adjustment in multi-order machining, realizing fully automatic flow between the first and second-order machining.

[0089] Step 4 (Part Retrieval): After machining is completed, the target vertical lathe 1 sends a machining completion signal to the control system. The control system outputs an automatic door opening signal to the vertical lathe 1. After the automatic door is fully open, the control system controls the end effector 6 to enter the machining position. The control system outputs a chuck release signal to the vertical lathe 1. After receiving the chuck release feedback signal, the control system controls the end effector 6 to clamp the finished part. After clamping confirmation, the control system drives the robot arm 23 to remove the finished part from the machining position and exit the machine tool.

[0090] Step 5 (Unloading): The control system drives the gantry robot 2 to move the finished part to the predetermined placement position in the finished product bin 4. The control system then controls the end effector 6 to release the finished part, stacking it in a single layer inside the finished product bin 4. After release, the control system drives the robot 23 back to the standby position, ready to execute the next work cycle.

[0091] In steps three and four above, the control system monitors the spatial coordinates of the end effector 6 in real time through the encoder of the servo motor. The control system has a built-in safety interlock logic judgment module, which continuously compares the real-time position of the end effector 6 with the preset boundaries of the internal machining areas of each vertical lathe 1. If it is determined that the end effector 6 is located within the internal machining area of ​​the vertical lathe 1, the control system prohibits the output of a start signal to the vertical lathe 1. Even if the user presses the start button through the operation interface, the control system will not send a start command to the machine tool, thus forming a safety interlock and effectively preventing the robot arm 23 from colliding with the machine tool spindle.

[0092] Furthermore, this control method also supports the parallel operation of multiple vertical lathes 1. When one vertical lathe 1 is in machining mode, the control system can control the gantry robot 2 to perform loading or unloading operations for other vertical lathes 1, achieving efficient collaborative operation of one to three. The control system automatically schedules the robot 23 to provide services to each lathe in sequence according to the machining completion signal and priority strategy of each vertical lathe 1.

[0093] Example 5

[0094] The following describes a complete workflow of the system of the present invention using the smallest product (processing time of 40 minutes for the first step and 28 minutes for the second step) as an example.

[0095] In the initial state, the feeding hopper 3 is full of blanks to be processed, the finished product hopper 4 is empty, the three vertical lathes 1 are all in standby mode, and the gantry robot 2 is located at the standby origin position.

[0096] After the control system is started, the vision positioning system 7 first takes pictures of the blank parts in the feeding hopper 3 for identification, and calculates the gripping position coordinates and offset compensation. The control system drives the gantry robot 2 to move to the gripping position, and the end effector 6 grips the blank parts and sends back a gripping confirmation signal.

[0097] Based on the machining status of the three vertical lathes 1, the control system selects the first idle vertical lathe 1 as the target lathe and outputs an automatic door opening signal to that lathe. After the automatic door opens, the gantry robot 2 transfers the workpiece to the machining position of the first vertical lathe 1. The control system outputs a chuck clamping signal to the first vertical lathe 1. After the chuck clamping feedback is confirmed, the end effector 6 releases the workpiece and exits the machine tool, the automatic door closes, the control system outputs a start signal, and the first vertical lathe 1 begins the first-order machining (40 minutes).

[0098] During processing on the first vertical lathe 1, the control system drives the gantry robot 2 back to the loading bin 3, repeating the above gripping action to load materials onto the second and third vertical lathes 1 and start processing. Since the processing times of the three lathes are different, the control system can dynamically schedule the robot according to the processing completion status of each lathe.

[0099] After the first vertical lathe 1 completes its first machining cycle (40 minutes), it sends a machining completion signal to the control system. The control system then dispatches the gantry robot 2 to the first vertical lathe 1 to perform the flipping step: it outputs an automatic door opening signal to the lathe; after the door opens, the end effector 6 enters and outputs a chuck release signal; after receiving the release feedback signal, it clamps the semi-finished part and exits; the semi-finished part is transferred to the positioner 5 for flipping; after flipping, the semi-finished part is transferred back to the first vertical lathe 1, and the second machining cycle (28 minutes) is started according to step three.

[0100] After the second-order processing is completed, the control system controls the robot arm to take out the finished part again: outputs an automatic door opening signal to the lathe, after the door opens, the end effector 6 enters and outputs a chuck release signal. After receiving the release feedback signal, it clamps the finished part and exits, transfers the finished part to the finished product hopper 4 and releases it, completing a complete processing cycle.

[0101] During the above process, the control system monitors the spatial position of the end effector 6 in real time. When the end effector 6 is inside the vertical lathe 1, the safety interlock logic takes effect, prohibiting the output of the start signal to the lathe to ensure that no collision accident occurs.

[0102] The entire system operates continuously, achieving 24-hour unmanned automated production. Actual testing has shown that the system can operate continuously and without failure for over 24 hours, meeting the requirements for automated production of heavy workpieces with a one-to-three system.

[0103] Although the present invention has been described in detail above with reference to preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art will understand that various modifications and substitutions can be made to these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention. For example, the type of hinge, the specific form of the locking device, and the selection of materials can all be adjusted according to actual needs. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present invention should be defined by the content of the appended claims.

Claims

1. A one-to-three gantry-type loading and unloading robot system, comprising: Three vertical lathes (1), one side of the vertical lathe (1) is provided with a loading bin (3), the other side of the vertical lathe (1) is provided with a finished product bin (4), and a positioner (5) is provided between the loading bin (3) and the vertical lathe (1). The feature is that a gantry robot (2) is provided on the upper part of the vertical lathe (1), the loading bin (3), the finished product bin (4) and the positioner (5), and the gantry robot (2) is a single-arm structure. The truss manipulator (2) includes a truss frame (21), and the truss frame (21) is equipped with a manipulator (23). The end of the robotic arm (23) is provided with an end effector (6), and the end effector (6) is provided with a vision positioning system (7). It also includes a control system, which is electrically connected to each component.

2. The one-to-three gantry-type loading and unloading robot system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The visual positioning system (7) includes an industrial camera (71), which is fixedly mounted on the side of the end effector (6); The industrial camera (71) is surrounded by a ring light source (72). The visual positioning system (7) also includes an image acquisition card and an image processing module, and the industrial camera (71) is electrically connected to the image acquisition card; The image acquisition card is electrically connected to the image processing module; The visual positioning system (7) also includes a calibration module, which is used to establish the mapping relationship between the pixel coordinate system of the industrial camera (71) and the world coordinate system of the gantry robot (2).

3. The one-to-three gantry-type loading and unloading robot system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The upper part of the truss frame (21) is provided with a rack component (22). The upper part of the rack component (22) is provided with a robot arm (23). The robotic arm (23) includes a moving component (24) which is connected to the rack component (22) in a transmission manner.

4. The one-to-three gantry-type loading and unloading robot system according to claim 3, characterized in that, The bottom of the moving component (24) is provided with a moving part (25); The moving part (25) is connected to the rack and pinion part (22) in a transmission connection.

5. The one-to-three gantry-type loading and unloading robot system according to claim 4, characterized in that, The robotic arm (23) also includes a lifting assembly (26), which is movably connected to the moving assembly (24); The end of the lifting assembly (26) is connected to the end effector (6); The moving component (24), the lifting component (26), and the end effector (6) are each driven by an independent servo motor.

6. The one-to-three gantry-type loading and unloading robot system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The control system includes a motion controller and a servo drive system; The motion controller has built-in teaching software that supports multi-axis composite motion control and teaching editing of various motion trajectories; The control system also supports jogging, individual positioning, homing, manual adjustment, and workpiece gripping / releasing operations for each axis.

7. A control method for a one-to-three gantry-type loading and unloading robot system, characterized in that, Includes the following steps: Step 1: The visual positioning system (7) is used to acquire images of the blanks in the feeding bin (3), and to identify and calculate the coordinates of the gripping position of the blanks; Step 2: The control system drives the gantry robot (2) to move according to the gripping position coordinates, so that the end effector (6) reaches the gripping position to grip the blank and receives the gripping confirmation signal; if the gripping confirmation signal is not received, the gripping action is re-executed. Step 3: The control system selects one of the three vertical lathes (1) as the target vertical lathe (1) based on the processing status of the three vertical lathes (1) and outputs an automatic door opening signal to the target vertical lathe (1); After the automatic door opens, the drive gantry robot (2) moves the blank to the processing position of the target vertical lathe (1) and outputs a chuck clamping signal to the vertical lathe (1). After receiving the chuck clamping feedback signal, the end effector (6) releases the workpiece and exits the internal processing area of ​​the vertical lathe (1). Then it outputs an automatic door closing signal to the vertical lathe (1). After the automatic door closes, it outputs a start signal to control the vertical lathe (1) to start processing. Step 4: After the machining is completed, the control system receives the machining completion signal from the vertical lathe (1) and outputs an automatic door opening signal to the vertical lathe (1); After the automatic door opens, the control end effector (6) enters the processing position and outputs a chuck release signal to the vertical lathe (1); After receiving the chuck release feedback signal, the control end effector (6) clamps the finished part and exits the internal machining area of ​​the vertical lathe (1). Step 5: The control system drives the gantry robot (2) to transfer the finished part to the finished product silo (4) and release it; In steps three and four, the control system monitors the spatial position of the end effector (6) in real time. If it is determined that the end effector (6) is located in the internal machining area of ​​the vertical lathe (1), the system prohibits the output of the start signal to the vertical lathe (1) to form a safety interlock.

8. The control method for the one-to-three gantry-type loading and unloading robot system according to claim 7, characterized in that, Between step one and step two, there is also a grasping position compensation step: the image processing module in the visual positioning system (7) calculates the center offset and angle offset of the blank based on the acquired image; The control system compensates for the deviation of the gripping position coordinates in step one based on the center offset and the angle offset, and drives the gantry manipulator (2) to perform the gripping action in step two with the compensated gripping position coordinates. Between steps three and four, there is also a flipping step: after the vertical lathe (1) completes the first-order processing, the control system drives the gantry robot (2) to transfer the semi-finished part to the positioner (5) for flipping, and after flipping, it is transferred back to the vertical lathe (1) to start the second-order processing in the manner of step three.

9. The control method for the one-to-three gantry-type loading and unloading robot system according to claim 8, characterized in that, The image processing module calculates the gripping position coordinates of the blank part by the following steps: extracting the centroid coordinates of the blank part's contour as the reference gripping point; If there are multiple blanks in the feeding bin (3) at the same time, the image processing module calculates the gripping position coordinates of each identified blank and generates a gripping priority list according to the preset rules, so that the control system can perform gripping in sequence. The preset rule is that the distance from the robot (23) is from near to far, or according to the order of the material bins.

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