Connector connection system, lead wire control device, connector connection method and lead wire movement method

Abstract

To provide a system that can connect connectors fitted to lead wire to mate connectors while measuring positions and directions of the mate connectors, without depending on arrangements of the lead wire and the mate connectors.SOLUTION: A connector connection system 10, which connects connectors 50 fitted to a tip of lead wire 58 whose one end is fixed, to mate connectors 60, comprises: a first measuring instrument 15 that can measure positions of the mate connectors; a connector retreating mechanism 20 that when the positions of the mate connectors are measured, retreats the lead wire and the mate connectors to retreating positions where the measuring is not hindered; a second measuring instrument 16 that can measure positions and directions of the connectors; and a hand 40 for gripping the connector.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a system and method for automating connector connection work using a robot at an assembly and manufacturing site for various home appliances and electronic devices. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, the position and orientation of a connector attached to a lead wire is measured in three dimensions, and the connector is then grasped by a robot hand and connected to a mating connector.

[0003] For example, Patent Document 1 describes a method for estimating the feature points of a connector by extracting an image portion relating to the connector from image data containing the tiny connector and inputting the extracted image portion into a trained feature point estimation machine learning model. This makes it possible to continuously provide a robot with data relating to the posture and position of the connector recognized in real time, even when the posture and position of a connector attached to the end of a soft and flexible cable are subject to change due to a slight external force. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2023-034203 [Patent Document 2] International Publication No. 2023 / 068064 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, if the position and orientation of the mating connector are not accurately known, the position and orientation of the mating connector are also measured before the connector is connected. If the lead wires and connector are positioned in a way that hides the mating connector from the measuring instrument, the position and orientation of the mating connector cannot be measured in that state.

[0006] Patent Document 2 describes a method for connecting a first component attached to the tip of a flexible printed circuit (FPC) rising from between the housing and circuit board of an electronic device to a second component on the circuit board. The method also describes a method in which the FPC covers the second component, hiding it from a third camera used for measurement, by suctioning the FPC's reinforcing plate with a suction nozzle, raising the FPC to move it away from above the second component, and then capturing an image of the second component with the third camera. However, unlike a reinforcing plate attached to an FPC, a typical small, roughly rectangular parallelepiped connector is not easy to suction and grip.

[0007] Furthermore, because the FPC used in Patent Document 2 does not bend significantly in the width direction, even if multiple FPCs are arranged side by side in the width direction, by retracting the FPC to be connected, it becomes possible to measure the second component to which it is connected. However, because typical lead wires can bend significantly in any direction, if multiple lead wires with connectors attached and their mating connectors are arranged side by side, retracting one connector and lead wire can interfere with the measurement of another mating connector, for example, an adjacent connector to which the lead wire is to be connected.

[0008] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above, and aims to provide a system and method that, when connecting a connector attached to a lead wire to a mating connector, can measure the position of the mating connector to be connected regardless of the arrangement of the lead wire and the mating connector, and can connect the connector and the mating connector. It is also an object of the present invention to provide a method for moving the tip of the lead wire or a tip member attached to the tip of the lead wire to a movement target. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The connector connection system of the present invention is a system for connecting a connector attached to the tip of a lead wire with one end fixed to a mating connector, and includes a first measuring instrument capable of measuring the position of the mating connector, a connector retraction mechanism for retracting the lead wire and the connector to a retracted position that does not interfere with measuring the position of the mating connector, a second measuring instrument capable of measuring the position and orientation of the connector, and a hand for holding the connector.

[0010] Here, the term "lead wire" refers to a wire that is flexible enough to bend in any direction, including up, down, left, and right, and does not include FPCs or ribbon-shaped flexible flat cables (FFCs). The tip of a lead wire is the other end that is not fixed.

[0011] With this configuration, when connecting a connector attached to a general lead wire to a mating connector, the position of the mating connector to be connected can be measured and the connector can be connected to the mating connector regardless of the arrangement of the lead wire and the mating connector.

[0012] In the above connector connection system, the connector retraction mechanism is preferably capable of retracting all of the rows of the lead wires and the connectors to the retracted position collectively, thereby making it easy to measure the position and orientation of the mating connector even when multiple lead wires and multiple mating connectors are arranged side by side.

[0013] Any of the above connector connection systems preferably further includes a connector moving mechanism that can move the connector from the retracted position to a measurement position for measurement by the second measuring instrument, thereby facilitating measurement of the position and orientation of the connector.

[0014] The lead wire control device of the present invention is a control device for controlling the posture of a plurality of lead wires each having one end fixed, and includes a movement mechanism for moving the ends of the lead wires or the end members attached to the ends of the lead wires together to a measurement position for measuring the ends of the lead wires or the end members in the air. The end members include connectors and terminals.

[0015] The lead wire control device preferably further includes a retraction mechanism for collectively retracting the plurality of lead wires to a retraction position that does not interfere with measurement of the tip of the lead wire or the moving target of the tip member.

[0016] Another lead wire control device of the present invention is a control device that controls the posture of multiple lead wires each having one end fixed, and has a retraction mechanism for collectively retracting the multiple lead wires to a retraction position that does not interfere with the measurement of a moving target of the tip of the lead wire or a tip member attached to the tip of the lead wire, and a moving mechanism for moving the tip of the lead wire or the tip member to a measurement position for measuring the tip of the lead wire or the tip member.

[0017] The connector connection method of the present invention is a method for connecting a connector attached to the tip of a lead wire whose one end is fixed to a mating connector, and includes a connector retraction step in which a connector retraction mechanism retracts the lead wire and the connector to a retracted position that does not interfere with measurement of the position of the mating connector by a first measuring instrument, a first measurement step in which the first measuring instrument measures the position of the mating connector, a second measurement step in which a second measuring instrument measures the position and orientation of the connector, a step in which the connector is held by hand, and a step in which the connector is connected to the mating connector.

[0018] In the above connector connecting method, the connector retracting step is preferably a step of retracting all of the rows of the lead wires and the connectors together to the retracted position.

[0019] Any of the above connector connecting methods preferably further comprises, before the second measuring step, a step of moving the connector from the retracted position to a measurement position for measurement by the second measuring instrument.

[0020] The lead wire movement method of the present invention is a method for moving the tips of multiple lead wires, one end of which is fixed, or tip members attached to the tips of the lead wires, to a movement target, and includes a retraction step of collectively retracting the multiple lead wires to a retraction position that does not interfere with measurement of the movement target, a first measurement step of measuring the position of the movement target, a step of moving the tips of the lead wires or the tip members to a measurement position for measuring the tips of the lead wires or the tip members, a second measurement step of measuring the position and orientation of the tips of the lead wires or the tip members, a step of holding the lead wires or the tip members with a hand, and a step of moving the tips of the lead wires or the tip members to the movement target. [Effects of the Invention]

[0021] According to the connector connection system or connector connection method of the present invention, when connecting a connector attached to a lead wire to a mating connector, the position of the mating connector to be connected can be measured and the connector and mating connector can be connected regardless of the arrangement of the lead wire and the mating connector.

[0022] Furthermore, according to the lead wire movement method of the present invention, when the tip of a lead wire or a tip member attached to the tip of a lead wire is moved to a movement target, the position and orientation of the tip of the lead wire or the tip member, as well as the position of the movement target, can be measured and the tip of the lead wire or the tip member can be moved to the movement target, regardless of the arrangement of the lead wire and the movement target. This makes it possible, for example, to solder the lead wire to a target on a circuit board.

[0023] According to the lead wire control device of the present invention, the ends of the lead wires or the tip members attached to the ends of the lead wires can be moved together to the measurement position, making it easier to measure the ends of the lead wires or the tip members. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0024] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a connector connection system according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating the structure of a connector retraction mechanism. [Figure 3] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating the structure of a connector moving mechanism. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the shape of the tips of the fingers of a hand. [Figure 5] 5A and 5B are diagrams showing a state in which the hand is gripping the connector, where A is a view seen from the X arrow in FIG. 4 and B is a view seen from the Y arrow in FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 1A is a diagram showing an example of a connector, and FIG. 1B is a diagram showing an example of a mating connector to which the connector is connected. [Figure 7] 10A to 10C are diagrams illustrating the operation of a connector retraction mechanism in a connector connecting method according to one embodiment. [Figure 8] 10A to 10C are diagrams illustrating the operation of a connector moving mechanism in a connector connecting method according to an embodiment. [Figure 9] 10A to 10C are diagrams illustrating gripping of a connector in a connector connecting method according to an embodiment. [Figure 10] 10A to 10C are diagrams illustrating the connection of connectors in a connector connecting method according to an embodiment. [Figure 11] 10A to 10C are diagrams illustrating the operation of another connector moving mechanism in the connector connecting method of the embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0025] An embodiment of a connector connection system of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0026] Referring to FIG. 1, a connector connection system 10 of this embodiment is a system for connecting a connector 50 attached to the tip of a lead wire 58 to a mating connector 60.

[0027] The connector connection system 10 has a first measuring instrument 15 capable of measuring the position of the mating connector 60, a connector retraction mechanism 20 for retracting the lead wires 58 and connector 50 to a retracted position that does not interfere with measurement of the mating connector, a second measuring instrument 16 capable of measuring the position and orientation of the connector 50, a connector moving mechanism 30 capable of moving the connector 50 from the retracted position to a measurement position that makes measurement by the second measuring instrument 16 easy, and a hand 40 for holding the connector 50. The first measuring instrument 15 is preferably capable of measuring the position and orientation of the mating connector 60.

[0028] FIG. 6 shows an example of a connector and a mating connector. Referring to FIG. 6A, connector 50 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape and is attached to the tip of lead wire 58 by introducing lead wire 58 into lead wire introduction hole 53. While two lead wires are connected to the connector shown in FIG. 6A, connector 50 is not limited to this and may be connected to one lead wire or three or more lead wires. When multiple lead wires are connected to one connector in this manner, the group of lead wires may be referred to as a "lead wire bundle" below. In FIG. 6A, two lead wires 58 form lead wire bundle 59. A T-shaped protrusion 52 is formed on one side surface 51A of connector 50 and on the opposite side surface 51B.

[0029] 6B, mating connector 60 has a substantially rectangular box shape, and connector 50 is inserted into it to complete the connection. Notches 62 corresponding to ridges 52 of connector 50 are formed on side surfaces 61A and 61B of mating connector 60. When connector 50 is inserted into mating connector 60, the T-shaped vertical bar portion of ridge 52 fits into notch 62.

[0030] The connector 50 targeted by the connector connection system 10 preferably has three sides measuring 2×2×2 to 5×5×5 mm. The flange preferably has a vertical width of 0.5 to 3 mm and a horizontal width of 0.5 to 3 mm. Furthermore, the clearance between the connector 50 and the mating connector 60 is preferably 20 to 200 μm. The smaller the connector, the more difficult it is to hold it by suction, and the smaller the clearance during connector connection, the more accurately it is necessary to measure the position and orientation of the connector and the mating connector. Therefore, the advantages of using the connector connection system of this embodiment are significant. The connector 50 used by the inventors in developing the connector connection system had an outer diameter of 4.15×3.2×4 mm, a portion that fits inside the mating connector measuring 3.05×2.3×3.2 mm, and a flange height (thickness) of 0.8 mm. The dimensions of the mating connector 60 were an outer diameter of 4.15 x 3.4 x 4.8 mm and an inner diameter of 3.15 x 2.35 x 3 mm. The theoretical accuracy of the second measuring device was 0.5 mm for the stationary type and 0.1 mm for the type attached to the robot hand, which resulted in an error greater than the clearance between the connectors. Even in this case, the connectors could be accurately grasped and connected by using the hand 40, which has a guide section and a position control section (described later).

[0031] Returning to Fig. 1, a plurality of mating connectors 60 are fixed in a row to a circuit board 72. The lead wires 58 to which connectors 50 are attached have their free ends fixed to an electrical component 71, and a plurality of lead wires rise from the electrical component 71 in a row near the mating connector 60 to which they are connected. There is a one-to-one correspondence between the lead wires 58 and the mating connectors 60. The electrical component 71 and the circuit board 72 are housed in, for example, a single housing (not shown) to form an electronic device.

[0032] The first measuring instrument 15 measures the position of the mating connector 60 in three dimensions. The mating connector 60 is installed in an approximately predetermined position, but the installation position has an error of about 1 to 2 mm. Therefore, the first measuring instrument 15 precisely measures the position of each mating connector 60. Furthermore, depending on the installation method of the mating connector, for example, if the mating connector is manually soldered to the circuit board 72, the installation orientation also has an error of about 0 to 5 mm. In such cases, the first measuring instrument 15 precisely measures the position and orientation of each mating connector 60. The first measuring instrument can be, for example, an optical sensor such as a laser, infrared, or LED, which can be scanned along the row of mating connectors to measure the position and orientation of the mating connectors. A laser displacement sensor is preferably used as the first measuring instrument.

[0033] Referring to FIG. 2, the connector retraction mechanism 20 has a first comb member 24. The first comb member 24 is composed of a first beam 25 and a plurality of first teeth 26 that are aligned and protrude radially from the first beam 25. The first comb member 24 is supported on one side of the first beam 25 by a first support portion 22 that has a first axis 21 that is vertical and the first beam 25 and the first teeth 26 are horizontal. As the first support portion 22 rotates around the first axis 21, the first comb member 24 can rotate around the first axis 21 in a horizontal plane. The first support portion 22 can also move up and down by a cylinder 23. Note that the first axis 21 does not have to be exactly vertical, and as a result, the first comb member 24 does not have to rotate exactly in a horizontal plane.

[0034] The connector retraction mechanism 20 retracts the lead wires 58 and the connector 50 to a retraction position that does not interfere with the measurement of the mating connector 60 by the first measuring instrument 15. The first comb member 24 rotates the first beam 25 and the first teeth 26 around the first axis 21, thereby inserting each bundle of lead wires connected to the connector 50 between adjacent first teeth 26, thereby retracting the lead wires 58 and the connector 50. Specifically, the position that does not interfere with the measurement is a position where the lead wires 58 and the connector 50 are not between the first measuring instrument and the mating connector 60 and do not hide the mating connector from the first measuring instrument. The first comb member 24 is preferably positioned so that it can accommodate the lead wires near their bases, where they are less likely to bend or deform.

[0035] Returning to FIG. 1, the second measuring instrument 16 measures the position and orientation of the connector 50 in three dimensions. For example, a stereo camera can be used as the second measuring instrument. Although the second measuring instrument 16 in FIG. 1 is not facing the connector 50, in this embodiment, the connector 50 is moved into the field of view of the second measuring instrument 16 by the connector moving mechanism 30 when measuring with the second measuring instrument. Details will be described in the explanation of the connector connection method. Note that the arrangement and orientation of the second measuring instrument 16 are not limited to those shown in FIG. 1 and can be adjusted as appropriate depending on the range of motion of the connector moving mechanism 30, lead wire 58, and connector 50.

[0036] Referring to FIG. 3 , the connector moving mechanism 30 has a second comb member 34. The second comb member 34 is composed of a second beam 35 and a plurality of second teeth 36 aligned and protruding radially from the second beam 35. The second comb member 34 is supported on one side of the second beam 35 at a right angle by a rotating arm 33 extending radially from a cylindrical second support portion 32 with a second axis 31 horizontally aligned, with the second beam 35 held horizontally. As the second support portion 32 rotates about the second axis 31, the second comb member 34 can pivot about the second axis 31 along the side surface of the cylinder whose central axis is the second axis 31. The connector moving mechanism 30 inserts each bundle of lead wires connected to the connector 50 between adjacent second teeth 36, and moves the connector 50 from the retracted position to a measurement position where measurement by the second measuring instrument 16 can be easily performed. It should be noted that the second shaft 31 does not have to be exactly horizontal, and as a result the second comb member 34 does not have to rotate while maintaining an exactly horizontal position.

[0037] The hand 40 is attached to the tip of the arm 49 of the articulated robot and grasps the connector 50 with a pair of fingers 41. The hand 40 preferably grasps the rear end portion (upper side in FIG. 6A ) of the connector 50, which makes it easy to connect the connector 50 to the mating connector 60 without having to change hands after grasping the connector 50.

[0038] FIG. 4 shows an example of the shape of the fingers 41 of the hand 40. A T-shaped groove 42 is formed at the tip of the gripping surface of the finger 41. When the hand 40 grips the connector 50, the groove 42 receives a portion of a protrusion 52 formed on the side of the connector 50. Referring to FIG. 5, the groove 42 has a position restriction portion 43 consisting of a bottom surface 44 and a pair of wall surfaces 45 rising vertically from the side edge of the bottom surface, and a guide portion 46 formed by chamfering the end of each wall surface 45 opposite the bottom surface 44 to an opening 47 of the groove 42 so that the width of the groove gradually increases. Note that the hole provided at the tip of the connector 50 in FIG. 5B is a connection hole 54 for electrical connection with a mating connector 60.

[0039] When the hand 40 grasps the connector 50, it measures the position and orientation of the connector 50, aligns the position and orientation of the groove 42 with the position and orientation of the protrusion 52, and closes the pair of fingers 41. The edge of the protrusion 52 slides along the guide portion 46, and the protrusion 52 fits into the position restriction portion 43. The position of the protrusion 52 is restricted in two directions in a T-shape by the position restriction portion 43, so the position and orientation of the connector 50 relative to the hand 40 are accurately determined. While it is most preferable to design the clearance between the position restriction portion and the connector's protrusion to be 0 μm, some clearance may occur due to processing accuracy. The clearance between the position restriction portion and the connector's protrusion is preferably 0 to 200 μm, more preferably 0 to 100 μm. In the hand 40 used by the inventors in developing the connector connection system, the clearance between the position restriction portion 43 and the protrusion 52 was 20 μm. The function of the groove 42 allows the position and orientation of the connector 50 held by the hand 40 to be determined with higher accuracy than the measurement accuracy of the second measuring instrument 16 .

[0040] Next, a connector connecting method using the connector connecting system of this embodiment will be described. In the following, the description will be made on the assumption that one lead wire 58 is connected to each connector 50.

[0041] First, the connector retraction mechanism 20 retracts the lead wire 58 and the connector 50 to a retracted position that does not interfere with the measurement of the position of the mating connector 60 by the first measuring instrument 15 .

[0042] (Connector retraction mechanism insertion process) Referring to FIG. 7A, the first comb member 24 of the connector retraction mechanism 20 is rotated in a horizontal plane from a position on the side of the workpiece, indicated by the dashed line in the figure, to insert the lead wires 58 into the areas between the first teeth 26 of the first comb member 24. Because the lead wires are flexible and bend in irregular directions, it is preferable that the areas between adjacent first teeth 26 of the first comb member 24 be approximately 1.5 to 3 times larger than the width of the lead wire bundle to be accommodated. Furthermore, the height of the first comb member 24 is set to a position close to the base of the rising edge of the lead wires 58, as indicated by the dashed line in FIG. 7B. This prevents each lead wire 58 from entering the area between the same teeth.

[0043] (Connector retraction mechanism rising process) 7B, the cylinder (23 in FIG. 2) of the connector retraction mechanism 20 is extended to raise the first comb member 24. This straightens out the lead wires 58 that are bent in various directions, and moves the lead wires 58 and connector 50 that were covering the mating connector 60, allowing them to be retracted from between the first measuring instrument 15 and the mating connector 60 to a retracted position that does not interfere with the measurement of the mating connector. Also, the connectors 50 can be separated from each other.

[0044] (Mating connector measurement process using the first measuring instrument) Next, a measurement laser or the like is emitted from first measuring instrument 15 toward the mating connectors (downward arrow in FIG. 7B) and scanned along the row of mating connectors, thereby measuring the position and orientation of each mating connector.

[0045] (Connector retraction mechanism rotation retraction process) 7C, if the lead wires 58 or connector 50 still hide the mating connector 60 from the first measuring instrument 15 even after the first comb member 24 is raised, the first comb member 24 can be further rotated from the dashed line position to retract the lead wires 58 or connector 50 to a retracted position where they do not interfere with the measurement of the mating connector. Note that if there are no problems with the measurements by the first and second measuring instruments, the raising step of raising the first comb member 24 of the connector retraction mechanism 20 shown in FIG. 7B may be omitted, and the rotation retraction step may be performed after the comb insertion step.

[0046] (Connector movement process by connector movement mechanism) Referring to FIG. 8 , the second comb member 34 of the connector moving mechanism 30 is rotated from the position indicated by the dashed line to tilt the lead wire 58 toward the mating connector 60, moving the connector 50 to a measurement position for measurement by the second measuring instrument 16. In this embodiment, the measurement position is located on the far side of the mating connector as viewed from the retracted position, and the connector 50 is moved beyond the mating connector. More specifically, the portion of the lead wire above the first comb member 24 of the connector retraction mechanism 20 is placed in the area between the second teeth 36 of the second comb member 34, and the first comb member 24 of the connector retraction mechanism is retracted to the side of the workpiece indicated by the dashed line in FIG. 7A . Then, the second comb member 34 is continued to rotate to move the connector 50 beyond the mating connector 60 to below the second measuring instrument 16. This operation separates the multiple connectors 50 from one another, allowing measurement by the second measuring instrument. Furthermore, by moving the connector past the mating connector, the background during measurement by the second measuring instrument, for example, is made uniform, making measurement easier as will be described later.

[0047] (Connector measurement process using the second measuring instrument) Next, the position and orientation of the connector 50 are measured by the second measuring instrument 16. If a stereo camera is used as the second measuring instrument 16, the position and orientation of each connector can be obtained with a single image by capturing an image of all connectors 50 within its field of view. If the field of view of the second measuring instrument is widened to capture an image of many connectors at once, the measurement accuracy will be lower than capturing an image of each connector individually, but if the above-mentioned hand 40 is used, the groove 42 functions to determine the position and orientation of the connector 50 held by the hand 40 with higher accuracy than the measurement accuracy of the second measuring instrument 16, so this is not a problem.

[0048] When measuring the connector 50 with the second measuring instrument 16, for example, if the measurement is performed at a retracted position (the connector position in Figure 7B or C), the electrical component 71, which has various components and wiring, becomes the background of the connector, making the measurement difficult. When measuring using a stereo camera, matching the connector's feature points between left and right images is difficult. Furthermore, when estimating the connector's feature points using a trained feature point estimation machine learning model, as described in Patent Document 1, the accuracy of the estimation is affected by the background. Moving the connector 50 past the mating connector 60 to the measurement position makes it easier to match the connector's feature points by using a plain background, for example. Using a background similar to that used during training of the feature point estimation machine learning model improves the estimation accuracy. Furthermore, performing measurement with the second measuring instrument 16 while the connector 50 is attached to the tip of the lead wire 58 in mid-air facilitates grasping by a robotic hand and subsequent connection to the mating connector. Thus, the measurement position is preferably one where the second measuring instrument 16 can easily recognize the connector 50.

[0049] 9, the rear end of the connector 50 is grasped by the hand 40 based on the measurement results of the connector 50 by the second measuring instrument 16. Note that by using the connector moving mechanism 30 to lay down the lead wires 58 when measuring the connector 50, it becomes easier to grasp the rear end of the connector 50 with the hand 40. By grasping the rear end of the connector 50, it is possible to connect the connector 50 to the mating connector 60 without having to change hands after grasping.

[0050] Referring to Figure 10, the hand 40 is moved to connect the connector 50 to the mating connector 60. Preferably, the entire electrical component 71 and circuit board 72 are placed on a compliance unit (also called a misalignment adjustment device) and then connected. The compliance unit has a table that can move in a planar direction in response to external forces. The electrical component 71 and circuit board 72 are placed on the table, and the tip of the connector 50 is inserted into the mating connector 60 with the table fixed. The table is then released and the connector is pushed into the mating connector. This moves the table in a direction that eliminates the misalignment between the connector and the mating connector, making it easier to insert the connector.

[0051] Several modifications of this embodiment will be described below.

[0052] The first and second measuring instruments may be the same measuring instrument.

[0053] The structure of the connector retraction mechanism is not limited to the above. The connector retraction mechanism only needs to be able to retract the lead wires 58 and connectors 50, which hide the mating connector from the first measuring instrument, to a retracted position that does not interfere with measurement of the mating connector by the first measuring instrument. Furthermore, when multiple lead wires and connectors are arranged in a row, it only needs to be able to retract all of the multiple lead wires and connectors together to the retracted position. For example, as shown in Figure 7C, the rotational retraction process of the connector retraction mechanism may be a mechanism that moves the second comb member horizontally to the right of the figure, rather than a rotational mechanism.

[0054] The structure of the connector moving mechanism is not limited to the above. The connector moving mechanism may be any mechanism that can move the connector to a measurement position that facilitates measurement by the second measuring instrument. Furthermore, when multiple lead wires and connectors are arranged in a row, the mechanism may be any mechanism that can move all of the multiple lead wires and connectors to the measurement position together as in the above embodiment, or the connectors may be moved to the measurement position one by one.

[0055] For example, the connector moving mechanism 80 shown in FIG. 11 moves connectors one by one to the measurement position. Referring to FIGS. 11A and 11B, the connector moving mechanism 80 includes a plate member 81 and partition members 82 erected on both sides of the plate member in the width direction. The plate member 81 is inserted above the connector retraction mechanism 20, approximately parallel to the rising direction of one lead wire 58a (the uppermost lead wire in FIG. 11A). Referring to FIGS. 11C and 11D, the plate member 81 is tilted approximately horizontally to tilt the portion of the cable 58a protruding above the connector retraction mechanism 20, thereby moving the connector 50a to the measurement position. The partition member 82 is preferably provided because it prevents the lead wire 58a from coming off the plate member 81. The connector 50a moved to the measurement position is measured by the second measuring instrument 16, then grasped by hand and connected to the mating connector. Once the connection of the first connector 50a is complete, the next connector 50b is similarly moved to the measurement position, measured with a second measuring instrument, grasped by hand, and connected to the mating connector, and the same process is repeated for the other connectors.

[0056] Alternatively, depending on the characteristics of the lead wire, for example, if the lead wire is short or hard, the connector retraction mechanism 20 can be moved to a position where it does not get in the way, the plate member 81 can be inserted near the base of the lead wire 58a, the entire lead wire can be tilted, and the connector 50a can be moved to the measurement position.

[0057] The connector moving mechanism 80 is advantageous when the lead wires are particularly soft. When the lead wires are particularly soft, moving multiple connectors together can cause adjacent lead wires to cross, potentially resulting in accidentally gripping a different connector than the one intended. However, by moving the connectors one by one to the measurement position, it is possible to prevent accidentally measuring and gripping a different connector. Also, when measuring connectors with a stereo camera, if multiple lead wires are in the measurement position, the measurement may not be successful. However, by moving the connectors one by one to the measurement position, it is possible to more reliably measure the position and orientation of the selected connector.

[0058] Next, an embodiment of the lead wire moving method of the present invention will be described. In this embodiment, the tip of the lead wire or a terminal attached to the tip of the lead wire is moved to a moving target. Below, differences from the above connector connecting method will be described, and a description of similar parts will be omitted.

[0059] For example, when soldering a lead wire to a predetermined position on a circuit board instead of connecting a connector, the predetermined position can be used as a moving target, and the tip of the lead wire or a terminal attached to the tip of the lead wire can be moved to the moving target. In this case, the same method as the connector connecting method can be used.

[0060] The system used in the connector moving method of this embodiment is the same as that shown in Fig. 1. However, the shape of the hand is made suitable for gripping the lead wire.

[0061] The method of this embodiment is as follows: A retraction mechanism retracts multiple lead wires, each with one end fixed, to a retraction position that does not interfere with measurement of a moving target (retraction step), and the position of the moving target is measured by a first measuring instrument (first measurement step). If terminals are not attached to the ends of the lead wires, such as when the ends of the lead wires are directly soldered, the lead wires are moved together to a measurement position for measurement with a second measuring instrument by a moving mechanism, and the position and orientation of the lead wire ends are measured by the second measuring instrument (second measurement step). One of the lead wires is gripped with a hand based on the measured position and orientation of the tip, and the gripped tip of the lead wire is moved to the moving target. If a terminal is attached to the end of the lead wires, the terminals are moved together to a measurement position for measurement with the second measuring instrument by a moving mechanism, and the position and orientation of the terminal are measured by the second measuring instrument (second measurement step). One of the lead wires is gripped with a hand based on the measured position and orientation of the tip, and the terminal at the end of the gripped lead wire is moved to the moving target.

[0062] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the technical concept thereof.

[0063] For example, the first comb member and the second comb member can be formed in a U-shape with the area between the teeth widening toward the opening. By making the opening wide and gradually narrowing from the opening toward the bottom on the opposite side of the opening, the lead wire bundle can be sandwiched between the teeth and then positioned at the bottom. The provision of a lead wire positioning restriction portion at the bottom allows the lead wire bundle and connector to be more reliably separated and retracted or moved to a desired position.

[0064] The second measuring instrument 16 may also be a camera mounted on a robot hand. A camera mounted on a robot hand can provide more accurate measurements. Furthermore, since the camera can move along with the robot hand, it can measure from a direction that makes it easy to recognize the tips of connectors and lead wires. In this case, each connector is imaged one by one to obtain its position and orientation information. [Explanation of symbols]

[0065] 10 Connector connection system 15 First Measuring Instrument 16 Second measuring instrument 20 Connector retraction mechanism 21 1st axis 22 1st support part 23 cylinders 24 First comb member 25 First Beam 26 First tooth 30 Connector movement mechanism 31 2nd axis 32 Second support part 33 Rotating Arm 34 Second comb member 35 Second Beam 36 Second tooth 40 hands 41 fingers 42 Groove 43 Position regulation part 44 bottom 45 Wall 46 Guide part 47 Aperture 49 Arm 50, 50a, 50b connectors 51A, 51B side 52 protrusion 53 Lead wire introduction hole 54 Connection hole 58, 58a, 58b lead wires 59 Lead wire bundle 60 Mating connector 61A, 61B side 62 Notch 71 Electrical Components 72 Circuit Board 80 Connector movement mechanism 81 Plate members 82 Partition member

Claims

1. A system for connecting a connector attached to the tip of a lead wire fixed at one end to a mating connector, a first measuring device capable of measuring the position of the mating connector; a connector retraction mechanism for retracting the lead wire and the connector to a retraction position that does not interfere with measurement when measuring the position of the mating connector; a second measuring instrument capable of measuring the position and orientation of the connector; a hand for holding the connector; A connector connection system having:

2. the connector retraction mechanism is capable of retracting all of the rows of the lead wires and the connectors to the retracted position together. The connector connection system according to claim 1 .

3. a connector moving mechanism that can move the connector from the retracted position to a measurement position for measurement by the second measuring instrument; The connector connection system according to claim 1 .

4. A control device for controlling the posture of a plurality of lead wires each having one end fixed, a moving mechanism for moving the tips of the lead wires or the tip members attached to the tips of the lead wires together to a measurement position for measuring the tips of the lead wires or the tip members attached to the tips of the lead wires in the air; Lead wire control device.

5. The lead wires may be moved to a retraction position where the tip of the lead wire or the tip member does not interfere with measurement of a moving target.

5. The lead control device according to claim 4.

6. A control device for controlling the posture of a plurality of lead wires each having one end fixed, a retraction mechanism for collectively retracting the plurality of lead wires to a retraction position that does not interfere with measurement of a moving target of the tip of the lead wire or a tip member attached to the tip of the lead wire; a moving mechanism for moving the tip of the lead wire or the tip member to a measurement position for measuring the tip of the lead wire or the tip member; Lead wire control device.

7. A method for connecting a connector attached to the tip of a lead wire whose one end is fixed to a mating connector, comprising: a connector retraction step of retracting the lead wire and the connector by a connector retraction mechanism to a retraction position that does not interfere with measurement of the position of the mating connector by a first measuring instrument; a first measuring step of measuring the position of the mating connector by the first measuring device; a second measuring step of measuring the position and orientation of the connector by a second measuring device; holding the connector by hand; connecting the connector to the mating connector; A connector connection method comprising:

8. the connector retraction step is a step of retracting all of the rows of the lead wires and the connectors to the retracted position together. The connector connecting method according to claim 7.

9. The method further includes, before the second measuring step, a step of moving the connector from the retracted position to a measurement position for measurement by the second measuring instrument. The connector connecting method according to claim 7.

10. A method for moving the tips of a plurality of lead wires, one end of which is fixed, or tip members attached to the tips of the lead wires, to a moving target, comprising: a retraction step of collectively retracting the plurality of lead wires to a retraction position that does not interfere with measurement of the moving target; a first measurement step of measuring the position of the moving target; moving the tip of the lead wire or the tip member to a measurement position for measuring the tip of the lead wire or the tip member; a second measuring step of measuring the position and orientation of the tip of the lead wire or the tip member; a step of holding the lead wire or the tip member by hand; moving the tip of the lead wire or the tip member to the moving target; A lead wire moving method comprising:

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