Processing method and end effector

Abstract

The machine processes the surface of the workpiece, adjusting it to match its position and shape. [Solution] A machining robot 11 extends a search tool 15 toward three points near the machining position 81 of the workpiece 3, which are the machining surface search positions 83. The search tool 15 acquires the search coordinates where it contacts the machining surface search positions 83. Based on the acquired search coordinates of the three points, the machine robot 11 calculates the tangent plane 84 of the surface of the workpiece 3 at the machining position 81. The machine robot 11 then processes the machining position 81 with the machining tool 17 so that the spindle 13c, to which the machining tool 17 is mounted, is perpendicular to the tangent plane 84.

Description

Technical Field

[0004]

[0001] The present invention relates to a processing method and an end effector.

Background Art

[0002] The screw processing apparatus disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2009-248279 includes a robot, a lifting mechanism, a rotating mechanism, a support portion, a tap, a sensor, an arithmetic unit, and a control box. A robot arm is disposed at the tip of the robot. The lifting mechanism is supported at the tip of the robot arm via a flange. The rotating mechanism is supported by the lifting mechanism. The support portion is disposed at the tip of the rotating mechanism. The tap is supported by the support portion. The sensor is disposed on the upper surface of the robot and detects the inclination of the robot arm. The arithmetic unit calculates information obtained from the sensor. The control box operates the lifting mechanism and the rotating mechanism based on the information obtained from the arithmetic unit.

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0003] It may be difficult to accurately place a workpiece with respect to a robot. Also, the shape of the workpiece may be different from the drawing. In these cases, it is difficult to perform processing following the surface of the workpiece. An object of the present invention is to perform processing along the surface of a workpiece in accordance with the position and shape of the installed workpiece.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0005] A second aspect of the present invention is, An end effector that is attached to a machining robot, The body and A ram is installed on the body so as to be movable back and forth, A rotating tool can be attached to the spindle, which is rotatably supported by the ram, A search cylinder arranged in the body, Cylinder body and A probe extending parallel to the main shaft and retractably positioned within the cylinder body, capable of measuring the amount of extension when its tip contacts a workpiece, A search cylinder having, It is an end effector that has [a certain feature].

[0006] Machining includes drilling, tapping, end milling, and face milling. When performing end milling or face milling, the cutting end effector may have an X-axis feed axis that advances the spindle in a direction perpendicular to the spindle. In this case, the body may be positioned on the X-axis feed axis. The end effector advances the spindle in a direction perpendicular to the spindle. The machining robot may include an end effector exchange device. The machining robot may be equipped with interchangeable end effectors for cutting, 3D scanners, and search end effectors. The cutting effector may have a body, a ram, and a spindle. The body is supported by an arm. The ram moves the spindle forward and backward relative to the body. The shape of the machining drawing may be stretched or its curvature changed to fit the 3D model obtained from measurements, and the machining position may be calculated. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present invention, processing can be performed along the surface of a workpiece in accordance with its position and shape. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] Processing apparatus of Embodiment 1 [Figure 2] View from arrow II in Figure 1 [Figure 3] Processing status of the workpiece using the processing apparatus of Embodiment 1 [Figure 4] Processing apparatus of Embodiment 2 [Figure 5] Processing apparatus of Embodiment 3 [Figure 6] Processing apparatus of Embodiment 4 [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] <Embodiment 1> As shown in Figure 1, the processing apparatus 10 of this embodiment includes a robot (processing robot) 11, an end effector 13, and a holding jig 4. The following describes the case in which the processing apparatus 10 performs drilling.

[0010] Robot 11 is a vertical articulated robot. Robot 11 has an arm 11a, a control device 11b, and a reference position 11c. Robot 11 is fixed to the floor surface 1. The reference position 11c is the intersection point between the central axis of the robot 11's first axis (not shown) and the floor surface 1.

[0011] The end effector 13 has a body 13a, a ram 13b, a spindle 13c, and a linear feed axis 13f. The body 13a is located at the tip of the arm 11a. The ram 13b is positioned on the body 13a so as to be able to move back and forth. The ram 13b extends along the spindle 13c. The spindle 13c is supported by the ram 13b so as to be able to rotate around the central axis 13d. The spindle 13c is capable of mounting tools. For example, the spindle 13c has a drawbar (not shown) and a spindle hole (not shown). The linear feed axis 13f is located on the body 13a. The linear feed axis 13f guides the ram 13b along the central axis 13d and moves the ram 13b. The holding jig 4 is fixed to the floor surface 1. The holding jig 4 holds the workpiece 3.

[0012] The processing method of this embodiment will be described. As shown in FIG. 1, the workpiece 3 has a surface 3a that is a curved surface. As shown in FIG. 2, there is a machining position 81 on the surface 3a. The machining position 81 is indicated by a machining drawing. Around the machining position 81, three search positions (machined surface search positions) 83 are defined. The search positions 83 are defined on the surface 3a, for example, so as to surround the machining position 81. Preferably, the search positions 83 are defined so as to be the vertices of an equilateral triangle when projected onto a plane facing the surface. The search positions 83 are arranged in the vicinity of the machining position 81. The search positions 83 are defined so that there are no large steps or chips on the surface 3a inside the region 82 that linearly connects the search positions 83.

[0013] As shown in FIG. 1, a touch probe (search tool) 15 is attached to the spindle 13c. The robot 11 adjusts the arm 11a to bring the touch probe 15 into contact with the search position 83 of the workpiece 3. Preferably, the robot 11 brings the contactor (not shown) of the touch probe 15 into contact with the surface 3a so as to be substantially perpendicular to the surface 3a. The control device 11b acquires the coordinates of the three search positions 83 with respect to the reference position 11c. The control device 11b calculates a tangent plane 84 passing through the three search positions 83 with respect to the reference position 11c.

[0014] Next, as shown in FIG. 3, a drill 17 is attached to the spindle 13c. The control device 11b positions the end effector 13 so that the central axis 13d is perpendicular to the tangent plane 84 and the machining position 81 passes through the central axis 13d. At this time, a gap is provided between the drill 17 and the surface 3a.

[0015] Next, the processing device 10 rotates the spindle 13c and feeds the ram 13b toward the workpiece 3. The drill 17 cuts into the workpiece 3 to perform hole machining. When the drill 17 reaches a predetermined depth, the processing device 10 retracts the ram 13b and withdraws the drill 17 from the workpiece 3. When the workpiece 3 has a plurality of machining positions 81, the above machining procedure may be repeated for each machining position 81.

[0016] Incidentally, when the workpiece 3 has a plurality of machining positions 81, the tangent planes 84 for each machining position 81 may be collectively determined in a state where the touch probe 15 is attached to the spindle 13c. Then, the touch probe 15 attached to the spindle 13c may be exchanged with the drill 17 to perform hole machining at the plurality of machining positions 81.

[0017] Also, before performing the above-described machining, the touch probe 15 may be brought into contact with the end portion 85 (see FIGS. 1 and 6) of the workpiece 3 to acquire the coordinates of the end portion 85 with respect to the robot 11. Thereby, the control device 11b can determine the overall position of the workpiece 3 and set the workpiece coordinates of the workpiece 3. Further, when the dimensions of the workpiece 3 are different from the machining drawing, the machining position 81 may be determined in accordance with the actual shape of the workpiece 3 by stretching, enlarging, or deforming the machining drawing.

[0018] According to the present embodiment, even when the workpiece 3 is not accurately positioned with respect to the robot 11, hole machining can be performed perpendicular to the surface 3a. Also, even when the shape of the workpiece 3 is different from the machining drawing, hole machining can be performed perpendicular to the surface 3a in accordance with the actual shape of the workpiece 3. Further, the machining position 8 can be determined at a position that conforms to the actual shape of the workpiece 3.

[0019] <Embodiment 2> As shown in FIG. 4, the machining apparatus 100 of the present embodiment includes a robot 11 and an end effector 113. The end effector 113 has three search cylinders 115. Other structures of the end effector 113 are substantially the same as those of the end effector 13 of the first embodiment. The search cylinder 115 is positioned at the vertices of an equilateral triangle with the central axis 13d as its centroid, when viewed in the direction of the central axis 13d. The search cylinder 115 is an air cylinder. The search cylinder 115 has a cylinder body 115a and a probe 115b. The cylinder body 115a extends along the central axis 13d. The probe 115b is a cylinder rod. The probe 115b extends along the central axis 13d and reciprocates within the cylinder body 115a. The search cylinder 115 detects the amount of extension of the probe 115b. The search cylinder 115 may extend the probe 115b and determine the position where the probe 115b stops as the search distance.

[0020] The method of using the processing apparatus 100 of this embodiment will be described. The robot 11 positions the end effector 113 such that the central axis 13d passes through the machining position 81 and the central axis 13d is approximately perpendicular to the tangent plane 84. Next, the robot 11 extends the probe 115b. The search distance is measured when the probe 115b makes contact with the surface 3a. The control device 11b calculates the tangent plane 84 from the extension amount of each probe 115b and the posture of the arm 11a.

[0021] Next, the control device 11b positions the end effector 113 such that the central axis 13d is perpendicular to the tangent plane 84 and the machining position 81 passes through the central axis 13d. Then, the spindle 13c is rotated to perform machining.

[0022] The end effector 113 of this embodiment has a probe 115b in addition to the spindle 13c. Therefore, there is no need to replace the drill 17 attached to the spindle 13c with the probe. In addition, since the coordinates of three search positions 83 can be searched at once, the search time can be reduced.

[0023] <Embodiment 3> As shown in Figure 5, the processing apparatus 200 of this embodiment includes a traveling vehicle 25, a robot 11, a replacement device (end effector replacement device) 19, a scanner (3D scanner) 21, a coordinate measuring device 23, a frame 24, and a higher-level control device 29.

[0024] The vehicle 25 has a body 25a, wheels 25b, outriggers 25c, and multiple markers 25d. The body 25a may be self-propelled. The outriggers 25c are positioned on the body 25a. During operation, the outriggers 25c extend from the vehicle 25 and are fixed to the floor surface 1. The markers 25d are positioned at the ends of the body 25a.

[0025] The workpiece 203 is self-supporting on the floor surface 1. The workpiece 203 may be mobile. The workpiece 203 has a surface 203a.

[0026] The robot 11 is positioned on the vehicle body 25a. The replacement device 19 is positioned at the tip of the arm 11a. The replacement device 19 can replace the end effector. The scanner 21 and the end effectors 13 and 113 are attached to the arm 11a via the replacement device 19. The scanner 21 acquires the three-dimensional shape of the surface 203a as a point cloud or 3D model.

[0027] The coordinate measuring device 23 is supported by the frame 24. The coordinate measuring device 23 is, for example, a laser measuring device. The coordinate measuring device 23 measures the position and orientation of the scanner 21 and the position of the marker 25d. The coordinate measuring device 23 may also monitor the position and orientation of the scanner 21 and the position of the marker 25d.

[0028] The higher-level control device 29 generates a 3D model of the surface 203a with reference position 11c based on the position and orientation of the scanner 21 and the position of the marker 25d. The higher-level control device 29 may also generate a 3D model from a point cloud.

[0029] The method of using the processing apparatus 200 of this embodiment will be described. The scanner 21 moves up and down, left and right, and forward and backward towards the workpiece 203 by the robot 11, scanning the workpiece 203. During this time, the coordinate measuring device 23 monitors the position and orientation of the scanner 21. Based on the position and orientation of the scanner 21 and the scan data, the higher-level control device 29 generates a 3D model of the surface 203a. The robot 11 replaces the scanner 21 with an end effector 13 or an end effector 113 attached to the arm 11a. Based on the 3D model generated by the higher-level control device 29, the higher-level control device 29 determines the machining position 81 and the search position 83. The higher-level control device 29 may also calculate the movement trajectory of the arm 11a when searching the surface 203a. Similar to Embodiment 1 or Embodiment 2, the higher-level control device 29 calculates the tangent plane 84 at the machining position 81. Then, machining is performed at the machining position 81.

[0030] According to this embodiment, the higher-level control device 29 can acquire the shape of a large workpiece 203 in one go. This allows the machining drawing to be accurately matched to the actual shape of the workpiece 203.

[0031] Furthermore, if the measurement accuracy of the scanner 21 or the coordinate measuring device 23 is high, the higher-level control device 29 may also calculate the tangent plane 84 for the determined machining position 81.

[0032] <Embodiment 4> As shown in Figure 6, the processing apparatus 300 of this embodiment includes a running rail 27, a high platform trolley 325, a robot 11, a changing device 19, an end effector 13, a marker 11d, a marker 25d, a coordinate measuring device 23, a frame 24, and a higher-level control device 29. The other structures and functions of the processing apparatus 300 of this embodiment are substantially the same as those of the processing apparatus 200 of Embodiment 3.

[0033] The running rail 27 extends in one direction (X direction) and is positioned on the floor surface 1. The elevated trolley 325 has a body 325a, wheels 325b, outriggers 325c, a lifting platform 325e, and a marker 25d. The elevated trolley 325 travels on the running rail 27. The elevated trolley 325 may be self-propelled. The outriggers 325c are positioned on the body 325a. The lifting platform 325e is positioned above the body 325a and moves up and down. The marker 25d is positioned at the end of the lifting platform 325e. Note that track 27 may be omitted.

[0034] The robot 11 is positioned on the lifting platform 325e. The robot 11 has a replacement device 19. The replacement device 19 is positioned at the tip of the arm 11a and is equipped with a scanner 21 and an end effector 13. Multiple markers 11d are positioned on the end effector 13. Alternatively, instead of multiple markers 11d, a marker 11d and a gyro sensor may be positioned. The coordinate measuring device 23 measures and tracks the positions of the scanner 21 and markers 11d and 25d. The higher-level control device 25 controls the elevated platform 325 and the robot 11.

[0035] According to the processing apparatus 300 of this embodiment, the higher-level control device 29 can determine the installation position and orientation of the robot 11 by tracking the positions of the markers 11d and 25d. This enables accurate measurement and processing of the workpiece 203. The elevated platform 325 can raise and lower the lifting platform 325e to change the height of the robot 11. Even when the height of the workpiece 203 is greater than the range of motion of the robot 11, the robot 11 can measure the workpiece 203 and process it.

[0036] The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications are possible without departing from the spirit of the invention. All technical matters included in the technical concept described in the claims are covered by the present invention. The embodiments described above are preferred examples, but those skilled in the art can realize various alternatives, modifications, variations, or improvements from the contents disclosed herein, and these are included in the technical scope described in the appended claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0037] 3 Work 11. Robots (processing robots) 15. Touch probe (exploration tool) 17. Drill (machining tool) 115 Search Cylinder (Search Tool) 81 Processing position 83 Machining surface search position 84 Connecting plane

Claims

1. The machining robot extends a search tool toward three points near the machining position of the workpiece, which are the machining surface search positions, and obtains the search coordinates where the search tool contacts the machining surface search positions. Based on the three acquired search coordinates, the tangent plane of the workpiece surface at the machining position relative to the machining robot is calculated. The machining robot processes the machining position using the machining tool, with the spindle, which is mounted on the machining tool, perpendicular to the tangent plane. Processing method.

2. The aforementioned machining surface search position is arranged so as to surround the machining position. The processing method according to claim 1.

3. The aforementioned exploration tool is a touch probe. The processing method according to claim 1 or 2.

4. The search tool is mounted on the spindle, and the machining robot acquires the search coordinates. Replace the aforementioned exploration tool with the aforementioned machining tool. The processing method according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

5. The aforementioned main shaft is arranged on the linear feed axis, The machining robot performs machining by stopping the arm and allowing the linear feed axis to advance the main spindle. The processing method according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

6. The aforementioned machining tool is a drill, tap, or reamer. The processing method according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

7. A three-dimensional scanner is attached to the processing robot, and the processing robot moves its arm to generate a three-dimensional model of the surface shape of the workpiece, with the reference position of the processing robot as the reference coordinate. The machining position is determined based on the three-dimensional model. The processing method according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

8. An end effector that is attached to a machining robot, The body and A ram is installed on the aforementioned body so as to be movable back and forth, A rotating tool can be attached to the spindle, which is rotatably supported by the ram, A search cylinder arranged in the body, Cylinder body and A probe extending parallel to the main shaft and retractably positioned within the cylinder body, capable of measuring the amount of extension when its tip contacts a workpiece, A search cylinder having, An end effector having [a certain feature].

9. The system has three of the search cylinders arranged to surround the main shaft, The end effector according to claim 8.

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