Industrial Robots

Abstract

To provide an industrial robot capable of downsizing a pitch changing mechanism in an industrial robot equipped with a pitch changing mechanism for changing the pitch in the vertical direction of a plurality of mounting portions on which an object to be transported is mounted.SOLUTION: In an industrial robot, a pitch changing mechanism 25 includes an elevating mechanism 91 that elevates and lowers a hand 24 arranged at the bottom. In this industrial robot, when the elevating mechanism 91 raises the hand 24, the remaining hands 14 to 23 rise as the hand 24 rises, and the vertical pitch of the plurality of mounting portions becomes a first pitch, and when the elevating mechanism 91 lowers the hand 24, at least the hands 14 to 23 are lowered as the hand 24 is lowered, and the pitch in the vertical direction of the plurality of mounting portions becomes a second pitch.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an industrial robot that transports objects such as semiconductor wafers. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, industrial robots that transport substrates such as semiconductor wafers are known (see, for example, Patent Document 1). The industrial robot described in Patent Document 1 includes a substrate mounting mechanism on which multiple substrates are mounted, and a first arm that rotatably supports the base end side of the substrate mounting mechanism. The substrate mounting mechanism has hand forks on which substrates are mounted, and includes five hands that overlap at a predetermined pitch in the vertical direction, and a pitch change mechanism that changes the pitch of the five hand forks.

[0003] The pitch change mechanism includes a lever member (first lever member) to which the uppermost hand and the second hand from the top of the five hands are connected, a lever member (second lever member) to which the lowermost hand and the second hand from the bottom are connected, and a drive mechanism for rotating the two lever members. A cam follower is attached to the lever member, and this cam follower engages with a guide member fixed to the hand side. In the industrial robot described in Patent Document 1, when the two lever members rotate, four hands except for the third hand from the top move up and down, changing the pitch of the five hand forks. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2010-179420 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] In the industrial robot described in Patent Document 1, the pitch change mechanism is equipped with two elongated lever members that rotate, so the pitch change mechanism becomes large. Also, in the industrial robot described in Patent Document 1, when increasing the number of hands equipped in the substrate mounting mechanism so that more substrates can be transported at once, it becomes necessary to increase the number of lever members of the pitch change mechanism or to connect more hands to one lever member, so the configuration of the pitch change mechanism becomes complex and the pitch change mechanism becomes larger.

[0006] Therefore, the objective of the present invention is to provide an industrial robot equipped with a pitch change mechanism for changing the vertical pitch of multiple mounting sections on which objects to be transported are mounted, which makes it possible to reduce the size of the pitch change mechanism. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to solve the above problems, the industrial robot of the present invention is an industrial robot equipped with a mounting mechanism on which a plurality of transport objects are mounted, the mounting mechanism comprising at least three or more hands each having a mounting portion for the transport object and overlapping at a predetermined pitch in the vertical direction, and a pitch change mechanism for changing the vertical pitch of the plurality of mounting portions, the hand arranged at the top of the plurality of hands being the uppermost hand, the hand arranged at the bottom of the plurality of hands being the lowermost hand, and the hands excluding the uppermost and lowermost hands being intermediate hands. Of the two hands that are vertically adjacent to each other, the hand that is located on the upper side is called the upper hand, and the hand that is located on the lower side is called the lower hand. The pitch change mechanism includes a lifting mechanism for lifting and lowering the lowest hand, and sets the vertical pitch of the multiple mounting units to a predetermined first pitch and a second pitch wider than the first pitch, and when the lifting mechanism lifts the lowest hand, at least the intermediate hand lifts in conjunction with the lifting of the lowest hand, so that the vertical pitch of the multiple mounting units becomes the first pitch, and when the lifting mechanism lowers the lowest hand, at least the intermediate hand lowers in conjunction with the descent of the lowest hand, so that the vertical pitch of the multiple mounting units becomes the second pitch. The upper hand includes a support portion for supporting the lower hand from below, and when the pitch of the multiple mounting portions is a first pitch, the upper surface of the lower hand contacts the lower surface of the upper hand, and when the pitch of the multiple mounting portions is a second pitch, the lower hand contacts the support portion, and a recess in which the support portion is disposed is formed on the lower surface of the lower hand, the recess being recessed upward from the lower surface of the lower hand, the vertical thickness of the support portion being thinner than the vertical width of the recess, and when the pitch of the multiple mounting portions is the first pitch, the support portion is disposed between the upper surface of the recess and the upper surface of the lower hand in the vertical direction. It is characterized by:

[0008] In the industrial robot of the present invention, when the lifting mechanism lifts the lowest hand, at least the middle hand lifts in conjunction with the lifting of the lowest hand, so that the vertical pitch of the multiple mounting units becomes a first pitch, and when the lifting mechanism lowers the lowest hand, at least the middle hand lifts in conjunction with the descent of the lowest hand, so that the vertical pitch of the multiple mounting units becomes a second pitch. Therefore, in the present invention, even without using two elongated lever members as in the industrial robot described in Patent Document 1, it is possible to change the vertical pitch of the multiple mounting units by lifting and lowering the lowest hand with the lifting mechanism. Therefore, in the present invention, it is possible to miniaturize the pitch change mechanism.

[0009] Furthermore, in the present invention, even if the number of hands provided in the mounting mechanism increases, the vertical pitch of multiple mounting parts can be changed by raising and lowering the lowest hand using the lifting mechanism, so even if the number of hands provided in the mounting mechanism increases, the configuration of the pitch change mechanism can be simplified and the pitch change mechanism can be made smaller.

[0010] Also, The present invention So Of two hands adjacent in the vertical direction, the hand arranged on the upper side is referred to as the upper hand, and the hand arranged on the lower side is referred to as the lower hand. The upper hand has a support portion for supporting the lower hand from below, and when the pitch of the multiple mounting portions is a first pitch, the upper surface of the lower hand contacts the lower surface of the upper hand, and when the pitch of the multiple mounting portions is a second pitch, the lower hand contacts the support portion. .Therefore With a relatively simple configuration, it is possible to position multiple hands in the vertical direction when the pitch of the multiple mounting parts is a first pitch, and to position multiple hands in the vertical direction when the pitch of the multiple mounting parts is a second pitch.

[0011] In the present invention, it is preferable that when the lifting mechanism lifts the lowest hand in a state in which the pitch of the multiple mounting parts is the second pitch, the upper surface of the lower hand comes into contact with the lower surface of the upper hand and the lower hand lifts the upper hand, so that the pitch of the multiple mounting parts becomes the first pitch, and when the lifting mechanism lowers the lowest hand in a state in which the pitch of the multiple mounting parts is the first pitch, the lower hand comes into contact with the support part and pulls down the upper hand, so that the pitch of the multiple mounting parts becomes the second pitch. With this configuration, it is possible to reliably lift and lower hands other than the lowest hand in conjunction with the lifting and lowering of the lowest hand with a relatively simple configuration.

[0012] In the present invention, the hand moves linearly in the horizontal direction when transporting the transport object, and if a direction perpendicular to the hand movement direction and the up-down direction is defined as an orthogonal direction, it is preferable that the upper hand includes support parts arranged on both sides of the orthogonal direction. With this configuration, it is possible to further stabilize the state of the lower hand when the pitch of the multiple mounting parts is the second pitch.

[0013] In the present invention, the pitch change mechanism includes a guide mechanism that linearly guides at least the intermediate hand and the lowest hand in the vertical direction, and the guide mechanism is a ball spline mechanism including a plurality of spline shafts and a plurality of outer cylinders fixed to the hands and through which the spline shafts are inserted, and a hand to which an outer cylinder through which one of the plurality of spline shafts is inserted is fixed and a hand in which a through hole through which this one spline shaft is inserted and to which the outer cylinder through which this one spline shaft is inserted is not fixed are alternately arranged in the vertical direction, and it is preferable that the inner diameter of the through hole is larger than the outer diameter of the outer cylinders.

[0014] With this configuration, even when the hand is guided in the vertical direction using a ball spline mechanism, it is possible to reduce the vertical distance between two adjacent hands in the vertical direction compared to a case in which an outer cylinder through which one spline shaft is inserted is fixed to all of the hands. Therefore, even when the hand is guided in the vertical direction using a ball spline mechanism, it is possible to reduce the first pitch. Effect of the Invention

[0015] As described above, the present invention makes it possible to miniaturize the pitch change mechanism in an industrial robot equipped with a pitch change mechanism for changing the vertical pitch of multiple mounting sections on which objects to be transported are mounted. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0016] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view of an industrial robot according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 2] 2 is a perspective view of a mounting mechanism, a linear drive mechanism, a tilt correction mechanism, etc. shown in FIG. 1. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the mounting mechanism shown in FIG. [Figure 4] 4 is a perspective view showing the mounting mechanism shown in FIG. 3 from a different direction. [Diagram 5] 4 is a side view for explaining the configuration of the hand shown in FIG. 3. [Figure 6] FIG. 4 is a side view of the base end of the mounting mechanism shown in FIG. 3. [Figure 7] FIG. 4 is a rear view of the mounting mechanism shown in FIG. [Figure 8] FIG. 4 is a rear view of the mounting mechanism shown in FIG. [Figure 9] 8 is an enlarged view for explaining the configuration of the support member shown in FIG. 7. [Figure 10] 7 is a cross-sectional view for explaining the configuration of the guide mechanism shown in FIG. 6. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0017] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0018] (Overall configuration of industrial robots) Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an industrial robot 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a mounting mechanism 3, linear drive mechanisms 5 to 7, and a tilt correction mechanism 8 shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the mounting mechanism 3 shown in Fig. 1.

[0019] The industrial robot 1 (hereinafter referred to as "robot 1") of this embodiment is a robot for transporting a semiconductor wafer 2 (hereinafter referred to as "wafer 2"), which is an object to be transported. The wafer 2 is formed in a thin disk shape. The robot 1, for example, simultaneously transports a plurality of wafers 2 from a cassette (not shown) in which a plurality of wafers 2 are stored stacked at a predetermined pitch, and transports the plurality of wafers 2 transported from the cassette into a predetermined processing device that constitutes a semiconductor manufacturing system (not shown). The robot 1 also simultaneously transports a plurality of wafers 2 from a processing device in which a plurality of wafers 2 are stored stacked at a predetermined pitch, and transports the transported plurality of wafers 2 into the cassette.

[0020] The robot 1 includes a mounting mechanism 3 on which multiple wafers 2 are mounted, a hand 4 on which one wafer 2 is mounted, a linear drive mechanism 5 for moving the mounting mechanism 3 linearly in the horizontal direction, a linear drive mechanism 6 for moving the hand 4 linearly in the horizontal direction, a linear drive mechanism 7 for moving the linear drive mechanisms 5, 6 linearly in the horizontal direction, a tilt correction mechanism 8 for correcting the tilt of the mounting mechanism 3 and the hand 4, a main body 9 that holds the tilt correction mechanism 8, and a base member 10 that supports the main body 9 for horizontal movement.

[0021] The mounting mechanism 3 mounts a plurality of wafers 2 that are stacked at a constant pitch in the vertical direction. The mounting mechanism 3 includes a plurality of hands 14-24 on which the wafers 2 are mounted. The mounting mechanism 3 in this embodiment includes eleven hands 14-24. Each of the hands 14-24 mounts one wafer 2. The eleven hands 14-24 are stacked at a predetermined pitch in the vertical direction. Specifically, the eleven hands 14-24 are stacked at a constant pitch. The eleven hands 14-24 face the same direction.

[0022] The mounting mechanism 3 also includes a pitch change mechanism 25 for changing the vertical pitch of the eleven hands 14-24. The hand 4 is disposed above the hands 14-24. The hand 4 faces the same direction as the hands 14-24. The specific configurations of the hands 14-24 and the pitch change mechanism 25 will be described later. The base end side portion of the mounting mechanism 3 is covered by a cover 27 (see FIG. 2), but the cover 27 is not shown in FIG. 3 etc.

[0023] The linear drive mechanism 5 moves the mounting mechanism 3 back and forth linearly. That is, the linear drive mechanism 5 moves the eleven hands 14 to 24 back and forth linearly. The linear drive mechanism 5 is disposed below the hands 14 to 24. The linear drive mechanism 5 includes, for example, a motor, a ball screw, a guide mechanism, and the like. The linear drive mechanism 6 moves the hand 4 back and forth linearly in the same direction as the back and forth movement direction of the hands 14 to 24 moved by the linear drive mechanism 5. The linear drive mechanism 6 is disposed below the hands 14 to 24. Like the linear drive mechanism 5, the linear drive mechanism 6 includes, for example, a motor, a ball screw, a guide mechanism, and the like.

[0024] The linear drive mechanism 7 linearly reciprocates the linear drive mechanisms 5 and 6 in the same direction as the reciprocating direction of the hands 4, 14-24 moved by the linear drive mechanisms 5 and 6. That is, the linear drive mechanism 7 further reciprocates the hands 14-24 together with the linear drive mechanism 5 in the same direction as the reciprocating direction of the hands 4, 14-24 moved by the linear drive mechanisms 5 and 6, and further reciprocates the hand 4 together with the linear drive mechanism 6. The linear drive mechanism 7 is disposed below the linear drive mechanisms 5 and 6. Like the linear drive mechanisms 5 and 6, the linear drive mechanism 7 includes, for example, two motors, two ball screws, a guide mechanism, and the like.

[0025] The tilt correction mechanism 8 is disposed below the linear drive mechanism 7. The linear drive mechanism 7 is mounted on the tilt correction mechanism 8. The tilt correction mechanism 8 tilts the linear drive mechanism 7 to correct the tilt of the hand 4, 14 to 24 on which the wafer 2 is mounted. The tilt correction mechanism 8 includes a first tilt correction mechanism that rotates the hand 4, 14 to 24 together with the linear drive mechanism 7 and the like, with a predetermined first direction tilted with respect to the vertical direction as the axial direction of the rotation, and a second tilt correction mechanism that rotates the hand 4, 14 to 24 together with the linear drive mechanism 7 and the like, with a second direction tilted with respect to the vertical direction and with respect to the first direction as the axial direction of the rotation. The first direction is approximately the same as the reciprocating direction of the mounting mechanism 3 and the hand 4. The second direction is a direction perpendicular to the first direction.

[0026] The main body 9 includes a columnar frame 31 that holds the tilt correction mechanism 8 so that it can be raised and lowered. The columnar frame 31 is formed in a columnar shape that is elongated in the vertical direction. The main body 9 also includes a base 32 that constitutes the lower end of the main body 9 and is horizontally movable relative to the base member 10, and a rotating base 33 to which the lower end of the columnar frame 31 is fixed and is rotatable relative to the base 32. The robot 1 includes a lifting mechanism that lifts and lowers the tilt correction mechanism 8 relative to the columnar frame 31, a rotating mechanism that rotates the rotating base 33 relative to the base 32 with the vertical direction as the axis of rotation, and a horizontal movement mechanism that moves the base 32 horizontally relative to the base member 10.

[0027] (Hand configuration) Fig. 4 is a perspective view showing the mounting mechanism 3 shown in Fig. 3 from a different direction. Fig. 5 is a side view for explaining the configuration of the hands 14 to 24 shown in Fig. 3. Fig. 6 is a side view of the base end portion of the mounting mechanism 3 shown in Fig. 3. Figs. 7 and 8 are rear views of the mounting mechanism 3 shown in Fig. 3. Fig. 9 is an enlarged view for explaining the configuration of the support members 78 to 87 shown in Fig. 7.

[0028] As described above, the mounting mechanism 3 includes eleven hands 14 to 24. The hands 14 to 24 are arranged in this order from top to bottom. In this embodiment, the hand 14 is the top hand that is the hand arranged at the top of the multiple hands 14 to 24, and the hand 24 is the bottom hand that is the hand arranged at the bottom of the multiple hands 14 to 24. In addition, the hands 15 to 23 are intermediate hands that are the remaining hands excluding the top hand (hand 14) and the bottom hand (hand 24) of the multiple hands 14 to 24.

[0029] In this embodiment, in the relationship between hand 14 and hand 15, hand 14 is the upper hand that is the hand that is located on the upper side of two hands 14, 15 that are adjacent in the vertical direction, and hand 15 is the lower hand that is the hand that is located on the lower side. In the relationship between hand 15 and hand 16, hand 15 is the upper hand that is the hand that is located on the upper side of two hands 15, 16 that are adjacent in the vertical direction, and hand 16 is the lower hand that is the hand that is located on the lower side.

[0030] Similarly, in the relationship between hand 16 and hand 17, hand 16 is the upper hand and hand 17 is the lower hand; in the relationship between hand 17 and hand 18, hand 17 is the upper hand and hand 18 is the lower hand; in the relationship between hand 18 and hand 19, hand 18 is the upper hand and hand 19 is the lower hand; and in the relationship between hand 19 and hand 20, hand 19 is the upper hand and hand 20 is the lower hand.

[0031] In addition, in the relationship between hands 20 and 21, hand 20 is the upper hand and hand 21 is the lower hand; in the relationship between hands 21 and 22, hand 21 is the upper hand and hand 22 is the lower hand; in the relationship between hands 22 and 23, hand 22 is the upper hand and hand 23 is the lower hand; and in the relationship between hands 23 and 24, hand 23 is the upper hand and hand 24 is the lower hand.

[0032] The hands 14 to 24 move linearly in the horizontal direction when transporting the wafer 2. In the following description, the X direction in Fig. 3 etc., which is the movement direction (reciprocation direction) of the hands 14 to 24, is defined as the "front-rear direction", and the Y direction in Fig. 3 etc., which is perpendicular to the up-down direction and the front-rear direction, is defined as the "left-right direction". The left-right direction (Y direction) in this embodiment is an orthogonal direction perpendicular to the movement direction of the hands 14 to 24 and the up-down direction.

[0033] For ease of explanation, the X1 direction in Fig. 3, etc., which is one side in the front-rear direction, will be referred to as the "front" side, the X2 direction in Fig. 3, etc., which is the opposite side, will be referred to as the "rear" side, the Y1 direction in Fig. 3, etc., which is one side in the left-right direction, will be referred to as the "right" side, and the Y2 direction in Fig. 3, etc., which is the opposite side, will be referred to as the "left" side. In this embodiment, the front side is the tip side of the hands 14 to 24, and the rear side is the base end side of the hands 14 to 24.

[0034] Each of the hands 14 to 24 includes a blade 36 on which a wafer 2 is mounted. As shown in Fig. 5, the hand 14 includes a blade holding member 37 to which the blade 36 is fixed, and a fixing member 49 to which the blade holding member 37 is fixed. Like the hand 14, the hand 15 includes a blade holding member 38 to which the blade 36 is fixed, and a fixing member 50 to which the blade holding member 38 is fixed, and the hand 16 includes a blade holding member 39 to which the blade 36 is fixed, and a fixing member 51 to which the blade holding member 39 is fixed.

[0035] Similarly, hand 17 comprises a blade holding member 40 to which blade 36 is fixed and a fixed member 52 to which blade holding member 40 is fixed, hand 18 comprises a blade holding member 41 to which blade 36 is fixed and a fixed member 53 to which blade holding member 41 is fixed, hand 19 comprises a blade holding member 42 to which blade 36 is fixed and a fixed member 54 to which blade holding member 42 is fixed, and hand 20 comprises a blade holding member 43 to which blade 36 is fixed and a fixed member 55 to which blade holding member 43 is fixed.

[0036] Furthermore, hand 21 comprises a blade holding member 44 to which blade 36 is fixed and a fixed member 56 to which blade holding member 44 is fixed, hand 22 comprises a blade holding member 45 to which blade 36 is fixed and a fixed member 57 to which blade holding member 45 is fixed, hand 23 comprises a blade holding member 46 to which blade 36 is fixed and a fixed member 58 to which blade holding member 46 is fixed, and hand 24 comprises a blade holding member 47 to which blade 36 is fixed and a fixed member 59 to which blade holding member 47 is fixed.

[0037] In this embodiment, the mounting portion for the wafer 2 is formed by each of the blade holding members 37-47 and the blade 36. The blade 36 is formed in a flat plate shape. The blade 36 is arranged so that the thickness direction of the blade 36 coincides with the up-down direction. When viewed from the up-down direction, the shape of the blade 36 is approximately U-shaped. The blade 36 is formed separately from the blade holding members 37-47. Similarly to the hands 14-24, the hand 4 includes a blade 73 on which the wafer 2 is mounted (see FIG. 2).

[0038] The blade holding members 37-47 are formed in a substantially rectangular flat plate shape. The blade holding members 37-47 are arranged so that the thickness direction of the blade holding members 37-47 coincides with the up-down direction. The hand 14 of this embodiment includes two blade holding members 37, and the two blade holding members 37 are arranged with a gap between them in the left-right direction. Similarly, each of the hands 15-24 includes two blade holding members 38-47, and the two blade holding members 38-47 are arranged with a gap between them in the left-right direction.

[0039] The rear end (base end) of the blade 36 is fixed to the front ends of the two blade holding members 37-47 by bolts such as flat head bolts. The rear end of the blade 36 is disposed above the front ends of the blade holding members 37-47 and is fixed to the blade holding members 37-47 in a state where it overlaps with the front ends of the blade holding members 37-47 in the vertical direction. The lower surface of the rear end of the blade 36 is in contact with the upper surfaces of the front ends of the blade holding members 37-47.

[0040] The fixing members 49 to 59 are formed in a flat plate shape. The fixing members 49 to 59 are arranged so that the thickness direction of the fixing members 49 to 59 coincides with the vertical direction, and the upper and lower surfaces of the fixing members 49 to 59 are planes perpendicular to the vertical direction. The outer shapes of the fixing members 49 to 59 are almost the same as each other. The fixing members 49 to 59 are overlapped at a predetermined pitch in the vertical direction. As described above, the hands 14 to 24 are arranged in this order from the top to the bottom, and the fixing members 49 to 59 are arranged in this order from the top to the bottom. The fixing members 50 to 59 arranged below the fixing member 49 cannot be seen from above the fixing member 49.

[0041] Each of the blade holding members 37-47 is fixed to the front end portion of each of the fixed members 49-59 by a bolt. Each of the blade holding members 37-47 is fixed to the fixed members 49-59 in a state where it overlaps with each of the fixed members 49-59 in the up-down direction. Specifically, each of the blade holding members 37-47 is disposed above the front end portion of each of the fixed members 49-59, and is fixed to the fixed members 49-59 in a state where it overlaps with the front end portion of each of the fixed members 49-59 in the up-down direction. The lower surface of each of the blade holding members 37-47 is in contact with the upper surface of the front end portion of each of the fixed members 49-49.

[0042] Most of the fixed members 49-59, excluding the front ends of the fixed members 49-59 to which the blade holding members 37-47 are fixed, are disposed between a lower frame 75 constituting the lower surface of the mounting mechanism 3, and an upper frame 76 (see Figs. 6-8) constituting the upper surface of the mounting mechanism 3. The lower frame 75 is fixed to a movable part of the linear drive mechanism 5. A plurality of pillars standing upward are fixed to the upper surface of the lower frame 75, and the upper frame 76 is fixed to the upper ends of the plurality of pillars. Note that the upper frame 76 is not shown in Figs. 3, 4, etc.

[0043] A support member 78 having support parts 78a for supporting the fixed member 50 from below is fixed to the fixed member 49. That is, the hand 14 is provided with support parts 78a for supporting the hand 15 from below. The hand 14 in this embodiment is provided with support parts 78a arranged on both sides in the left-right direction. That is, in this embodiment, the support members 78 are fixed to the fixed member 49 on both sides in the left-right direction, and the two support parts 78a make it possible to support the fixed member 50 from below on both sides in the left-right direction.

[0044] Similarly, support members 79 having support portions 79a for supporting fixed member 51 from below on both left and right sides are fixed to both left and right ends of fixed member 50, support members 80 having support portions 80a for supporting fixed member 52 from below on both left and right sides are fixed to both left and right ends of fixed member 51, support members 81 having support portions 81a for supporting fixed member 53 from below on both left and right sides are fixed to both left and right ends of fixed member 52, and support members 82 having support portions 82a for supporting fixed member 54 from below on both left and right sides are fixed to both left and right ends of fixed member 53.

[0045] In addition, support members 83 having support portions 83a for supporting fixed member 55 from below on both left and right sides are fixed to both left and right ends of fixed member 54, support members 84 having support portions 84a for supporting fixed member 56 from below on both left and right sides are fixed to both left and right ends of fixed member 55, support members 85 having support portions 85a for supporting fixed member 57 from below on both left and right sides are fixed to both left and right ends of fixed member 56, support members 86 having support portions 86a for supporting fixed member 58 from below on both left and right sides are fixed to both left and right ends of fixed member 57, and support members 87 having support portions 87a for supporting fixed member 59 from below on both left and right sides are fixed to both left and right ends of fixed member 58.

[0046] That is, each of the hands 15 to 23 includes support portions 79a to 87a for supporting from below each of the hands 16 to 24. Also, each of the hands 15 to 23 includes two support portions 79a to 87a arranged on both sides in the left-right direction.

[0047] On the right end side of the fixing members 49 to 59, the support members 78 to 87 are arranged at the same position in the left-right direction. Also, on the right end side of the fixing members 49 to 59, for example, as shown in Fig. 6, in the front-rear direction, the support members 78, 82, and 86 are arranged at the same position, the support members 79, 83, and 87 are arranged at the same position, the support members 80 and 84 are arranged at the same position, and the support members 81 and 85 are arranged at the same position, and the support members 78, 82, and 86, the support members 79, 83, and 87, the support members 80 and 84, and the support members 81 and 85 are arranged at positions shifted from each other in the front-rear direction.

[0048] On the left end side of the fixing members 49 to 59, the support members 78, 80, 82, 84, and 86 and the support members 79, 81, 83, 85, and 87 are disposed at positions shifted in the left-right direction. Specifically, the support members 78, 80, 82, 84, and 86 are disposed to the right of the support members 79, 81, 83, 85, and 87. Also, on the left end side of the fixing members 49 to 59, for example, the support members 78, 80, 82, 84, and 86 are disposed rearward of the support members 79, 81, 83, 85, and 87.

[0049] 9, support member 78 includes fixed portion 78b fixed to fixing member 49 and position adjustment portion 78c extending outward in the left-right direction from fixed portion 78b. Support member 79 also includes fixed portion 79b fixed to fixing member 50 and position adjustment portion 79c extending outward in the left-right direction from fixed portion 79b. Similarly, support members 80-87 include fixed portions 80b-87b fixed to fixing members 51-58, respectively, and position adjustment portions 80c-87c extending outward in the left-right direction from fixed portions 80b-87b, respectively.

[0050] The support parts 78a to 87a, the fixed parts 78b to 87b, and the position adjustment parts 78c to 87c are formed in a flat plate shape. The support parts 78a to 87a are arranged so that the thickness direction of the support parts 78a to 87a coincides with the up-down direction, the fixed parts 78b to 87b are arranged so that the thickness direction of the fixed parts 78b to 87b coincides with the left-right direction, and the position adjustment parts 78c to 87c are arranged so that the thickness direction of the position adjustment parts 78c to 87c coincides with the up-down direction. Each of the fixed parts 78b to 87b is fixed to the left-right end faces of the fixing members 49 to 58 by a bolt 61. Each of the support parts 78a to 87a extends from the lower end of the fixed parts 78b to 87b toward the inside in the left-right direction.

[0051] The lower surfaces of both left and right end portions of the fixing members 50 to 59 are formed with recesses 50b to 59b in which the support portions 78a to 87a are disposed, respectively. The recesses 50b to 59b are recessed upward from the lower surface of each of the fixing members 50 to 59 and from both left and right end surfaces of each of the fixing members 50 to 59 toward the inside in the left and right direction. The upper surfaces of the recesses 50b to 59b are flat surfaces perpendicular to the up and down direction. The thickness (up and down thickness) of the support portions 78a to 87a is thinner than the up and down width of the recesses 50b to 59b.

[0052] The vertical positions of the support members 78-87 relative to the fixing members 49-58 can be adjusted by adjustment bolts 88. The adjustment bolts 88 are composed of a pressing bolt 63 that contacts the upper surface of each of the position adjustment parts 78c-87c to press each of the position adjustment parts 78c-87c downward, and a pulling bolt 64 that pulls each of the position adjustment parts 78c-87c upward (see FIG. 9). The pressing bolt 63 is, for example, a hexagon socket set screw, and the pulling bolt 64 is, for example, a hexagon socket bolt.

[0053] Each of the fixing members 49 to 58 has a bolt holding portion 49c to 58c formed therein, in which a screw hole into which the male thread of the pressing bolt 63 engages and a through hole into which the pulling bolt 64 is inserted are formed. Each of the bolt holding portions 49c to 58c is formed at both ends in the left-right direction of each of the fixing members 49 to 58. Each of the bolt holding portions 49c to 58c protrudes outward in the left-right direction from each of the fixing members 49 to 58. Each of the bolt holding portions 49c to 58c is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape.

[0054] The bolt holding portions 49c to 58c are disposed above the position adjustment portions 78c to 87c, respectively. The fixed portions 78b to 87b are formed with notches to prevent interference between the fixed portions 78b to 87b and the bolt holding portions 49c to 58c. A nut 65 that engages with the pressing bolt 63 is disposed above the bolt holding portions 49c to 58c (see FIG. 9). The nut 65 serves to prevent the pressing bolt 63 from loosening. The position adjustment portions 78c to 87c are formed with a screw hole into which the male thread of the pulling bolt 64 engages.

[0055] In addition, a support member 89 having support parts 89a for supporting the fixed member 49 from below on both left and right sides is fixed to the upper frame 76 of the mounting mechanism 3 (see FIG. 6). That is, the upper frame 76 is provided with two support parts 89a for supporting the hand 14 from below on both left and right sides. The support member 89 is configured similarly to the support members 78 to 87, and includes a fixed part fixed to the upper frame 76 and a position adjustment part extending outward in the left and right direction from the fixed part. The support part 89a is formed in a flat plate shape, and is arranged so that the thickness direction of the support part 89a coincides with the up-down direction. Note that the illustration of the support member 89 is omitted in figures other than FIG. 6.

[0056] The lower surface of the fixing member 49 at both ends in the left-right direction is formed with a recess 49b in which the support portion 89a is disposed. Like the recesses 50b to 59b, the recess 49b is recessed upward from the lower surface of the fixing member 49 and inward in the left-right direction from both ends of the fixing member 49 in the left-right direction. The upper surface of the recess 49b is a flat surface perpendicular to the up-down direction. The thickness (up-down thickness) of the support portion 89a is thinner than the up-down width of the recess 49b. The up-down position of the support member 89 with respect to the upper frame 76 can be adjusted by an adjustment bolt similar to the adjustment bolt 88.

[0057] (Configuration of pitch change mechanism) FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view for explaining the configuration of the guide mechanism 92 shown in FIG.

[0058] The pitch change mechanism 25 changes the vertical pitch of the eleven blades 36. That is, the pitch change mechanism 25 changes the vertical pitch of the mounting portions of the eleven hands 14 to 24. Specifically, the pitch change mechanism 25 sets the vertical pitch of the eleven blades 36 to a predetermined first pitch (see FIG. 8) and a second pitch (see FIG. 7) that is wider than the first pitch. The first pitch is, for example, about 8 mm, and the second pitch is, for example, about 10 mm. The pitch change mechanism 25 includes a lifting mechanism 91 that lifts and lowers the hand 24, and a guide mechanism 92 that linearly guides the hands 14 to 24 in the vertical direction.

[0059] The lifting mechanism 91 includes an air cylinder 93 as a drive source, and a connecting member 94 that connects the air cylinder 93 and the hand 24. The air cylinder 93 is a low-speed air cylinder whose rod (piston) moves at a relatively slow speed. The air cylinder 93 is disposed behind the hands 14 to 24. The body of the air cylinder 93 is fixed to the upper surface side of the lower frame 75. The air cylinder 93 is disposed such that the rod of the air cylinder 93 protrudes downward. The connecting member 94 is fixed to the lower end of the rod of the air cylinder 93 and the lower surface of the fixed member 59 of the hand 24.

[0060] The guide mechanism 92 linearly guides the fixed members 49-59 in the vertical direction. The guide mechanism 92 is a ball spline mechanism including a plurality of spline shafts 95-98 and a plurality of outer cylinders 99 into which the spline shafts 95-98 are inserted. The guide mechanism 92 in this embodiment includes four spline shafts 95-98 (see FIG. 3) and 22 outer cylinders 99. The spline shafts 95-98 are arranged such that the axial direction of the spline shafts 95-98 coincides with the vertical direction. The lower ends of the spline shafts 95-98 are fixed to the lower frame 75, and the upper ends of the spline shafts 95-98 are fixed to the upper frame 76.

[0061] As shown in Fig. 3, the spline shafts 95 and 96 are disposed on the right end side of the hands 14 to 24. The spline shafts 97 and 98 are disposed to the left of the center of the hands 14 to 24 in the left-right direction. The spline shafts 95 and 96 are disposed at the same position in the left-right direction and are disposed with a gap between them in the front-rear direction. The spline shaft 95 is disposed rearward of the spline shaft 96.

[0062] The spline shafts 97 and 98 are disposed at positions offset from each other in the front-rear and left-right directions. The spline shaft 97 is disposed rearward and to the right of the spline shaft 98. The spline shafts 95 and 97 are disposed at positions offset from each other in the front-rear direction. The spline shaft 95 is disposed slightly rearward of the spline shaft 97. The spline shafts 96 and 98 are disposed at the same position in the front-rear direction.

[0063] The outer cylinder 99 is formed in a cylindrical shape. The outer cylinder 99 is fixed to each of the hands 14 to 24. In this embodiment, two outer cylinders 99 are fixed to each of the fixed members 49 to 59. The outer cylinders 99 are fixed to two locations, a rear end portion and a front end portion, of each of the fixed members 49 to 59. Specifically, the outer cylinder 99 through which the spline shaft 95 is inserted is fixed to each of the fixed members 50, 52, 54, 56, and 58, and the outer cylinder 99 through which the spline shaft 96 is inserted is fixed to each of the fixed members 49, 51, 53, 55, 57, and 59 (see FIG. 10). Further, the outer cylinder 99 through which the spline shaft 97 is inserted is fixed to each of the fixed members 49, 51, 53, 55, 57, and 59, and the outer cylinder 99 through which the spline shaft 98 is inserted is fixed to each of the fixed members 50, 52, 54, 56, and 58.

[0064] The length of the outer cylinder 99 (length in the vertical direction (axial direction)) is longer than the thickness of the fixing members 49 to 59. The upper end of the outer cylinder 99 protrudes upward from the upper surfaces of the fixing members 49 to 59 to which the outer cylinder 99 is fixed. The lower end of the outer cylinder 99 protrudes downward from the lower surfaces of the fixing members 49 to 59 to which the outer cylinder 99 is fixed. The fixing members 49, 51, 53, 55, 57, and 59 are formed with through holes 49d, 51d, 53d, 55d, 57d, and 59d through which the spline shafts 95 and 98 are inserted (see FIG. 10). The fixing members 50, 52, 54, 56, and 58 are formed with through holes 50d, 52d, 54d, 56d, and 58d through which the spline shafts 96 and 97 are inserted (see FIG. 10).

[0065] In this manner, in this embodiment, the hands 15, 17, 19, 21, 23 to which the outer cylinder 99 through which the spline shaft 95 is inserted is fixed and the hands 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24 to which the through holes 49d, 51d, 53d, 55d, 57d, 59d through which the spline shaft 95 is inserted are formed and to which the outer cylinder 99 through which the spline shaft 95 is inserted is not fixed are arranged alternately in the vertical direction. Also, the hands 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24 to which the outer cylinder 99 through which the spline shaft 96 is inserted is fixed and the hands 15, 17, 19, 21, 23 to which the through holes 50d, 52d, 54d, 56d, 58d through which the spline shaft 96 is inserted are formed and to which the outer cylinder 99 through which the spline shaft 96 is inserted is not fixed are arranged alternately in the vertical direction.

[0066] In addition, the hands 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24 to which the outer cylinder 99 through which the spline shaft 97 is inserted is fixed and the hands 15, 17, 19, 21, 23 in which the through holes 50d, 52d, 54d, 56d, 58d through which the spline shaft 97 is inserted are formed and the outer cylinder 99 through which the spline shaft 97 is inserted is not fixed are arranged alternately in the vertical direction. In addition, the hands 15, 17, 19, 21, 23 to which the outer cylinder 99 through which the spline shaft 98 is inserted is fixed and the hands 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24 in which the through holes 49d, 51d, 53d, 55d, 57d, 59d through which the spline shaft 98 is inserted are formed and the outer cylinder 99 through which the spline shaft 98 is inserted is not fixed are arranged alternately in the vertical direction.

[0067] That is, in this embodiment, hands 14-24 to which an outer tube 99 through which one of the four spline shafts 95-98 is inserted is fixed, and hands 14-24 to which a through hole 49d-59d through which this one spline shaft 95-98 is inserted and to which no outer tube 99 through which this one spline shaft 95-98 is inserted is fixed are arranged alternately in the vertical direction.

[0068] The through holes 49d-59d are circular holes that penetrate in the vertical direction. The inner diameters of the through holes 49d-59d are larger than the outer diameter of the outer cylinder 99. More specifically, in order to prevent interference between the fixing members 49-59 and the outer cylinder 99 when the vertical pitch of the eleven blades 36 becomes the first pitch, the inner diameters of the through holes 49d-59d are larger than the outer diameter of the upper end of the outer cylinder 99 that protrudes upward from the upper surface of the fixing members 49-59 and the outer diameter of the lower end of the outer cylinder 99 that protrudes downward from the lower surface of the fixing members 49-59.

[0069] In this embodiment, when the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is the first pitch, the rod of the air cylinder 93 is retracted and the hand 24 is pushed up. At this time, as shown in Fig. 8, the upper surface of the fixed member 49 contacts the lower surface of the upper frame 76, the upper surface of the fixed member 50 contacts the lower surface of the fixed member 49, the upper surface of the fixed member 51 contacts the lower surface of the fixed member 50, the upper surface of the fixed member 52 contacts the lower surface of the fixed member 51, the upper surface of the fixed member 53 contacts the lower surface of the fixed member 52, the upper surface of the fixed member 54 contacts the lower surface of the fixed member 53, the upper surface of the fixed member 55 contacts the lower surface of the fixed member 54, the upper surface of the fixed member 56 contacts the lower surface of the fixed member 55, the upper surface of the fixed member 57 contacts the lower surface of the fixed member 56, the upper surface of the fixed member 58 contacts the lower surface of the fixed member 57, and the upper surface of the fixed member 59 contacts the lower surface of the fixed member 58.

[0070] In other words, when the pitch of the 11 blades 36 is the first pitch, the upper surface of hand 14 contacts the lower surface of upper frame 76, the upper surface of hand 15 contacts the lower surface of hand 14, the upper surface of hand 16 contacts the lower surface of hand 15, the upper surface of hand 17 contacts the lower surface of hand 16, the upper surface of hand 18 contacts the lower surface of hand 17, the upper surface of hand 19 contacts the lower surface of hand 18, the upper surface of hand 20 contacts the lower surface of hand 19, the upper surface of hand 21 contacts the lower surface of hand 20, the upper surface of hand 22 contacts the lower surface of hand 21, the upper surface of hand 23 contacts the lower surface of hand 22, and the upper surface of hand 24 contacts the lower surface of hand 23.

[0071] In addition, when the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is the first pitch, in the vertical direction, a gap is formed between the fixed member 49 and the upper surface of the support portion 89a, a gap is formed between the fixed member 50 and the upper surface of the support portion 78a, a gap is formed between the fixed member 51 and the upper surface of the support portion 79a, a gap is formed between the fixed member 52 and the upper surface of the support portion 80a, a gap is formed between the fixed member 53 and the upper surface of the support portion 81a, a gap is formed between the fixed member 54 and the upper surface of the support portion 82a, a gap is formed between the fixed member 55 and the upper surface of the support portion 83a, a gap is formed between the fixed member 56 and the upper surface of the support portion 84a, a gap is formed between the fixed member 57 and the upper surface of the support portion 85a, a gap is formed between the fixed member 58 and the upper surface of the support portion 86a, and a gap is formed between the fixed member 59 and the upper surface of the support portion 87a.

[0072] In addition, when the pitch of the 11 blades 36 is the first pitch, in the vertical direction, a gap is formed between the fixed member 50 and the lower surface of the support portion 89a, a gap is formed between the fixed member 51 and the lower surface of the support portion 78a, a gap is formed between the fixed member 52 and the lower surface of the support portion 79a, a gap is formed between the fixed member 53 and the lower surface of the support portion 80a, a gap is formed between the fixed member 54 and the lower surface of the support portion 81a, a gap is formed between the fixed member 55 and the lower surface of the support portion 82a, a gap is formed between the fixed member 56 and the lower surface of the support portion 83a, a gap is formed between the fixed member 57 and the lower surface of the support portion 84a, a gap is formed between the fixed member 58 and the lower surface of the support portion 85a, and a gap is formed between the fixed member 59 and the lower surface of the support portion 86a.

[0073] On the other hand, when the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is the second pitch, the rod of the air cylinder 93 protrudes and pulls down the hand 24. At this time, as shown in Fig. 7, the fixed member 49 contacts the upper surface of the support portion 89a, the fixed member 50 contacts the upper surface of the support portion 78a, the fixed member 51 contacts the upper surface of the support portion 79a, the fixed member 52 contacts the upper surface of the support portion 80a, the fixed member 53 contacts the upper surface of the support portion 81a, the fixed member 54 contacts the upper surface of the support portion 82a, the fixed member 55 contacts the upper surface of the support portion 83a, the fixed member 56 contacts the upper surface of the support portion 84a, the fixed member 57 contacts the upper surface of the support portion 85a, the fixed member 58 contacts the upper surface of the support portion 86a, and the fixed member 59 contacts the upper surface of the support portion 87a.

[0074] In other words, when the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is the second pitch, hand 14 contacts support portion 89a, hand 15 contacts support portion 78a, hand 16 contacts support portion 79a, hand 17 contacts support portion 80a, hand 18 contacts support portion 81a, hand 19 contacts support portion 82a, hand 20 contacts support portion 83a, hand 21 contacts support portion 84a, hand 22 contacts support portion 85a, hand 23 contacts support portion 86a, and hand 24 contacts support portion 87a.

[0075] Furthermore, when the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is the second pitch, in the vertical direction, a gap is formed between the upper surface of the fixed member 49 and the lower surface of the upper frame 76, a gap is formed between the upper surface of the fixed member 50 and the lower surface of the fixed member 49, a gap is formed between the upper surface of the fixed member 51 and the lower surface of the fixed member 50, a gap is formed between the upper surface of the fixed member 52 and the lower surface of the fixed member 51, a gap is formed between the upper surface of the fixed member 53 and the lower surface of the fixed member 52, a gap is formed between the upper surface of the fixed member 54 and the lower surface of the fixed member 53, a gap is formed between the upper surface of the fixed member 55 and the lower surface of the fixed member 54, a gap is formed between the upper surface of the fixed member 56 and the lower surface of the fixed member 55, a gap is formed between the upper surface of the fixed member 57 and the lower surface of the fixed member 56, a gap is formed between the upper surface of the fixed member 58 and the lower surface of the fixed member 57, and a gap is formed between the upper surface of the fixed member 59 and the lower surface of the fixed member 58.

[0076] When the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is at the second pitch, and the lifting mechanism 91 raises the hand 24 (specifically, when the air cylinder 93 raises the hand 24), the upper surface of the fixed member 59 comes into contact with the lower surface of the fixed member 58 and lifts the fixed member 58, then the upper surface of the fixed member 58 comes into contact with the lower surface of the fixed member 57 and lifts the fixed member 57, then the upper surface of the fixed member 57 comes into contact with the lower surface of the fixed member 56 and lifts the fixed member 56, then the upper surface of the fixed member 56 comes into contact with the lower surface of the fixed member 55 and lifts the fixed member 55, and then the upper surface of the fixed member 55 It contacts the underside of fixed member 54 and lifts fixed member 54, then the upper surface of fixed member 54 contacts the underside of fixed member 53 and lifts fixed member 53, then the upper surface of fixed member 53 contacts the underside of fixed member 52 and lifts fixed member 52, then the upper surface of fixed member 52 contacts the underside of fixed member 51 and lifts fixed member 51, then the upper surface of fixed member 51 contacts the underside of fixed member 50 and lifts fixed member 50, then the upper surface of fixed member 50 contacts the underside of fixed member 49 and lifts fixed member 49, and the pitch of the 11 blades 36 becomes the first pitch.

[0077] In this manner, when the lifting mechanism 91 lifts the hand 24 in a state in which the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is the second pitch, the upper surfaces of the hands 24-15 come into contact with the lower surfaces of the hands 23-14, lifting the hands 23-14, and the pitch of the eleven blades 36 becomes the first pitch. Specifically, when the lifting mechanism 91 lifts the hand 24 in a state in which the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is the second pitch, the upper surfaces of the hands 24-15 come into contact with the lower surfaces of the hands 23-14 in sequence, lifting the hands 23-14 in sequence in this order, and the pitch of the eleven blades 36 becomes the first pitch. In other words, when the lifting mechanism 91 lifts the hand 24 in a state in which the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is the second pitch, the hands 14-23 rise with the rise of the hand 24, and the vertical pitch of the eleven blades 36 becomes the first pitch.

[0078] On the other hand, when the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is at the first pitch, and the lifting mechanism 91 lowers the hand 24 (specifically, when the air cylinder 93 lowers the hand 24), the fixed member 59 comes into contact with the upper surface of the support portion 87a and pulls down the fixed member 58, then the fixed member 58 comes into contact with the upper surface of the support portion 86a and pulls down the fixed member 57, then the fixed member 57 comes into contact with the upper surface of the support portion 85a and pulls down the fixed member 56, then the fixed member 56 comes into contact with the upper surface of the support portion 84a and pulls down the fixed member 55, and then the fixed member 55 comes into contact with the upper surface of the support portion 84a and pulls down the fixed member 55. comes into contact with the upper surface of support portion 83a and pulls down fixed member 54, then fixed member 54 comes into contact with the upper surface of support portion 82a and pulls down fixed member 53, then fixed member 53 comes into contact with the upper surface of support portion 81a and pulls down fixed member 52, then fixed member 52 comes into contact with the upper surface of support portion 80a and pulls down fixed member 51, then fixed member 51 comes into contact with the upper surface of support portion 79a and pulls down fixed member 50, then fixed member 50 comes into contact with the upper surface of support portion 78a and pulls down fixed member 49, and the pitch of the 11 blades 36 becomes the second pitch.

[0079] In this manner, when the lifting mechanism 91 lowers the hand 24 in a state in which the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is the first pitch, the hands 24-15 come into contact with the support parts 87a-78a and pull down the hands 23-14, and the pitch of the eleven blades 36 becomes the second pitch. Specifically, when the lifting mechanism 91 lowers the hand 24 in a state in which the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is the first pitch, the hands 24-15 come into contact with the upper surfaces of the support parts 87a-78a in sequence and pull down the hands 23-14 in sequence in this order, and the pitch of the eleven blades 36 becomes the second pitch. That is, when the lifting mechanism 91 lowers the hand 24 in a state in which the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is the first pitch, the hands 14-23 descend with the descent of the hand 24, and the vertical pitch of the eleven blades 36 becomes the second pitch.

[0080] (Main effects of this form) As described above, in this embodiment, when the lifting mechanism 91 lifts the hand 24, the hands 14 to 23 lift in accordance with the lifting of the hand 24, and the vertical pitch of the eleven blades 36 becomes the first pitch, and when the lifting mechanism 91 lowers the hand 24, the hands 14 to 23 lower in accordance with the lowering of the hand 24, and the vertical pitch of the eleven blades 36 becomes the second pitch. Therefore, in this embodiment, even if two elongated lever members are not used as in the industrial robot described in the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, the vertical pitch of the eleven blades 36 can be changed by lifting one hand 24 by the lifting mechanism 91. Therefore, in this embodiment, the pitch change mechanism 25 can be made smaller in size.

[0081] In addition, in this embodiment, the vertical pitch of the eleven blades 36 can be changed by raising and lowering one hand 24 with the lifting mechanism 91, so even if the mounting mechanism 3 has eleven hands 14 to 24, the configuration of the pitch change mechanism 25 can be simplified and the pitch change mechanism 25 can be made smaller.

[0082] In this embodiment, when the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is the first pitch, the upper surface of the hand 14 contacts the lower surface of the upper frame 76, and the upper surfaces of the hands 15 to 24 contact the lower surfaces of the hands 14 to 23. Also, in this embodiment, when the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is the second pitch, the hand 14 contacts the support portion 89a, and the hands 15 to 24 contact the support portions 78a to 87a. Therefore, in this embodiment, with a relatively simple configuration, it is possible to perform the vertical positioning of the hands 14 to 24 when the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is the first pitch and the vertical positioning of the hands 14 to 24 when the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is the second pitch.

[0083] In this embodiment, when the lifting mechanism 91 raises the hand 24 in a state in which the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is the second pitch, the upper surfaces of the hands 24-15 come into contact with the lower surfaces of the hands 23-14, lifting the hands 23-14 and causing the pitch of the eleven blades 36 to become the first pitch, and when the lifting mechanism 91 lowers the hand 24 in a state in which the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is the first pitch, the hands 24-15 come into contact with the supports 87a-78a, pulling down the hands 23-14 and causing the pitch of the eleven blades 36 to become the second pitch. Therefore, in this embodiment, it is possible to reliably raise and lower the hands 14-23 in conjunction with the raising and lowering of the hand 24 with a relatively simple configuration.

[0084] In this embodiment, the hands 14 to 23 are provided with support parts 78a to 87a on both left and right sides for supporting the hands 15 to 24 from below, respectively. Also, in this embodiment, the upper frame 76 is provided with a support part 89a on both left and right sides for supporting the hand 14 from below. Therefore, in this embodiment, it is possible to further stabilize the state of the hands 14 to 24 when the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is the second pitch.

[0085] In this embodiment, the hands 14-24 to which an outer cylinder 99 through which one of the four spline shafts 95-98 is inserted is fixed and the hands 14-24 in which the through holes 49d-59d through which the one spline shaft 95-98 is inserted are formed and to which the outer cylinder 99 through which the one spline shaft 95-98 is inserted is not fixed are arranged alternately in the vertical direction. In this embodiment, the inner diameters of the through holes 49d-59d are larger than the outer diameter of the upper end of the outer cylinder 99 protruding upward from the upper surfaces of the fixed members 49-59 and the outer diameter of the lower end of the outer cylinder 99 protruding downward from the lower surfaces of the fixed members 49-59 so that interference between the fixed members 49-59 and the outer cylinder 99 does not occur when the vertical pitch of the eleven blades 36 becomes the first pitch.

[0086] Therefore, in this embodiment, even when the hands 14-24 are guided in the vertical direction using a ball spline mechanism, when the pitch of the eleven blades 36 becomes the first pitch, the lower surface of each of the hands 14-23 and the upper surface of each of the hands 15-24 can be brought into contact with each other, thereby making it possible to reduce the vertical distance between two vertically adjacent hands 14-24. Therefore, in this embodiment, even when the hands 14-24 are guided in the vertical direction using a ball spline mechanism, it is possible to reduce the first pitch.

[0087] (Other embodiments) The above-described embodiment is one example of a preferred embodiment of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited to this embodiment and various modifications are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

[0088] In the above-described embodiment, when the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is the first pitch, the upper surface of the fixed member 50 may contact the lower surface of the support portion 89a, the upper surface of the fixed member 51 may contact the lower surface of the support portion 78a, the upper surface of the fixed member 52 may contact the lower surface of the support portion 79a, the upper surface of the fixed member 53 may contact the lower surface of the support portion 80a, the upper surface of the fixed member 54 may contact the lower surface of the support portion 81a, the upper surface of the fixed member 55 may contact the lower surface of the support portion 82a, the upper surface of the fixed member 56 may contact the lower surface of the support portion 83a, the upper surface of the fixed member 57 may contact the lower surface of the support portion 84a, the upper surface of the fixed member 58 may contact the lower surface of the support portion 85a, and the upper surface of the fixed member 59 may contact the lower surface of the support portion 86a. In this case, a gap is formed between the upper surface of each of the hands 15 to 24 and the lower surface of each of the hands 14 to 23.

[0089] In the embodiment described above, a stopper member for determining the vertical position of the hands 14-24 when the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is the first pitch may be fixed to at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the fixed members 49-58, or may be fixed to the upper surface of the fixed member 59. In other words, the hands 14-24 may be provided with a stopper member for determining the vertical position of the hands 14-24 when the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is the first pitch.

[0090] In the above-described embodiment, the hands 14-23 may not include the support members 78-87. The upper frame 76 may not include the support member 89. In this case, for example, support members corresponding to the support members 78-87, 89 are fixed to a support pillar rising from the lower frame 75. In this case, for example, notches are formed in the fixed members 50-59 to prevent interference between the support members fixed to the support pillars and the fixed members 49-59 when the hands 14-24 are raised and lowered.

[0091] In the above-described embodiment, when the hand 24 is lowered while the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is the first pitch, the hands 14 to 23 may fall under their own weight, causing the pitch of the eleven blades 36 to become the second pitch.

[0092] In the above embodiment, the hand 14 may be fixed to the upper frame 76. Specifically, the fixing member 49 may be fixed to the upper frame 76. In this case, the support member 89 is not necessary. In this case, when the hand 24 is raised in a state where the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is the second pitch, the hands 15 to 23 rise with the hand 24 rising, and the pitch of the eleven blades 36 in the vertical direction becomes the first pitch, and when the hand 24 is lowered in a state where the pitch of the eleven blades 36 is the first pitch, the hands 15 to 23 fall with the hand 24 falling, and the pitch of the eleven blades 36 in the vertical direction becomes the second pitch. In this case, the guide mechanism 92 guides the hands 15 to 24 in the vertical direction.

[0093] In the above embodiment, four outer cylinders 99 may be fixed to each of the hands 14 to 24. In this case, the four spline shafts 95 to 98 are inserted into the four outer cylinders 99 fixed to each of the hands 14 to 24. In this case, the fixed members 49 to 59 are not formed with the through holes 49d to 59d. In the above embodiment, the guide mechanism 92 may include a guide shaft and a bush through which the guide shaft is inserted, instead of the spline shafts 95 to 98 and the outer cylinder 99, or may include a guide rail and a guide block that engages with the guide rail.

[0094] In the above-described embodiment, the lifting mechanism 91 may include a motor instead of the air cylinder 93. Also, in the above-described embodiment, the number of hands included in the mounting mechanism 3 may be 10 or less, or 12 or more, as long as it is 3 or more. Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the robot 1 may not include the hand 4. In this case, the linear drive mechanism 6 and the like become unnecessary. Also, in the above-described embodiment, the robot 1 may not include the tilt correction mechanism 8.

[0095] In the above-described embodiment, the robot 1 may be a horizontal articulated robot. In this case, instead of the linear drive mechanisms 5 to 7, the robot 1 includes an articulated arm to which the mounting mechanism 3 is rotatably connected at its tip, and an articulated arm to which the hand 4 is rotatably connected at its tip. In the above-described embodiment, the robot 1 may transport an object other than the wafer 2. For example, the robot 1 may transport a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display device. [Explanation of symbols]

[0096] 1. Robots (industrial robots) 2 Wafers (semiconductor wafers, transport objects) 3. Mounting mechanism 14 Hand (Top Hand, Upper Hand) 15~23 hands (middle hand, upper hand, lower hand) 24 Hands (Lowest Hands, Lower Hands) 25 Pitch change mechanism 36 Blade (part of mounting area) 37~47 Blade holding member (part of mounting part) 49d~59d through hole 78a~87a Support part 91 Lifting mechanism 92 Guide mechanism 95~98 Spline shaft 99 Outer cylinder X hand movement direction Y orthogonal direction

Claims

1. An industrial robot having a mounting mechanism on which a plurality of transport objects are mounted, the mounting mechanism includes at least three or more hands each having a mounting portion for the object to be transported and overlapping at a predetermined pitch in the vertical direction, and a pitch changing mechanism for changing the vertical pitch of the mounting portions; The hand that is placed at the top of the plurality of hands is defined as the most significant hand, the hand that is placed at the bottom of the plurality of hands is defined as the most significant hand, the hands excluding the most significant hand and the most significant hand are defined as intermediate hands, the hand that is placed at the top of two hands that are adjacent in the vertical direction is defined as the upper hand, and the hand that is placed at the bottom is defined as the lower hand, the pitch change mechanism includes a lift mechanism for lifting the lowest hand, and sets a vertical pitch of the plurality of mounting parts to a predetermined first pitch and a second pitch wider than the first pitch; when the lifting mechanism lifts the lowest hand, at least the intermediate hand lifts in conjunction with the lifting of the lowest hand, so that the vertical pitch of the plurality of mounting units becomes the first pitch; when the lifting mechanism lowers the lowest hand, at least the intermediate hand is lowered in association with the lowering of the lowest hand, so that the vertical pitch of the plurality of mounting units becomes the second pitch; the upper hand includes a support portion for supporting the lower hand from below, When the pitch of the plurality of mounting parts is the first pitch, the upper surface of the lower hand contacts the lower surface of the upper hand, When the pitch of the plurality of mounting parts is the second pitch, the lower hand comes into contact with the support part, A recess in which the support portion is disposed is formed on the lower surface of the lower hand, The recess is recessed upward from the lower surface of the lower hand, The thickness of the support portion in the vertical direction is smaller than the width of the recess in the vertical direction, When the pitch of the multiple mounting parts is the first pitch, the support part is positioned between an upper surface of the recess and an upper surface of the lower hand in the vertical direction.

2. When the lifting mechanism lifts the lowest hand while the pitch of the plurality of mounting parts is the second pitch, an upper surface of the lower hand comes into contact with a lower surface of the upper hand, and the lower hand lifts the upper hand, so that the pitch of the plurality of mounting parts becomes the first pitch; 2. The industrial robot according to claim 1, wherein when the pitch of the plurality of mounting parts is the first pitch and the lifting mechanism lowers the lowest hand, the lower hand comes into contact with the support part and pulls down the upper hand, so that the pitch of the plurality of mounting parts becomes the second pitch.

3. the hand moves linearly in a horizontal direction when transporting the object to be transported, If the direction perpendicular to the moving direction of the hand and the vertical direction is defined as an orthogonal direction, 3. The industrial robot according to claim 1, wherein the upper hand includes the support portions arranged on both sides in the perpendicular direction.

4. the pitch change mechanism includes a guide mechanism that linearly guides at least the intermediate hand and the lowermost hand in a vertical direction, the guide mechanism is a ball spline mechanism including a plurality of spline shafts and a plurality of outer cylinders fixed to the hand and through which the spline shafts are inserted, the hand to which the outer cylinder through which one of the plurality of spline shafts is inserted is fixed, and the hand in which a through hole through which the one spline shaft is inserted and to which the outer cylinder through which the one spline shaft is inserted is not fixed are alternately arranged in a vertical direction, 4. The industrial robot according to claim 1, wherein an inner diameter of the through hole is larger than an outer diameter of the outer cylinder.

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