Control device and machine system

Abstract

This control device is provided with: a determination unit which determines whether or not to allow workpieces being conveyed to be retrieved or whether or not to allow workpieces to be delivered to workpiece containers being conveyed; and a control unit which generates, on the basis of whether or not the retrieval is allowed, a command to collectively retrieve a specified number of workpieces, or generates, on the basis of whether or not the delivery is allowed, a command to collectively deliver a specified number of workpieces, and thereby controls a machine.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of machine control, and more particularly to a control device and machine system for controlling a machine that picks up or dispenses a specified number of workpieces at once. [Background technology]

[0002] There is a machine system in which a machine such as a robot follows a workpiece or a tray transported by a transport device such as a conveyor and picks up the workpiece or delivers the workpiece to a tray. In such a pick-and-place operation, the machine may pick up or deliver multiple workpieces at once. When picking up or delivering multiple workpieces, a workpiece or a tray may be missing from the row of transported workpieces or the row of trays, or the transport information including the current position of the workpiece or the tray may be deleted due to a defective workpiece or tray being transported, or the status of the workpiece or the tray may be set to "unable to be picked up" or "unable to be delivered," so that the specified number of workpieces cannot be picked up or delivered. Therefore, even in such a case, there is a demand to pick up or deliver the specified number of workpieces without any omissions.

[0003] Patent Document 1 describes a robot system that includes a conveyor for transporting workpieces, a robot having multiple holding parts for holding the workpieces, and a controller that instructs the robot to hold the workpieces in the holding parts and transfer them to a specified location, and that transfers multiple workpieces to another conveyor in one go.

[0004] Patent document 2 describes a boxing device that includes a product supply conveyor that supplies products, a box transport conveyor that transports boxes, and an articulated robot that supplies products to the boxes, and that picks up multiple products supplied by the product supply conveyor, reduces the spaces between the products, and supplies them into empty boxes transported by the box transport conveyor. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] JP 2016-60002 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2015-39768 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] In view of the problems in the conventional art, the present invention aims to provide a technique that enables a specified number of workpieces to be picked up or dispensed without any omissions. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The present disclosure First aspect The machine includes a determination unit that determines whether the workpieces being transported can be taken out or whether they can be delivered to a workpiece container, and a control unit that generates a command to take out a specified number of workpieces at once based on whether the workpieces can be taken out or generates a command to deliver a specified number of workpieces at once based on whether the workpieces can be delivered, and controls the machine. The determination unit determines whether the workpiece can be removed based on a status included in the workpiece transport information, or determines whether the workpiece can be delivered to the workpiece container based on a status included in the workpiece container transport information. , a control device is provided. The present disclosure Second Aspect The present invention includes a plurality of machines, a determination unit that determines for each machine whether the workpieces being transported can be taken out or whether the workpieces being transported can be delivered to a workpiece container, and a control unit that generates a command for each machine to take out a designated number of workpieces at once based on whether the workpieces can be taken out or delivers a designated number of workpieces at once based on whether the workpieces can be delivered, and controls the machines. The determination unit determines whether the workpiece can be removed based on a status included in the workpiece transport information, or determines whether the workpiece can be delivered to the workpiece container based on a status included in the workpiece container transport information. , providing a mechanical system. A third aspect of the present disclosure provides a control device comprising: a decision unit that decides whether a workpiece being transported can be removed or whether it can be delivered to a work container being transported; and a control unit that controls the machine by generating a command to remove a specified number of workpieces at once based on whether it can be removed or by generating a command to deliver a specified number of workpieces at once based on whether it can be delivered, wherein the decision unit includes a judgment unit that determines whether the workpiece can be removed or delivered to the work container based on a status included in the transport information of a work group including multiple workpieces or the transport information of a work container group including multiple work containers. The present disclosure Fourth aspect teeth, The machine includes a determination unit that determines whether the transported workpieces can be taken out or whether they can be delivered to a work container that is being transported, and a control unit that controls the machine by generating a command to take out a specified number of workpieces at once based on whether they can be taken out or by generating a command to deliver a specified number of workpieces at once based on whether they can be delivered, and the determination unit includes a distance calculation unit that calculates the distance between current positions included in the transport information of adjacent workpieces or a work group including a plurality of workpieces, or the distance between current positions included in the transport information of adjacent work containers or a work container group including a plurality of work containers, and a determination unit that determines whether the workpieces can be taken out or delivered to the work container based on the calculated distance. , a control device is provided. Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a command to remove or remove a specified number of workpieces at once is generated based on whether the transported workpieces can be removed or removed to a workpiece container being transported, thereby providing a technology that enables the specified number of workpieces to be removed or removed without any omissions. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a mechanical system according to a first embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of the mechanical system according to the first embodiment. [Diagram 3] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing Example 1-1 of the mechanical system according to the first embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing Example 1-2 of the mechanical system of the first embodiment. [Diagram 5] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example 1-3 of the mechanical system according to the first embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example 1-4 of the mechanical system according to the first embodiment. [Figure 7] 4 is a flowchart showing a schematic operation of the control device of the first embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 11 is a configuration diagram of a mechanical system according to a second embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 11 is a functional block diagram of a mechanical system according to a second embodiment. [Figure 10] 10 is a flowchart of a control device according to a second embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing Example 3-1 of the mechanical system according to the third embodiment. [Figure 12] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing Example 3-2 of the mechanical system according to the third embodiment. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing Example 4-1 of the mechanical system according to the fourth embodiment. [Figure 14] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing Example 4-2 of the mechanical system according to the fourth embodiment. [Figure 15] FIG. 13 is a functional block diagram of a mechanical system according to a fifth embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] Hereinafter, the embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In each drawing, the same or similar components are given the same or similar reference numerals. In addition, the embodiments described below do not limit the technical scope and meaning of the terms of the invention described in the claims.

[0011] 1 is a configuration diagram of a machine system 1 of a first embodiment. The machine system 1 of the first embodiment determines whether or not the transported workpieces W can be removed, and removes a specified number of workpieces W in a lump based on whether or not they can be removed. The machine system 1 determines whether or not the workpieces W can be removed based on the status or current position included in the transport information of the workpieces W. In addition, the machine system 1 removes a specified number of workpieces W in a lump based on the transport information of the workpieces W that are located upstream of the workpieces W that have been determined not to be removable.

[0012] The machine system 1 includes a machine 10 that picks up a specified number of workpieces W at once, and a control device 20 that controls the machine 10. The machine system 1 may also include a conveying device movement amount measuring unit 40 that measures the movement amount of the conveying device 30 in order to grasp the current position of the workpieces W being conveyed. The movement amount of the conveying device 30 includes the current position, current speed, etc. of the conveying device 30. Instead of or in addition to the conveying device movement amount measuring unit 40, the machine system 1 may include a visual sensor 50 in order to grasp not only the current position, current speed, etc. of the workpieces W being conveyed, but also the current posture, type, status, etc. of the workpieces W being conveyed.

[0013] The workpieces W are supplied to the conveying device 30 upstream in the conveying direction X, conveyed in the conveying direction X by the conveying device 30, and taken out by the machine 10 downstream in the conveying direction X. The workpieces W are supplied to the conveying device 30 at a roughly constant conveying interval D, but do not necessarily need to be conveyed at an exactly constant conveying interval D. The workpieces W are conveyed in a single row, but may be conveyed in multiple rows, such as two or three rows, as described in the embodiment described later. For example, the workpieces W are rectangular parallelepipeds, but in other embodiments, they may be workpieces of other shapes, such as bag-shaped or cylindrical. The conveying device 30 may convey one type of workpieces W of the same shape and size, or may convey multiple types of workpieces W of different shapes and sizes. The machine 10 takes out one or multiple types of workpieces W at once.

[0014] The machine 10 picks up a specified number of workpieces W at once from among a plurality of workpieces W transported by the transport device 30. The machine 10 includes a motor for driving a moving part and a motor drive device for driving the motor, which are not shown, and the motor drive device is controlled by the control device 20. The machine 10 is connected to the control device 20 via a wire or wirelessly. For example, the machine 10 includes a robot 11 and a hand 12 attached to the robot 11. The robot 11 and the hand 12 are controlled by a single control device 20, but in other embodiments, they may be controlled by separate control devices independent of each other. In other embodiments, the machine 10 may be another type of machine capable of picking up a specified number of workpieces W at once, instead of the robot 11 and the hand 12.

[0015] The robot 11 moves the hand 12 to a workpiece removal position. The workpiece removal position is the center position of the group of workpieces W obtained by averaging the current positions of the specified number of workpieces W, but may be the current position of the workpiece W that was supplied first among the specified number of workpieces W, or the current position of the workpiece W that was supplied last among the specified number of workpieces W, etc. Although not shown, the robot 11 includes a plurality of links capable of relative motion, a motor that drives the links, and a motor drive device that drives the motor, and the motor drive device is controlled by the control device 20. For example, the robot 11 is an industrial robot including a vertical articulated robot, a horizontal articulated robot, an orthogonal robot, a parallel link robot, a collaborative robot, etc. In other embodiments, the robot 11 may be another type of robot such as a humanoid.

[0016] The hand 12 picks up a specified number of workpieces W at a time at a workpiece pick-up position. Although not shown, the hand 12 includes a motor that drives a movable part and a motor drive device that drives the motor, and the motor drive device is controlled by the control device 20. For example, the hand 12 is a vacuum suction type hand. In other embodiments, the hand 12 may be another type of hand, such as a multi-fingered grip type, a magnetic suction type, a vacuum suction type, or a Bernoulli type (non-contact type).

[0017] The control device 20 controls the machine 10 based on the transport information of the workpiece W. The control device 20 generates one piece of transport information for one workpiece W, but may generate one piece of transport information for a specified number of workpieces W. The transport information of the workpiece W includes the current position, current speed, current posture, type, status, etc. of the workpiece W. The control device 20 updates the current position, current speed, etc. of the workpiece W based on the movement amount of the transport device 30 acquired from the transport device movement amount measurement unit 40. In another embodiment, the control device 20 may update the current posture, type, status, etc. of the workpiece W in addition to the current position, current speed, etc. of the workpiece W based on the visual information acquired from the visual sensor 50. Also, the control device 20 updates the status indicating whether the workpiece W can be removed based on the working capacity of the machine 10 or the type of workpiece W that the machine 10 can remove.

[0018] The control device 20 determines whether the workpiece W can be removed based on the status or current position included in the transport information of the workpiece W. If the status included in the transport information of the workpiece W indicates that it can be removed, the control device 20 determines that the workpiece W can be removed, and if the status included in the transport information of the workpiece W indicates that it cannot be removed, the control device 20 determines that the workpiece W cannot be removed. In other words, the control device 20 determines whether the workpiece W can be removed based on the working capacity of the machine 10 or the type of workpiece W that the machine 10 can remove.

[0019] Furthermore, the control device 20 determines that the work W can be removed if the distance between the current positions included in the transport information of the work W is within a threshold, and determines that the work W cannot be removed if the distance between the current positions included in the transport information of the work W is outside the threshold. In other words, the control device 20 determines that the work W cannot be removed if the transport information of the work W is deleted because the work W is a defective product, or if the work W is missing from the line of work W to be transported.

[0020] The control device 20 generates a command to pick up a specified number of workpieces W at once based on the transport information of the workpieces W upstream of the workpieces W determined to be unremovable, and controls the machine 10. The command to pick up a specified number of workpieces W at once includes a movement command to move to a workpiece removal position and a removal command to pick up the specified number of workpieces W. The machine 10 picks up the specified number of workpieces W at once in response to the command from the control device 20. The control device 20 is communicatively connected to the machine 10, the transport device movement amount measuring unit 40, the visual sensor 50, etc. via wired or wireless communication.

[0021] The control device 20 is a computer device (not shown) equipped with a processor, a memory, an input / output unit, and the like. The processor includes a semiconductor integrated circuit that executes a program, such as a central processing unit (CPU) or a micro processing unit (MPU). However, in other embodiments, the processor includes a programmable semiconductor integrated circuit, such as a programmable logic device (PLD) such as a field programmable gate array (FPGA), or a non-programmable semiconductor integrated circuit, such as an ASIC. The memory includes a semiconductor storage device that stores various data, such as a random access memory (RAM) or a read only memory (ROM). In other embodiments, the memory may include a magnetic storage device that stores various data, such as a HDD.

[0022] The transport device 30 transports one or more workpieces W. For example, the transport device 30 is a conveyor, but in other embodiments, it may be another type of transport device such as a transport robot or an automated guided vehicle (AGV). Although not shown, the transport device 30 includes a motor that drives a moving part and a motor drive device that drives the motor, and the motor drive device is controlled by a separate control device that is independent of the control device 20. In other embodiments, the motor drive device of the transport device 30 may be controlled by the control device 20 of the machine 10.

[0023] The conveying device movement amount measuring unit 40 measures the movement amount of the conveying device 30. The movement amount of the conveying device 30 includes the current position, current speed, etc. of the motor that drives the conveying device 30. For example, the conveying device movement amount measuring unit 40 is an encoder (e.g., a pulse coder). In another embodiment, the machine system 1 may be equipped with another type of sensor such as a visual sensor 50 instead of or in addition to the conveying device movement amount measuring unit 40. When the visual sensor 50 is used, the control device 20 may acquire not only the current position, current speed, etc. of the workpiece W, but also the current posture, type, status, etc. of the workpiece W based on the visual information acquired from the visual sensor 50.

[0024] 2 is a functional block diagram of the machine system 1 of the first embodiment. The machine system 1 of the first embodiment is a stand-alone system including one machine 10 and one control device 20. The control device 20 includes a conveyance information generating unit 21, a conveyance device movement amount acquiring unit 22, a conveyance information updating unit 23, a storage unit 24, a designated number setting unit 26, a conveyance information acquiring unit 25, a determining unit 27, a threshold setting unit 28, and a control unit 29. However, it should be noted that the control device 20 includes at least the determining unit 27 and the control unit 29, and other external devices may include other components. For example, as described in the embodiment (see FIG. 15) below, when the machine system 1 is a server-type system including a plurality of machines 10, a plurality of control devices 20, and one upper computer device 60, the upper computer device 60 may include a conveyance information generating unit 21, a conveyance device movement amount acquiring unit 22, a conveyance information updating unit 23, and a storage unit 24, and the control device 20 may include a designated number setting unit 26, a conveyance information acquiring unit 25, a determining unit 27, a threshold setting unit 28, and a control unit 29. Note that the components other than the storage unit 24 are configured as a part or whole of a computer program. In another embodiment, all the components in the control device 20 may be configured as a part or whole of a semiconductor integrated circuit.

[0025] The transport information generating unit 21 generates one piece of transport information for one workpiece W, or generates one piece of transport information for a specified number of workpieces W. The transport information generating unit 21 acquires the set specified number from the specified number setting unit 26. For example, the transport information generating unit 21 receives a supply signal for the workpiece W from an external device (not shown) every time one workpiece W is supplied to the transport device 30, and generates one piece of transport information for one supply signal, or generates one piece of transport information for the specified number of supply signals.

[0026] The transport information generating unit 21 generates transport information in which initial values ​​for the current position, current speed, current posture, type, status, etc. of the workpiece W are set. The transport information generating unit 21 sends the generated transport information to the storage unit 24. In order to simplify subsequent processing, the transport information generating unit 21 may store the transport information in the storage unit 24 in the order in which the workpieces W are transported.

[0027] The transport device movement amount acquisition unit 22 acquires the movement amount of the transport device 30 from the transport device movement amount measurement unit 40. The transport device movement amount acquisition unit 22 sends the acquired movement amount of the transport device 30 to the transport information update unit .

[0028] The transport information update unit 23 updates the transport information of the workpiece W stored in the memory unit 24 based on the amount of movement of the transport device 30, but may also update the transport information of the workpiece W stored in the memory unit 24 based on visual information acquired from the visual sensor 50. For example, the transport information update unit 23 updates the current position, current speed, etc. of the workpiece W stored in the memory unit 24 based on the amount of movement of the transport device 30, or updates the current position, current speed, current posture, type, status, etc. of the workpiece W stored in the memory unit 24 based on visual information acquired from the visual sensor 50.

[0029] The storage unit 24 stores the transport information of the workpieces W in the transport order of the workpieces W. The storage unit 24 is a memory that stores various data (not shown). The memory includes semiconductor storage devices such as RAM and ROM, magnetic storage devices such as HDD, etc.

[0030] The designated number setting unit 26 sets the designated number of workpieces W that the machine 10 will pick up in one batch. The designated number setting unit 26 sets the designated number designated by the user via a user interface unit (not shown) such as a touch panel display, keyboard, etc. Since the range of the designated number that can be picked up in one batch depends on the type of the machine 10 (i.e., the hand 12), the designated number setting unit 26 may have an initial value for the range of the designated number depending on the type of the machine 10. The designated number setting unit 26 sends the set designated number to the transport information generation unit 21 and the transport information acquisition unit 25.

[0031] The transport information acquisition unit 25 acquires the transport information of the workpieces W from the storage unit 24. When generating one piece of transport information for one workpiece W, the transport information acquisition unit 25 acquires the set designated number from the designated number setting unit 26, and sequentially acquires the designated number of pieces of transport information from the storage unit 24 in the transport order of the workpieces W. Alternatively, when generating one piece of transport information for a designated number of workpieces W, the transport information acquisition unit 25 acquires one piece of transport information from the storage unit 24 in the transport order of the workpieces W. The transport information acquisition unit 25 sends the transport information of the workpieces W to the determination unit 27 in the transport order of the workpieces W to confirm whether the workpieces W can be removed.

[0032] The determination unit 27 determines whether or not the workpiece W can be removed based on the status or current position included in the transport information of the workpiece W. The determination unit 27 includes a distance calculation unit 27a and a judgment unit 27b. The judgment unit 27b judges whether or not the status included in the transport information of the workpiece W indicates that it can be removed. If the status included in the transport information of the workpiece W indicates that it can be removed, the judgment unit 27b judges that the workpiece W or the group of workpieces W corresponding to the transport information can be removed, and if the status included in the transport information indicates that it cannot be removed, the judgment unit 27b judges that the workpiece W or the group of workpieces W cannot be removed.

[0033] Further, the distance calculation unit 27a calculates the distance between the current positions included in the transport information of the adjacent workpieces W or workpiece W groups, and the judgment unit 27b judges whether the calculated distance between the current positions is within a threshold. If the calculated distance between the current positions is within the threshold, the judgment unit 27b judges that the adjacent workpieces W or workpiece W groups can be removed, and if the calculated distance between the current positions is outside the threshold, the judgment unit 27b judges that the downstream workpieces W or adjacent workpieces W groups cannot be removed. The decision unit 27 sends the information on whether the workpieces W can be removed to the transport information acquisition unit 25.

[0034] The threshold setting unit 28 sets a threshold for the distance between the current positions included in the transport information of adjacent workpieces W or a group of adjacent workpieces W. The threshold setting unit 28 sets a threshold specified by the user via a user interface unit (not shown) such as a touch panel display or a keyboard. Since the transport interval D of the workpieces W may not be constant, the threshold setting unit 28 may set a range obtained by adding or subtracting an offset to the transport interval D of the workpieces W as the threshold. In addition, when generating one piece of transport information for a specified number of workpieces W, the threshold setting unit 28 may multiply the transport interval D of the workpieces W by the specified number and set a range obtained by adding or subtracting an offset to the multiplied value as the threshold. The threshold setting unit 28 sends the set threshold to the judgment unit 27b.

[0035] When generating one piece of transport information for one workpiece W, if the determination unit 27 determines that the workpiece W or the group of workpieces W can be removed, the transport information acquisition unit 25 sequentially acquires transport information from the storage unit 24 until the designated number is reached, and if the determination unit 27 determines that the workpiece W or the group of workpieces W cannot be removed, the transport information acquisition unit 25 again acquires transport information for the designated number of workpieces W that are upstream of the workpiece W or the group of workpieces W that have been determined to be unremovable from the storage unit 24. If the transport information acquisition unit 25 can acquire the designated number of pieces of transport information from the storage unit 24, it sends the designated number of pieces of transport information to the control unit 29.

[0036] Alternatively, when generating one piece of transport information for a specified number of workpieces W, when the determination unit 27 determines that the group of workpieces W can be removed, the transport information acquisition unit 25 sends one piece of transport information to the control unit 29, and when the determination unit 27 determines that the group of workpieces W cannot be removed, the transport information acquisition unit 25 again acquires one piece of transport information from the memory unit 24.

[0037] The control unit 29 calculates the workpiece removal position based on the current position included in the transport information, generates a command to remove the specified number of workpieces W at once based on the workpiece removal position, and sends the generated command to the machine 10. When generating one piece of transport information for one workpiece W, the control unit 29 calculates the workpiece removal position based on the current positions of the workpieces W included in each of the specified number of transport information. When generating one piece of transport information for the specified number of workpieces W, the control unit 29 calculates the workpiece removal position based on the current positions of the workpieces included in the transport information. The workpiece removal position is a center position obtained by averaging the current positions of the specified number of workpieces W, but it may also be the current position of the workpiece W that was supplied first among the specified number of workpieces W, or the current position of the workpiece W that was supplied last among the specified number of workpieces W. The control unit 29 continues to calculate the workpiece removal position until the machine 10 removes the specified number of workpieces W at once.

[0038] The control unit 29 judges whether or not the workpiece removal position has entered the working area of ​​the machine 10. When the workpiece removal position has entered the working area of ​​the machine 10, the control unit 29 generates a command to remove a specified number of workpieces W in a batch and sends it to the machine 10. The command to remove a specified number of workpieces W in a batch includes a movement command to move to the workpiece removal position and a removal command to remove the specified number of workpieces W. The control unit 29 continues to send the movement command to the machine 10 to move to the workpiece removal position until the machine 10 reaches the workpiece removal position, and when the machine 10 reaches the workpiece removal position, sends a command to the machine 10 to remove the specified number of workpieces W.

[0039] The machine 10 tracks the specified number of workpieces W in response to a command from the control device 20, and when it reaches the workpiece removal position, removes the specified number of workpieces W all at once. As will be described in an embodiment below, after removing the specified number of workpieces W all at once, the machine 10 delivers the specified number of workpieces W all at once to a workpiece container. After delivering the specified number of workpieces W all at once, the machine 10 repeats the above-described operation to remove the specified number of workpieces W all at once.

[0040] Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an example 1-1 of the mechanical system 1 of the first embodiment. This example will be described with reference to Fig. 2. The prerequisites for this example are as follows. One or more types of workpieces W are transported in a line with a transport interval D of 10 cm. The designated number setting unit 26 sets the designated number of workpieces W that the machine 10 will pick up in one batch, ie, four. · Machine 10 takes out workpiece W within working area B ±25 cm in the X coordinate of the machine coordinate system. The hand 12 is configured to be able to pick up one to four workpieces W at a time. The transport information generating unit 21 generates one piece of transport information (W1 to W12) for each workpiece W. The storage unit 24 stores the transport information W1 to W12 in the order in which the workpieces W are transported. The current positions of the workpiece W included in the transport information W1 to W12 are 20 cm, 30 cm, 40 cm, . . . , and 130 cm, respectively, in the X coordinate of the machine coordinate system. The threshold setting unit 28 sets the threshold value of the distance between the current positions included in the transport information of adjacent workpieces W to ±13 cm (=transport interval 10 cm ±offset 3 cm). The status of the workpiece W included in the transport information W2 indicates that it cannot be removed (indicated by an X mark) depending on the working capacity of the machine 10 or the type of workpiece W that the machine 10 can remove.

[0041] The transport information acquisition unit 25 sequentially acquires the designated number of four pieces of transport information W1 to W4 from the storage unit 24 and sequentially sends them to the determination unit 27. The determination unit 27 sequentially determines whether the workpiece W can be removed based on the status of the workpiece W included in each of the transport information W1 to W4. The judgment unit 27b judges that the workpiece W corresponding to the transport information W1 can be removed because the status of the workpiece W included in the transport information W1 indicates that it can be removed. Furthermore, the judgment unit 27b judges that the workpiece W corresponding to the transport information W2 cannot be removed because the status of the workpiece W included in the transport information W2 indicates that it cannot be removed (indicated by an x ​​mark). The determination unit 27 sends to the transport information acquisition unit 25 that the workpiece W corresponding to the transport information W2 cannot be removed.

[0042] The transport information acquisition unit 25 again sequentially acquires transport information W3 to W6 of the designated number of four workpieces W located upstream of the workpiece W determined to be unremovable (indicated by an x ​​mark) from the storage unit 24, and sequentially sends the transport information W3 to W6 to the determination unit 27. The determination unit 27 sequentially determines whether the workpieces W can be removed based on the statuses of the workpieces W contained in the transport information W3 to W6. The determination unit 27b determines that all of the workpieces W corresponding to the transport information W3 to W6 are removable, since all of the statuses contained in the transport information W3 to W6 indicate that they can be removed. The determination unit 27 sequentially sends the removal availability of the workpieces W corresponding to the transport information W3 to W6 to the transport information acquisition unit 25. The transport information acquisition unit 25 sends the transport information W3 to W6 to the control unit 29, since it was able to acquire the designated number of transport information W3 to W6 of the workpieces W determined to be removable from the storage unit 24.

[0043] The control unit 29 calculates the workpiece removal position P' (55 cm) based on the current positions (40 cm, 50 cm, 60 cm, and 70 cm) of the workpieces W included in the transport information W3 to W6. That is, the original workpiece removal position P (35 cm) is corrected to the workpiece removal position P' (55 cm) based on the current positions of the workpieces W included in the transport information W3 to W6 of the workpieces W located upstream of the workpieces W determined to be unremovable (indicated by an x ​​mark). That is, the original workpiece removal area A is corrected to the workpiece removal area A' by the specified number of four workpieces W located upstream of the workpieces W determined to be unremovable.

[0044] The control unit 29 continues to calculate the workpiece removal position P' based on the current positions of the workpieces W contained in the transport information W3 to W6, respectively, until the specified number of four workpieces W are removed. When the workpiece removal position P' enters the working area B (±25 cm) of the machine 10, the control unit 29 continues to send a movement command to the machine 10 to move to the workpiece removal position P', and tracks the specified number of four workpieces W. When the machine 10 reaches the specified number of four workpieces W, the control unit 29 sends a removal command to the machine 10 to remove the specified number of four workpieces W.

[0045] As described above, even if the status included in the transport information W2 indicates that removal is not possible, the machine 10 removes the designated number of four workpieces W that are located upstream of the workpieces W that have been determined to be unremovable, and therefore, the designated number of four workpieces W can be removed without omission. Furthermore, since the transport information generating unit 21 generates one piece of transport information (W1 to W12) for each workpiece W, the machine 10 can remove the designated number of four workpieces W all at once from the workpiece W that is located immediately after the workpiece W that has been determined to be unremovable. In other words, the machine 10 can remove as many workpieces W that can be removed as possible.

[0046] Fig. 4 is a diagram showing Example 1-2 of the mechanical system 1 of the first embodiment. This example will be described with reference to Fig. 2. The prerequisites for this example are as follows. One or more types of workpieces W are transported in a line with a transport interval D of 10 cm. The designated number setting unit 26 sets the designated number of workpieces W that the machine 10 will pick up in one batch, ie, four. · Machine 10 takes out workpiece W within working area B ±25 cm in the X coordinate of the machine coordinate system. The hand 12 is configured to be able to pick up one to four workpieces W at a time. The transport information generating unit 21 generates one piece of transport information (W1 to W11) for each work W. The storage unit 24 stores the transport information W1 to W11 in the order in which the workpieces W are transported. The current positions of the workpiece W included in the transport information W1 to W11 are 20 cm, 40 cm, 50 cm, . . . , and 130 cm, respectively, in the X coordinate of the machine coordinate system. The threshold setting unit 28 sets the threshold value of the distance between the current positions included in the transport information of adjacent workpieces W to ±13 cm (=transport interval 10 cm ±offset 3 cm). Between the workpiece W corresponding to the transport information W1 and the workpiece W corresponding to the transport information W2, the transport information is deleted because the workpiece W is defective, or the workpiece W is transported in a gapped state because a workpiece W has been dropped from the row of workpieces W.

[0047] The transport information acquisition unit 25 sequentially acquires transport information W1 to W4 of the specified number of four workpieces W from the storage unit 24 and sequentially sends them to the determination unit 27. The determination unit 27 sequentially determines whether or not the workpieces W can be removed based on the distance between the current positions included in the transport information W1 and W2 of the adjacent workpieces W, the transport information W2 and W3 of the adjacent workpieces W, and the transport information W3 and W4 of the adjacent workpieces W. The distance calculation unit 27a calculates the distance (20 cm) between the current positions (20 cm and 40 cm) included in the transport information W1 and W2 of the adjacent workpieces W, and the determination unit 27b determines that the calculated distance (20 cm) between the current positions is outside the threshold value (±13 cm). The determination unit 27 determines that the downstream workpiece W of the adjacent workpieces W cannot be removed, and sends to the transport information acquisition unit 25 the inability to remove the workpiece W corresponding to the transport information W1.

[0048] The transport information acquisition unit 25 again sequentially acquires transport information W2 to W5 of the designated number of four workpieces W located upstream of the workpiece W determined to be unremovable from the storage unit 24, and sequentially sends the information to the determination unit 27. The determination unit 27 sequentially determines whether or not the workpiece W can be removed based on the distance between the current positions included in the transport information W2 and W3 of the adjacent workpieces W, the transport information W3 and W4 of the adjacent workpieces W, and the transport information W4 and W5 of the adjacent workpieces W. The distance calculation unit 27a sequentially calculates the distances (10 cm, 10 cm, and 10 cm) between the current positions included in the transport information W2 and W3 of the adjacent workpieces W, the transport information W3 and W4 of the adjacent workpieces W, and the transport information W4 and W5 of the adjacent workpieces W. The judgment unit 27b sequentially judges whether the calculated distances between the current positions (10 cm, 10 cm, and 10 cm) are outside the threshold value (±13 cm), and since all distances (10 cm, 10 cm, and 10 cm) are within the threshold value (±13 cm), the judgment unit 27b judges that all workpieces W corresponding to the transport information W2 to W5 can be removed. The decision unit 27 sequentially sends to the transport information acquisition unit 25 information that the workpieces W corresponding to the transport information W2 to W5 can be removed. Since the transport information acquisition unit 25 was able to acquire the designated number of four pieces of transport information W2 to W5 from the memory unit 24, it sends the transport information W2 to W5 to the control unit 29.

[0049] The control unit 29 calculates the workpiece removal position P' (55 cm) based on the current positions (40 cm, 50 cm, 60 cm, and 70 cm) of the workpieces W included in the transport information W2 to W5. That is, the original workpiece removal position P (35 cm) is corrected to the workpiece removal position P' (55 cm) based on the current positions included in the transport information W2 to W5 of the workpieces W located upstream of the workpieces W determined to be unremovable. That is, the original workpiece removal area A is corrected to the workpiece removal area A' by the specified number of four workpieces W located upstream of the workpieces W determined to be unremovable.

[0050] The control unit 29 continues to calculate the workpiece removal position P' based on the current positions of the workpieces W included in each of the transport information W2 to W5 until the specified number of four workpieces W is removed. When the workpiece removal position P' enters the working area B (±25 cm) of the machine 10, the control unit 29 continues to send a movement command to the machine 10 to move to the workpiece removal position P', and the machine 10 tracks the specified number of four workpieces W. When the machine 10 reaches the specified number of four workpieces W, the control unit 29 sends a removal command to the machine 10 to remove the specified number of four workpieces W.

[0051] As described above, even if one piece of transport information is deleted because the workpiece W is defective, or if the workpiece W is transported in a state where a workpiece W is missing from the row of workpieces W, the machine 10 takes out the specified number of four workpieces W that are upstream of the workpiece W that has been determined to be unremovable, and therefore can take out all of the specified number of four workpieces W. In addition, since the transport information generating unit 21 generates one piece of transport information for each workpiece W, the machine 10 can take out the specified number of four workpieces W in one go from the workpiece W immediately after the workpiece W that has been determined to be unremovable. In other words, the machine 10 can take out as many workpieces W that can be taken out as possible.

[0052] Fig. 5 is a diagram showing an example 1-3 of the mechanical system 1 of the first embodiment. This example will be described with reference to Fig. 2. The prerequisites for this example are as follows. One or more types of workpieces W are transported in a line with a transport interval D of 10 cm. The designated number setting unit 26 sets the designated number of workpieces W that the machine 10 will pick up in one batch, ie, four. · Machine 10 takes out workpiece W within working area B ±25 cm in the X coordinate of the machine coordinate system. The hand 12 is configured to be able to pick up one to four workpieces W at a time. The transport information generating unit 21 generates one piece of transport information (W1 to W3) for each of the specified number of workpieces W, 4 workpieces W. The storage unit 24 stores the transport information W1 to W3 in the order in which the workpieces W are transported. The current positions of the workpiece W included in the transport information W1 to W3 are 35 cm, 75 cm, and 115 cm, respectively, in terms of the X coordinate of the machine coordinate system. The threshold setting unit 28 sets the threshold value of the distance between the current positions included in the transport information of adjacent workpieces W to ±43 cm (=designated number 4 pieces × transport interval 10 cm ± offset 3 cm). The status of the workpiece W included in the transport information W2 indicates that it cannot be removed (indicated by an X mark) depending on the working capacity of the machine 10 or the type of workpiece W that the machine 10 can remove.

[0053] When the machine 10 removes a group of workpieces corresponding to the transport information W2, the transport information acquisition unit 25 acquires one piece of transport information W2 from the memory unit 24 and sends it to the determination unit 27. The determination unit 27 determines whether or not the workpieces W can be removed based on the status of the workpieces W included in the transport information W2. Since the status of the workpieces W included in the transport information W2 indicates that they cannot be removed (indicated by an x ​​mark), the judgment unit 27b determines that the group of workpieces W corresponding to the transport information W2 cannot be removed. The determination unit 27 sends to the transport information acquisition unit 25 a notification that the group of workpieces W corresponding to the transport information W2 cannot be removed.

[0054] The transport information acquisition unit 25 again acquires from the memory unit 24 the transport information W3 of the workpiece W group that is upstream of the workpiece W group that has been determined to be unremovable, and sends it to the determination unit 27. The determination unit 27 determines whether the workpiece W can be removed based on the status of the workpiece W contained in the transport information W3. Since the status contained in the transport information W3 indicates that the workpiece W can be removed, the judgment unit 27b determines that all of the workpieces W corresponding to the transport information W3 can be removed. The determination unit 27 sends the removal availability of the workpieces W group that corresponds to the transport information W3 to the transport information acquisition unit 25. Since the transport information acquisition unit 25 was able to acquire the transport information W3 of the workpiece W group that has been determined to be unremovable from the memory unit 24, it sends the transport information W3 to the control unit 29.

[0055] The control unit 29 calculates the workpiece removal position P' (115 cm) based on the current position (115 cm) of the workpiece W group included in the transport information W3. That is, the original workpiece removal position P (75 cm) is corrected to the workpiece removal position P' (115 cm) based on the current position included in the transport information W3 of the workpiece W group located upstream of the workpiece W group determined to be unremovable. That is, the original workpiece removal area A is corrected to the workpiece removal area A' by the workpiece group of the specified number of four located upstream of the workpiece W group determined to be unremovable.

[0056] The control unit 29 continues to calculate the workpiece removal position P' based on the current position of the workpiece W contained in the transport information W3 until the specified number of four workpieces W are removed. When the workpiece removal position P' enters the working area B (±25 cm) of the machine 10, the control unit 29 continues to send a command to the machine 10 to move to the workpiece removal position P', and tracks the specified number of four workpieces W. It generates a command to remove them all at once and controls the machine 10. When the machine 10 reaches the specified number of four workpieces W, the control unit 29 sends a command to the machine 10 to remove the specified number of four workpieces W.

[0057] As described above, even if the status included in the transport information W2 indicates that removal is not possible, the machine 10 removes the designated number of four workpieces W that are upstream of the group of workpieces W that have been determined to be unremovable, and therefore, the designated number of four workpieces W can be removed without omission. However, since the transport information generating unit 21 generates one piece of transport information (W1 to W3) for each of the designated number of four workpieces W, the machine 10 does not remove any of the group of workpieces W that corresponds to the transport information W2, even if some of the group of workpieces W that have been determined to be unremovable are removable. In other words, it cannot be said that the machine 10 removes as many workpieces W that can be removed as possible.

[0058] Fig. 6 is a diagram showing an example 1-4 of the mechanical system 1 of the first embodiment. This example will be described with reference to Fig. 2. The prerequisites for this example are as follows. One or more types of workpieces W are transported in a line with a transport interval D of 10 cm. The designated number setting unit 26 sets the designated number of workpieces W that the machine 10 will pick up in one batch, ie, four. · Machine 10 takes out workpiece W within working area B ±25 cm in the X coordinate of the machine coordinate system. The hand 12 is configured to be able to pick up one to four workpieces W at a time. The transport information generating unit 21 generates one piece of transport information (W1 to W3) for each of the specified number of four workpieces W. The storage unit 24 stores the transport information W1 to W3 in the order in which the workpieces W are transported. The current positions of the workpieces W included in the transport information W1 to W3 are 35 cm, 82.5 cm, and 125 cm, respectively, in terms of the X coordinate of the machine coordinate system. The threshold setting unit 28 sets the threshold value of the distance between the current positions included in the transport information of adjacent workpieces W to ±43 cm (=designated number 4 pieces × transport interval 10 cm ± offset 3 cm). The transport information W2 transports the workpieces W in a state where there are gaps in the row of workpieces W.

[0059] When the machine 10 takes out a work group corresponding to the transport information W2, the transport information acquisition unit 25 acquires one piece of transport information W2 from the storage unit 24 and sends it to the decision unit 27. The decision unit 27 decides whether or not to take out the work group W based on the distance between the current positions included in the transport information W1 and W2 of the adjacent work groups W. The distance calculation unit 27a calculates the distance (47.5 cm) between the current positions (35 cm and 82.5 cm) included in the transport information W1 and W2 of the adjacent work groups W, respectively, and the judgment unit 27b judges that the calculated distance (47.5 cm) between the current positions is outside the threshold value (±43 cm). The decision unit 27 decides that the upstream work group W of the adjacent work groups W cannot be taken out, and sends to the transport information acquisition unit 25 the fact that the work group corresponding to the transport information W2 cannot be taken out.

[0060] The transport information acquisition unit 25 again acquires from the storage unit 24 the transport information W3 of the workpiece W group located upstream of the workpiece W group determined to be unremovable, and sends it to the determination unit 27. The determination unit 27 determines whether the workpiece W group can be removed based on the distance between the current positions included in the transport information W2 and W3 of the adjacent workpiece W groups. The distance calculation unit 27a calculates the distance (42.5 cm) between the current positions (82.5 cm and 125 cm) included in the transport information W2 and W3 of the adjacent workpiece W groups, and the determination unit 27b determines that the calculated distance between the current positions (42.5 cm) is within the threshold value (±43 cm). The determination unit 27 determines that the workpiece W group corresponding to the transport information W3 can be removed, and sends the removal of the workpiece W group corresponding to the transport information W3 to the transport information acquisition unit 25. The transport information acquisition unit 25 has acquired one piece of transport information W3 from the storage unit 24, and therefore sends the transport information W3 to the control unit 29.

[0061] The control unit 29 calculates the workpiece removal position P' (125 cm) based on the current position (125 cm) of the workpiece W group included in the transport information W3. That is, the original workpiece removal position P (82.5 cm) is corrected to the workpiece removal position P' (125 cm) based on the current position included in the transport information W3 of the workpiece W group upstream of the workpiece W group determined to be unremovable. That is, the original workpiece removal area A is corrected to the workpiece removal area A' by the workpiece W group upstream of the workpiece W group determined to be unremovable.

[0062] The control unit 29 continues to calculate the workpiece removal position P' based on the current positions of the group of workpieces W contained in the transport information W3 until the specified number of four workpieces W are removed. When the workpiece removal position P' enters the working area B (±25 cm) of the machine 10, the control unit 29 continues to send a movement command to the machine 10 to move to the workpiece removal position P', and the machine 10 tracks the specified number of four workpieces W. When the machine 10 reaches the specified number of four workpieces W, the control unit 29 sends a removal command to the machine 10 to remove the specified number of four workpieces W.

[0063] As described above, even if the workpieces W are transported in a state where some workpieces W are missing from the row of workpieces W, the machine 10 can take out all of the specified number of four workpieces W because it takes out the specified number of four workpieces W that are upstream of the group of workpieces W that have been determined to be unremovable. However, since the transport information generating unit 21 generates one piece of transport information (W1 to W3) for each of the specified number of four workpieces W, the machine 10 does not take out any of the group of workpieces W that corresponds to the transport information W2, even if some of the group of workpieces W that have been determined to be unremovable are removable. In other words, it cannot be said that the machine 10 takes out as many workpieces W that can be removed as possible.

[0064] The outline of the operation of the control device 20 of the first embodiment will be described below. FIG. 7 is a flow chart showing the outline of the operation of the control device 20 of the first embodiment. In step S10, the transport information acquisition unit 25 acquires transport information from the storage unit 24. In steps S11 and S12, the determination unit 27 determines whether the workpiece W can be removed. In step S11, the judgment unit 27b judges whether the status of the workpiece W included in the transport information is removable (NO in step S11). If the status of the workpiece W included in the transport information is not removable (NO in step S11), the process returns to step S10, and the transport information acquisition unit 25 again acquires transport information for the workpiece W that is upstream of the workpiece W that has been determined not to be removable. If the status of the workpiece W included in the transport information is removable (YES in step S11), the process proceeds to step S12.

[0065] In step S12, the distance calculation unit 27a calculates the distance between the current positions included in the transport information, and the determination unit 27b determines whether the calculated distance between the current positions is within a threshold value. If the distance between the current positions is outside the threshold value (NO in step S12), the process returns to step S10, and the transport information acquisition unit 25 again acquires transport information for the workpiece W located upstream of the workpiece W determined to be unremovable. If the distance between the current positions is within the threshold value (YES in step S12), the process proceeds to step S13.

[0066] Note that step S13 is a required step when generating one piece of transport information for one workpiece W, but is not necessary when generating one piece of transport information for a specified number of workpieces W. In step S13, the transport information acquisition unit 25 determines whether or not it has acquired the specified number of pieces of transport information from the memory unit 24. If the transport information acquisition unit 25 has not acquired the specified number of pieces of transport information from the memory unit 24 (NO in step S13), the process returns to step S10, where the transport information acquisition unit 25 acquires further transport information. If the transport information acquisition unit 25 has acquired the specified number of pieces of transport information from the memory unit 24 (YES in step S13), the process proceeds to step S14.

[0067] In step S24, the control unit 29 calculates the workpiece removal position based on the current position included in the transport information. In step S15, the control unit 29 determines whether the workpiece removal position has entered within the working area B of the machine 10. If the workpiece removal position is not within the working area B of the machine 10 (NO in step S15), the process returns to step S14, and the control unit 29 repeats the calculation of the workpiece removal position based on the current position included in the transport information. If the workpiece removal position has entered the working area B of the machine 10 (YES in step S15), the process proceeds to step S16. In step S16, the control unit 29 sends a movement command to the machine 10 to move to the workpiece removal position, and when the machine 10 reaches the workpiece removal position, sends a removal command to the machine 10 to remove the specified number of workpieces W.

[0068] As described above, according to the first embodiment of the machine system 1, even if the status of the work W included in the transport information indicates that it cannot be removed, or even if the transport information is deleted because the work W is defective, or even if the work W is transported in a state where some work W has been dropped from the row of work W, the machine 10 removes the specified number of work W based on the transport information of the work W or group of work W that is upstream of the work W or group of work W that has been determined to be unable to be removed, so that the specified number of work W can be removed without any omissions.

[0069] Furthermore, according to the machine system 1 of the first embodiment, when one piece of transport information is generated for one workpiece W, the machine 10 can simultaneously pick up a specified number of workpieces W from the workpiece W immediately following the workpiece W determined to be unremovable. In other words, the machine 10 can pick up as many workpieces W as possible that can be picked up.

[0070] Furthermore, according to the first embodiment of the machine system 1, the specified number of workpieces W to be picked up by the machine 10 in one go and the threshold distance between the current positions included in the transport information of adjacent workpieces W or groups of workpieces W can be simply set, thereby enabling the specified number of workpieces W to be picked up without any omissions.

[0071] FIG. 8 is a configuration diagram of the machine system 1 of the second embodiment. In the following, only the parts different from the machine system 1 of the first embodiment will be described, and the same configuration and the same operation as the machine system 1 of the first embodiment will not be described. The machine system 1 determines whether or not the workpieces W can be delivered to the work container T to be transported, and delivers a specified number of workpieces W in a lump based on whether or not the workpieces can be delivered. The machine system 1 determines whether or not the workpieces can be delivered to the work container T based on the status or current position included in the transport information of the work container T. In addition, the machine system 1 delivers a specified number of workpieces W in a lump based on the transport information of the work container T that is upstream of the work container T that has been determined not to be delivered.

[0072] The machine system 1 includes a machine 10 that delivers a specified number of workpieces W at once, and a control device 20 that controls the machine 10. The machine system 1 may also include a conveying device movement amount measuring unit 40 that measures the movement amount of the conveying device 30 in order to grasp the current position of the workpiece container T to be transported. The movement amount of the conveying device 30 includes the current position, current speed, etc. of the conveying device 30. Instead of or in addition to the conveying device movement amount measuring unit 40, the machine system 1 may also include a visual sensor 50 in order to grasp not only the current position, current speed, etc. of the workpiece container T to be transported, but also the current posture, type, status, etc. of the workpiece container T to be transported.

[0073] The work container T is supplied to the conveying device 30 upstream in the conveying direction X, conveyed in the conveying direction X by the conveying device 30, and the work W is discharged by the machine 10 downstream in the conveying direction X. The work container T is conveyed at a generally constant conveying interval D, but does not necessarily have to be conveyed at an exactly constant conveying interval D. In addition, the work container T is conveyed in a single row, but as described in the embodiment described later, the work container T may be conveyed in multiple rows, such as two rows or three rows. For example, the work container is a tray, but in other embodiments, it may be a work container of other shapes such as a bucket or a cardboard. The conveying device 30 may convey one type of work container T of the same shape and the same size, or may convey multiple types of work containers T of different shapes and different sizes. The machine 10 discharges the work W to one or multiple types of work containers T.

[0074] The machine 10 delivers a specified number of workpieces W in one batch to a workpiece container T transported by a transport device 30. The machine 10 delivers one workpiece W to one workpiece container T, but may also deliver a specified number of workpieces W to one workpiece container T. For example, the machine 10 includes a robot 11 and a hand 12 attached to the robot 11. In other embodiments, the machine 10 may be another type of machine that is capable of delivering a specified number of workpieces W in one batch, instead of the robot 11 and the hand 12.

[0075] The robot 11 moves the hand 12 to a workpiece ejection position. The workpiece ejection position is the center position of the group of workpiece containers T obtained by averaging the current positions of the specified number of workpiece containers T, but may be the current position of the workpiece container T that was supplied first among the specified number of workpiece containers T, or the current position of the workpiece container T that was supplied last among the specified number of workpiece containers T, etc. The hand 12 ejects the specified number of workpieces W at once at the workpiece ejection position.

[0076] The control device 20 controls the machine 10 based on the transport information of the work container T. The control device 20 generates one piece of transport information for one work container T, but may generate one piece of transport information for a specified number of work containers T. The transport information of the work container T includes the current position, current speed, current posture, type, status, etc. of the work container T. The control device 20 updates the current position, current speed, etc. of the work container T based on the movement amount of the transport device 30 acquired from the transport device movement amount measurement unit 40. In another embodiment, the control device 20 may update the current posture, type, status, etc. of the work W in addition to the current position, current speed, etc. of the work container T based on the visual information acquired from the visual sensor 50. Also, the control device 20 updates the status indicating whether or not the work container T can be delivered based on the working capacity of the machine 10 or the type of the work container T that the machine 10 can deliver.

[0077] The control device 20 determines whether or not work can be delivered to the work container T based on the status or current position included in the transport information of the work container T. When the status included in the transport information of the work container T indicates that work can be delivered, the control device 20 determines that the work container T can be delivered, and when the status included in the transport information of the work container T indicates that work cannot be delivered, the control device 20 determines that the work container T cannot be delivered. In other words, the control device 20 determines whether or not work can be delivered to the work container T based on the working capacity of the machine 10 or the type of work container T that the machine 10 can deliver.

[0078] The control device 20 determines that the work container T can be removed when the distance between the current positions included in the transport information of the work container T is within the threshold, and determines that the work container T cannot be removed when the distance between the current positions included in the transport information of the work container T is outside the threshold. In other words, the control device 20 determines that the work container T cannot be removed when the transport information of the work container T is deleted because the work container T is a defective product, or when the work container T is missing from the row of work containers T to be transported.

[0079] The control device 20 generates a command to discharge a specified number of workpieces W in a lump based on the transport information of the workpiece container T located upstream of the workpiece container T determined to be undischargeable, and controls the machine 10. The command to discharge a specified number of workpieces W in a lump includes a movement command to move to a workpiece discharge position, and a discharge command to discharge the specified number of workpieces W. The machine 10 discharges the specified number of workpieces W in a lump in response to the command from the control device 20.

[0080] The transport device 30 transports one or more workpiece containers T. The transport device movement amount measuring unit 40 measures the movement amount of the transport device 30. In another embodiment, the machine system 1 may include another type of sensor, such as a visual sensor 50, instead of or in addition to the transport device movement amount measuring unit 40. When the visual sensor 50 is used, the control device 20 may acquire not only the current position, current speed, etc. of the workpiece container T, but also the current posture, type, status, etc. of the workpiece container T based on the visual information acquired from the visual sensor 50.

[0081] 9 is a functional block diagram of the machine system 1 of the second embodiment. The components of the machine system 1 of the second embodiment are the same as the components of the machine system 1 of the first embodiment, but it should be noted that the processing target changes from the workpiece W to a workpiece container T. Also, it should be noted that although one workpiece W is delivered to one workpiece container T, a specified number of workpieces W may be delivered to one workpiece container T.

[0082] The transport information generating unit 21 generates one piece of transport information for one work container T, or generates one piece of transport information for a specified number of work containers T. The transport information generating unit 21 acquires the set specified number from the specified number setting unit 26. For example, the transport information generating unit 21 receives a supply signal for the work container T from an external device (not shown) every time one work container T is supplied to the transport device 30, and generates one piece of transport information for one supply signal, or generates one piece of transport information for the specified number of supply signals.

[0083] The transport information generating unit 21 generates transport information in which initial values ​​such as the current position, current speed, current posture, type, and status of the work container T are set. The transport information generating unit 21 sends the generated transport information to the storage unit 24. In order to simplify subsequent processing, the transport information generating unit 21 may store the transport information in the storage unit 24 in the order in which the work containers T are transported.

[0084] The transport device movement amount acquisition unit 22 acquires the movement amount of the transport device 30 from the transport device movement amount measurement unit 40. The transport device movement amount acquisition unit 22 sends the acquired movement amount of the transport device 30 to the transport information update unit .

[0085] The transport information update unit 23 updates the transport information of the work container T stored in the storage unit 24 based on the movement amount of the transport device 30, but may also update the transport information of the work container T stored in the storage unit 24 based on visual information acquired from the visual sensor 50. For example, the transport information update unit 23 updates the current position, current speed, etc. of the work container T stored in the storage unit 24 based on the movement amount of the transport device 30, or updates the current position, current speed, current posture, type, status, etc. of the work container T stored in the storage unit 24 based on the visual information acquired from the visual sensor 50.

[0086] The storage unit 24 stores the transport information of the workpiece containers T in the order of transport of the workpiece containers T. The storage unit 24 is a memory that stores various data (not shown). The memory includes semiconductor storage devices such as RAM and ROM, magnetic storage devices such as HDD, and the like.

[0087] The designated number setting unit 26 sets the designated number of workpieces W that the machine 10 will dispense in one batch. The designated number setting unit 26 sets the designated number designated by the user via a user interface unit (not shown) such as a touch panel display or a keyboard. Since the range of the designated number that can be dispensed in one batch depends on the type of the machine 10 (i.e., the hand 12), the designated number setting unit 26 may have an initial value for the range of the designated number according to the type of the machine 10. The designated number setting unit 26 sends the set designated number to the transport information generation unit 21 and the transport information acquisition unit 25.

[0088] The transport information acquisition unit 25 acquires the transport information of the work container T from the storage unit 24. When generating one piece of transport information for one work container T, when one work W is to be delivered to one work container T, the transport information acquisition unit 25 acquires the set designated number from the designated number setting unit 26, and sequentially acquires the transport information of the designated number from the storage unit 24 in the transport order of the work container T. Also, when generating one piece of transport information for one work container T, when a designated number of works W are to be delivered to one work container T, the transport information acquisition unit 25 may acquire one piece of transport information from the storage unit 24 in the transport order of the work container T. Also, when generating one piece of transport information for a designated number of work containers T, only one work W can be delivered to one work container T, and the transport information acquisition unit 25 acquires one piece of transport information from the storage unit 24 in the transport order of the work container T. The transport information acquisition unit 25 sends the transport information of the work container T to the determination unit 27 in the order of transport of the work container T in order to confirm whether or not the work container T can be discharged.

[0089] The determination unit 27 determines whether or not work can be dispensed to the work container T based on the status or current position included in the transport information of the work container T. The determination unit 27 includes a distance calculation unit 27a and a judgment unit 27b. The judgment unit 27b judges whether or not the status included in the transport information of the work container T indicates that dispense is possible. When the status included in the transport information of the work container T indicates that dispense is possible, the judgment unit 27b judges that the work container T or the group of work containers T corresponding to the transport information is dispenseable, and when the status included in the transport information of the work container T indicates that dispense is not possible, the judgment unit 27b judges that the work container T or the group of work containers T corresponding to the transport information is not dispenseable.

[0090] Further, the distance calculation unit 27a calculates the distance between the current positions included in the transport information of the adjacent work containers T or groups of work containers T, and the judgment unit 27b judges whether the calculated distance between the current positions is within a threshold. If the calculated distance between the current positions is within the threshold, the judgment unit 27b judges that the adjacent work containers T or groups of work containers T can be removed, and if the calculated distance between the current positions is outside the threshold, the judgment unit 27b judges that the downstream work container T or groups of adjacent work containers T cannot be removed. The decision unit 27 sends the transport information acquisition unit 25 whether or not the work container T can be removed.

[0091] The threshold setting unit 28 sets a threshold for the distance between the current positions included in the transport information of adjacent work containers T or a group of adjacent work containers T. The threshold setting unit 28 sets a threshold specified by a user via a user interface unit (not shown) such as a touch panel display or a keyboard. Since the transport interval D of the work container T may not be constant, the threshold setting unit 28 may set a range obtained by adding or subtracting an offset to the transport interval D of the work container T as the threshold. In addition, when generating one piece of transport information for a specified number of work containers T, the threshold setting unit 28 may multiply the transport interval D of the work container T by the specified number and set a range obtained by adding or subtracting an offset to the multiplied value as the threshold. The threshold setting unit 28 sends the set threshold to the judgment unit 27b.

[0092] When generating one piece of transport information for one work container T, if the determination unit 27 determines that the work container T or the group of work containers T can be removed, the transport information acquisition unit 25 sequentially acquires transport information from the storage unit 24 until the designated number is reached, and if the determination unit 27 determines that the work container T or the group of work containers T cannot be removed, the transport information acquisition unit 25 again acquires from the storage unit 24 the transport information of the work container T or the group of work containers T that is upstream of the work container T or the group of work containers T that has been determined to be unable to be removed. If the transport information acquisition unit 25 can acquire the designated number of pieces of transport information from the storage unit 24, it sends the designated number of pieces of transport information to the control unit 29.

[0093] Alternatively, when generating one piece of transport information for a specified number of work containers T, when the determination unit 27 determines that a group of work containers T can be removed, the transport information acquisition unit 25 sends one piece of transport information to the control unit 29, and when the determination unit 27 determines that the work containers T cannot be removed, the transport information acquisition unit 25 again acquires one piece of transport information from the memory unit 24.

[0094] The control unit 29 calculates the workpiece ejection position based on the current position included in the transport information, generates a command to eject the specified number of workpieces W in a lump based on the workpiece ejection position, and sends the generated command to the machine 10. When generating one piece of transport information for one workpiece container T, the control unit 29 calculates the workpiece ejection position based on the current positions included in the specified number of pieces of transport information. When generating one piece of transport information for the specified number of workpiece containers T, the control unit 29 calculates the workpiece ejection position based on the current positions included in the transport information. The workpiece ejection position is a center position obtained by averaging the current positions of the specified number of workpiece containers T, but it may also be the current position of the workpiece container T that was supplied first among the specified number of workpiece containers T, or the current position of the workpiece container T that was supplied last among the specified number of workpiece containers T. The control unit 29 continues to calculate the workpiece ejection position until the machine 10 ejects the specified number of workpieces W in a lump.

[0095] The control unit 29 judges whether or not the workpiece ejection position has entered the working area of ​​the machine 10. When the workpiece ejection position has entered the working area of ​​the machine 10, the control unit 29 generates a command to eject a specified number of workpieces W in a lump, and sends it to the machine 10. The command to eject a specified number of workpieces W in a lump includes a movement command to move to the workpiece ejection position, and an ejection command to eject the specified number of workpieces W. The control unit 29 continues to send the movement command to the machine 10 to move to the workpiece ejection position until the machine 10 reaches the workpiece ejection position, and when the machine 10 reaches the workpiece ejection position, sends a command to the machine 10 to eject the specified number of workpieces W.

[0096] The machine 10 tracks the work container T or the group of work containers T in response to commands from the control device 20, and when it reaches the work ejection position, ejects the designated number of workpieces W all at once. After ejecting the designated number of workpieces W all at once, the machine 10 takes out the designated number of workpieces W all at once. After taking out the designated number of workpieces W all at once, the machine 10 repeats the above-mentioned operations to eject the designated number of workpieces W all at once.

[0097] Hereinafter, a schematic operation of the control device 20 of the second embodiment will be described. FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a schematic operation of the control device 20 of the second embodiment. In step S20, the transport information acquisition unit 25 acquires transport information from the storage unit 24. In steps S21 and S22, the determination unit 27 determines whether or not the work container T can be delivered. In step S21, the judgment unit 27b judges whether or not the status of the work container T included in the transport information is deliverable. If the status of the work container T included in the transport information is not deliverable (NO in step S21), the process returns to step S20, and the transport information acquisition unit 25 acquires transport information of the work container T that is upstream of the work container T determined to be not deliverable. If the status of the work container T included in the transport information is deliverable (YES in step S21), the process proceeds to step S22.

[0098] In step S22, the distance calculation unit 27a calculates the distance between the current positions included in the transport information, and the determination unit 27b determines whether the calculated distance between the current positions is within a threshold value. If the distance between the current positions is outside the threshold value (NO in step S22), the process returns to step S20, and the transport information of the work container T upstream of the work container T determined as not capable of being discharged is acquired again. If the distance between the current positions is within the threshold value (YES in step S21), the process proceeds to step S23.

[0099] It should be noted that step S23 is a required step when generating one piece of transport information for one work container T, but is not necessary when generating one piece of transport information for a specified number of work containers T. In step S23, when the transport information generation unit 21 generates one piece of transport information for one work container T, it is determined whether the transport information acquisition unit 25 has acquired the specified number of pieces of transport information from the memory unit 24. If the transport information acquisition unit 25 has not acquired the specified number of pieces of transport information from the memory unit 24 (NO in step S23), the process returns to step S20, where the transport information acquisition unit 25 acquires further transport information. If the transport information acquisition unit 25 has acquired the specified number of pieces of transport information from the memory unit 24 (YES in step S23), the process proceeds to step S24.

[0100] In step S24, the control unit 29 calculates the workpiece ejection position based on the current position included in the transport information. In step S25, the control unit 29 judges whether the workpiece ejection position has entered within the working area B of the machine 10. If the workpiece ejection position is not within the working area B of the machine 10 (NO in step S25), the process returns to step S14, and the control unit 29 repeats the calculation of the workpiece ejection position based on the current position included in the transport information. If the workpiece ejection position has entered the working area B of the machine 10 (YES in step S15), the process proceeds to step S16. In step S16, the control unit 29 sends a movement command to the machine 10 to move to the workpiece ejection position, and when the machine 10 reaches the workpiece ejection position, sends a ejection command to the machine 10 to eject the designated number of workpieces W.

[0101] As described above, according to the second embodiment of the machine system 1, even if the status of the work container T included in the transport information indicates that it cannot be discharged, or if the transport information is deleted because the work container T is defective, or if the work container T is transported in a state where a work container T is missing from the row of work containers T, the machine 10 discharges the specified number of work containers W to the work container T based on the transport information of the work container T or group of work containers T that is upstream of the transport information of the work container T or group of work containers T that has been determined to be unable to be discharged, so that the specified number of work containers W can be discharged without any omissions.

[0102] Furthermore, according to the machine system 1 of the second embodiment, when one piece of transport information is generated for one workpiece W, the machine 10 can collectively deliver a specified number of workpieces W from the workpiece container T immediately following the workpiece container T determined to be unavailable for delivery. In other words, the machine 10 can deliver as many workpieces W as possible to the available workpiece container T.

[0103] Furthermore, according to the second embodiment of the machine system 1, the specified number of workpieces W to be dispensed by the machine 10 in one batch and a threshold distance between the current positions included in the transport information of adjacent workpiece containers T or groups of workpiece containers T can be simply set, allowing the specified number of workpieces W to be dispensed without any omissions.

[0104] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example 3-1 of the machine system 1 of the third embodiment. In the following, only the parts different from the machine system 1 of the first or second embodiment will be described, and the same configuration and the same operation as the machine system 1 of the first or second embodiment will not be described. The machine system 1 of the third embodiment has an extendable hand 12, determines whether the work W to be transported can be taken out or whether it can be delivered to the work container T to be transported, and extends or retracts the hand 12 based on whether it can be taken out or delivered, and takes out or delivers a specified number of work W in a lump. The machine system 1 extends or retracts the hand 12 based on the current position included in the transport information of the work W or the work container T. The hand 12 is preferably a suction type hand that has multiple suction parts (not shown) and can be extended or retracted between the suction parts. One suction part corresponds to one work W, and the length between the suction parts corresponds to the transport interval D.

[0105] This example will be described with reference to Fig. 2. The prerequisites for this example are as follows. One or more types of workpieces W are transported in a line with a transport interval D of 10 cm. The designated number setting unit 26 sets the designated number of workpieces W that the machine 10 will pick up in one batch, ie, four. · Machine 10 takes out workpiece W in the working area B ±25 cm in the X coordinate of the machine coordinate system. The hand 12 is configured to be able to pick up one to four workpieces W at a time. The hand 12 is a suction-type hand that has four suction parts (not shown) and is extendable between the suction parts. The extension width of the hand 12 is 30 cm to 80 cm (= the distance between the most downstream workpiece W and the most upstream workpiece W). The transport information generating unit 21 generates one piece of transport information (W1 to W12) for each workpiece W. The storage unit 24 stores the transport information W1 to W12 in the order in which the workpieces W are transported. The current positions of the workpiece W included in the transport information W1 to W12 are 20 cm, 30 cm, 40 cm, . . . , and 130 cm, respectively, in the X coordinate of the machine coordinate system. The threshold setting unit 28 sets the threshold of the distance between the current positions included in the transport information of the most downstream workpiece W and the most upstream workpiece W among the specified number of workpieces W to 30 cm to 80 cm (extension width of the hand 12). The status of the workpiece W included in the transport information W2 indicates that it cannot be removed (indicated by an X mark) depending on the working capacity of the machine 10 or the type of workpiece W that the machine 10 can remove.

[0106] The transport information acquisition unit 25 sequentially acquires the designated number of four pieces of transport information W1 to W4 from the storage unit 24 and sequentially sends them to the determination unit 27. The determination unit 27 sequentially determines whether the workpiece W can be removed based on the status of the workpiece W included in each of the transport information W1 to W4. The judgment unit 27b judges that the workpiece W corresponding to the transport information W1 can be removed because the status of the workpiece W included in the transport information W1 indicates that it can be removed. Furthermore, the judgment unit 27b judges that the workpiece W corresponding to the transport information W2 cannot be removed because the status of the workpiece W included in the transport information W2 indicates that it cannot be removed (indicated by an x ​​mark). The determination unit 27 sends to the transport information acquisition unit 25 that the workpiece W corresponding to the transport information W2 cannot be removed.

[0107] The transport information acquisition unit 25 does not count the transport information W2 (indicated by an x ​​mark) determined to be unremovable as the designated number, and sequentially acquires transport information W3 to W5 from the storage unit 24 and sends it to the determination unit 27. The determination unit 27 sequentially determines whether the workpiece W can be removed based on the status of the workpiece W contained in the transport information W3 to W5. The determination unit 27b determines that the workpiece W corresponding to the transport information W3 to W5 can be removed because the status of the workpiece W contained in the transport information W3 to W5 all indicate that it can be removed. The determination unit 27 sequentially sends to the transport information acquisition unit 25 the transport information W1 and the transport information W3 to W5 that indicate that the workpiece W can be removed. The transport information acquisition unit 25 sends the transport information W1 and W3 to W5 to the control unit 29 because it was able to acquire the designated number of four transport information W1 and W3 to W5 of the workpiece W determined to be unremovable from the storage unit 24.

[0108] The control unit 29 determines the extension position and extension length of the hand 12 based on the distance between the current positions included in the transport information W1 and W3 of adjacent workpieces W, the transport information W3 and W4 of adjacent workpieces W, and the transport information W4 and W5 of adjacent workpieces W. Because the distance (20 cm) between the current positions included in the transport information W1 and W3 of adjacent workpieces W is greater than the transport interval (10 cm) by a difference of 10 cm, the control unit 29 determines the extension position of the hand 12 to be between the workpieces W corresponding to the transport information W1 and W3, respectively, and determines the extension length of the hand 12 to be a difference of 10 cm.

[0109] The control unit 29 calculates the workpiece removal position P' (42.5 cm) based on the current position of the workpiece W (20 cm, 40 cm, 50 cm, and 60 cm) included in the transport information W1 and W3 to W5. In other words, the original workpiece removal position P (35 cm) is corrected to the workpiece removal position P' (42.5 cm) based on the current position of the workpiece W included in the transport information W1 and W3 to W5 of the workpiece W determined to be removable. In other words, the original workpiece removal area A is corrected to the workpiece removal area A' based on the transport information W1 and W3 to W5 of the workpiece W determined to be removable.

[0110] The control unit 29 continues to calculate the workpiece pick-up position P' based on the current positions of the workpieces W contained in the transport information W1 and W3 to W5, respectively, until the specified number of four workpieces W are picked up. When the workpiece pick-up position P' enters the working area B (±25 cm) of the machine 10, the control unit 29 continues to send a movement command to the machine 10 to move to the workpiece pick-up position P', and tracks the specified number of four workpieces W. When the machine 10 reaches the specified number of four workpieces W, the control unit 29 sends to the machine 10 an extension command to extend or retract the hand 12 and a removal command to remove the specified number of four workpieces W.

[0111] As described above, according to the machine system 1 of the third embodiment, even if the status included in the transport information W2 indicates that the workpieces cannot be removed, the machine 10 can extend or retract the hand 12 based on the transport information W1 and W3 to W5 of the workpieces W determined to be removable, and can remove all of the specified number of four workpieces W. In addition, because one piece of transport information is generated for each workpiece W and the hand 12 extends or retracts, the machine 10 can step over the workpieces W determined to be removable and remove as many of the workpieces W as possible that can be removed.

[0112] Fig. 12 is a diagram showing Example 3-2 of the mechanical system 1 of the third embodiment. This example will be described with reference to Fig. 2. The prerequisites for this example are as follows. One or more types of workpieces W are transported in a line with a transport interval D of 10 cm. The designated number setting unit 26 sets the designated number of workpieces W that the machine 10 will pick up in one batch, ie, four. · Machine 10 takes out workpiece W in the working area B ±25 cm in the X coordinate of the machine coordinate system. The hand 12 is configured to be able to pick up one to four workpieces W at a time. The hand 12 is a suction-type hand that has four suction parts (not shown) and is extendable between the suction parts. The extension width of the hand 12 is 30 cm to 80 cm (= the distance between the most downstream workpiece W and the most upstream workpiece W). The transport information generating unit 21 generates one piece of transport information (W1 to W11) for each workpiece W. The storage unit 24 stores the transport information W1 to W11 in the order in which the workpieces W are transported. The current positions of the workpiece W included in the transport information W1 to W11 are 20 cm, 40 cm, 50 cm, . . . , and 130 cm, respectively, in the X coordinate of the machine coordinate system. The threshold setting unit 28 sets the threshold of the distance between the current positions included in the transport information of the most downstream workpiece W and the most upstream workpiece W among the specified number of workpieces W to 30 cm to 80 cm (extension width of the hand 12). Between the workpiece W corresponding to the transport information W1 and the workpiece W corresponding to the transport information W2, one piece of transport information is missing because the workpiece W is defective or because the workpiece W was supplied in a gapped state with one workpiece W missing from the row of workpieces W.

[0113] The transport information acquisition unit 25 sequentially acquires transport information W1 to W4 for the specified number of four workpieces W from the storage unit 24 and sequentially sends them to the decision unit 27. The decision unit 27 sequentially decides whether or not the workpieces W can be removed based on the distance between the current positions included in the transport information W1 and W4 of the most downstream workpiece W and the most upstream workpiece W, respectively. When the distance calculation unit 27a calculates the distance (40 cm) between the current positions (20 cm and 60 cm) included in the transport information W1 and W4 of the most downstream workpiece W and the most upstream workpiece W, respectively, the calculated distance (40 cm) between the current positions is within the threshold value (30 cm to 80 cm), so the judgment unit 27b judges that the workpieces W corresponding to the transport information W1 to W4 can be removed. The decision unit 27 sends the information indicating that the workpieces W corresponding to the transport information W1 to W4 can be removed to the transport information acquisition unit 25. The transport information acquisition unit 25 acquires the designated number of four pieces of transport information W1 to W4 from the storage unit 24, and therefore transmits the transport information W1 to W4 to the control unit 29.

[0114] The control unit 29 determines the extension position and extension length of the hand 12 based on the distance between the current positions included in the transport information W1 and W2 of adjacent workpieces W, the transport information W2 and W3 of adjacent workpieces W, and the transport information W3 and W4 of adjacent workpieces W. Because the distance (20 cm) between the current positions included in the transport information W1 and W2 of adjacent workpieces W is greater than the transport interval (10 cm) by a difference of 10 cm, the control unit 29 determines the extension position of the hand 12 to be between the workpieces W corresponding to the transport information W1 and W2, and determines the extension length of the hand 12 to be a difference of 10 cm.

[0115] The control unit 29 calculates the workpiece removal position P' (42.5 cm) based on the current positions of the workpiece W included in the transport information W1 to W4 (20 cm, 40 cm, 50 cm, and 60 cm). In other words, the original workpiece removal position P (35 cm) is corrected to the workpiece removal position P' (42.5 cm) based on the current positions of the workpiece W included in the transport information W1 to W4 of the workpiece W determined to be removable. In other words, the original workpiece removal area A is corrected to the workpiece removal area A' based on the transport information W1 to W4 of the workpiece W determined to be removable.

[0116] The control unit 29 continues to calculate the workpiece removal position P' based on the current positions of the workpieces W included in each of the transport information W1 to W4 until the specified number of four workpieces W are removed. When the workpiece removal position P' enters the working area B (±25 cm) of the machine 10, the control unit 29 continues to send a movement command to the machine 10 to move to the workpiece removal position P', and tracks the specified number of four workpieces W. When the machine 10 reaches the specified number of four workpieces W, the control unit 29 sends to the machine 10 an extension command to extend or retract the hand 12 and a removal command to remove the specified number of four workpieces W.

[0117] In addition, the embodiment in which a specified number of workpieces W are delivered at once to the workpiece container T to be transported is similar to the embodiment 3-1 and the embodiment 3-2, and therefore the description thereof will be omitted.

[0118] As described above, according to the machine system 1 of the third embodiment, even if the transport information is deleted because the work W or the work container T is defective, or if the work W or the work container T is supplied in a missing state with the work W or the work container T missing from the row of the work W or the work container T, the hand 12 can be extended and retracted based on the transport information of the work W determined to be removable or the transport information of the work container T determined to be removable, and the designated number of four work W can be taken out or discharged without omission. In addition, since one piece of transport information for the work W is generated for each work W, or one piece of transport information for the work container T is generated for each work container T, and the hand 12 is extended and retracted, the machine 10 can take out or discharge as many of the removable work W or the disposable work container T as possible, straddling the work W or the work container T corresponding to the deleted transport information, or straddling the work W or the work container T that has been removed from the row of the work W or the work container T.

[0119] 13 is a diagram showing Example 4-1 of the mechanical system of the fourth embodiment. Only the parts different from the mechanical system 1 of the first or second embodiment will be described below, and the same configuration and operation as the mechanical system 1 of the first or second embodiment will not be described. The mechanical system 1 of the fourth embodiment takes out a specified number of workpieces W from among the workpieces W transported in multiple rows in a lump, or delivers a specified number of workpieces W from multiple rows to a workpiece container T transported in multiple rows in a lump.

[0120] This example will be described with reference to Fig. 2. The prerequisites for this example are as follows. One or more types of workpieces W are transported in two rows with a transport interval D of 10 cm. The designated number setting unit 26 sets the designated number of workpieces W that the machine 10 will pick up in one batch, ie, four. · Machine 10 takes out workpiece W within working area B ±25 cm in the X coordinate of the machine coordinate system. The hand 12 is configured to be able to pick up multiple rows of 1 to 4 workpieces W at once. The transport information generating unit 21 generates one piece of transport information (W1a to W12a, W1b to W12b) for one workpiece W. In addition, the transport information generating unit 21 generates the transport information (W1a to W12a, W1b to W12b) for the workpiece W for each row. The memory unit 24 stores the transport information W1a to W12a and W1b to W12b in the order in which the workpieces W are transported and for each row. The current position of the workpiece W included in the transport information W1a to W12a is 20cm:50cm, 30cm:50cm, 40cm:50cm, ..., and 130cm:50cm in terms of the X coordinate:Y coordinate of the machine coordinate system, respectively, and the current position of the workpiece W included in the transport information W1b to W12b is 20cm:30cm, 30cm:30cm, 40cm:30cm, ..., and 130cm:30cm in terms of the X coordinate:Y coordinate of the machine coordinate system, respectively. The threshold setting unit 28 sets the threshold for the distance between the current positions included in the transport information of adjacent workpieces W in the transport direction X to ±13 cm (= transport interval 10 cm ± offset 3 cm), and sets the threshold for the distance between the current positions included in the transport information of adjacent workpieces W in the row direction Y to ±23 cm (= row interval 20 cm ± offset 3 cm). The status of the workpiece W included in the transport information W1b indicates that it cannot be removed (indicated by an x ​​mark) depending on the working capacity of the machine 10 or the type of workpiece W that the machine 10 can remove.

[0121] The transport information acquisition unit 25 sequentially acquires the designated number of four pieces of transport information W1a, W2a, W1b, and W2b from the storage unit 24, and sequentially sends them to the determination unit 27. The determination unit 27 sequentially determines whether or not the workpiece W can be removed based on the status of the workpiece W included in each of the transport information W1a, W2a, W1b, and W2b. Since the status of the workpiece W included in the transport information W1b indicates that it cannot be removed (indicated by an x ​​mark), the judgment unit 27b judges that the workpiece W corresponding to the transport information W1b cannot be removed. The determination unit 27 sends to the transport information acquisition unit 25 that the workpiece W corresponding to the transport information W1b cannot be removed.

[0122] The transport information acquisition unit 25 sequentially acquires transport information W2a, W3a, W2b, and W3b of the designated number of four workpieces W located upstream of the workpieces W (indicated by an x ​​mark) determined to be unremovable from the storage unit 24 again, and sequentially sends the information to the determination unit 27. The determination unit 27 sequentially determines whether the workpieces W can be removed based on the statuses of the workpieces W contained in the transport information W2a, W3a, W2b, and W3b. Since the statuses contained in the transport information W2a, W3a, W2b, and W3b all indicate that the workpieces W can be removed, the determination unit 27b determines that all the workpieces W corresponding to the transport information W2a, W3a, W2b, and W3b can be removed. The determination unit 27 sequentially sends the information indicating that the workpieces W corresponding to the transport information W2a, W3a, W2b, and W3b can be removed to the transport information acquisition unit 25. Since the transport information acquisition unit 25 has been able to acquire the specified number of four pieces of transport information W2a, W3a, W2b, and W3b for the workpieces W that have been determined to be removable from the memory unit 24, it sends the transport information W2a, W3a, W2b, and W3b to the control unit 29.

[0123] The control unit 29 calculates the workpiece removal position P' (35cm:40cm) based on the current positions of the workpieces W included in the transport information W2a, W3a, W2b, and W3b (30cm:50cm, 40cm:50cm, 30cm:30cm, and 40cm:30cm). That is, the original workpiece removal position P (25cm:40cm) is corrected to the workpiece removal position P' (35cm:40cm) based on the current positions of the workpieces W included in the transport information W2a, W3a, W2b, and W3b of the designated number of four workpieces W located upstream of the workpieces W determined to be unremovable (indicated by an x ​​mark). That is, the original workpiece removal area A is corrected to the workpiece removal area A' based on the transport information W2a, W3a, W2b, and W3b of the designated number of four workpieces W located upstream of the workpieces W determined to be unremovable (indicated by an x ​​mark).

[0124] The control unit 29 continues to calculate the workpiece removal position P' based on the current positions of the workpieces W included in the transport information W2a, W3a, W2b, and W3b, respectively, until the specified number of four workpieces W are removed. When the workpiece removal position P' enters within the working area B (±25 cm) of the machine 10, the control unit 29 continues to send a movement command to the machine 10 to move to the workpiece removal position P', and tracks the specified number of four workpieces W. When the machine 10 reaches the specified number of four workpieces W, the control unit 29 sends a removal command to the machine 10 to remove the specified number of four workpieces W.

[0125] As described above, according to the machine system 1 of the fourth embodiment, even if the status of the workpiece W included in the transport information W1b indicates that it cannot be removed, the machine 10 takes out the designated number of four workpieces based on the transport information W2a, W3a, W2b, and W3b of the workpiece W located upstream of the workpiece W determined to be unremovable (indicated by an x ​​mark), so that the designated number of four workpieces W can be taken out without omission. In addition, since the transport information generating unit 21 generates one piece of transport information for one workpiece W, the machine 10 can take out the designated number of four workpieces W at once from the workpiece W located immediately after the workpiece W determined to be unremovable. In other words, the machine 10 can take out as many workpieces W as possible that can be removed.

[0126] Fig. 14 is a diagram showing Example 4-2 of the mechanical system of the fourth embodiment. This example will be described with reference to Fig. 2. The prerequisites for this example are as follows. One or more types of workpieces W are transported in two rows with a transport interval D of 10 cm. The designated number setting unit 26 sets the designated number of workpieces W that the machine 10 will pick up in one batch, ie, four. · Machine 10 takes out workpiece W within working area B ±25 cm in the X coordinate of the machine coordinate system. The hand 12 is configured to be able to pick up multiple rows of 1 to 4 workpieces W at once. The transport information generating unit 21 generates one piece of transport information (W1a to W12a, W1b to W11b) for one workpiece W. In addition, the transport information generating unit 21 generates the transport information (W1a to W12a, W1b to W11b) for the workpiece W for each row. The storage unit 24 stores the transport information W1a to W12a and W1b to W11b in the order in which the workpieces W are transported and for each row. The current position of the workpiece W included in the transport information W1a to W12a is 20cm:50cm, 30cm:50cm, 40cm:50cm, ..., and 130cm:50cm in terms of the X coordinate:Y coordinate of the machine coordinate system, respectively, and the current position of the workpiece W included in the transport information W1b to W11b is 30cm:30cm, 40cm:30cm, ..., and 130cm:30cm in terms of the X coordinate:Y coordinate of the machine coordinate system, respectively. The threshold setting unit 28 sets the threshold for the distance between the current positions included in the transport information of adjacent workpieces W in the transport direction X to ±12 cm (= transport interval 10 cm ± offset 2 cm), and sets the threshold for the distance between the current positions included in the transport information of adjacent workpieces W in the row direction Y to ±22 cm (= row interval 20 cm ± offset 2 cm). The one work W at the most downstream position is a defective product and therefore the transport information has been deleted, or the work W is transported in a missing state because it has been dropped from the row of work W.

[0127] The transport information acquisition unit 25 sequentially acquires transport information W1a, W2a, W1b, and W2b of the specified number of four workpieces W from the storage unit 24, and sequentially sends the information to the determination unit 27. The determination unit 27 sequentially determines whether or not the workpieces W can be removed based on the distance between the current positions included in the transport information W1a and W2a of the workpieces W adjacent in the transport direction X and the transport information W1b and W2b of the workpieces W adjacent in the transport direction X, and based on the distance between the current positions included in the transport information W1a and W1b of the workpieces W adjacent in the row direction Y and the transport information W2a and W2b of the workpieces W adjacent in the row direction Y, respectively. The distance calculation unit 27a calculates the distance (10 cm and 10 cm) between the current positions (20 cm and 30 cm and 30 cm and 40 cm) included in the transport information W1a and W2a of adjacent workpieces W in the transport direction X and the transport information W1b and W2b of adjacent workpieces W in the transport direction X, respectively, and the judgment unit 27b judges that the calculated distances (10 cm and 10 cm) between the current positions are both within the threshold value (±12 cm). However, since the distance (22.4 cm) between the current positions included in the transport information W1a and W1b of adjacent workpieces W in the row direction Y is outside the threshold value (±22), the judgment unit 27b judges that the downstream workpiece W of the adjacent workpieces W in the row direction Y cannot be taken out. The decision unit 27 sends the information that the workpiece W corresponding to the transport information W1a cannot be taken out to the transport information acquisition unit 25.

[0128] The transport information acquisition unit 25 again sequentially acquires transport information W2a, W3a, W1b, and W2b of the specified number of workpieces W located upstream of the workpiece W determined to be unremovable from the storage unit 24, and sequentially sends the transport information to the determination unit 27. The determination unit 27 sequentially determines whether or not the workpieces W can be removed based on the distance between the current positions included in the transport information W2a and W3a of the workpieces W adjacent in the transport direction X and the transport information W1b and W2b of the workpieces W adjacent in the transport direction X, and based on the distance between the current positions included in the transport information W2a and W1b of the workpieces W adjacent in the row direction Y and the transport information W3a and W2b of the workpieces W adjacent in the row direction Y, respectively. The distance calculation unit 27a sequentially calculates the distance between the current positions contained in the transport information W2a and W3a of adjacent workpieces W in the transport direction X and the transport information W1b and W2b of adjacent workpieces W in the transport direction X, and the distance between the current positions contained in the transport information W2a and W1b of adjacent workpieces W in the column direction Y and the transport information W3a and W2b of adjacent workpieces W in the column direction Y. The determination unit 27b sequentially receives the calculated distances between the current positions (10cm, 10cm, 20cm, 20cm) and determines whether the distances are outside the thresholds (transport direction X±12cm, row direction Y±22cm). However, since all distances between the current positions (10cm, 10cm, 20cm, 20cm) are within the thresholds (transport direction X±12cm, row direction Y±22cm), the determination unit 27b determines that all works W corresponding to the transport information W2a, W3a, W1b, and W2b can be removed. The decision unit 27 sequentially sends to the transport information acquisition unit 25 information indicating that the works W corresponding to the transport information W2a, W3a, W1b, and W2b can be removed. The transport information acquisition unit 25 has acquired the designated number of four pieces of transport information W2a, W3a, W1b, and W2b from the storage unit 24, and therefore transmits the transport information W2a, W3a, W1b, and W2b to the control unit 29.

[0129] The control unit 29 calculates the workpiece removal position P' (35cm:40cm) based on the current positions (30cm, 50cm, 40cm, 50cm, 30cm, 30cm, and 40cm, 30cm) of the workpieces W included in the transport information W2a, W3a, W1b, and W2b. That is, the original workpiece removal position P (25cm:40cm) is corrected to the workpiece removal position P' (35cm:40cm) based on the current positions included in the transport information W2a, W3a, W1b, and W2b of the designated number of four workpieces W located upstream of the workpieces W determined to be unremovable. That is, the original workpiece removal area A is corrected to the workpiece removal area A' based on the transport information W2a, W3a, W1b, and W2b of the designated number of four workpieces W located upstream of the workpieces W determined to be unremovable.

[0130] The control unit 29 continues to calculate the workpiece removal position P' based on the current positions of the workpieces W included in the transport information W2a, W3a, W1b, and W2b, respectively, until the specified number of four workpieces W are removed. When the workpiece removal position P' enters within the working area B (±25 cm) of the machine 10, the control unit 29 continues to send a movement command to the machine 10 to move to the workpiece removal position P', and tracks the specified number of four workpieces W. When the machine 10 reaches the specified number of four workpieces W, the control unit 29 sends a removal command to the machine 10 to remove the specified number of four workpieces W.

[0131] In addition, the embodiment in which a specified number of workpieces W are delivered at once to the workpiece container T to be transported is similar to the embodiment 4-1 and the embodiment 4-2, and therefore the description thereof will be omitted.

[0132] As described above, according to the machine system 1 of the fourth embodiment, even if the transport information is deleted because the work W or work container T is defective, or if the work W or work container T is supplied in a state where the work W or work container T is missing from a plurality of rows of the work W or work container T, the machine 10 takes out or delivers to the work container T the designated number of four work W located upstream of the work W or work container T determined to be unremovable or deliverable, so that the designated number of four work W can be taken out or delivered to the work container T without omission. In addition, since one piece of transport information for the work W or work container T is generated for one work W or work container T, the machine 10 can take out or deliver to the work container T the designated number of work W in a lump from the work W or work container T located immediately after the work W or work container T determined to be unremovable or deliverable. In other words, the machine 10 can deliver as many takeable work W as possible to the takeable or deliverable work container T as possible.

[0133] FIG. 15 is a functional block diagram of the machine system 1 of the fifth embodiment. In the following, only the parts different from the machine system 1 of the first or second embodiment will be described, and the same configuration and the same operation as the machine system 1 of the first or second embodiment will not be described. The machine system 1 of the fifth embodiment is a server-type system including a plurality of machines 10, a plurality of control devices 20, and one upper computer device 60. The machine system 1 updates the status of the work W or the work container T included in the transport information for each machine 10 based on the working capacity of the machine 10 or the type of work W that the machine 10 can take out or the type of work container T that the machine 10 can dispense. In addition, the machine system 1 determines whether the transported work W can be taken out or dispensed to the transported work container T for each machine 10 based on the status of the work W or the work container T included in the transport information, and takes out or dispenses a specified number of work W at once for each machine 10 based on the takeout or dispense ability. The multiple machines 10 each collectively pick up a designated number of workpieces W. The multiple control devices 20 control each of the multiple machines 10.

[0134] The host computer device 60 manages the transport information of the workpiece W to be transported or the transport information of the workpiece container T to be transported. The host computer device 60 generates the transport information of the workpiece W to be transported or the transport information of the workpiece container T to be transported, and updates the current position, current speed, current posture, type, status, etc. of the workpiece W based on the movement amount of the transport device 30 acquired from the transport device movement amount measuring unit 40 or based on the visual information acquired from the visual sensor 50.

[0135] The host computer device 60 updates the status of the workpiece W or the workpiece container T included in the transport information for each machine 10 based on the working capacity of the machine 10 or the type of workpiece W that the machine 10 can take out or the type of workpiece container T that the machine 10 can discharge. The host computer device 60 is communicatively connected to a plurality of control devices 20, transport device movement amount measuring units 40, visual sensors 50, etc. via wires or wirelessly.

[0136] The host computer device 60 is a computer device (not shown) equipped with a processor, a memory, an input / output unit, and the like. The processor includes a semiconductor integrated circuit that executes a program, such as a central processing unit (CPU) or a micro processing unit (MPU). However, in other embodiments, the processor includes a programmable semiconductor integrated circuit, such as a programmable logic device (PLD) such as a field programmable gate array (FPGA), or a non-programmable semiconductor integrated circuit, such as an ASIC. The memory includes a semiconductor storage device that stores various data, such as a random access memory (RAM) or a read only memory (ROM). In other embodiments, the memory may include a magnetic storage device that stores various data, such as a HDD.

[0137] The control device 20 determines for each machine 10 whether the work W can be removed or whether the work can be delivered to the work container T based on the status or current position included in the transport information of the work W or the work container T. When the status included in the transport information of the work W or the work container T indicates that it can be removed or delivered, the control device 20 determines that the work W can be removed or that the work container T can be delivered, and when the status included in the transport information of the work W indicates that it cannot be removed or delivered, the control device 20 determines that the work W cannot be removed or that the work container T cannot be delivered.

[0138] In addition, when the distance between the current positions included in the transportation information of the work W or the work container T is within a threshold value, the control device 20 determines that the work W can be removed or the work container T can be unloaded, and when the distance between the current positions included in the transportation information of the work W is outside the threshold value, the control device 20 determines that the work W cannot be removed or the work container T cannot be unloaded.

[0139] The control device 20 generates a command to take out or take out a specified number of workpieces W all at once for each machine 10 based on the transport information of the workpieces W or the workpiece container T that is upstream of the workpieces W determined to be unremovable or the workpiece container T determined to be unloadable, and controls the machine 10. The machine 10 takes out or takes out the specified number of workpieces W all at once in response to the command from the control device 20. The control device 20 is communicatively connected to the machine 10, the higher-level computer device 60, etc. via wired or wireless communication.

[0140] The host computer device 60 includes a transport information generating unit 21, a transport device movement amount acquiring unit 22, a transport information updating unit 23, and a memory unit 24. The control device 20 includes a transport information acquiring unit 25, a designated number setting unit 26, a determining unit 27, a threshold setting unit 28, and a control unit 29. The components other than the memory unit 24 are configured as a part or whole of a computer program. In other embodiments, all of the components in the host computer device 60 and the control device 20 may be configured as a part or whole of a semiconductor integrated circuit.

[0141] For example, based on the working capacity of the first type machine 10 and the working capacity of the second type machine 10, the upper computer device 60 may update the status included in the transport information of a specific work W to "only the first type machine 10 can take out" and update the status included in the transport information of a different work W to "only the second type machine 10 can take out". In addition, when multiple types of work W are transported, and the first type machine 10 can take out a type A work W that can be taken out, and the second type machine 10 can take out a type B work W, the upper computer device 60 may update the status included in the transport information of the type A work W to "only the first type machine 10 can take out" and update the status included in the transport information of the type B work W to "only the second type machine 10 can take out". In addition, when the work W is taken out by multiple machines 10, the work W may be transported in a state where the work W is missing from the row of work W. The control device 20 determines whether or not the transported work W can be removed based on the status contained in the transport information of the work W or the distance between the current positions contained in the transport information of adjacent work W, and generates a command for each machine 10 to remove a specified number of work W at once based on whether or not they can be removed.

[0142] As described above, according to the fifth embodiment of the machine system 1, depending on the working capacity of the multiple machines 10 or the type of work W or the type of work container T that the machine 10 can take out, the status of the work W or the work container T included in the transport information indicates that it cannot be taken out for each machine 10. Even if the multiple machines 10 take out the work W and the work container T are transported in a missing piece, the control device 20 determines for each machine whether the work W can be taken out or delivered to the work container T based on the status or current position of the work W or work container T included in the transport information, so that the machine 10 can take out or deliver a specified number of work W in a lump sum.

[0143] The above-mentioned computer program may be provided by being recorded on a computer-readable non-transitory recording medium, such as a CD-ROM, or may be provided by being distributed from a server device on a WAN (wide area network) or LAN (local area network) via wired or wireless connections.

[0144] Although various embodiments have been described herein, it should be recognized that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but can be modified in various ways within the scope of the following claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0145] 1. Mechanical Systems 10 machines 11. Robot 12 Hands 20 Control device 21 Transport information generation unit 22. Transfer device movement amount acquisition unit 23 Delivery Information Update Department 24 Memory section 25. Transportation Information Acquisition Unit 26 Specified number setting section 27 Decision Section 27a Distance calculation section 27b Judgment part 28 Threshold setting unit 29 Control Unit 30 Transport device 40. Transport device movement measurement section 50 Visual Sensor 60 Upper computer equipment W work T Work container W1~W12, W1a~W12a, W1b~W12b Transport information D. Transport Interval

Claims

1. A determination unit that determines whether the transported workpiece can be taken out or whether the transported workpiece can be put into a workpiece container; A control unit that generates a command to take out a designated number of the workpieces at once based on the possibility of taking out the workpieces or generates a command to take out a designated number of the workpieces at once based on the possibility of putting out the workpieces, and controls the machine; The determination unit is a control device that determines whether the work can be removed based on a status included in the transport information of the work, or determines whether the work can be delivered to the work container based on a status included in the transport information of the work container.

2. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit generates a command to remove the specified number of works in one go based on transportation information of a work that is upstream of the work that has been determined to be unremovable, or generates a command to eject the specified number of works in one go based on transportation information of a work container that is upstream of the work container that has been determined to be unremovable.

3. The control device according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a threshold setting unit that sets a threshold value for a distance between current positions included in the transport information of adjacent workpieces or workpiece containers.

4. The control device according to claim 1 , further comprising a designated number setting unit that sets the designated number of the workpieces to be taken out or dispensed at once.

5. The control device according to claim 1 , further comprising a transport information generation unit that generates, for each of the workpieces or each of the workpiece containers, one piece of transport information including a status of the workpiece or the workpiece container.

6. The control device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising a transport information generation unit that generates one piece of transport information including a status of a work group including a plurality of the workpieces or a work container group including a plurality of the work containers for the specified number of the workpieces or the specified number of the work containers.

7. The control device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising a memory unit that stores transport information including a status of the work or a work group including a plurality of the workpieces, or transport information including a status of the work container or a work container group including a plurality of the work containers in the order in which the work or the work container is transported.

8. A control device as described in any one of claims 1 to 7, further comprising a transport information update unit that updates transport information including a current position of the work or a work group including multiple workpieces, or transport information including a current position of the work container or a work container group including multiple work containers, based on a movement amount of a transport device that transports the work or the work container.

9. A control device as described in any one of claims 1 to 8, further comprising a transport information update unit that updates transport information including a status of the work or a work group including multiple of the workpieces, or transport information including a status of the work container or a work container group including multiple of the work containers, based on the working capacity of the machine or the type of the work that the machine can take out or the type of the work container.

10. The control device according to claim 1 , wherein the control unit generates a command to dispense one of the workpieces into one of the workpiece containers, or generates a command to dispense the specified number of the workpieces into one of the workpiece containers.

11. A control device as described in any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the machine is equipped with an extendable hand, and the control unit generates a command to extend or retract the hand based on a current position included in the transport information of the work that has been determined to be removable or a current position included in the transport information of the work container that has been determined to be removable.

12. Several machines and A determination unit that determines whether or not the transported workpiece can be taken out or whether or not the transported workpiece can be put into a workpiece container for each machine; A control unit that generates a command to take out a designated number of the workpieces at once or a command to put out a designated number of the workpieces at once for each machine based on the possibility of taking out or the possibility of putting out, and controls the machine; The decision unit determines whether the work can be removed based on a status included in the transport information of the work, or determines whether the work can be delivered to the work container based on a status included in the transport information of the work container.

13. A decision unit that decides whether or not the workpiece being transported can be removed or whether or not the workpiece being transported can be put into a workpiece container; A control unit that generates a command to take out a designated number of the workpieces at once based on the possibility of taking out the workpieces or generates a command to take out a designated number of the workpieces at once based on the possibility of putting out the workpieces, and controls the machine; The determination unit is a control device that includes a judgment unit that determines whether the work can be removed or delivered to the work container based on a status included in transport information of a work group including a plurality of the works or transport information of a work container group including a plurality of the work containers.

14. A decision unit that decides whether or not the workpiece being transported can be removed or whether or not the workpiece being transported can be put into a workpiece container; A control unit that generates a command to take out a designated number of the workpieces at once based on the possibility of taking out the workpieces or generates a command to take out a designated number of the workpieces at once based on the possibility of putting out the workpieces, and controls the machine; The determination unit is a control device that includes a distance calculation unit that calculates the distance between current positions included in the transport information of adjacent workpieces or a work group including multiple workpieces, or the distance between current positions included in the transport information of adjacent work containers or a work container group including multiple work containers, and a judgment unit that judges whether the workpiece can be removed or delivered to the work container based on the calculated distance.

Images