Micro-operation device

Abstract

The present invention ensures an operating range for fine work while suppressing, as much as possible, variations of the position at which the fine work is performed.　A control unit 70 of a fine work device 1: accepts input of the movement of the position of a tip of a fine work manipulator 10, the position being a fine-work operating position; calculates, with the operating position serving as a target position, driving amounts for the fine work manipulator 10 and a robot unit 20; and controls operations of the fine work manipulator 10 and the robot unit 20 on the basis of the driving amounts.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a fine manipulation device. [Background technology]

[0002] Microsurgery, which involves performing surgery under a microscope on minute surgical targets, such as anastomosis of small blood vessels, nerves, and lymphatic vessels with a diameter of approximately 0.5 to 2 mm, in orthopedic and plastic surgery surgeries and reconstructive surgery for defective parts, requires extremely precise and accurate work due to the small size of the surgical targets, and the surgery requires great skill. In addition, due to the difficulty of the surgery, it tends to take a long time, and such long surgeries place a heavy burden on the surgeon. For these reasons, the number of surgeons capable of performing microsurgery is limited compared to the need for it, and it has not been possible to perform the surgery frequently.

[0003] If we consider the use of manipulators (robots), which have made great technological advances in recent years, master-slave manipulators are not only able to exactly reproduce human movements, but are also capable of performing movements that are scaled down to human movements. If a manipulator with precise movements were to take over the movements involved in surgery, it would be possible to eliminate the effects of hand shake and other factors, ensure precision, reduce the burden on the surgeon, and expect to improve the efficiency of surgery.

[0004] Therefore, the inventors have proposed a fine work support system that can efficiently support work by remotely controlling appropriate work-related movements and reduce the burden on the worker, as well as a fine work manipulator to be used therein (see Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2017-87322 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] The manipulator for fine manipulation disclosed in Patent Document 1 operates forceps attached to the tip by a parallel link mechanism. Here, the parallel link mechanism has a certain range of motion, and if this range of motion is exceeded, the forceps at the tip cannot be moved as desired and will eventually stop. Before this happens, if the robot part supporting the parallel link mechanism is rotated to move the parallel link mechanism closer to its initial position, the range of motion of the forceps at the tip can be secured, and fine manipulation can be performed continuously without stopping.

[0007] In the technology disclosed in Patent Document 1, the parallel link unit has six degrees of freedom, but the robot unit is configured with four degrees of freedom in order to achieve compactness. The four degrees of freedom consist of three degrees of freedom in the rotational direction and one degree of freedom of translation in the radial direction in the polar coordinate system, and the translation in the two directions perpendicular to the radial direction, which is necessary to make it six degrees of freedom, does not work.

[0008] For this reason, even if the robot section is moved to return the parallel link mechanism to its initial position, the two-way translation cannot be moved, and the position of the tip of the forceps moves.

[0009] However, since this fine manipulation device performs fine manipulation, the translational displacement in the two directions is at most ±15 mm, which is not very large.

[0010] If the forceps at the tip move when the robot part is moved, it will affect delicate work, but this small translational movement in two directions can be corrected by the operation of the parallel link mechanism, so the forceps at the tip do not move.In addition, the parallel link mechanism remains in almost the same position as its initial position, ensuring the operating range of the forceps at the tip.

[0011] The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a fine operation device that can ensure a working range for fine operation without causing fluctuations in the position where the fine operation is performed. [Means for solving the problem]

[0012] In order to solve the above problems, a fine operation device according to one aspect of the present invention is a fine operation device that performs predetermined operations related to fine operation on a work object in place of a person, and comprises a fine operation manipulator that performs the fine operation and has a predetermined range of operation, a robot section that supports the fine operation manipulator and has a range of operation wider than the fine operation manipulator's range of operation, and a control device that controls the drive of the fine operation manipulator and the robot section, wherein the control device receives a movement input for the tip position of the fine operation manipulator, which is the operating position for the fine operation, and calculates the amount of drive for the fine operation manipulator and the robot section using the operating position as a target position, and controls the operation of the fine operation manipulator and the robot section based on the amount of drive. [Effects of the Invention]

[0013] According to the present invention, it is possible to realize a fine operation device that can ensure a range of movement for fine operation without causing fluctuations in the position where the fine operation is performed. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0014] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a fine-operation device according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a fine-operation device according to an embodiment. [Figure 3] 1 is a side view showing a schematic configuration of a fine-operation device according to an embodiment. [Figure 4] 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a fine operation manipulator and a robot section of a fine operation device according to an embodiment. [Figure 5] 1 is a perspective view showing a fine operation manipulator of a fine operation device according to an embodiment. [Figure 6] 1 is a perspective view showing a main part of a fine operation manipulator of a fine operation device according to an embodiment. [Figure 7] 1 is a perspective view showing a main part of a fine operation manipulator of a fine operation device according to an embodiment. [Figure 8] 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a fine operation device according to an embodiment; [Figure 9] 10A and 10B are perspective views showing an example of the operation of the fine-operation device according to the embodiment. [Figure 10] 10A and 10B are perspective views showing another example of the operation of the fine-operation device according to the embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing still another example of the operation of the fine-operation device according to the embodiment. [Figure 12] 10A and 10B are side views showing an example of the operation of the fine-operation device according to the embodiment. [Figure 13] 10A and 10B are perspective views showing an example of the operation of the fine operation manipulator of the fine operation device according to the embodiment. [Figure 14] 10A and 10B are perspective views showing another example of the operation of the fine operation manipulator of the fine operation device according to the embodiment. [Figure 15] 4 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the fine-operation device according to the embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0015] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the embodiments described below do not limit the scope of the invention as claimed, and not all of the elements and combinations thereof described in the embodiments are necessarily essential to the solution of the invention.

[0016] In the drawings explaining the embodiments, parts having the same functions are given the same reference numerals, and repeated explanations thereof will be omitted.

[0017] In this embodiment, a fine manipulation device will be described that employs a fine manipulation manipulator for surgical assistance corresponding to microsurgery as a fine manipulation.

[0018] As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 and 8, the fine operation device 1 according to this embodiment comprises a fine operation manipulator 10, a robot section 20 having the fine operation manipulator 10 attached to its tip, a base 30 supporting the robot section 20 from below, an imaging section 40 similarly attached to the base 30 and taking an image of the surgical target, a display section 50 enlarging the image of the surgical target taken by the imaging section 40 and displaying it so that it can be seen by the user, a master section 60 receiving input instructions from the user, and a control section 70 controlling the movement of the fine operation manipulator 10 and the robot section 20 in response to the master section 60 being moved by the user.

[0019] The master unit 60 includes an operation input unit (not shown) that receives operations from the user, and a support mechanism unit 61 that movably supports the operation input unit and can acquire information about the position and orientation of the operation input unit.

[0020] The robot section 20 has three degrees of freedom in rotation and one degree of freedom in translation in the radial direction. The robot section 20 has a motor 21 and an encoder section 22 that detects the rotation angle of the motor 21 (not shown in Figs. 1 to 4, see Fig. 8). In the illustrated example, a pair of robot section 20 and fine operation manipulator 10 are provided on the base 30, but there is no particular limit to the number of robot sections 20 and fine operation manipulators 10.

[0021] The imaging unit 40 captures images of the distal end working unit of the end effector of the fine operation manipulator 10 (described later) and the surgical target, and is disposed, for example, above the robot unit 20, in a position that allows a bird's-eye view of at least the distal end of the fine operation manipulator 10 and the surgical target. This imaging unit 40 is a known video camera that can capture high-resolution images that can be reproduced even when enlarged to the same magnification as when viewed with a conventional microsurgery microscope, and therefore a detailed description of this imaging unit 40 will be omitted here.

[0022] The display unit 50 displays the images of the surgical subject acquired by the imaging unit 40 in a manner that allows the user to view them, enlarging them as necessary. This display unit is a known display device such as a liquid crystal display that can display the images acquired by imaging at high resolution, and therefore a detailed description thereof will be omitted here.

[0023] The base 30 has a movement mechanism (not shown), and is configured so that the fine operation manipulator 10, robot section 20, and imaging section 40, all of which are mounted on the base 30, can be moved to a predetermined position on the floor of an operating room (not shown) based on movement support from the control section 70. This allows the fine operation device 1 of this embodiment to move toward and away from the operating table 3 on which the patient 2, the surgical target shown in Figure 1, lies, and further allows at least the tip of the fine operation manipulator 10 to be positioned at the surgical site on the patient 2.

[0024] Next, the fine operation manipulator 10 will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0025] The fine manipulation manipulator 10 has an unillustrated base supported by a robot section 20, an end effector 12 for handling a surgical object or a surgical instrument, six links 13 arranged in parallel, and six linear actuators 14 supported by the base and for moving each link 13.

[0026] The base, end effector 12, link 13, and linear actuator 14 constitute a six-degree-of-freedom parallel link mechanism in which one end of each link 13 is moved linearly by the linear actuator 14, thereby moving the end effector 12 connected to the other end of the link 13.

[0027] The parallel link mechanism allows the position and orientation of the end effector 12, which handles the surgical object or surgical instrument, to be changed within a predetermined range relative to the base. By having six degrees of freedom, the end effector 12 at the tip can be given the same movement as when supported by hand.

[0028] The linear actuator 14 is a moving coil type linear motor in which the coil 15b is a part of the mover 15 and the permanent magnet 16a is a part of the stator 16. The stator 16 is provided with a sensor unit 16c (not shown in FIGS. 5 to 7, see FIG. 8) that detects the amount of movement of the mover 15.

[0029] The mover 15 has a linear slider 15a arranged so as to be linearly movable relative to the base, a thin cylindrical coil 15b attached integrally to the linear slider 15a with its direction of movement parallel to the linear slider 15a, and a connecting member 15c attached to the tip of the coil 15b and connecting the coil 15b to the linear slider 15a. One end of a link 13 is connected and fixed to the tip of the linear slider 15a of the mover 15 via the connecting member 15c, and this one end of the link 13 moves linearly together with the mover 15 including the linear slider 15a.

[0030] The stator 16 is formed in a cylindrical shape that is thicker and shorter than the coil 15b of the mover 15, and has a permanent magnet 16a fixed to a base by fixing means (not shown).

[0031] In the stator 16, a cylindrical permanent magnet 16a fixed to a base is aligned with the coil 15b of the mover 15 in the cylindrical axis direction, and the coil 15b is arranged so that it can movably pass through the cylindrical space portion of the permanent magnet 16b.

[0032] By using a linear motor as the linear actuator 14 in this way, it is possible to reduce the number of mechanical moving parts compared to other linear motion mechanisms such as ball screws, and also to reduce the number of contact parts that involve sliding and rolling, thereby preventing backlash, improving the reliability of the mechanism and reducing frictional resistance and power consumption required for driving.

[0033] The linear actuator 14, which is a linear motor consisting of a mover 15 and a stator 16, is arranged in a line around a predetermined imaginary center line that is parallel to the moving direction of the mover 15 and extends in the longitudinal direction of the linear actuator 14, with the permanent magnets 16a of the stator 16 and the coils 15b of the mover 15 being closest to the imaginary center line, and with each permanent magnet 16a and each coil 15b being equally spaced apart around the imaginary center line, while the moving directions of the movers 15 are parallel to each other.

[0034] The permanent magnet 16a of the stator 16 is positioned close to the other coils 15b other than the coils 15b that form a set of linear motors, penetrating the cylindrical space. However, the fixed permanent magnet 16a does not have a fluctuating magnetic field, unlike the coils 15b, and therefore does not have a magnetic effect on the movement of the other coils 15b.

[0035] Since the movers 15 and stators 16 of each linear motor that constitutes the linear actuator 14 are arranged side by side around an imaginary center line, it is possible to integrate a compact structure into the linear actuator portion of the fine operation manipulator 10. Furthermore, due to the mechanical structure, the end of the coil 15b of the mover 15, which varies the fixed magnetic field, does not come very close to the permanent magnet 16a of the stator 16, so that fluctuations in the magnetic field that cause cogging when the mover 15 moves can be suppressed, and smooth operation of the linear actuator 14 can be achieved.

[0036] Link 13 is configured by combining two highly rigid, non-deformable, generally rod-shaped members connected in the longitudinal direction to form a rod-shaped body, with joints 13a, 13b with multiple degrees of freedom disposed at both ends for connection to linear actuator 14 and rotation support section 17. In link 13, the generally rod-shaped members forming the rod-shaped body are rotatably connected to each other, and between the portions of link 13 near one end and the other end, degrees of freedom of rotation are given to the portions of link 13 near one end and the other end about axes parallel to the longitudinal direction.

[0037] Joint 13a at one end of link 13 has a structure that allows freedom of rotation about two mutually perpendicular axes, and is connected to the end of linear slider 15a of linear actuator 14. Joint 13b at the other end of link 13 has a structure that allows freedom of rotation about two mutually perpendicular axes, similar to the above, and is connected to rotation support part 17.

[0038] Because a degree of freedom of rotation is provided between the portion of the link 13 near one end and the portion near the other end, and because the link 13 is connected by joints 13a, 13b at both ends, each of which has two degrees of freedom of rotation, each link 13 can freely change its orientation with respect to the connected linear actuator 14 and rotary support unit 17, just as when connected using a ball joint. The link mechanism that arranges these links 13 between the linear actuator 14 and the rotary support unit 17 is a parallel link mechanism with six links 13 arranged in parallel, so that various movements related to changes in the position and orientation of the rotary support unit 17 and the end effector 12 provided at the tip of the rotary support unit 17 relative to the base can be accommodated with six degrees of freedom, consisting of three degrees of freedom of movement in three mutually perpendicular axial directions and three degrees of freedom of rotation about the three axes, just like when the end effector 12 is supported by a human hand.

[0039] Next, the operation of the fine operation apparatus 1 of this embodiment, particularly the operation of the robot section 20 and the fine operation manipulator 10, will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0040] As described above, the parallel link mechanism of the fine operation manipulator 10 has six degrees of freedom. Therefore, after the base 30 is moved to a predetermined position and the three-dimensional position and rotational position of the fine operation manipulator 10 are fixed in a predetermined position by the robot unit 20, fine operation can be performed mainly by the operation of the parallel link mechanism having six degrees of freedom. However, there is a certain limit to the operable range of the parallel link mechanism, and when the tip of the end effector 12 is moved beyond this operable range, it is necessary to change the position of the fine operation manipulator 10 itself by the robot unit 20 and return the parallel link mechanism to its initial position, i.e., a position symmetrical about the central axis of the fine operation manipulator 10.

[0041] 9 is a diagram showing the fine operation manipulator 10 with the parallel link mechanism near its operable range. In the figure, the end effector 12 is near the operable range of the parallel link mechanism in the lower left direction of the figure, and to move the end effector 12 further in the lower left direction of the figure, it is necessary to operate the robot unit 20 while returning the parallel link mechanism to its initial position, thereby compensating for the movement of the tip position of the end effector 12 caused by returning the parallel link mechanism to its initial position.

[0042] In the example shown in Fig. 10, the robot part 20 is operated from the position (indicated by A in the figure) of the fine operation manipulator 10 shown in Fig. 9 to rotate the fine operation manipulator 10 in the left (counterclockwise) direction in the figure (the position after rotation is indicated by B in the figure), while returning the parallel link mechanism to its initial position. This ensures the operating range of the parallel link mechanism again, as shown in Fig. 11.

[0043] However, in the fine operation device 1 of this embodiment, the robot part 20 only has three degrees of freedom in rotation and one degree of freedom in translation in the radial direction, so as shown in Figures 12 and 13, simply rotating the fine operation manipulator 10 by the robot part 20 while returning the parallel link mechanism to its initial position may result in a parallel translation of the position of the end effector 12 (the parallel translation is indicated by C in the figures).

[0044] Therefore, in the fine operation device 1 of this embodiment, the fine operation manipulator 10 and the robot section 20 are interlocked so as to prevent parallel movement of the position of the end effector 12. In the example shown in Fig. 14, the robot section 20 rotates and moves the fine operation manipulator 10 while returning the parallel link mechanism to near its initial position so as not to move the tip position of the end effector 12, that is, with the tip position of the end effector 12 set as the control target position.

[0045] This makes it possible to realize a fine operation device 1 that can ensure the operating range of the fine operation manipulator 10 while minimizing fluctuations in the position of the end effector 12 that performs the fine operation.

[0046] FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the fine-operation apparatus 1 of this embodiment.

[0047] First, the user operates the master unit 60 to input an operation instruction to be performed by the fine-operation device 1, and the control unit 70 accepts this operation input instruction (step S10).

[0048] Next, the control unit 70 calculates the target coordinate position and rotation angle of the tip of the end effector 12 based on the operation input instruction (step S11). Then, the control unit 70 determines the distribution of operations of the robot unit 20 and the fine operation manipulator 10 based on the coordinate position of the tip of the end effector 12 calculated in step S11 (step S12).

[0049] In the operation of step S12, the control unit 70 distributes the operations of the robot unit 20 and the fine operation manipulator 10 in order to position the end effector 12 at a target coordinate position and rotation angle for the tip of the end effector 12. The method of distribution is arbitrary, and may be achieved, for example, by the operation of the fine operation manipulator 10 alone (i.e., the operation of the parallel link mechanism), by the cooperative operation of the fine operation manipulator 10 and the robot unit 20, or by the operation of the robot unit 20 alone.

[0050] The operation of step S12 will be described in detail with an example. In order to position the end effector 12 at a target coordinate position and rotation angle for the tip of the end effector 12, the control unit 70 first distributes the operations of the robot unit 20 and the fine operation manipulator 10 under conditions that move only the parallel link mechanism of the fine operation manipulator 10. Then, it is determined whether the distributed coordinate position and rotation angle of the fine operation manipulator 10 have approached a certain threshold value with respect to the operating limit of the parallel link mechanism of the fine operation manipulator 10. Examples of the threshold value include an angle 5 degrees short of the angle at which the joints 13a, 13b constituting the parallel link mechanism interfere with each other, or a distance of 3 mm or less between the links 13 of adjacent parallel link mechanisms.

[0051] Then, when it is determined that the threshold value has been approached, the control unit 70 determines the coordinate position and rotation angle of the parallel link mechanism of the fine work manipulator 10 in order to return the parallel link mechanism of the fine work manipulator 10 to its initial position, and also determines the coordinate position and rotation angle of the robot unit 20 in order to operate the robot unit 20 and position the end effector 12 at the target coordinate position and rotation angle of the tip of the end effector 12.

[0052] In this case, if the operating speed of the robot unit 20 is set to 100% of the output of the motor that constitutes this robot unit 20, there is a possibility that the tip of the end effector 12 will vibrate. On the other hand, if the operating speed of the robot unit 20 is set too slow, the operation by the master unit 60 will continue, and there is a possibility that the parallel link mechanism of the fine operation manipulator 10 will quickly reach its operating limit. Therefore, it is preferable to set the operating speed of the robot unit 20 variably, for example, within a range of 10% to 60%, so that the operator can set it according to the operation to be performed by the fine operation manipulator 10.

[0053] Thereafter, the control unit 70 calculates the coordinate position and rotation angle of the robot unit 20 (step S13), calculates the drive amount of the motor 21 of the robot unit 20 (step S14), drives the motor 21 of the robot unit 20 based on the calculated drive amount (step S15), and stores the drive amount of the robot unit 20 based on the output value from the encoder unit 22 (step S16). After that, in distributing the operations of the robot unit 20 and the fine operation manipulator 10 in step S12, the control unit 70 performs feedback control based on the drive amount of the robot unit 20 stored in step S16.

[0054] Meanwhile, the control unit 70 calculates the coordinate position and rotation angle of the fine work manipulator 10 (step S17), calculates the drive amount of the linear actuator 14 of the fine work manipulator 10 (step S18), and drives the linear actuator 14 of the fine work manipulator 10 based on the calculated drive amount (step S19).

[0055] The above-described embodiments have been described in detail to clearly explain the present invention, and the present invention is not necessarily limited to those including all of the described components. Furthermore, some of the components of each embodiment can be added to, deleted from, or replaced with other components.

[0056] As an example, in the above-described embodiment, the fine operation manipulator 10 is attached to the robot part 20 and the base 30, but rough adjustment of the position of the fine operation manipulator 10 relative to the surgical target may be performed by first attaching the fine operation manipulator 10 to a supporting stand, arm, or the like, and then manually moving the stand, arm, or the like so that the end effector 12 faces the surgical target and is spaced an appropriate distance from the surgical target.

[0057] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the operations of the fine operation manipulator 10 and the robot unit 20 are distributed one after the other. However, for example, the master unit 60 may be provided with a foot switch for returning the fine operation manipulator 10 to its initial position, and the fine operation manipulator 10 may be returned to its initial position by operating the foot switch, while the coordinate position and rotation angle of the robot unit 20 may be set so that the tip position of the end effector 12 is set to the position indicated by the master unit 60.

[0058] In the above-described embodiment, the control lines and information lines are those that are considered necessary for the explanation, and not all control lines and information lines are necessarily shown in the product. All components may be interconnected. (Appendix 1) A fine manipulation device that performs a predetermined operation related to fine manipulation on a work object in place of a person, The fine operation device comprises a fine operation manipulator that performs the fine operation and has a predetermined range of motion, a robot unit that supports the fine operation manipulator and has a range of motion wider than the predetermined range of motion, and a control device that controls the drive of the fine operation manipulator and the robot unit, The control device receives a movement input of the tip position of the fine operation manipulator, which is the operating position for the fine operation, calculates a drive amount for the fine operation manipulator and the robot unit with the operating position as a target position, and controls the operation of the fine operation manipulator and the robot unit based on the drive amount. A fine work device characterized by: (Appendix 2) The control device calculates the drive amount of the fine operation manipulator and the robot unit so that the operation range of the fine operation manipulator is not exceeded, and controls the operations of the fine operation manipulator and the robot unit based on the drive amount. The fine-working device according to (Appendix 1) is characterized in that: (Appendix 3) When the control device determines that the fine operation manipulator reaches the operating range when the fine operation manipulator is operated to its tip position by itself, the control device sets the operating position as the target position, calculates the drive amount for the fine operation manipulator and the robot unit, and controls the operation of the fine operation manipulator and the robot unit based on the drive amount. The fine-working device according to (Appendix 1) is characterized in that: (Appendix 4) When the control device determines that the fine operation manipulator will reach the operating range when operated to its tip position by the fine operation manipulator alone, it operates the fine operation manipulator within the operating range and controls the operation of the fine operation manipulator and the robot unit based on the calculated drive amount so that the robot unit moves the fine operation manipulator to the operating position. The fine-working device according to (Appendix 3) is characterized in that: (Appendix 5) The control device has a threshold value for the operating range of the fine manipulator, and determines that the fine manipulator has reached the operating range when it determines that the fine manipulator has reached the threshold value. The fine-working device according to (Appendix 3 or 4) is characterized in that: (Appendix 6) The fine manipulation manipulator comprises: a parallel link mechanism with three or more degrees of freedom, which includes a base supported at a predetermined location in a space where the work object is present, an end effector that handles the work object or a work tool, and a plurality of links arranged in parallel between the base and the end effector, and which allows the position and orientation of the end effector to be changed within a predetermined range relative to the base; The parallel link mechanism uses a plurality of linear actuators supported on the base to linearly move one end of each of the links, thereby moving the end effector connected to the other end of each of the links. The fine-working device according to any one of (Appendix 1 to 5) above. (Appendix 7) the parallel link mechanism has an initial position that is symmetrical with respect to a central axis of the fine operation manipulator, When the control device determines that the fine operation manipulator has reached the operating range, it calculates the drive amount of the fine operation manipulator so as to move the parallel link mechanism to the initial position, and calculates the drive amount of the robot section so that the tip position of the fine operation manipulator does not move at that time. The fine-working device according to (Appendix 6) is characterized in that: (Appendix 8) The fine operation device described in any one of Appendices 1 to 7 is characterized in that the robot section has the fine operation manipulator attached to its tip and supports the fine operation manipulator with three degrees of freedom in rotation and one degree of freedom in translation in the radial direction. (Appendix 9) The fine operation device described in (Appendix 6) is characterized in that the parallel link mechanism is a mechanism with six or more degrees of freedom, in which six or more linear actuators and six or more links are arranged in parallel. (Appendix 10) the linear actuator is a moving coil type linear motor in which a coil is a part of a mover and a permanent magnet is a part of a stator, the mover has a linear motion slider attached to the base so as to be linearly movable, and the cylindrical coil attached integrally to the linear motion slider, the coil being disposed with its axial direction parallel to the moving direction of the linear motion slider; The fine manipulation device described in (Appendix 6, 7 or 9) is characterized in that the stator has a cylindrical permanent magnet that is shorter than the coil, the permanent magnet is aligned with the coil in the cylindrical axis direction, and the coil is arranged so that it can movably pass through the cylindrical space portion of the permanent magnet. (Appendix 11) The fine manipulation device described in (Appendix 10) is characterized in that the linear motors are arranged around a predetermined imaginary center line that is parallel to the direction of movement of the movers, with the permanent magnets being arranged closest to the imaginary center line, while the moving directions of the movers are parallel to each other. [Explanation of symbols]

[0059] REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1...Fine work device 10...Fine work manipulator 12...End effector 13...Link 14...Linear actuator 15...Mover 15a...Linear slider 15b...Coil 16...Stator 16a...Permanent magnet 20...Robot section 70...Control section

Claims

1. A fine manipulation device that performs fine manipulation operations on a work object in place of a person, The fine operation device comprises a fine operation manipulator having a first range of motion for performing the fine operation, a robot section supporting the fine operation manipulator and having a second range of motion wider than the first range of motion, and a control device for controlling the driving of the fine operation manipulator and the robot section, the control device receives a movement input of a tip position of the fine operation manipulator, which is an operation position of the fine operation, and sets the position indicated by the movement input as a target position for the tip position of the fine operation manipulator, calculates drive amounts for the fine operation manipulator and the robot unit, and controls the operation of the fine operation manipulator and the robot unit based on the drive amounts; The fine manipulation manipulator comprises: a parallel link mechanism with three or more degrees of freedom, which includes a base supported in a space where the work object is present, an end effector that handles the work object or a work tool, and a plurality of links arranged in parallel between the base and the end effector, and which allows the position and orientation of the end effector to be changed within the first operating range relative to the base; the parallel link mechanism has an initial position that is symmetrical with respect to a central axis of the fine operation manipulator, When it is determined that the parallel link mechanism approaches an operation limit corresponding to the first operation range and satisfies a predetermined condition under the condition that only the parallel link mechanism is driven to position the tip position of the fine operation manipulator at the target position, the control device calculates the drive amount of the fine operation manipulator and also calculates the drive amount of the robot section so that the parallel link mechanism approaches the initial position more than the position at which the parallel link mechanism approaches the operation limit and satisfies the predetermined condition. A fine work device characterized by:

2. A fine manipulation device that performs fine manipulation operations on a work object in place of a person, The fine operation device comprises a fine operation manipulator having a first range of motion for performing the fine operation, a robot section supporting the fine operation manipulator and having a second range of motion wider than the first range of motion, and a control device for controlling the driving of the fine operation manipulator and the robot section, the control device receives a movement input of a tip position of the fine operation manipulator, which is an operation position of the fine operation, and sets the position indicated by the movement input as a target position for the tip position of the fine operation manipulator, calculates drive amounts for the fine operation manipulator and the robot unit, and controls the operation of the fine operation manipulator and the robot unit based on the drive amounts; The fine manipulation manipulator comprises: a parallel link mechanism with three or more degrees of freedom, which includes a base supported in a space where the work object is present, an end effector that handles the work object or a work tool, and a plurality of links arranged in parallel between the base and the end effector, and which allows the position and orientation of the end effector to be changed within the first operating range relative to the base; When the control device determines that the parallel link mechanism approaches the operation limit corresponding to the first operation range and satisfies a predetermined condition under the condition of driving only the parallel link mechanism to position the tip position of the fine operation manipulator at the target position, the control device calculates the drive amount of the fine operation manipulator and calculates the drive amount of the robot section so that the parallel link mechanism does not reach the operation limit and the tip position of the fine operation manipulator is positioned at the target position. A fine work device characterized by:

3. A fine manipulation device that performs fine manipulation operations on a work object in place of a person, The fine operation device comprises a fine operation manipulator having a first range of motion for performing the fine operation, a robot section supporting the fine operation manipulator and having a second range of motion wider than the first range of motion, and a control device for controlling the driving of the fine operation manipulator and the robot section, the control device receives a movement input of a tip position of the fine operation manipulator, which is an operation position of the fine operation, and sets the position indicated by the movement input as a target position for the tip position of the fine operation manipulator, calculates drive amounts for the fine operation manipulator and the robot unit, and controls the operation of the fine operation manipulator and the robot unit based on the drive amounts; The fine manipulation manipulator comprises: a parallel link mechanism with three or more degrees of freedom, which includes a base supported in a space where the work object is present, an end effector that handles the work object or a work tool, and a plurality of links arranged in parallel between the base and the end effector, and which allows the position and orientation of the end effector to be changed within the first operating range relative to the base; the parallel link mechanism has an initial position that is symmetrical with respect to a central axis of the fine operation manipulator, When the control device determines that the parallel link mechanism approaches an operation limit corresponding to the first operation range and satisfies a predetermined condition under conditions in which only the parallel link mechanism is driven to position the tip position of the fine operation manipulator at the target position, the control device calculates the drive amount of the fine operation manipulator and the drive amount of the robot section so that the parallel link mechanism approaches the operation limit and approaches the initial position more closely than the position at which the predetermined condition is satisfied, and so that the tip position of the fine operation manipulator is positioned at the target position. A fine work device characterized by:

4. The parallel link mechanism uses a plurality of linear actuators supported on the base to linearly move one end of each link, thereby moving the end effector connected to the other end of the link.

4. The fine operation device according to claim 1, wherein the fine operation device is a micro-operation device.

5. The parallel link mechanism is a mechanism having six or more degrees of freedom in which six or more linear actuators and six or more links are arranged in parallel.

5. The fine operation device according to claim 4.

6. the linear actuator is a moving coil type linear motor in which a coil is a part of a mover and a permanent magnet is a part of a stator, the mover has a linear motion slider attached to the base so as to be linearly movable, and the cylindrical coil attached integrally to the linear motion slider, the coil being disposed with its axial direction parallel to the moving direction of the linear motion slider; 6. The fine manipulation device according to claim 4, wherein the stator has a cylindrical permanent magnet that is shorter than the coil, the permanent magnet is aligned with the coil in the cylindrical axis direction, and the coil is arranged so that it can movably pass through the cylindrical space portion of the permanent magnet.

7. 7. The fine manipulation device according to claim 6, wherein the linear motors are arranged around an imaginary center line that is parallel to the direction of movement of the movers, with the permanent magnets being arranged closest to the imaginary center line, while the directions of movement of the movers are parallel to each other.

8. The control device has a threshold value for the operation limit of the parallel link mechanism of the fine operation manipulator, and when it determines that the parallel link mechanism of the fine operation manipulator has reached the threshold value, it determines that the parallel link mechanism has approached the operation limit and satisfied the predetermined condition.

8. The fine operation device according to claim 1, wherein the fine operation device is a micro-operation device.

9. The robot section has the fine work manipulator attached to the tip of the robot section, and supports the fine work manipulator with three degrees of freedom in rotation and one degree of freedom in translation in the radial direction.

9. The fine operation device according to claim 1, wherein the fine operation device is a micro-operation device.

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