Automatic scraping device, automatic scraping method, information processing device, processing instruction data generation method, and processing instruction data generation program

The automatic scraping device addresses over-scraping and incomplete scraping issues by dividing convex portions into layers and adjusting scraper positions, ensuring precise cutting for flat surfaces with optimized lubrication.

JP7817911B2Active Publication Date: 2026-02-19CITIZEN WATCH CO LTD
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Patent Information

Application Number
JP2022158590
Authority / Receiving Office
JP · JP
Patent Type
Patents
Current Assignee / Owner
Priority Date
2022-03-31
Filing Date
2022-09-30
Publication Date
2026-02-19
Estimated Expiration
2042-09-30

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

Conventional automatic scraping devices often result in over-scraping or incomplete scraping of workpiece surfaces, leading to inefficiencies in achieving the desired flatness and lubrication enhancement.

Method used

An automatic scraping device that utilizes a processing robot and control device to systematically scrape workpiece surfaces by dividing convex portions into multiple layers, adjusting the scraper's position and path to ensure precise cutting, thereby minimizing over-scraping or incomplete scraping.

Benefits of technology

The system effectively prevents over-scraping or incomplete scraping, ensuring high precision in achieving flat surfaces with micron-sized depressions for improved lubrication, enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of the scraping process.

✦ Generated by Eureka AI based on patent content.

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Abstract

To provide a technique which is related to automatic scraping processing that automatically performs scraping processing to a processing object surface of a workpiece and suppresses the occurrence of excessive grinding and an unground part of the processing object surface.SOLUTION: An automatic scraping processing device comprises: a processing robot which is operated while holding a scraper that has a cutting blade; and a control device which controls the processing robot according to the processing instruction data. The control device, when executing leveling processing of cutting a convex portion on the processing object surface through use of the scraper, divides the convex portion into a plurality of layers in the height direction thereof to cut the convex portion in stages, and offsets, from each other, the positions of planar processing paths of the scraper during cutting of layers successive in the height direction.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1
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Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a technique for automatically performing scraping. [Background technology]

[0002] Scraping (also called "scraping") is performed on the sliding surfaces of machine tools and other devices with moving parts in order to increase their flatness and reduce the coefficient of sliding friction. Scraping is a type of metalworking, and traditionally, the work involves painting the surface of the workpiece to be machined with red lead or a pigment, and then using a scraping tool with a wide, chisel-like tip (spatula-like) the worker manually scrapes away any protruding parts while checking the color difference.

[0003] The original purpose of scraping is to finish the sliding surface into a highly flat surface, but the minute micron-sized depressions formed on the sliding surface by this scraping process act as reservoirs for lubricating oil during sliding, improving the lubrication of the sliding surface and preventing ringing during sliding.However, manual scraping by an operator requires skill and is also very hard work.

[0004] In this regard, an automatic scraping device has also been proposed that scrapes the surface of a workpiece by automatically controlling the operation of a scraper (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 to 4). In addition, although not related to scraping, Patent Documents 5 and 6 are examples of documents that disclose techniques for performing cutting on the surface of a workpiece. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 5954855 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 10-58285 [Patent Document 3] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 05-123921 [Patent Document 4] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 07-246515 [Patent Document 5] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2020-199611 [Patent Document 6] Patent No. 3392569 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] In conventional automatic scraping devices, when cutting the surface of a workpiece, the surface is likely to be over-scraped or left unscraped, leaving room for improvement.

[0007] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a technology for automatic scraping that automatically scrapes the surface of a workpiece to be processed, making it less likely that the surface to be processed will be over-scraped or left unscraped. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] (Aspect 1) In order to solve the above problems, an automatic scraping device according to a first aspect of the present invention is an automatic scraping device that automatically scrapes a surface of a workpiece to be processed, and includes a processing robot that holds and operates a scraper having a cutting blade, and a control device that controls the processing robot in accordance with processing instruction data, and when performing a flattening processing process in which a convex portion of the surface to be processed is scraped by the scraper, the control device scrapes the convex portion in a plurality of layers in the height direction. The layer is divided into sections and cut in stages, and the positions of the planar machining paths of the scraper when cutting successive layers in the height direction are shifted from each other.

[0009] (Aspect 2) An information processing device according to aspect 1 of the present invention is an information processing device that generates processing instruction data for controlling the processing robot described in aspect 1, and is equipped with a processor that executes a processing instruction data generation process that includes acquiring convex portions of the surface to be processed based on surface height information of the surface to be processed, dividing the convex portions in the height direction to set multiple processing area layers, and setting a processing path of the scraper for each of the multiple processing area layers, and in the processing instruction data generation process, the processor sets the position of the planar processing path of the scraper by shifting it from one another between processing area layers that are consecutive in the height direction.

[0010] (Aspect 3) In the above-described second aspect, the processor may obtain the convex portion as a differential shape between an initial shape of the processing object surface and a target plane of the processing object surface to be formed after the planarization processing.

[0011] (Aspect 4) In the above-mentioned aspect 2 or 3, the processor may divide the planar area of ​​the surface to be machined into a plurality of divided areas corresponding to the cutting range of one stroke by the scraper using a predetermined division pattern, and set, among the plurality of divided areas assigned to the surface to be machined, a divided area that overlaps in plan with the target machining area layer as the machining target divided area corresponding to that machining area layer, and set a machining path for the scraper for each of the machining target divided areas.

[0012] (Aspect 5) In the above-mentioned aspect 4, when dividing the planar area of ​​the surface to be machined into the plurality of divided areas, the processor may set a stroke path of the scraper for each of the divided areas, and set a machining path of the scraper on the stroke path.

[0013] (Aspect 6) In the above-mentioned aspect 5, the processor may set the processing target partition areas of the processing area layers that are continuous in the vertical direction based on partition pattern data that divides the planar area into the plurality of partition areas using mutually different partition patterns.

[0014] (Aspect 7) A processing instruction data generation method according to aspect 7 of the present invention is a processing instruction data generation method executed by a processor of an information processing device to generate processing instruction data for controlling the processing robot described in aspect 1, and includes the steps of: acquiring convex portions of the processing surface based on surface height information of the processing surface; dividing the convex portions in the height direction to set multiple processing area layers; and setting a processing path of the scraper for each of the multiple processing area layers; and in the processing instruction data generation process, the positions of the planar processing paths of the scraper are set to be shifted relative to each other between processing area layers that are consecutive in the height direction.

[0015] (Aspect 8) A processing instruction data generation program according to an eighth aspect of the present invention causes a processor of an information processing device that generates processing instruction data for controlling the processing robot according to the first aspect to execute a processing instruction data generation process, the processing instruction data generation process including acquiring convex portions of the processing target surface based on surface height information of the processing target surface, dividing the convex portions in the height direction to set a plurality of processing area layers, and setting a processing path of the scraper for each of the plurality of processing area layers. At the same time, in the data generation process, the positions of the planar machining paths of the scraper are set to be shifted from each other between the machining area layers that are continuous in the height direction.

[0016] (Aspect 9) The automatic scraping method according to aspect 9 of the present invention is an automatic scraping method executed by a control device of an automatic scraping device that automatically scrapes the surface to be processed of a workpiece when it controls a processing robot in accordance with processing instruction data, and when the control device executes a flattening processing process in which a convex portion of the surface to be processed is cut using the scraper, the control device divides the convex portion into multiple layers in the vertical direction and cuts them in stages, and shifts the positions of the planar processing paths of the scraper relative to each other when cutting consecutive layers in the vertical direction. [Effects of the Invention]

[0017] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a technique for automatic scraping, which automatically scrapes the surface of a workpiece to be processed, that makes it difficult for over-scraping or incomplete scraping to occur on the surface to be processed. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0018] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of an automatic scraping device according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a scraper unit held by a robot hand. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a side view of the scraper cutting blade cutting the workpiece surface. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the control device. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of the control device. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining surface height information of the surface to be processed. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a plurality of processing region layers in a convex portion on a processing target surface. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining the processed region layer distribution information. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating the planar distribution and height distribution of each processing region layer in the region shown in the enlarged view A of FIG. 8, and the cutting procedure of each processing region layer. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating the cutting conditions information table. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating plane division pattern information. [Figure 12] FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating a cutting target division area corresponding to a machining area layer. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining the cutting target segmented region RB corresponding to the machining region layer. [Figure 14]FIG. 14 is a diagram for explaining the processing point list data. [Figure 15] FIG. 15 is a flowchart executed by the processor of the control device. [Figure 16] FIG. 16 is a diagram showing a processing condition information table according to the second embodiment. [Figure 17] FIG. 17 is a diagram showing a surface to be machined of a workpiece according to the second embodiment. [Figure 18] FIG. 18 is a diagram showing a schematic diagram of the shape of a convex portion on a surface to be processed. [Figure 19] FIG. 19 is a distribution diagram showing the planar distribution of each processed region layer in the form of contour lines. [Figure 20] FIG. 20 is a diagram illustrating the machining area ratio of each machining area layer set for rough machining to achieve flatness. [Figure 21] FIG. 21 is a diagram illustrating the machining area ratio of each machining area layer set for flat finish machining. [Figure 22] FIG. 22 is a diagram illustrating a division pattern of the processing surface according to the second embodiment. [Figure 23] FIG. 23 is a diagram for explaining a method for setting a machining path for a target machining region layer. [Figure 24] FIG. 24 is a diagram schematically showing a work-affected layer formed on the surface of a workpiece according to a modified example. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0019] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that each configuration and their combinations in the embodiments are merely examples, and additions, omissions, substitutions, and other modifications of the configurations are possible as appropriate within the scope of the gist of the present invention. The present invention is not limited to the embodiments, but is limited only by the claims.

[0020] <Embodiment 1> (Schematic configuration of processing device) Fig. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of an automatic scraping device 1 according to embodiment 1. As shown in Fig. 1, the automatic scraping device 1 includes a control device 100, a robot arm 200, a three-dimensional shape measuring device 300, and the like.

[0021] The automatic scraping device 1 is a device that automatically performs scraping on a workpiece surface 11 of a workpiece 10, which is an object to be processed. The workpiece 10 may be, for example, a metal sliding member that constitutes a machine tool or the like, and its sliding surface may serve as the workpiece surface 11. Scraping is a type of metal processing in which a scraper, which is a scraping tool (cutting tool), is used to scrape off convex portions of the workpiece surface 11, thereby increasing the flatness of the workpiece surface 11 and reducing the coefficient of sliding friction. The original purpose of scraping is to finish the sliding surface into a highly flat surface. However, in order to prevent the wringing phenomenon that occurs when the sliding surface slides, the scraping finishing process also forms numerous micron-sized depressions on the sliding surface as reservoirs of lubricating oil, thereby improving the lubricity of the sliding surface.

[0022] The robot arm 200 is, for example, a six-axis articulated robot arm, and is controlled by the control device 100. The robot arm 200 has a robot hand 210 at its tip end, and is capable of detachably holding (grasping) the scraper unit 20 and the hand chuck 30 on the robot hand 210. In other words, the scraper unit 20 and the hand chuck 30 can be selectively attached to the robot arm 200. The robot arm 200 can move the robot hand 210 to any position in an XYZ three-dimensional Cartesian coordinate system by driving each joint (for example, the first to sixth axes) with a servo motor or the like.

[0023] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a scraper unit 20 held by a robot hand 210. The scraper unit 20 is an attachment including a holder 21 detachably attached to the robot hand 210 and a scraper 22, which is a scraping tool (cutting tool) integrally provided with the holder 21. The scraper 22 includes a scraper body 23 having a generally strip-like shape and made of a flexible metal material, and a cutting blade 24 attached to the tip of the scraper body 23. The cutting blade 24 is made of, for example, a cemented carbide alloy and is capable of cutting the workpiece surface 11 of the workpiece 10, which is made of, for example, a cast metal. The symbol W in the figure indicates the width of the cutting blade 24. The symbol 25 indicates the cutting edge of the cutting blade 24. Although the cutting edge 25 shown in FIG. 2 has a circular (rounded) shape, the shape of the cutting edge 25 is not particularly limited. For example, the cutting edge 25 may have a linear shape. Of course, when using a cutting edge 25 having an arc shape, the radius of curvature (tip radius of the cutting edge) is not particularly limited. For example, the scraper unit 20 having different sizes, such as the width dimension W of the cutting blade 24 and the radius of curvature (tip radius of the cutting edge), can be attached to the robot hand 210.

[0024] The scraping process for the surface 11 to be processed of the workpiece 10 is performed by fixing the workpiece 10 to a processing stand C1 shown in FIG. 1, for example, and controlling the robot arm 200 with the scraper unit 20 held by the robot hand 210. The surface of the processing stand C1 is It is formed in a plane parallel to the -Y plane.

[0025] 3 is a side view of the situation in which the cutting blade 24 of the scraper 22 is cutting the surface 11 to be machined of the workpiece 10. In scraping, the cutting blade 24 is placed at an angle against the surface 11 to be machined, and the robot hand 210 is driven in the -Z direction to press the cutting blade 24 against the surface 11 to be machined, and then the robot hand 210 is stroked parallel to the XY plane (hereinafter, this direction (white arrow in FIG. 3) will be referred to as the "stroke direction"), thereby cutting the surface 11 to a thickness on the order of microns or submicrons.

[0026] The symbol θ in FIG. 3 is the angle between the cutting blade 24 and the XY plane when the cutting blade 24 cuts the workpiece surface 11 (hereinafter referred to as the "tool angle"). The robot arm 200 can adjust the cutting depth ΔDS and cutting width WC of the workpiece surface 11 per stroke of the scraper 22 by, for example, using the tool angle θ during scraping and the vertical push-in amount (displacement amount in the -Z direction) δz of the robot hand 210 as control parameters. Here, the vertical push-in amount (displacement amount in the -Z direction) δz of the robot hand 210 is set, for example, using the height of a reference point on the workpiece surface 11 measured by the three-dimensional shape measuring device 300 as the reference height (zero point). The position (XY coordinates) of the reference point on the workpiece surface 11 is not particularly limited. For example, a corner of the workpiece surface 11 may be set as the reference point, and the surface height of that point may be used as the reference height. As described above, the scraper body 23 of the scraper 22 is flexible, and therefore the scraper body 23 is bent when cutting the surface 11 to be processed. Therefore, while the cutting depth of the surface 11 to be processed is on the order of microns or submicrons, the vertical push-in amount δz of the robot hand 210 during cutting can be set as a displacement amount on the order of millimeters.

[0027] Next, the hand chuck 30 will be described. The hand chuck 30 is an attachment for gripping the workpiece 10 when moving the workpiece 10 between the pedestals, and is detachable from the robot hand 210. In the layout shown in Fig. 1, the hand chuck 30 is used, for example, when moving the workpiece 10 between the processing pedestal C1 and the measurement pedestal C2. That is, the robot arm 200 can freely move the workpiece 10 between the processing pedestal C1 and the measurement pedestal C2 by gripping the workpiece 10 with the hand chuck 30 attached to the robot hand 210.

[0028] The measurement stage C2 is a stage on which the workpiece 10 is placed when measuring the three-dimensional shape of the processing target surface 11 of the workpiece 10 using the three-dimensional shape measuring instrument 300. The surface of the measurement stage C2 is also formed into a flat surface parallel to the XY plane.

[0029] The three-dimensional shape measuring instrument 300 is, for example, a measuring instrument using a white light interferometer, and is capable of acquiring three-dimensional shape data (uneven shape data) of the workpiece surface 11 with high accuracy. However, the three-dimensional shape measuring instrument 300 is not particularly limited as long as it can measure the uneven shape data (height data) of the workpiece surface 11, and for example, a three-dimensional laser scanner or the like may be used. Furthermore, the three-dimensional shape measuring instrument 300 may be a "non-contact" measuring instrument that acquires the uneven shape data of the workpiece surface 11 without contact, or a "contact" measuring instrument that acquires the uneven shape data of the workpiece surface 11 by contacting a probe or the like with the workpiece surface 11. In addition, the automatic scraping device 1 may also be equipped with a tool mounting stand C3 for mounting the scraper unit 20, a hand chuck stand C4 for mounting the hand chuck 30, etc.

[0030] The robot arm 200 further includes a force sensor 220. The force sensor 220 is a sensor that detects the load (resistance) acting on the scraper 22 during scraping. The control device 100 of the automatic scraping device 1 monitors the load state during scraping output by the force sensor 220, and determines the load based on the strength of the load as needed. Feedback control can be performed. The above-described robot arm 200 is an example of a scraping robot according to the present invention, and scraping robots are not limited to the robot arm 200. The scraping robot according to the present invention is not particularly limited as long as it has a configuration that can automatically perform scraping on the processing target surface 11 of the workpiece 10 by operating the scraper it holds.

[0031] Next, the control device 100 of the automatic scraping device 1 will be described. The control device 100 controls the robot arm 200 in accordance with the processing instruction data, and as a result, scraping is performed on the processing target surface 11 of the workpiece 10 in accordance with the processing instruction data. The control device 100 also generates processing instruction data for controlling the robot arm 200. That is, the control device 100 functions not only as a device for controlling the robot arm 200 but also as an information processing device (processing instruction data generating device) for generating processing instruction data used to control the robot arm 200. However, the processing instruction data for controlling the robot arm 200 may be generated by an information processing device (processing instruction data generating device) separate from the control device 100. In this case, the control device 100 acquires the processing instruction data generated by the information processing device (processing instruction data generating device), and controls the robot arm 200 in accordance with the acquired processing instruction data. The processing instruction data may be transmitted from the information processing device (processing instruction data generating device) to the control device 100 via either wired communication or wireless communication.

[0032] 4 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the control device 100. The control device 100 is, for example, a general-purpose computer. The computer constituting the control device 100 includes a communication interface (communication I / F) 101, a storage device 102, an input / output device 103, and a processor 104, which are connected via a communication bus 105.

[0033] The communication I / F 101 may be, for example, a network card or a communication module, and communicates with other computers, devices, etc. based on a predetermined protocol. For example, the control device 100 receives three-dimensional shape information of the processing target surface 11 of the workpiece 10 from the three-dimensional shape measuring instrument 300 via the communication I / F 101.

[0034] The storage device 102 includes, for example, a primary storage device such as a random access memory (RAM) or a read-only memory (ROM), and an auxiliary storage device (secondary storage device) such as a hard-disk drive (HDD), a solid-state drive (SSD), or a flash memory. The primary storage device temporarily stores programs read by the processor 104 and information exchanged with other computers, and also secures a working area for the processor 104. The auxiliary storage device stores programs executed by the processor 104 and information exchanged with other computers. The auxiliary storage device may also include removable media (portable recording media). Removable media is, for example, a USB memory, an SD card, or a disc recording media such as a CD-ROM, a DVD disc, or a Blu-ray disc. The storage device 102 (e.g., the auxiliary storage device) stores an operating system (OS), various programs, various information tables, and the like.

[0035] The input / output device 103 is a user interface, such as an input device such as a keyboard or a mouse, an output device such as a monitor, or an input / output device such as a touch panel.

[0036] The processor 104 is an arithmetic processing device such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or a DSP (Digital Signal Processor), and executes a program to perform the functions of the present embodiment. For example, the processor 104 loads a program stored in the auxiliary storage device of the storage device 102 into the main storage device and executes it, thereby realizing various processes such as processing instruction data generation processing for generating processing instruction data as described below.

[0037] The control device 100 does not necessarily have to be realized by a single physical configuration, but may be configured by a plurality of computers that cooperate with each other.

[0038] Next, the functional configuration of the control device 100 will be described with reference to FIG. 5. FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the control device 100. The control device 100 has a processing instruction data generation unit 110 and a control unit 111 as functional units. The processor 104 of the control device 100 loads a program stored in the auxiliary storage device of the storage device 102 into the main storage device and executes it, thereby realizing each of the functional units described above. The processing instruction data generation unit 110 executes a processing instruction data generation process that generates processing instruction data. The control unit 111 acquires the processing instruction data generated by the processing instruction data generation unit 110 and controls the robot arm 200 in accordance with the processing instruction data.

[0039] Next, each process related to scraping by the automatic scraping device 1 will be described. Here, as an example of scraping on the workpiece 10, a planarizing process is performed to cut convex portions of the workpiece surface 11 so that the flatness of the workpiece surface 11 satisfies a predetermined target flatness, and a finishing process is performed to form depressions for oil reservoirs on the workpiece surface 11 after the planarizing process. In this way, when scraping on the workpiece surface 11 of the workpiece 10, the processing efficiency can be improved by performing the planarizing process and the finishing process separately.

[0040] Here, a process (flat surface processing instruction data generation process) for generating processing instruction data (hereinafter referred to as "flat surface processing instruction data") used when the control device 100 executes flat surface processing will be described.

[0041] When generating the planarization processing instruction data, the processing instruction data generation unit 110 acquires surface height information of the processing target surface 11 based on the measurement data of the three-dimensional shape measuring instrument 300. Fig. 6 is a diagram illustrating the surface height information of the processing target surface 11. The surface height information is information that indicates the height (Z coordinate) corresponding to each coordinate (each measurement point) in the planar direction (XY plane direction) of the processing target surface 11.

[0042] The processing instruction data generation unit 110 acquires convex portions of the processing target surface 11 based on the surface height information of the processing target surface 11. The convex portions of the processing target surface 11 are, for example, portions that are relatively raised with respect to the position where the height (Z coordinate) of the processing target surface 11 is lowest. For example, the processing instruction data generation unit 110 models the shape of the processing target surface 11 before the processing target surface 11 is subjected to the flattening processing based on the surface height information of the processing target surface 11, and acquires this as an initial shape S1. Then, the difference shape between this initial shape S1 and a target plane (target shape) S2 of the processing target surface 11 to be formed after the flattening processing may be acquired as a convex portion S3 of the processing target surface 11 (a portion to be cut in the flattening processing). The target plane S2 of the processing target surface 11 may be set as a planar shape that passes through the position where the height (Z coordinate) of the processing target surface 11 is lowest and is parallel to the XY plane.

[0043] The processing instruction data generating unit 110 divides the convex portion S3 on the processing target surface 11 in the height direction by processing planes parallel to the XY plane, and sets a plurality of processing region layers CR.

[0044] FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a plurality of processing region layers CR in a convex portion S3 on the processing target surface 11. FIG. 7 shows a schematic diagram of the shape of the convex portion S3 on the processing target surface 11 on X=X1 (X1 is a coordinate on the X axis). Symbol S0 shown in FIG. 7 is an imaginary plane that passes through the highest position (Z coordinate) of the convex portion S3 on the processing target surface 11 and is parallel to the XY plane. Symbol VP shown in FIG. 7 is a plane that divides the convex portion S3 in the height direction. The machining plane VP is a virtual machining plane. The machining plane VP is set parallel to the virtual plane S0 and the target plane S2 (i.e., parallel to the XY plane) and spaced apart from these planes S0 and S2. Figure 7 shows an example in which the convex portion S3 is divided into five machining region layers CR1 to CR5 by four machining planes VP.

[0045] Next, the processing instruction data generation unit 110 generates processing area layer distribution information that shows the planar distribution of each processing area layer CR on the processing target surface 11 in the form of contour lines. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating the processing area layer distribution information. In FIG. 8, for drawing purposes, the distribution of each processing area layer CR is shown in the form of contour lines for only a portion of the processing target surface 11 (see enlarged view A). The contour lines shown by solid lines in enlarged view A of FIG. 8 indicate the boundary positions between each processing area layer CR1 to CR5 and the boundary position between the processing area layer CR5 located at the bottom and the target plane S2. In other words, the contour lines shown in enlarged view A coincide with the cut edges when the convex portion S3 of the processing target surface 11 is virtually cut by each processing plane VP and the target plane S2.

[0046] 9A and 9B are diagrams illustrating the planar distribution of each machining area layer CR in the area shown in the enlarged view A of FIG. 8, the corresponding height distribution, and the cutting procedure for each machining area layer CR. (A) shows the planar distribution of each machining area layer CR, and (B) shows the height distribution of each machining area layer CR. Also, (C) shows the cutting range of the machining area layer CR1, and (D) shows the cutting range of the machining area layer CR2. The blackened area in (C) represents the area outside the cutting range of the machining area layer CR1. The blackened area in (D) represents the area outside the cutting range of the machining area layer CR2. In the flattening process according to this embodiment, the convex portion S3 of the machining target surface 11 is cut sequentially for each machining area layer CR, from the uppermost machining area layer CR (machining area layer CR1 in the examples shown in FIGS. 7 and 9) to the lowermost machining area layer CR (machining area layer CR5 in the examples shown in FIGS. 7 and 9). Therefore, the processing instruction data generating unit 110 generates planarizing processing instruction data used when cutting the convex portion S3 of the processing target surface 11 for each processing region layer CR.

[0047] 7 and 9 indicates an allocation height when dividing the convex portion S3 of the work surface 11 into a plurality of machining area layers CR. For example, the allocation height ΔH of each machining area layer CR is set to a dimension corresponding to the cutting depth ΔDS per stroke of the scraper 22. As a result, when cutting the convex portion S3 in the flattening process, a thickness equivalent to one machining area layer CR can be cut with each stroke of the scraper 22.

[0048] For example, the processing instruction data generating unit 110 may set the allocated height ΔH of each processing area layer CR to a predetermined fixed value (for example, about 1 μm). Alternatively, the allocated height ΔH of each processing area layer CR may be set uniformly according to the maximum height difference of the convex portion S3 (the height difference in the Z-axis direction between the lowest and highest points of the height (Z coordinate) of the processing target surface 11). However, it is not necessary to set the allocated height ΔH of each processing area layer CR to the same value, and different values ​​may be set as the allocated height ΔH of each layer. For example, the allocated height ΔH of each processing area layer CR may be set to gradually decrease from the upper side (+Z direction side) of the convex portion S3 to the lower side (-Z direction side).

[0049] Furthermore, the processing instruction data generating unit 110 may set an allocation height ΔH when dividing the convex portion S3 in the height direction using a value designated by the user. In this case, for example, before the start of the scraping process, an input operation by the user may be accepted via the input / output device 103, and input information (setting information) including the allocation height ΔH may be stored in the storage device 102. Of course, the processing instruction data generating unit 110 may automatically set the allocation height ΔH of each processing area layer CR.

[0050] As described above, the cutting depth ΔDS per stroke of the scraper 22 correlates with the relationship between the tool angle θ and the vertical push-in amount δz. The unit 110 may automatically set the allocated height ΔH of each machining area layer CR based on a cutting condition information table such as that shown in FIG. 10. The cutting condition information table is data showing the relationship between the tool angle θ, the vertical plunge depth δz, the cutting width WC, and the cutting depth ΔDS. The cutting width WC and cutting depth ΔDS fields register values ​​of the cutting width WC and the cutting depth ΔDS corresponding to the combination of the tool angle θ and the vertical plunge depth δz. The cutting condition information table may be a so-called database table or a file in a predetermined format such as CSV (Comma Separated Values). Such a cutting condition information table may be stored in advance in the storage device 102. The machining instruction data generation unit 110 may read the cutting condition information table, extract a value registered in the cutting depth ΔDS field of the cutting condition information table, and set the value as the allocated height ΔH of each machining area layer CR.

[0051] Next, the processing instruction data generation unit 110 generates plane division pattern information that divides the planar region (XY plane region) of the processing target surface 11 using a predetermined division pattern. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating the plane division pattern information. Division patterns A to C shown in FIG. 11 are examples of the predetermined division patterns, and each of the division patterns A to C divides the planar region of the processing target surface 11 using a grid pattern (shown by chain lines in the figure) in which a large number of rectangular regions are arranged in a grid pattern. The individual regions allocated by dividing the planar region of the processing target surface 11 using the division patterns A to C are called divided regions RA. In this embodiment, divided regions RA are allocated to the entire region of the processing target surface 11. For convenience of drawing, the symbol RA is assigned to only some of the divided regions RA in FIG. 11.

[0052] Division patterns A to C have different patterns for dividing the planar area of ​​the workpiece surface 11, but share the same configuration of the divided areas RA, and a stroke path PS (shown by dashed lines in the figure) of the cutting blade 24 is set for each divided area RA. For convenience of drawing, the symbol PS is attached to only some of the stroke paths PS in FIG. 11. The stroke path PS is a planar path through which the center position of the cutting blade 24 in the width direction passes when the cutting blade 24 strokes along the XY plane during cutting of the workpiece surface 11. In other words, during cutting of the workpiece surface 11, the cutting edge of the cutting blade 24 is pressed against the workpiece surface 11, and the cutting blade 24 is stroked along the stroke path PS so that the center position of the cutting blade 24 in the width direction passes, thereby cutting the corresponding divided area RA.

[0053] In the example shown in FIG. 11 , a stroke path PS is set parallel to the long side of a rectangular segmented area RA. The stroke path PS starts at one end of the long side of the segmented area RA and ends at the other end. The stroke path PS is set at a position that passes through the center of the short side (width direction). The width of the segmented area RA may be set to the same dimension as the width W (see FIG. 2 ) of the cutting blade 24 used in the flattening process. As described with reference to FIG. 2 , when cutting is performed using a cutting blade 24 with an arc-shaped cutting edge 25, the stroke may be performed without the end region of the cutting edge 25 in the width direction coming into contact with (floating from) the workpiece surface 11. In this case, the cutting width WC when the cutting blade 24 cuts the workpiece surface 11 may be smaller than the width W of the cutting blade 24. Therefore, the width of the segmented area RA may be set to a dimension smaller than the width W of the cutting blade 24. Of course, even if the cutting edge 25 of the cutting blade 24 has an arc shape, the cutting width WC during cutting may be substantially equal to the width dimension W of the cutting blade 24 depending on the cutting conditions. For example, if the vertical push-in amount δz during cutting of the workpiece surface 11 is large, the cutting width WC during cutting is likely to be substantially equal to the width dimension W of the cutting blade 24. Furthermore, the size of the segmented regions RA is not particularly limited, but may be, for example, a width dimension of about several millimeters and a length dimension (long side dimension) perpendicular to the width dimension of about 10 mm. Note that FIG. 11 shows the segmented regions RA schematically, and the relative size of each segmented region RA to the workpiece surface 11 differs from the actual size.

[0054] As described above, in the flattening process according to this embodiment, cutting is performed in units of machining area layers CR, starting from the uppermost machining area layer CR. Therefore, as described below, among the segmented areas RA allocated to the planar area of ​​the machining surface 11, a segmented area RA (a cutting target segmented area RB, described later) to be cut is identified for each machining area layer CR, and the cutting target segmented area RB is cut for each machining area layer CR. When cutting the cutting target segmented area RB, the cutting blade 24 strokes along a stroke path PS defined for each cutting target segmented area RB. However, the cutting blade 24 does not necessarily stroke the entire section from the start point to the end point of the stroke path PS. For example, if the entire cutting target segmented area RB overlaps with the machining area layer CR to be cut, a stroke section (a machining path PT, described later) is set so that the cutting blade 24 strokes the entire section of the stroke path PS in the cutting target segmented area RB. On the other hand, if only a portion of the cutting target segmented area RB overlaps with the machining area layer CR to be cut, a stroke section is set so that the cutting blade 24 strokes only a portion of the stroke path PS in the cutting target segmented area RB.

[0055] Next, the differences between division patterns A to C shown in FIG. 11 will be described. In division pattern A and division pattern B, the stroke paths PS extend in directions perpendicular to each other. Therefore, in division pattern A and division pattern B, the stroke paths PS of the divided areas RA are set to be offset in plan view. Next, comparing division pattern B and division pattern C, the stroke paths PS are set parallel to each other, but the number of divisions (divisions) into which the planar area of ​​the surface to be machined 11 is divided into grids is different. As a result, the width and length dimensions of the divided areas RA included in division pattern B and the divided areas RA included in division pattern C are different from each other. Therefore, in division pattern B and division pattern C, the stroke paths PS of the divided areas RA are set to be offset in plan view.

[0056] As described above, the processing instruction data generation unit 110 generates plane division pattern information to include multiple types of division pattern data obtained by dividing the planar region of the processing target surface 11 using different division patterns. Hereinafter, the division pattern data corresponding to the division patterns A to C may be referred to as division pattern data A to C. Of course, the division patterns used by the processing instruction data generation unit 110 when generating the plane division pattern information are not limited to the example shown in FIG. 11 , and various division patterns can be used. Furthermore, although FIG. 11 illustrates three types of division patterns, it is sufficient that the plane division pattern information includes at least two or more types of division pattern data with different division patterns, in which the stroke paths PS of the divided regions RA are set to be shifted from one another. Of course, the plane division pattern information may also include four or more types of division pattern data with different division patterns.

[0057] The processing instruction data generation unit 110 sets a cutting target segmented region RB corresponding to the processing area layer CR based on the generated processing area layer distribution information and plane division pattern information. More specifically, the processing instruction data generation unit 110 selects division pattern data included in the plane division pattern information for each processing area layer CR, and sets the segmented regions RA corresponding to the selected division pattern data that overlap the processing area layer CR in a planar manner as the cutting target segmented region RB. Here, "overlapping in a planar manner" does not mean that the entirety of each segmented region RA needs to overlap the processing area layer CR in a planar manner; it is sufficient that at least a portion of the region overlaps the processing area layer CR in a planar manner. In other words, the processing instruction data generation unit 110 sets the segmented regions RA assigned to the division pattern data selected for each processing area layer CR, at least a portion of which overlaps the processing area layer CR in a planar manner, as the cutting target segmented region RB. The processing instruction data generation unit 110 can obtain the planar distribution range (forming range) of each processing area layer CR on the processing target surface 11 from the processing area layer distribution information.

[0058] The processing instruction data generating unit 110 generates a processing instruction data corresponding to each processing area layer CR for each processing area layer CR. When setting the cutting target divided region RB, different division pattern data are selected for the machining region layers CR that are continuous in the height direction (of the convex portion S3). A specific example of this will be described below.

[0059] For example, when setting the cutting target division area RB corresponding to the machining area layer CR1 located in the top layer, the processing instruction data generation unit 110 selects the planar distribution range of the machining area layer CR1 obtained from the machining area layer distribution information and any division pattern data (here, described as division pattern data A) included in the planar division pattern information, and obtains the area of ​​the division area RA allocated by the corresponding division pattern A that overlaps with the machining area layer CR1 in planar view as the cutting target division area RB.

[0060] FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating the cutting target segmented region RB corresponding to the machining area layer CR1. The grid-like dotted lines in the figure indicate the division positions where the planar region of the machining target surface 11 is divided into a grid by the division pattern A, and each rectangular region divided by the division pattern A corresponds to a segmented region RA. The solid curve in the figure indicates the boundary between the machining area layer CR1 and another machining area layer CR (e.g., the machining area layer CR1 and the machining area layer CR2). In FIG. 12, the right side of the boundary line is the in-range region of the machining area layer CR1, and the left side is the out-of-range region of the machining area layer CR1. The hatched portion of the segmented region RA is the segmented region RA that does not overlap with the machining area layer CR1 in plan view, and is illustrated as the non-cutting target segmented region RC. On the other hand, the unhatched portion of the segmented region RA overlaps at least partially with the machining area layer CR1 in plan view, and therefore corresponds to the cutting target segmented region RB in the machining area layer CR1.

[0061] When cutting the cutting area layer CR1, the non-cutting target segmented area RC shown in FIG. 12 is not cut, and part or all of the cutting target segmented area RB is cut. In this embodiment, for each cutting target segmented area RB, a cutting (cutting) start point Ps, which is the start point of the cutting path PT followed by the cutting blade 24 during cutting, and a cutting (cutting) end point Pe, which is the end point, are set on the stroke path PS (shown by dashed lines in the figure). In FIG. 12, the cutting paths PT are indicated by arrows, and the start point of each arrow (circle in the figure) corresponds to the cutting start point Ps, and the end point (tip of the arrow in the figure) corresponds to the cutting end point Pe. The cutting path PT is a line connecting the cutting start point Ps and the cutting end point Pe set on the stroke path PS, and therefore is naturally set on the stroke path PS. The cutting path PT corresponds to the section on the stroke path PS along which the cutting blade 24 strokes when cutting the cutting target segmented area RB.

[0062] In the example shown in FIG. 12, only a portion of each cutting target segmented region RB overlaps with the target machining area layer CR (machining area layer CR1). In this case, as shown in FIG. 12, a machining path PT is set only in a partial section of the stroke path PS in each cutting target segmented region RB. The section of the stroke path PS in which the machining path PT is set corresponds to the section in which each cutting target segmented region RB overlaps with the target machining area layer CR (machining area layer CR1) in a plan view. In other words, a machining start point Ps and a machining end point Pe are set on the stroke path PS so that the machining path PT is set in the section in which each cutting target segmented region RB overlaps with the target machining area layer CR (machining area layer CR1) in a plan view. Note that when the entire cutting target segmented region RB overlaps with the machining area layer CR (included in the region of the machining area layer CR), a machining path PT is set in the entire section of the stroke path PS in that cutting target segmented region RB.

[0063] As described above, the processing instruction data generating unit 110 selects different division pattern data between the processing area layers CR that are continuous in the height direction of the convex portion S3 to set the cutting target segmented area RB. Therefore, when setting the cutting target segmented area RB corresponding to the processing area layer CR2 that is arranged as the layer immediately below the processing area layer CR1, different division pattern data from that for the processing area layer CR1 is selected. In other words, a division pattern different from the division pattern A is selected. Data (here, described as division pattern data B) is selected, and among the divided areas RA allocated by the corresponding division pattern B, an area that overlaps with the machining area layer CR2 in plan view is acquired as the cutting target divided area RB.

[0064] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating the cutting target segmented region RB corresponding to the machining area layer CR2. The grid-like dotted lines in the figure indicate the division positions where the planar region of the machining target surface 11 is divided into a grid by the division pattern B, and each rectangular region divided by the division pattern B corresponds to a segmented region RA. The solid curve in the figure indicates the boundary between the machining area layer CR2 and another machining area layer CR (e.g., the machining area layer CR2 and the machining area layer CR3). In FIG. 13, the right side of the boundary line is the in-range region of the machining area layer CR2, and the left side is the out-of-range region of the machining area layer CR2. The hatched portion of the segmented region RA is the segmented region RA that does not overlap with the machining area layer CR2 in plan view, and is illustrated as the non-cutting target segmented region RC. On the other hand, the unhatched portion of the segmented region RA overlaps at least partially with the machining area layer CR2 in plan view, and therefore corresponds to the cutting target segmented region RB in the machining area layer CR2. In Fig. 13, as explained in Fig. 12, the machining paths PT set in a partial section or the entire section on the stroke path PS (shown by the dashed line in the figure) are shown by arrows. The method for setting the machining paths PT is the same as that explained in Fig. 12.

[0065] Next, when setting the cutting target segmented region RB corresponding to the machining area layer CR3 arranged as the layer immediately below the machining area layer CR2, division pattern data different from the division pattern B selected for the machining area layer CR2, for example, division pattern data A or division pattern data C, is selected, and the cutting target segmented region RB corresponding to the machining area layer CR3 is identified in the same manner as for the machining area layers CR1 and CR2 described above. In this way, the machining instruction data generation unit 110 identifies the corresponding cutting target segmented region RB for each machining area layer CR for all machining area layers CR. Of course, the machining instruction data generation unit 110 does not need to identify the cutting target segmented region RB in order from the top machining area layer CR1.

[0066] As described above, in this embodiment, for machining area layers CR that are continuous in the height direction of the convex portion S3 (adjacent in the vertical direction), different division pattern data are selected to set the cutting target division area RB, so that the machining path PT set in the cutting target division area RB of one machining area layer CR that is continuous in the height direction (adjacent in the vertical direction) can be shifted in a plane relative to the machining path PT set in the cutting target division area RB of the other machining area layer CR.

[0067] Here, we will explain the case where the cutting target divided regions RB are set using the same division pattern data in all machining area layers CR. For example, when considering the case where the convex portion 13 shown in FIG. 9B is cut sequentially from machining area layer CR1 to machining area layer CR5, cutting is performed multiple times for each machining area layer CR. In this case, if the same division pattern data is used for all machining area layers CR1 to CR5, the machining paths PT (stroke paths PS) in machining area layers CR that are consecutive in the height direction (adjacent in the vertical direction) will be set on the same path. This will likely result in the cutting stroke being performed along the same path multiple times.

[0068] On the other hand, when cutting with the cutting blade 24, the cutting blade 24 is pressed against the work surface 11 by the robot hand 210 as explained in FIG. 3, so the pressing force that presses the cutting edge 25 of the cutting blade 24 against the work surface 11 is not strictly uniform in the width direction of the cutting edge 25. In other words, the pressing force that presses the cutting edge 25 of the cutting blade 24 against the work surface 11 is relatively large in the central region in the width direction of the cutting edge 25 and relatively small on the side of the end region in the width direction. This tendency is likely to be noticeable when the shape of the cutting edge 25 has a circular arc (round) shape, as in the cutting blade 24 shown in FIG. 2. Under such circumstances, the convex portion S3 of the work surface 11 is pressed against the work surface 11 for each work area layer CR. When cutting, if the cutting blade 24 is stroked along the same path multiple times for each layer, there is a risk that the machining path PT (stroke path PS) portion through which the widthwise center of the cutting blade 24 passes may be cut too deeply. Furthermore, if the cutting blade 24 is stroked along the same path multiple times for each layer, the paths through which the widthwise end regions of the cutting blade 24 pass will also coincide, so conversely, it becomes more likely that the portions through which the widthwise end regions of the cutting blade 24 pass will be left uncut.

[0069] In contrast to this, in this embodiment, the machining path PT set in the cutting target division area RB of one machining area layer CR that is continuous in the vertical direction (adjacent in the vertical direction) can be shifted in planar relation to the machining path PT set in the cutting target division area RB of the other machining area layer CR, so that when the machining target surface 11 is cut sequentially for each machining area layer CR, it is less likely that the machining target surface 11 will be over-cut or left uncut.

[0070] After identifying the cutting target segmented region RB for each machining region layer CR in the above manner, the machining instruction data generation unit 110 generates control parameter information for each machining region layer CR. The control parameter information includes control values ​​for each control parameter when the robot arm 200 of the automatic scraping device 1 cuts the convex portion S3 of the machining target surface 11 for each machining region layer CR, and can be generated for each machining region layer CR. The control parameter information includes, for example, control values ​​for the tool angle θ and the vertical depression amount δz, as well as machining point list data, and is generated for each machining region layer CR. As described above, the combination of the tool angle θ and the vertical depression amount δz correlates with the cutting depth ΔDS and cutting width WC per stroke of the scraper 22. Therefore, when generating control parameter information for each machining area layer CR, the machining instruction data generating unit 110 may use the allocated height ΔH and the width dimension of the divided area RA set for the target machining area layer CR as the required cutting depth ΔDS and cutting width WC, respectively, and set the combination of the tool angle θ and vertical push-in amount δz that meets the conditions of the cutting depth ΔDS and cutting width WC as the tool angle θ and vertical push-in amount δz for each machining point. In this case, the combination of the tool angle θ and vertical push-in amount δz that meets the conditions of the cutting depth ΔDS and cutting width WC can be obtained from the cutting condition information table described with reference to FIG.

[0071] Next, the machining point list data will be described. FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating the machining point list data. The machining point list data is data that lists data related to the machining path PT in association with each machining point number, and is generated for each machining area layer CR. The machining point number is a serial number of the machining path PT included in the target machining area layer CR, and corresponds to the total number of strokes of the cutting blade 24 when cutting the machining area layer CR. The data related to the machining path PT is data that specifies the machining start point Ps and machining end point Pe of the machining path PT, and may specify, for example, the machining start point coordinates (XY coordinates), machining path direction DT, and machining path length LT of each machining point. Of course, the machining start point coordinates (XY coordinates) and machining end point coordinates (XY coordinates) of the machining path PT may also be specified as data related to the machining path PT. The machining instruction data generation unit 110 generates such machining point list data for each machining area layer CR.

[0072] As described above, the processing instruction data generation unit 110 generates control parameter information including processing point list data and the control values ​​of the tool angle θ and vertical push-in amount δz for each processing area layer CR, thereby generating processing instruction data for flattening including the control parameter information of each processing area layer CR and storing it in the memory device 102.

[0073] <Scraping processing flow> Next, we will explain the scraping process flow executed by the control device 100. Fig. 15 is a flowchart executed by the processor 104 of the control device 100. The scraping process flow is started, for example, when the control device 100 receives a scraping start request from the user via the input device of the input / output device 103.

[0074] First, in step S101, the processing instruction data generation unit 110 executes the above-described flat surface processing instruction data generation process to generate flat surface processing instruction data. The flat surface processing instruction data generated by the processing instruction data generation unit 110 is stored in the storage device 102.

[0075] Next, in step S102, the control unit 111 acquires processing instruction data for flattening from the storage device 102. Then, in accordance with the acquired processing instruction data for flattening, the control unit 111 controls the robot arm 200 to execute flattening processing on the processing target surface 11 of the workpiece 10. That is, the control unit 111 controls the cutting blade 24 of the scraper 22 to cut the convex portion S3 of the processing target surface 11.

[0076] In the flattening processing instruction data generation process of this embodiment, the processing instruction data generation unit 110 acquires the convex portion S3 of the processing target surface 11 based on the surface height information, divides the convex portion S3 in the height direction to set multiple processing area layers CR, and sets a processing path PT of the scraper 22 for each processing area layer CR. Then, the processing instruction data generation unit 110 sets the position of the planar processing path PT of the scraper 22 for processing area layers CR that are consecutive in the height direction of the convex portion S3 by shifting the position of the planar processing path PT of the scraper 22 from each other. In the examples of Figures 13 and 14, the processing paths PT for processing area layers CR that are consecutive in the height direction of the convex portion S3 are set in orthogonal directions.

[0077] According to this, when the control unit 111 executes the flattening process, the position of the planar machining path PT of the scraper 22 when cutting the convex portion S3 in the height direction of the continuous machining area layers CR can be shifted relative to each other. That is, when the convex portion S3 is cut sequentially for each machining area layer CR from the top layer to the bottom layer, the planar machining path PT of the scraper 22 can be prevented from following the same path for each machining area layer CR in the height direction. As a result, when the convex portion S3 of the workpiece surface 11 is cut for each machining area layer CR, over-cutting or incomplete cutting of the machining area layer CR can be prevented. This allows the cutting depth for each machining area layer CR to be accurately controlled to the desired depth in the flattening process. Therefore, in the flattening process, the workpiece surface 11 can be accurately aligned with the target plane S2, thereby improving its flatness (smoothness). 12 and 13, the machining paths PT of the machining area layers CR that are continuous in the height direction of the convex portion S3 are set in orthogonal directions to mutually shift the positions of the machining paths PT, but various modes can be adopted as long as the positions of the machining paths PT can be mutually shifted. For example, it is also possible to simply make the machining paths PT of the machining area layers CR that are continuous in the height direction non-parallel, thereby shifting the positions of the machining paths PT.

[0078] In step S102, when cutting of all the machining area layers CR is completed, the flattening process ends and the process proceeds to step S103. In step S103, the control unit 111 acquires surface height information of the machining target surface 11 after the flattening process and determines whether the flatness of the machining target surface 11 after the flattening process satisfies a predetermined target flatness. The surface height information of the machining target surface 11 is acquired based on measurement data from the three-dimensional shape measuring instrument 300. The "flatness" here can be defined as "the magnitude of deviation from a geometrically correct plane (geometric plane) of a planar shape" as specified in, for example, JIS B 0621 "Definition and Display of Geometric Deviation." Then, in the machining target surface 11 after the flattening process, if the difference in height (Z coordinate) in the Z-axis direction between the highest point (most protruding point) and the lowest point (most recessed point) is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold, it may be determined that the flatness of the machining target surface 11 satisfies the predetermined target flatness.

[0079] If it is determined in step S103 that the flatness of the processing target surface 11 satisfies the target flatness, the process proceeds to step S104. If it is determined that the flatness does not satisfy the target flatness, the process returns to step S101, and the flatness processing instruction data generation process and the flatness processing process are executed again. In other words, the flatness processing process is repeated until the flatness of the processing target surface 11 satisfies the target flatness.

[0080] In step S104, the processing instruction data generation unit 110 executes a finishing processing instruction data generation process to generate finishing processing instruction data. The finishing processing instruction data is processing instruction data used by the control device 100 when executing the finishing processing. The finishing processing instruction data is generated based on input information input in advance by the user via the input device of the input / output device 103, for example. The input information includes, for example, a contact area ratio and a number of contact points specified by the user. Here, the contact area ratio may be expressed as a ratio of the area of ​​contact surfaces (convex portions) formed by the finishing processing on the processing target surface 11 of the workpiece 10. Furthermore, the number of contact points may be expressed as the number of contact surfaces (convex portions) formed by the finishing processing on the processing target surface 11.

[0081] The processing instruction data generation unit 110 generates finishing processing instruction data that matches the conditions of the parameters included in the input information entered by the user. The finishing processing instruction data is a list of control parameters, such as the processing path PT, tool angle θ, vertical push-in amount δz, etc., used when cutting the workpiece surface 11 with the scraper 22, associated with each processing point number. The finishing processing instruction data generated by the processing instruction data generation unit 110 is stored in the storage device 102.

[0082] Next, in step S105, the control unit 111 acquires finishing processing instruction data from the storage device 102, controls the robot arm 200 in accordance with the acquired finishing processing instruction data, and executes finishing processing on the processing target surface 11 of the workpiece 10. That is, the processing target surface 11 after the flattening processing is cut by the scraper 22, and a depression for an oil reservoir is formed. When the finishing processing on the processing target surface 11 is completed, the scraping processing flow ends.

[0083] In the scraping processing flow described above, an example has been described in which the flattening processing instruction data generation process, the flattening processing process, the finishing processing instruction data generation process, and the finishing processing process are executed in a single flow, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the flattening processing instruction data generation process and the finishing processing instruction data generation process may be executed prior to the scraping processing flow and stored in the storage device 102 in advance.

[0084] <Embodiment 2> Next, as a second embodiment, a description will be given of another embodiment of a flattening process using the control device 100 of the above-described automatic scraping device 1. The automatic scraping device, the automatic scraping method, the information processing device, the processing instruction data generating method, and the processing instruction data generating program according to the second embodiment have the following features.

[0085] [1] An automatic scraping device that automatically scrapes the surface of a workpiece to be processed, a processing robot that holds and operates a scraper having a cutting blade; a control device that controls the processing robot in accordance with processing instruction data; Equipped with at least a part of the processing conditions when the control device executes a flattening processing process in which the convex portion of the processing object surface is cut by the scraper is set according to the flatness of the processing object surface before the start of the flattening processing process; The processing conditions include an upper limit of the processing area area ratio, which is the area ratio of the area to be cut to the entire surface to be processed when the flattening processing is performed. Included as a parameter, the upper limit machining area ratio is set to a smaller value as the difference between the flatness of the machining target surface before the start of the flattening process and a predetermined target flatness is smaller; Automatic scraping processing equipment.

[0086] [2] The flattening process is a process of dividing the convex portion into a plurality of processing region layers in the height direction and cutting it in stages, The processing conditions further include an allocation height of the processing area layer as a parameter, the smaller the difference between the flatness of the processing target surface before the start of the flattening processing and the target flatness, the smaller the value at which the allocated height of the processing area layer is set. [1] The automatic scraping processing device described in [1].

[0087] [3] The control device performs a process-damaged layer removal process, which removes a process-damaged layer formed on a surface layer of the workpiece by the cutting blade, prior to the planarization process; a tool angle, which is an angle between the plane of the surface to be machined and the cutting blade, is set to a larger angle during the execution of the machine-damaged layer removal process than during the execution of the flattening process; [1] or [2] The automatic scraping device.

[0088] [4] An automatic scraping method executed by a control device of an automatic scraping device that automatically scrapes a surface to be processed of a workpiece when controlling a processing robot according to processing instruction data, a step of performing a flattening process to cut off a convex portion of the processing target surface, a machining area ratio, which is an area ratio of a cutting area to the entire machining surface when the flattening process is performed, is set within a range equal to or less than a predetermined upper limit machining area ratio; the upper limit machining area ratio is set to a smaller value as the difference between the flatness of the machining target surface before the start of the flattening process and a predetermined target flatness is smaller; Automatic scraping method.

[0089] [5] In the flattening process, a process of dividing the convex portion into a plurality of processing area layers in a height direction and cutting the convex portion in stages is performed, The processing conditions further include an allocation height of the processing area layer as a parameter, the smaller the difference between the flatness of the processing target surface before the start of the flattening processing and the target flatness, the smaller the value at which the allocated height of the processing area layer is set. [4] The automatic scraping method described in [4].

[0090] [6] A process for removing a damaged layer formed on a surface of the workpiece by the cutting blade is performed prior to the flattening process, a tool angle, which is an angle between the plane of the surface to be machined and the cutting blade, is set to a larger angle during the execution of the machine-damaged layer removal process than during the execution of the flattening process; [4] or [5], the automatic scraping method.

[0091] [7] An information processing device that generates processing instruction data for controlling the processing robot described in [1], the processor of the information processing device sets at least a part of the processing conditions when the control device executes the flattening processing according to the flatness of the processing object surface before the start of the flattening processing; the machining conditions include, as a parameter, an upper limit machining area ratio that defines an upper limit of a machining area ratio, which is an area ratio of a cutting target area to the entire machining target surface when the flattening process is performed; The processor calculates the flatness of the surface to be processed before the start of the flattening process and The smaller the difference from a predetermined target flatness, the smaller the upper limit processing area ratio is set to. Information processing device.

[0092] [8] The flattening process is a process of dividing the convex portion into a plurality of processing region layers in the height direction and cutting it in stages, The processing conditions further include an allocation height of the processing area layer as a parameter, the processor sets the allocated height of the machining area layer to a smaller value as the difference between the flatness of the machining target surface before the start of the flattening processing and the target flatness becomes smaller. [7] The information processing device according to [7].

[0093] The second embodiment will be described in detail below.

[0094] The hardware configurations and functional block configurations of the automatic scraping device 1 and the control device 100 of the second embodiment are the same as those of the first embodiment, as explained with reference to Figures 1 to 5. In the flattening process according to this embodiment, too, the convex portion S3 (see Figure 7) of the workpiece surface 11 is divided into a plurality of work area layers CR in the height direction, and the convex portion S3 is cut in stages from the uppermost work area layer CR to the lowermost work area layer CR. In the flattening process according to this embodiment, at least some of the processing conditions when the control device 100 executes the flattening process in which the convex portion S3 of the workpiece surface 11 is cut by the scraper 22 are set according to the flatness Dp of the workpiece surface 11 before the flattening process starts. The processing conditions include, as parameters, an upper limit processing area area rate Rsu that specifies the upper limit of the processing area area rate Rs, which is the area ratio of the area to be cut to the entire processing object surface 11 when the flattening processing is performed, an allocated height ΔH of the processing area layer CR, and a vertical push-in amount δz of the robot hand 210 (scraper 22). Below, the details of the flattening processing according to the second embodiment will be explained, focusing on the differences from the flattening processing according to the first embodiment.

[0095] 16 is a diagram showing a machining condition information table showing machining conditions for a flattening machining instruction data generation process according to the second embodiment. The machining conditions store the relationship between the allocated height ΔH of the machining area layer CR, the upper limit machining area area ratio Rsu, and the vertical push-in amount δz of the robot hand 210 (scraper 22) corresponding to the flatness Dp of the machining target surface 11 before the start of the flattening process. The machining condition information table may be a so-called database table or a file in a predetermined format such as CSV (Comma Separated Values). Such a machining condition information table can be stored in advance in the storage device 102.

[0096] The flatness Dp is the difference in height in the Z-axis direction between the highest point (most protruding point) and the lowest point (most recessed point) of the surface 11 to be processed. In other words, the larger the value of the flatness Dp of the surface 11 to be processed, the greater the unevenness (undulations) in the planar shape of the surface 11 to be processed, and the smaller the value of the flatness Dp of the surface 11 to be processed, the smaller the unevenness (undulations) in the planar shape of the surface 11 to be processed, and the smoother it is. The flatness Dp of the surface 11 to be processed can also be said to be the maximum difference in height between the uneven shape of the surface 11 to be processed.

[0097] In this embodiment, the flatness processing is repeated until the flatness Dp of the processing target surface 11 satisfies a predetermined target flatness Dpt. For example, if the flatness Dp of the processing target surface 11 becomes equal to or less than the target flatness Dpt after one flatness processing, the finishing processing described in the scraping processing flow of FIG. 15 is carried out as a post-process. On the other hand, if the flatness Dp of the processing target surface 11 is still greater than the target flatness Dpt (does not satisfy the target flatness Dpt) after the flatness processing is carried out, the flatness processing is repeated again. The flatness Dp of the processing target surface 11 is obtained based on the measurement data of the three-dimensional shape measuring instrument 300. This can be determined from the obtained surface height information of the processing target surface 11. The surface height information of the processing target surface 11 is as explained in FIG.

[0098] In the following, the target flatness Dpt of the processing target surface 11 in the flattening processing is set to 3.5 μm. 16, the processing condition information table divides the flatness Dp of the processing target surface 11 into flatness categories 1 to 3 according to its size. Flatness category 1 is the category in which the difference between the flatness Dp of the processing target surface 11 and the target flatness Dpt is the largest, and when the flatness Dp is greater than 10 μm, it belongs to flatness category 1. Flatness category 2 is the category in which the flatness Dp is greater than 5 μm and not more than 10 μm, and is the category in which the difference between the flatness Dp and the target flatness Dpt is smaller than flatness category 1. And flatness category 3 is the category in which the difference between the flatness Dp and the target flatness Dpt is the smallest, and when the flatness Dp is greater than 3.5 μm and not more than 5 μm, it belongs to flatness category 1. In this case, the flatness Dp falls into flatness category 3. Of course, the target flatness Dpt and the range of each flatness category are merely exemplary and can be changed as appropriate. Furthermore, the number of flatness categories set according to the difference between the flatness Dp of the processing surface 11 and the target flatness Dpt may be plural, and is not particularly limited. In other words, the range of flatness Dp may be divided into two flatness categories, or into four or more flatness categories according to the difference between the flatness Dp of the processing surface 11 and the target flatness Dpt.

[0099] In this embodiment, the smaller the difference between the flatness Dp of the workpiece surface 11 before the start of the flattening process and the target flatness Dpt, the smaller the upper limit machining area ratio Rsu is set to, and the smaller the allocated height ΔH of the machining area layer CR is set to. Here, the allocated height ΔH of the machining area layer CR is as described in the first embodiment. The cutting depth ΔDS per stroke of the scraper 22 during the flattening process is controlled to a value equal to the allocated height ΔH of the machining area layer CR, and the cutting depth ΔDS per stroke of the scraper 22 correlates with the vertical push-in amount δz of the scraper 22. Therefore, as shown in the machining condition information table of FIG. 16, the larger the allocated height ΔH of the machining area layer CR, the larger the controlled value of the vertical push-in amount δz is set to. In other words, the smaller the difference between the flatness Dp of the workpiece surface 11 before the start of the flattening process and the target flatness Dpt, the smaller the vertical push-in amount δz of the scraper 22 is set to.

[0100] It can also be said that the smaller the flatness Dp of the workpiece surface 11 before the start of the flattening process, the smaller the difference between the flatness Dp and the target flatness Dpt. Therefore, in this embodiment, the smaller the flatness Dp of the workpiece surface 11 before the start of the flattening process, the smaller the values ​​to be set for the upper limit workpiece area ratio Rsu, the allocated height ΔH of the workpiece layer CR, and the vertical push-in amount δz of the scraper 22.

[0101] In the process for generating machining instruction data for flattening in this embodiment, the larger the value of the flatness Dp of the workpiece surface 11 before the start of the flattening process (the larger the difference between the flatness Dp and the target flatness Dpt), the larger the values ​​set for the allocated height ΔH of the workpiece layer CR and the vertical push-in amount δz of the scraper 22 during the flattening process, thereby setting a larger value for the cutting depth ΔDS of the scraper 22 per stroke. According to this, when the value of the flatness Dp of the workpiece surface 11 before the start of the flattening process is large (the unevenness of the workpiece surface 11 is large), the convex portions S3 of the workpiece surface 11 can be roughly cut by the scraper 22, thereby improving the time efficiency of the flattening process. Furthermore, as the value of the flatness Dp of the workpiece surface 11 before the start of the flattening process decreases (the difference between the flatness Dp and the target flatness Dpt decreases), the allocated height ΔH of the workpiece layer CR and the vertical push-in amount δz of the scraper 22 are set to smaller values. This allows the convex portion S3 of the processing target surface 11 to be cut more finely, and as a result, excessive scraping of the processing target surface 11 by the scraper 22 can be prevented with high precision.

[0102] For ease of explanation, the flatness processing performed when the flatness Dp of the workpiece surface 11 before the start of the flatness processing is in flatness category 1 will be referred to as rough flatness processing, the flatness processing performed when the flatness Dp is in flatness category 2 will be referred to as intermediate flatness processing, and the flatness processing performed when the flatness Dp is in flatness category 2 will be referred to as finish flatness processing. In this embodiment, depending on the flatness Dp of the workpiece surface 11 obtained before the start of the flatness processing, one of rough flatness processing, intermediate flatness processing, or finish flatness processing is performed, and the flatness processing is repeated until the flatness Dp becomes equal to or less than the target flatness Dpt.

[0103] Next, the details of the machining area area ratio Rs and the upper limit machining area area ratio Rsu will be explained. In the flattening processing in this embodiment, as described above, the convex portion S3 of the machining target surface 11 is divided into multiple machining area layers CR in the height direction, and cutting processing is performed sequentially from the uppermost machining area layer CR to the lowermost machining area layer CR. In this case, the machining area area ratio Rs is defined as the area ratio of the cutting target area to be cut in each machining area layer CR set in the flattening processing instruction data generation processing to the machining target surface 11. The upper limit machining area area ratio Rsu is defined as the upper limit set for the machining area area ratio Rs of each machining area layer CR set in the flattening processing instruction data generation processing, and in this embodiment, is set to a value smaller than 100%.

[0104] Specific examples of the machining area ratio Rs and the upper limit machining area ratio Rsu will be described below with reference to the drawings. Fig. 17 is a diagram showing the machining target surface 11 of a workpiece (item to be machined) according to embodiment 2. In the example shown in Fig. 17, the machining target surface 11 of the workpiece (item to be machined) has a rectangular plane, but of course, the shape, size, and other aspects of the machining target surface 11 are not particularly limited. Here, for convenience, the long side direction (X direction in Fig. 17) of the plane (XY plane) of the machining target surface 11 will be called the length direction, and the short side direction (Y direction in Fig. 17) will be called the width direction.

[0105] In the process of generating processing instruction data for flattening, the processing instruction data generation unit 110 acquires surface height information (see FIG. 6 ) representing the uneven shape of the processing target surface 11 based on measurement data from the three-dimensional shape measuring instrument 300, as in the first embodiment. Based on the acquired surface height information, the processing instruction data generation unit 110 calculates the flatness Dp, which is the maximum height difference of the uneven shape of the processing target surface 11, and selects a combination of the allocated height ΔH of the processing region layer CR, the upper limit processing region area ratio Rsu, and the vertical push-in amount δz of the scraper 22 corresponding to the calculated flatness Dp from the processing condition information table, and sets these as the processing condition parameters to be used in the processing of generating processing instruction data for flattening. For example, if the flatness Dp of the processing target surface 11 before the start of the flattening processing is 20 μm, the value of the flatness Dp belongs to flatness category 1 according to the processing condition information table shown in FIG. In this case, the processing instruction data generating unit 110 sets the allocated height ΔH of the processing area layer CR to 3.5 μm as the processing condition parameters for rough processing to obtain a flat surface. The upper limit of the machining area ratio Rsu is set to 90%, and the vertical indentation amount δz is set to 5 mm.

[0106] Next, based on the surface height information of the processing target surface 11 and the allocation height ΔH of the processing area layer CR determined as described above, the processing instruction data generation unit 110 allocates the processing area layer CR at intervals of the allocation height ΔH along the vertical direction (Z-axis direction) of the processing target surface 11, starting from a virtual plane S0 that passes through the highest position (Z coordinate) of the convex portion S3 on the processing target surface 11 and is parallel to the XY plane. The virtual plane S0 is as described in FIG. 7 of the first embodiment.

[0107] FIG. 18 is a diagram showing a schematic view of the shape of the convex portions S3 of the processing surface 11 on Y=Y1 (Y1 is the coordinate on the Y axis). For the purpose of making the explanation easier to understand, the uneven shape of the processing surface 11 shown in FIG. 18 is shown as a shape in which the height of the convex portions S3 is high at both ends of the processing surface 11 in the length direction and gradually sinks toward the center in the length direction. Also, in FIG. 18, the uneven shape is exaggerated for the purpose of making the shape of the convex portions S3 of the processing surface 11 easier to understand. In the example shown in FIG. 18, when the flatness Dp of the surface 11 to be machined is 20 μm and the allocated height ΔH of each machining area layer CR is 3.5 μm, the first machining area layer CR1 from the upper side in the Z-axis direction is ~The seventh processing area layer CR7 is assigned.

[0108] FIG. 19 is a distribution diagram showing the planar distribution of each processing area layer CR (first processing area layer CR1 to seventh processing area layer CR7) in the form of contour lines. In the planar distribution of each processing area layer CR in the planar area of ​​the processing target surface 11, the lower processing area layer CR includes the planar area of ​​the processing area layer CR located above it. Therefore, the planar distribution of the second processing area layer CR2 includes not only the area marked with symbol CR2 in FIG. 19 but also the planar area (area marked with symbol CR1) occupied by the upper first processing area layer CR1. Furthermore, the planar distribution of the third processing area layer CR3 includes not only the area marked with symbol CR3 in FIG. 19 but also the planar areas (areas marked with symbols CR1 and CR2) occupied by the upper first processing area layer CR1 and second processing area layer CR2. The same applies to the planar areas occupied by the other processing area layers CR.

[0109] The processing instruction data generation unit 110 calculates the processing area area ratio Rs for each of the multiple processing area layers CR (first processing area layer CR1 to seventh processing area layer CR7) set as described above. Figure 20 is a diagram explaining the processing area area ratio Rs of each processing area layer CR set for flattening rough processing. In the figure, the blackened parts are areas that will not be cut in each processing area layer CR (first processing area layer CR1 to seventh processing area layer CR7), and the parts other than the blackened parts are cutting target areas that will be cut in each processing area layer CR. The processing area ratio Rs in each processing area layer CR is the area ratio of the cutting target area in each processing area layer CR to the entire processing target surface 11, so the processing area area ratio Rs is calculated using the following formula (1). Rs(%)=St / Sa×100...(1) formula Here, Sa is the area of ​​the surface 11 to be machined, and St is the area of ​​the region to be cut in each machining region layer CR.

[0110] In the flattening process, the machining target surface 11 is cut in stages from the top machining area layer CR to the bottom machining area layer CR. Therefore, the machining area area ratio Rs of the top machining area layer CR (in this example, the first machining area layer CR1) is calculated as the relatively smallest value, and the value of the machining area ratio Rs increases sequentially as you move to the lower machining area layers CR. In the example shown in Figure 20, the machining area ratio Rs of the sixth machining area layer CR6 is 85.5%, and the machining area ratio Rs of the seventh machining area layer CR7 is 100%.

[0111] In the flatness processing instruction data generation process of this embodiment, the processing instruction data generation unit 110 sets as the processing target only processing area layers CR whose processing area area rate Rs is equal to or less than the upper limit processing area rate Rsu. In other words, processing area layers CR whose processing area area rate Rs exceeds the upper limit processing area rate Rsu are not set as the processing target (are not set as the processing target). In this example, since the upper limit processing area rate Rsu is set to 90% according to flatness classification 1, the seventh processing area layer CR7 whose processing area area rate Rs exceeds the upper limit processing area rate Rsu is not set as the processing target. In other words, the first processing area layer CR1 to the sixth processing area layer CR6 are set as the processing target, and the sixth processing area layer CR6 is set as the final processing layer. In other words, the processing area layer CR (sixth processing area layer CR6) whose processing area area rate Rs is the largest within the range equal to or less than the upper limit processing area rate Rsu is set as the final processing layer. Therefore, in the example shown in Figure 20, the cutting target areas included in the first cutting area layer CR1 to the sixth cutting area layer CR6 are cut sequentially. Hereinafter, the cutting area layer CR set as the cutting target may be particularly referred to as the "target cutting area layer CRT".

[0112] As described above, the processing area layer CR whose processing area area ratio Rs exceeds the upper limit processing area area ratio Rsu is not selected as the target processing area layer CRT. Therefore, the processing area layer CR whose processing area area ratio Rs is equal to or less than the upper limit processing area area ratio Rsu (in the above example, the first processing area It is also possible that the flatness Dp of the surface 11 to be machined is greater than the target flatness (for example, 3.5 μm) when the cutting process is completed for the layers CR1 to CR6). In this case, after the flattening process is completed, the processing instruction data generating unit 110 determines whether the flatness Dp of the processing target surface 11 is equal to or less than the target flatness (for example, 3.5 μm). If the flatness Dp of the surface 11 to be processed is still greater than the target flatness, the processing condition parameters (such as the allocation height ΔH of the processing area layer CR and the upper limit processing area area ratio Rsu) are reselected according to the flatness Dp of the surface 11 to be processed, and processing instruction data for flattening is generated using the reselected processing condition parameters.

[0113] 18 to 20 illustrate an example of setting the machining area layer CR when generating machining instruction data for rough flattening. If the flatness Dp of the machining target surface 11 after the completion of rough flattening belongs to flatness category 2, then intermediate flattening machining is performed. Of course, if the flatness Dp of the machining target surface 11 after the completion of rough flattening belongs to flatness category 3, then finish flattening machining is performed instead of intermediate flattening machining. However, if the flatness Dp of the machining target surface 11 still belongs to flatness category 1 after the rough flattening machining is performed, then rough flattening machining will be performed repeatedly. However, there is a high probability that the flatness Dp of the machining target surface 11 will become smaller than before the machining is performed as a result of the flattening machining, and it is considered that the second and subsequent flattening machining processes will typically be intermediate flattening machining or finish flattening machining.

[0114] For example, if the flatness Dp of the machining target surface 11 after completion of the rough flattening is 4 μm, the flatness Dp is greater than the target flatness Dpt, so the machining instruction data generation unit 110 generates instruction data for flattening finish machining. In this case, the machining instruction data generation unit 110 refers to the machining condition information table shown in FIG. 16 and sets the allocated height ΔH of the machining area layer CR to 1.5 μm and the upper limit machining area area ratio R su is set to 50%. The processing conditions for performing the nth (n is a natural number of 2 or more) flattening processing are set according to the flatness Dp of the processing target surface 11 before the start of the nth flattening processing, and the flatness Dp of the processing target surface 11 before the start of the nth flattening processing refers to the flatness Dp of the processing target surface 11 at the completion of the (n-1)th flattening processing.

[0115] 21 is a diagram illustrating the machining area area ratio Rs of each machining area layer CR set for flattening finish machining. As in FIG. 20, the blackened areas in the figure are non-cutting target areas in each machining area layer CR that will not be cut, and the areas other than the blackened areas are cutting target areas in each machining area layer CR that will be cut. In flattening finish machining, as explained in FIG. 16, the allocation height ΔH of the machining area layer CR is set to a smaller value than in flattening rough machining. The machining instruction data generation unit 110 calculates the machining area area ratio Rs of each machining area layer CR set for flattening finish machining according to the above-mentioned formula (1), and sets the machining area layer CR whose machining area area ratio Rs is equal to or less than the upper limit machining area area ratio Rsu as the target machining area layer CRT.

[0116] In the example shown in Figure 21, the machining area area ratios Rs of the first machining area layer CR1 to the fourth machining area layer CR4 are calculated as 14.7%, 88.9%, 99.8%, and 100%, respectively, while the upper limit machining area ratio Rsu is set to 50%. Therefore, the machining instruction data generation unit 110 sets only the first machining area layer CR1, whose machining area ratio Rs is the maximum within the range of the upper limit machining area ratio Rsu or less, as the target machining area layer CRT. Therefore, in the example shown in Figure 21, only the cutting target area included in the first machining area layer CR1 will be cut.

[0117] In the process of generating processing instruction data for flattening, the processing instruction data generating unit 110 generates control parameters including processing point list data and a control value of the vertical push-in amount δz for each target processing area layer CRT. meter information is generated. Note that the vertical push-in amount δz can be a value read from the machining condition information table. Furthermore, the method for generating the machining point list data is not particularly limited. The machining instruction data generation unit 110 may generate the machining point list data in the same manner as in the first embodiment, or may generate the machining point list data in a different manner. Below, an exemplary method for generating the machining point list data in a manner different from that of the first embodiment will be described.

[0118] Fig. 22 is a diagram illustrating a division pattern in a planar region (XY planar region) of the processing surface 11 according to embodiment 2. As shown in Fig. 22, the division pattern in this embodiment divides the planar region of the processing surface 11 into a plurality of strip-shaped regions extending along the length direction (X direction).

[0119] The right side of Figure 22 shows a division pattern for the odd-layer target processing area layers CRT (first processing area layer CR1, third processing area layer CR3, etc.) (hereinafter referred to as ``odd-layer division pattern PT1'') and a division pattern for the even-layer target processing area layers CRT (second processing area layer CR2, fourth processing area layer CR4, etc.) (hereinafter referred to as ``even-layer division pattern PT2'').

[0120] 22, the odd layer division pattern PT1 and the even layer division pattern PT2 have different numbers of divisions that divide the planar area of ​​the processing surface 11. For example, the odd layer division pattern divides the planar area of ​​the processing surface 11 in the width direction into n divisions, while the even layer division pattern sets the number of divisions to (n+1). That is, in the odd layer division pattern, n divided areas RA' are allocated in parallel in the width direction of the processing surface 11, and in the even layer division pattern, (n+1) divided areas RA' are allocated in parallel in the width direction of the processing surface 11. Of course, the number of divisions in the odd layer division pattern may be (n+1), and the number of divisions in the even layer division pattern may be n.

[0121] As an example of calculating the number of divisions n of the division pattern, for example, if the width dimension of the surface 11 to be processed is W2, the width dimension of the cutting blade 24 (see Figure 2), and the overlap width dimension during the stroke of the cutting blade 24 is W3, the number of divisions n may be calculated using the following equation (2). n=W2 / (W-W3) (2) Here, n is a natural number equal to or greater than 2, obtained by rounding up the decimal point of the value obtained by equation (2). The overlap width dimension W3 is the overlap between the cutting blades 24 when cutting the adjacent divided areas RA' in the width direction of the surface 11 to be processed by the stroke of the cutting blades 24.

[0122] For example, if the width dimension W2 of the surface 11 to be processed is 25 mm, the width dimension W of the cutting blade 24 is 4 mm, and the overlap width dimension W3 is 1 mm, the number of divisions in the division pattern for odd layers will be 9, and the number of divisions in the division pattern for even layers will be 10. Of course, these numbers of divisions are merely examples.

[0123] The processing instruction data generating unit 110 sets the area corresponding to the cutting target area in each target processing area layer CRT as the cutting target segmented area RB' among the segmented areas RA' of the division pattern shown in Fig. 22. At this time, the odd-layer division pattern is used for the odd-layer target processing area layer CRT, and the even-layer division pattern is used for the even-layer target processing area layer CRT.

[0124] Then, the processing instruction data generating unit 110 sets a processing path PT of the cutting blade 24 for each cutting target divided area RB' set in each target processing area layer CRT, and generates processing point list data as explained in Fig. 14 of embodiment 1. As described above, the processing point list data is data that lists data related to the processing path PT in association with each processing point number, and is generated for each target processing area layer CRT.

[0125] FIG. 23 is a diagram illustrating a method for setting a machining path PT for the target machining area layer CRT. The two-dot chain lines in FIG. 23 indicate the boundary positions between the cut target segmented areas RB′. The black areas are areas not to be cut. As shown in FIG. 23, a machining path PT is set for each cut target segmented area RB′ of the target machining area layer CRT. The direction of each machining path PT is set from the center toward the end in the longitudinal direction (X direction) of the surface 11 to be machined. By setting the direction of each machining path PT from the inner area toward the outer area in the planar direction (XY plane direction) of the surface 11 to be machined in this way, it is possible to prevent the cutting blade 24 of the scraper 22 from entering from the end face (ridge line) side of the workpiece 10 during flattening processing. Furthermore, by dividing the planar area of ​​the surface 11 to be machined into multiple strip-shaped areas extending along the longitudinal direction, as in the division pattern described in this embodiment, the number of machining operations (the number of machining paths PT) can be reduced compared to the first embodiment, thereby shortening the machining time.

[0126] Also in this embodiment, different division patterns are used for the odd-layered target machining area layer CRT and the even-layered target machining area layer CRT, and the number of divisions into which the planar area of ​​the machining surface 11 is divided is made different, so that the positions of the machining paths PT on the planar area of ​​the machining surface 11 can be shifted between the odd-layered target machining area layer CRT and the even-layered target machining area layer CRT. As a result, when the machining surface 11 is cut sequentially for each target machining area layer CRT, it is possible to prevent over-cutting or uncut portions of the machining surface 11 from occurring.

[0127] The planarizing processing instruction data generated by the processing instruction data generation unit 110 of the control device 100 as described above is stored in the storage device 102. Then, as in the first embodiment, scraping processing is performed on the processing target surface 11 of the workpiece 10 based on the scraping processing flow shown in Fig. 15. That is, the control unit 111 in the control device 100 acquires the planarizing processing instruction data from the storage device 102, controls the robot arm 200 in accordance with the acquired planarizing processing instruction data, and executes planarizing processing on the processing target surface 11. The planarizing processing instruction data used at this time is the processing instruction data generated in the manner described in Figs. 16 to 23 of the second embodiment.

[0128] In the flattening process of this embodiment, the larger the difference between the flatness Dp of the workpiece surface 11 before the start of the flattening process and the target flatness Dpt, the larger the value of the upper limit machining area ratio Rsu set in the flattening process instruction data generation process is, and the smaller the difference is, the smaller the value of the upper limit machining area ratio Rsu is set. Therefore, in the flattening process, if the difference between the flatness Dp of the workpiece surface 11 before the start of the flattening process and the target flatness Dpt is large, a large area to be cut of the workpiece surface 11 is ensured, and as the difference between the flatness Dp of the workpiece surface 11 and the target flatness Dpt becomes smaller, the area to be cut of the workpiece surface 11 becomes smaller. In this way, by determining the upper limit of the processing region area ratio Rs during execution of the flattening process in accordance with the difference between the flatness Dp of the workpiece surface 11 and the target flatness Dpt, the total time required for the flattening process can be shortened compared to when the workpiece surface 11 is processed so that the flatness Dp of the workpiece surface 11 satisfies the target flatness Dpt in a single flattening process. Also, over-cutting when cutting the workpiece surface 11 with the cutting blade 24 of the scraper 22 is easily suppressed, enabling high-precision cutting.

[0129] More specifically, in the flattening processing in this embodiment, the larger the difference between the flatness Dp of the processing target surface 11 before the start of the flattening processing and the target flatness Dpt, the larger the allocated height ΔH of the processing area layer CR and the upper limit processing area area rate Rsu set in the flattening processing instruction data generation processing are set to, and as the difference between the flatness Dp of the processing target surface 11 and the target flatness Dpt becomes smaller, the allocated height ΔH of the processing area layer CR and the upper limit processing area area rate Rsu are set to smaller values. In a flattening process (for example, rough flattening) performed under conditions where the flatness Dp is large, the cutting depth ΔDS of the scraper 22 per stroke is ensured to be large, thereby efficiently cutting the workpiece surface 11. In this case, by setting the upper limit workpiece area ratio Rsu to a large value, the number of workpiece layer CR (target workpiece layer CRT) set as the workpiece can be increased, and the flatness Dp of the workpiece surface 11 can be made to approach the target flatness Dpt efficiently in a short time.

[0130] On the other hand, in a flattening process (e.g., flattening finish process) performed under conditions where the difference between the flatness Dp of the workpiece surface 11 and the target flatness Dpt is small, the allocated height ΔH of the workpiece layer CR and the cutting depth ΔDS of the scraper 22 are set small, thereby finely cutting the workpiece surface 11 and preventing over-cutting of the workpiece surface 11. In this case, because the upper limit workpiece area ratio Rsu is set to a small value, it is possible to prevent the number of target workpiece layer CRT to be cut from increasing unnecessarily when the cutting depth ΔDS of the scraper 22 is set small. As a result, it is possible to shorten the total time required for the flatness Dp of the workpiece surface 11 to satisfy the target flatness Dpt.

[0131] As described above, according to this embodiment, it is possible to efficiently perform a highly accurate flattening process on the work surface 11 of the workpiece 10. In other words, the automatic scraping device, automatic scraping method, information processing device, processing instruction data generation method, and processing instruction data generation program according to this embodiment can solve the problem of efficiently achieving highly accurate cutting in a flattening process on the work surface 11 of the workpiece 10, as described above.

[0132] <Modification> Next, a modified example of the above-mentioned embodiment 2 will be described. Fig. 24 is a diagram schematically showing a work-affected layer AL formed on the surface of the workpiece 10 according to the modified example. Specifically, the cross section of the workpiece 10 cut parallel to the width direction is shown.

[0133] For example, when milling or grinding the surface of the workpiece 10 in a process preceding scraping, a residual stress layer may be formed on the surface due to, for example, plastic deformation caused by the pressing of a tool. A work-affected layer AL, which is an example of such a residual stress layer, is often harder than the non-affected layer NL that exists underneath. Therefore, if a planarization process is performed while the work-affected layer AL remains on the surface of the workpiece 10, the cutting depth ΔDS per stroke of the scraper 22, which was set during the planarization processing instruction data generation process, may deviate from the actual cutting depth, making it difficult to accurately machine the workpiece surface 11 into the target shape.

[0134] Therefore, in this modified example, prior to the flattening process for the work surface 11 of the workpiece 10, a process-damaged layer removal process is performed to remove the process-damaged layer AL formed on the surface of the workpiece 10. The process-damaged layer removal process is performed to remove the process-damaged layer AL formed on the surface of the workpiece 10, so that the non-damaged layer NL located below the process-damaged layer AL is exposed.

[0135] The damaged layer removal process is performed by pressing the cutting blade 24 of the scraper 22 against the damaged layer AL and stroking it, but the tool angle θ (see FIG. 3) during the damaged layer removal process is set to a larger angle than during the flattening process. By performing the damaged layer removal process in this way, the cutting blade 24 can be pressed more strongly against the damaged layer AL, making it easier to remove the damaged layer AL. In addition, by making the tool angle θ during the damaged layer removal process larger than during the flattening process, different cutting edge positions of the cutting blade 24 can be used during cutting in the damaged layer removal process and the subsequent flattening process. In other words, by making the blade contact point during the process of removing the damaged layer and the blade contact point during the process of flattening different on a single cutting blade 24, it is possible to effectively utilize the cutting blade 24. This makes it possible to extend the life of the cutting blade 24 and reduce the frequency of replacement of the cutting blade 24.

[0136] As described above, by performing the process-damaged layer removal process prior to the flattening process, the error between the target cutting depth of the workpiece surface 11 and the actual cutting depth during the flattening process is reduced, making it easier to accurately machine the workpiece surface 11 into the target shape. Furthermore, by removing the work-damaged layer AL through the process-damaged layer removal process, the residual stress accumulated in the work-damaged layer AL can be released. This makes it easier to even more accurately machine the workpiece surface 11 into the target shape in the subsequent flattening process.

[0137] <Other embodiments> The above-described embodiment is merely an example, and the present disclosure may be modified as appropriate within the scope of the present disclosure. Furthermore, the processes and means described in the present disclosure may be freely combined and implemented as long as no technical contradiction occurs.

[0138] Furthermore, a process described as being performed by one device may be shared and executed by multiple devices. Alternatively, a process described as being performed by different devices may be executed by a single device. In a computer system, the hardware configuration that realizes each function can be flexibly changed.

[0139] The present disclosure can also be realized by providing a computer program implementing the functions described in the above embodiments to a computer, and having one or more processors in the computer read and execute the program. Such a computer program may be provided to the computer via a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium connectable to the computer's system bus or via a network. Non-transitory computer-readable storage media include any type of medium suitable for storing electronic instructions, such as any type of disk, including magnetic disks (e.g., floppy disks, hard disk drives (HDDs), etc.), optical disks (e.g., CD-ROMs, DVDs, Blu-ray disks), read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), EPROM, EEPROM, magnetic cards, flash memory, or optical cards. [Explanation of symbols]

[0140] 1...Automatic scraping processing equipment 10. Work 11. Machining surface 100 Control device 104 Processor 110 Processing instruction data generation unit 111 Control unit 200···Robot arm 300...3D shape measuring instrument

Claims

1. An automatic scraping device that automatically scrapes a surface to be processed of a workpiece, a processing robot that holds and operates a scraper having a cutting blade; a control device that controls the processing robot in accordance with processing instruction data; Equipped with When performing a flattening process in which the convex portion of the processing target surface is cut by the scraper, the control device divides the convex portion into a plurality of layers in the height direction and cuts it in stages, and when cutting one layer adjacent in the height direction and when cutting the other layer, the planar positions of the processing paths through which the center portion of the cutting blade of the scraper in the width direction passes are shifted relative to each other. Automatic scraping processing equipment.

2. 2. An information processing device for generating processing instruction data for controlling the processing robot according to claim 1, acquiring convex portions of the processing target surface based on surface height information of the processing target surface, and dividing the convex portions in a height direction to set a plurality of processing region layers; Setting the machining path of the scraper for each of the plurality of machining area layers; a processor that executes a processing instruction data generation process including In the processing instruction data generation process, the processor sets the planar positions of the processing paths of the scraper so as to be shifted from each other between the processing area layers adjacent in a height direction. Information processing device.

3. the processor acquires the convex portion as a differential shape between an initial shape of the processing target surface and a target plane of the processing target surface to be formed after the planarization processing. The information processing device according to claim 2 .

4. The processor: Dividing a planar area of ​​the surface to be machined into a plurality of divided areas corresponding to a cutting range of one stroke of the scraper using a predetermined division pattern; Among the plurality of divided areas allocated to the processing target surface, a divided area that overlaps with the target processing area layer in a plan view is set as a processing target divided area corresponding to the processing area layer; setting the machining path of the scraper for each of the machining object divisional regions; 4. The information processing device according to claim 2 or 3.

5. the processor sets a stroke path of the scraper in each of the divided areas when dividing the planar area of ​​the surface to be machined into the plurality of divided areas, and sets the machining path of the scraper on the stroke path; The information processing device according to claim 4 .

6. The processor sets the machining target segmented areas of the machining area layers that are continuous in a height direction based on division pattern data in which the planar area is divided into the plurality of segmented areas using division patterns that are different from each other. The information processing device according to claim 5 .

7. 2. A method for generating processing instruction data for controlling the processing robot according to claim 1, the method being executed by a processor of an information processing device, the method comprising: acquiring convex portions of the processing target surface based on surface height information of the processing target surface, and dividing the convex portions in a height direction to set a plurality of processing region layers; setting a machining path through which a center portion of the cutting blade of the scraper in a width direction passes for each of the plurality of machining area layers; Execute a processing instruction data generation process including the In the processing instruction data generation process, the planar positions of the processing paths of the scraper are set to be shifted relative to each other between one processing area layer and another processing area layer adjacent in a height direction. A method for generating processing instruction data.

8. A processor of an information processing device that generates processing instruction data for controlling the processing robot according to claim 1, acquiring convex portions of the processing target surface based on surface height information of the processing target surface, and dividing the convex portions in a height direction to set a plurality of processing region layers; setting a machining path through which a center portion of the cutting blade of the scraper in a width direction passes for each of the plurality of machining area layers; and in the data generation process, the planar positions of the machining paths of the scraper are set to be shifted relative to each other between one machining area layer and the other machining area layer adjacent in the height direction. Processing instruction data generation program.

9. An automatic scraping method executed by a control device of an automatic scraping device that automatically scrapes a surface to be processed of a workpiece when controlling a processing robot that holds and operates a scraper having a cutting blade in accordance with processing instruction data, When performing a flattening process in which the convex portion of the processing target surface is cut by the scraper, the control device divides the convex portion into a plurality of layers in the height direction and cuts it in stages, and when cutting one layer adjacent in the height direction and when cutting the other layer, the planar positions of the processing paths through which the center portion of the cutting blade of the scraper in the width direction passes are shifted relative to each other. Automatic processing method for kisage.

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