Welding program creation device, welding program creation method, and welding program creation program

Abstract

A welding program creation device, a welding program creation method, and a welding program creation program that can create welding programs that enable efficient welding. [Solution] The welding program is configured to perform the following: a process for identifying identical metal pins from among a plurality of metal pins arranged along the circumferential direction of a circumferentially rotatable table and moving in the circumferential direction in accordance with the rotation of the table, in which at least the same type of metal pins having the same height; a process for creating a welding cycle for each group of identical metal pins; and a program for creating a welding program that includes one or more of the above processing cycles. The welding program is configured to perform welding of each metal pin in each processing cycle by rotating the table in the circumferential direction without moving the position of the welding head that irradiates the metal pins with laser light.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a welding process program creation device, a welding process program creation method, and a welding process program creation program.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, there is known a laser welding device for flat angle lines in which the welding target surfaces of two adjacent flat angle lines are brought into contact, and laser light is irradiated from a laser light irradiation unit onto a welding range along a boundary line where the two flat angle lines are in contact for welding (Patent Document 1, etc.). The laser welding device for flat angle lines described in Patent Document 1 is used, for example, for welding flat angle lines used in a stator of a motor.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] The flat angle lines used in the stator are attached to the stator core in large numbers. The laser welding device welds the tips of two adjacent flat angle lines in sequence by moving the laser light irradiation unit or rotating the table that supports the stator core. The flat angle lines are attached to the stator core in a circumferential shape and are arranged in one row or multiple rows. When all the flat angle lines constituting each row are the same and the arrangement is also at equal intervals, if the laser light irradiation unit is moved to a position where laser light can be irradiated to any of the flat angle lines constituting each row, it is possible to perform welding on all the flat angle lines constituting the row without moving the laser light irradiation unit, simply by appropriately irradiating the laser light while rotating the table by a certain amount.

[0005] However, the flat wires used in the stator cannot always be processed under the same conditions. In other words, the shape, material, processing conditions, and height (length protruding from the stator core) of the flat wires may differ. In addition, the arrangement of the flat wires may be uneven.

[0006] Furthermore, if the flat wires are mixed together and differ in at least one of their shapes, heights, materials, and processing conditions, and especially if the same flat wires are not arranged in a regular pattern, attempting to weld them sequentially according to their arrangement requires changing the amount of rotation of the table and the position of the laser beam irradiation area each time, resulting in a long processing time until all the flat wires are processed.

[0007] Therefore, as a method to shorten the processing time, for example, instead of welding the flat wires in the order they are arranged, a special control method can be considered to shorten the processing time by identifying a group of flat wires to be welded under the same processing conditions, sequentially welding the multiple flat wires included in that group, then identifying a group of flat wires to be welded under different processing conditions, and repeating the process of sequentially welding those groups.

[0008] However, the laser irradiation unit must focus the laser beam onto the tip of the flat wire, and if the laser beam is irradiated onto flat wires of different heights without adjusting the focus, welding may fail. Therefore, even if a group of flat wires can be welded under the same processing conditions, if the group contains flat wires of different heights, the laser irradiation unit must adjust the focus of the laser beam by driving the focus adjustment unit if it has one, or by moving the laser irradiation unit vertically (in the direction of the protrusion of the flat wire) if it does not have one. Consequently, there is a problem in that the processing time increases due to the repeated adjustment of the laser beam focus.

[0009] Furthermore, in order to reduce the number of times the laser beam irradiation unit moves, it is preferable to process together flat wires that are located in the same row from among the flat wire group. However, if this is considered one cycle of welding, the number of processing cycles increases as the number of flat wire groups and the number of rows of flat wires increases, and the number of table rotations increases by the number of processing cycles, thus increasing the processing time. In addition, since there is an operation to move the laser beam irradiation unit away from interference between processing cycles, as the number of processing cycles increases, the number of operations to avoid interference also increases, and the processing time increases. In this respect as well, there is room for improvement in conventional laser welding equipment.

[0010] One aspect of the present invention is a welding process program creation apparatus, a welding process program creation method, and a welding process program creation program that can create a welding process program that enables efficient welding. [Means for solving the problem]

[0011] A welding program creation apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention is configured to perform a same-type metal pin identification process for identifying same-type metal pins from among a plurality of metal pins arranged along the circumferential direction on a circumferentially rotatable table and moving in the circumferential direction in accordance with the rotation of the table; a processing cycle creation process for creating a welding cycle for each group of same-type metal pins; and a program creation process for creating a welding program including one or more of the processing cycles. The welding program is configured to perform welding of each metal pin by rotating the table in the circumferential direction without moving the position of the welding head that irradiates the metal pins with laser light in each processing cycle.

[0012] A welding program creation method according to one aspect of the present invention is a welding program creation device that performs the following steps: a same-type metal pin identification step of identifying same-type metal pins from among a plurality of metal pins arranged along the circumferential direction on a circumferentially rotatable table and moving in the circumferential direction in accordance with the rotation of the table; a processing cycle creation step of creating a welding processing cycle for each group of same-type metal pins; and a program creation step of creating a welding program that includes one or more of the processing cycles. The welding program is configured to perform welding of each metal pin by rotating the table in the circumferential direction without moving the position of the welding head that irradiates the metal pins with laser light in each processing cycle.

[0013] A welding program creation program according to one aspect of the present invention causes a welding program creation device to perform the following: a same-type metal pin identification process that identifies same-type metal pins from among a plurality of metal pins arranged along the circumferential direction on a circumferentially rotatable table and moving in the circumferential direction in accordance with the rotation of the table; a processing cycle creation process that creates a welding processing cycle for each group of same-type metal pins; and a program creation process that creates a welding program including one or more of the processing cycles. The welding program is configured to perform welding of each metal pin by rotating the table in the circumferential direction without moving the position of the welding head that irradiates the metal pins with laser light in each processing cycle.

[0014] According to one aspect of the present invention, a welding processing program creation apparatus, a welding processing program creation method, and a welding processing program creation program, by identifying similar metal pins and creating a welding processing cycle for each group of similar metal pins, the number of movements of the welding head 30 can be minimized, and a welding processing program that shortens the processing cycle time, that is, a welding processing program that can weld more efficiently than conventional methods, can be created. [Effects of the Invention]

[0015] According to the welding process program creation device, the welding process program creation method, and the welding process program creation program according to one aspect of the present invention, a welding process program that can be welded efficiently can be created.

Brief Description of Drawings

[0016] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a welding system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the table of this embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram showing the welding process program creation device of this embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a welding process program of this embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the arrangement information of this embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of the arrangement of metal pins in this embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the metal pin classification process in this embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of the scanner section creation process in this embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of the scanner section creation process in this embodiment. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the result of the scanner section creation process in this embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of the pattern separation process (scanner pattern creation process) in this embodiment. [Figure 12] FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of the arrangement of metal pins in this embodiment. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of the scanner section creation process and the pattern separation process (scanner pattern creation process) in this embodiment. [Figure 14] FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example of the arrangement of metal pins in this embodiment. [Figure 15] FIG. 15 is a diagram showing an example of the cycle list creation process of the present embodiment. [Figure 16] FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of the machining cycle creation process of the present embodiment. [Figure 17] FIG. 17 is a diagram showing an example of the machining cycle creation process of the present embodiment. [Figure 18] ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ First, with reference to Figure 1, a welding system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be outlined. The welding system 1 according to this embodiment generally comprises a welding apparatus 10 and a welding processing program creation apparatus 200, as shown in Figure 1. The welding apparatus 10 comprises a table 20, a welding head 30, a camera 50, and a control device 100. The welding apparatus 10 may also be equipped with a gas nozzle for blowing assist gas.

[0019] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram showing the table of this embodiment. As shown in Figure 2, the table 20 is configured to accommodate multiple metal pins P (e.g., flat wires) to be welded. The multiple metal pins P are arranged along the circumferential direction of the table 20. In this embodiment, "arranged on the table 20" includes not only configurations in which the multiple metal pins P are attached to the table 20 via a welding jig, but also configurations in which the multiple metal pins P attached to the stator core (motor core) SC are attached to the table 20 via the stator core SC, and configurations in which the stator core SC with the multiple metal pins P attached is attached to the table 20 via a welding jig.

[0020] In this embodiment, the multiple metal pins P are arranged in pairs along the circumferential direction of the table 20, and the pair of metal pins P are welded by laser irradiation as described later. In this embodiment, unless otherwise specified, the pair of metal pins P before welding are also referred to as "metal pins P".

[0021] The table 20 has a rotating part and is configured to be rotatable in the circumferential direction. That is, the multiple metal pins P move in the circumferential direction of the table 20 in accordance with the rotation of the table 20. In this embodiment, the table 20 rotates with clockwise direction being positive (rotation angle +) and counterclockwise direction being negative (rotation angle -). However, it is not limited to this, and the table 20 may rotate with counterclockwise direction being positive.

[0022] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the table 20 can be rotated 240° (±240°) clockwise and counterclockwise, respectively, with respect to the rotation angle of the origin of the table 20. However, it is not limited to this, and the rotatable range of the table 20 can be any range depending on the configuration of the rotating part of the table 20. Also, since the table 20 can employ various known configurations, a detailed explanation thereof is omitted.

[0023] As shown in Figure 1, the welding head 30 is positioned above the table 20 and is configured to weld a pair of adjacent metal pins P. A laser beam emitted by a laser oscillator (not shown) is sent to the welding head 30 via an optical fiber. The welding head 30 welds a pair of adjacent metal pins P by irradiating them with laser light from a nozzle (not shown).

[0024] Furthermore, the welding head 30 is attached to a Cartesian coordinate movement device or the like, and is configured to move freely in three axes on the table 20 in the front-rear, left-right, and depth directions. The welding head 30 also has a pivot axis, allowing the direction of laser beam irradiation to be freely changed. In addition, the welding head 30 has a galvanometer scanner, and by tilting the internal scan mirror, welding can be performed within the range (processing range PR in this embodiment) where laser beam can be irradiated, simply by driving the scan mirror without moving the position of the welding head 30. That is, multiple metal pins P located within the processing range PR can all be welded simply by driving the scan mirror. Note that various known configurations can be adopted for the welding head 30, so a detailed explanation is omitted.

[0025] A welding apparatus 10 equipped with such a table 20 and welding head 30 can perform welding of multiple metal pins P without moving the position of the welding head 30 by repeatedly rotating the table 20 and irradiating it with laser light from the welding head 30.

[0026] The camera 50 has one lens and one image sensor, and is positioned above the table 20 so as to be able to photograph an area that includes at least one pair of adjacent metal pins P. In this embodiment, the camera 50 is mounted above the table 20, such as on the ceiling, and is configured to photograph a plurality of metal pins P arranged on the table 20 from above.

[0027] The camera 50 is configured to supply captured image data to the control device 100. In this embodiment, the camera 50 may be configured to directly output a digital signal (image data) from the camera 50 to the control device 100, or it may be configured to convert the analog signal (captured image signal) output from the camera 50 into a digital signal (image data) using an A / D converter (not shown) or the like and output it to the control device 100.

[0028] The control device 100 according to this embodiment is, for example, a numerical control device or an electronic computer such as a desktop personal computer, laptop computer, or tablet terminal. The control device 100 is configured to control the table 20, the welding head 30, and the camera 50.

[0029] In other words, the control device 100 functions as a Human-Machine Interface (HMI) for operating the table 20, welding head 30, and camera 50. The control device 100 is also configured to acquire image data captured by the camera 50 and to identify the welding position based on the acquired image data.

[0030] Specifically, the control device 100 is configured to perform a pin position identification process that identifies the position of each metal pin P from image data captured by the camera 50, and a welding position identification process that identifies the welding position of a pair of metal pins P based on the identified positions of each metal pin P. The pin position identification process includes a pin position candidate identification process that identifies candidate positions for the metal pins P from the image data, and a center position identification process that identifies the center position of each metal pin P.

[0031] The control device 100, having the above configuration, is configured to correct the welding program 245 based on the identified welding position. Since the control device 100 can employ various known configurations, a detailed explanation is omitted.

[0032] Figure 3 is a functional block diagram showing the welding program creation apparatus of this embodiment. The welding program creation device 200 is, for example, a numerical control device, a desktop computer, a laptop computer, or a tablet terminal, and comprises an input unit 210, a display unit 220, a control unit 230, and a storage unit 240. The welding program creation device 200 also has CAM (computer-aided manufacturing) software.

[0033] [Method for creating a welding process program according to this embodiment] Figure 23 is a flowchart showing an example of the process performed by the welding program creation device of this embodiment. Here, the welding program creation method by the welding program creation device 200 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Figure 23. In general terms, the welding program creation method according to this embodiment involves the welding program creation device 200 performing the following steps: a same-type metal pin identification step (S5 in Figure 23) in which a plurality of metal pins P are identified from among a plurality of metal pins P arranged along the circumferential direction on a circumferentially rotatable table 20 and moving in the circumferential direction in accordance with the rotation of the table 20; a processing cycle creation step (S11 in Figure 23) in which a welding processing cycle C is created for each group of same-type metal pins; and a program creation step (S14 in Figure 23) in which a welding program 245 including one or more processing cycles C is created.

[0034] The specific processes in each step will be described in detail in the explanation of the configuration of each part of the control unit 230, so they will be omitted here.

[0035] The input unit 210 is comprised of input devices such as a keyboard, mouse, touchpad, and joystick. By operating the input unit 210, in addition to the information input functions normally required in the welding program creation device 200, operations such as selecting the row of metal pins P to be processed first (described later) can be performed.

[0036] The display unit 220 has a display as a display device, and in addition to the screen display functions normally required in the welding processing program creation device 200, it also displays the screen of CAM software (not shown), etc.

[0037] Furthermore, the display unit 220 may be configured as a touch panel (touch screen) having the functions of the input unit 210. If the display unit 220 is configured as a touch panel, the user can perform various operations on the welding program creation device 200, such as selecting the row of metal pins P to be processed first, by operating the display unit 220.

[0038] The configuration of the input unit 210 and the display unit 220 is not limited to the configuration described above. Any configuration with equivalent functionality (for example, a remotely accessible display means or input means) can be used instead of the input unit 210 and the display unit 220. In this embodiment, each selection operation by the user will be described as being performed via the input unit 210.

[0039] The control unit 230 is composed of, for example, an integrated computing device having a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit). Furthermore, as shown in Figure 3, the control unit 230 includes a similar metal pin identification unit 231, a scanner pattern creation unit 233, a machining cycle creation unit 235, a machining sequence setting unit 237, and an angle identification unit 239.

[0040] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a welding program according to this embodiment. Furthermore, the control unit 230 is configured to create a welding program 245 for the welding apparatus 10 to perform welding. In this embodiment, the control unit 230 is configured to create a scanner pattern SP for welding by the welding head 30. The scanner pattern SP is included in the welding program 245, as shown in Figure 4. The number of scanner patterns SP included in the welding program 245 varies depending on the number and arrangement of metal pins P placed on the table 20.

[0041] The scanner pattern SP includes multiple scanner sections SS. Each scanner section SS is a group of metal pins that fall within the range captured by the camera 50 of the welding apparatus 10. In this embodiment, the scanner section SS is set to the same range as, or a narrower range than, the processing range PR that the welding head 30 can process, simply by adjusting the tilt of the scan mirror of the galvanometer scanner of the welding head 30. In this embodiment, the range of the scanner section SS is described as being the same as the processing range PR. However, it is not limited to this.

[0042] Furthermore, the scanner pattern SP contains, for each scanner section SS, position information of the welding head 30, specifically, position information of the processing range PR, and information on the rotation direction and rotation angle of the table 20 (rotation information in this embodiment). The welding apparatus 10 moves the welding head 30 to a position where the welding location among the multiple metal pins P falls within the processing range PR, according to the scanner pattern SP of the welding processing program 245. Then, while rotating the table 20, the welding apparatus 10 sequentially welds the multiple metal pins P arranged on the table 20 along the circumferential direction of the table 20.

[0043] In this embodiment, a single scanner pattern SP must have the same arrangement of metal pins P within each scanner section SS included in that scanner pattern SP. In this embodiment, multiple metal pins P that can be processed with a single scanner pattern SP are metal pins P that share the same height, shape, material information MI, and processing conditions PC.

[0044] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the control unit 230 is configured to create a processing cycle C, which will be described later, that includes one or more scanner patterns SP. In this embodiment, the multiple scanner patterns SP that can be included in one processing cycle C must have common heights of the metal pins P, shapes of the metal pins P, material information MI of the metal pins P, and processing conditions PC of the metal pins P that constitute the group of metal pins of the scanner section SS included in each scanner pattern SP. However, it is not limited to this.

[0045] A single processing cycle C may also include a scanner pattern SP that includes a scanner section SS relating to a group of metal pins P that constitute a group of metal pins in a scanner section SS included in another scanner pattern SP, and a scanner pattern SP relating to a group of metal pins P in which at least one of the following is different: the height of the metal pins P, the shape of the metal pins P, the material information MI of the metal pins P, and the processing conditions PC of the metal pins P.

[0046] In this embodiment, the control unit 230 is configured to accept a selection of whether or not to classify, in the cycle list creation process described later, a scanner pattern SP including a scanner section SS relating to a group of metal pins composed of a first group of identical metal pins, and a scanner pattern SP including a scanner section SS relating to a group of metal pins composed of a second group of identical metal pins in which at least one of the height of the metal pins P, the shape of the metal pins P, the material information MI of the metal pins P, and the processing conditions PC of the metal pins P differs from the first group of identical metal pins, as the same category.

[0047] In other words, the user is configured to choose whether or not to create a welding program 245 that processes metal pins P that differ in at least one of the following: height of metal pin P, shape of metal pin P, material information MI of metal pin P, and processing conditions PC of metal pin P, using the same cycle list CL and, consequently, the same processing cycle C.

[0048] The control unit 230 is configured to automatically determine the cycle list CL, processing cycle C, scanner section SS, and scanner pattern SP that minimize the time required for welding all metal pins P, taking into consideration the shape and arrangement of the metal pins P, the material information MI of the metal pins P, and the processing conditions PC of the metal pins P.

[0049] Next, the specific configuration of the control unit 230 according to this embodiment will be described. The control unit 230 according to this embodiment is configured to perform a processing position identification process (S1 in Figure 23) that identifies the processing position of the welding head 30 during welding. In this embodiment, the processing position of the welding head 30 is the position of the welding head 30 when each processing cycle C is executed. In this embodiment, when multiple rows of metal pins P are arranged on the table 20, the welding head 30 is configured to move above a predetermined arrangement angle (for example, 270°) of the table 20, and then perform a series of welding operations while moving only in the adjacent direction of the multiple rows above that arrangement angle. The arrangement angle will be described later. Therefore, in the processing position identification process, the control unit 230 identifies the arrangement angle of the table 20 where the welding head 30 is located when each processing cycle C is executed as the processing position of the welding head 30.

[0050] In the machining position identification process, if a machining position has been set in advance and the machining position setting information is stored in the storage unit 240, the control unit 230 identifies the machining position by reading the machining position setting information. If a machining position has not been set in advance, the control unit 230 identifies the machining position from the machining position information entered by the user via the input unit 210.

[0051] The machining order setting unit 237 is configured to execute a column selection acceptance process that accepts the selection of the column to be machined first (starting column) when there are multiple columns of metal pins P arranged circumferentially (S2 in Figure 23). The user can select any column to be machined first from among the multiple columns of metal pins P on the CAM software screen. In this embodiment, the machining order setting unit 237 accepts the selection of whether to machine from the outermost column or the innermost column.

[0052] In this embodiment, the column selection acceptance process is described as accepting the selection of the innermost column as the column to be processed first. In this embodiment, the column selection acceptance process is performed after the processing position identification process and before the arrangement information acquisition process described later, but it is not limited to this. The column selection acceptance process only needs to be performed at least before the provisional position identification process described later.

[0053] Furthermore, the processing order setting unit 237 is configured to enable the processing cycle creation unit 235 to perform a processing order setting process that sets the processing order of metal pins P within the scanner section SS included in each processing cycle C (S13 in Figure 23). In the processing order of metal pins P within the scanner section SS, priority is given to the metal pins P located in the processing start column received in the column selection acceptance process. As shown in Figure 23, the processing order setting process may be performed after the welding head positioning process described later. However, it is not limited to this, and the processing order setting process may be performed after the execution of the processing cycle process described later and before the execution of the welding head positioning process.

[0054] The same-type metal pin identification unit 231 is configured to perform a configuration information acquisition process (S3 in Figure 23) to acquire configuration information 241 of multiple metal pins P arranged circumferentially on the table 20 and moving circumferentially in accordance with the rotation of the table 20. If the configuration information 241 is stored in the storage unit 240, the same-type metal pin identification unit 231 reads and acquires the configuration information 241 from the storage unit 240, and if the configuration information 241 is stored in another device such as a server, it acquires the configuration information 241 from that device. The same-type metal pin identification unit 231 is also configured to perform a pin information acquisition process (S4 in Figure 23) to acquire pin information 244 of each metal pin P arranged on the table 20.

[0055] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the arrangement information in this embodiment. In this embodiment, the arrangement information 241 includes pin information 244 for each metal pin P arranged on the table 20, as shown in Figure 5. The pin information 244 includes position information 242 having the coordinates of the center point Pc of a pair of metal pins P and the angle between the center points Pc of a pair of metal pins P, shape information of the metal pins P (shape ID in this embodiment), material information MI of the metal pins P, and processing conditions PC of the metal pins P. The pin information 244 may also include height information of the metal pins P.

[0056] Note that the pin information 244 does not necessarily have to include the shape ID, material information MI, and processing condition PC in advance. For example, the control unit 230 may automatically, or the user may manually, link the shape ID, material information MI, and processing condition PC with each pin information 244. In this case, the shape ID, material information MI, and processing condition PC are stored in the storage unit 240, and the shape ID, material information MI, and processing condition PC may be read from the storage unit 240 and linked, or the shape ID, material information MI, and processing condition PC are stored in another device such as a server, and the shape ID, material information MI, and processing condition PC may be obtained from the other device and linked.

[0057] In the example of arrangement information 241 shown in Figure 5, multiple metal pins P are arranged in three rows along the circumferential direction of the table 20. In the outermost row (the outermost row in this embodiment), the "metal pin 1" is positioned at 0°, which is the rotation angle of the table 20's origin. The outermost row has 48 metal pins P (48 pairs of metal pins P) arranged at equal intervals of 7.5° apart. However, this is not limited to this configuration, and various arbitrary configurations can be adopted for the number of metal pins P, the spacing between the metal pins P, and the number of rows of metal pins P.

[0058] Furthermore, the same-type metal pin identification unit 231 is configured to perform a same-type metal pin identification process (S5 in Figure 23) to identify the same-type metal pins from among a plurality of metal pins P. The same-type metal pins are metal pins P that have at least one of the following in common: height of the metal pin P, shape of the metal pin P, material information MI of the metal pin P, and processing conditions PC of the metal pin P.

[0059] In this embodiment, the same-type metal pin identification unit 231 is configured to identify metal pins P that have the same height, shape, material information MI, and processing conditions PC as the same type of metal pins during the same-type metal pin identification process. The same-type metal pin identification unit 231 identifies metal pins P from among a plurality of metal pins P whose height information, shape ID, material information MI, and processing conditions PC match.

[0060] The same-type metal pin identification unit 231 identifies similar metal pins based on the pin information 244 if the pin information 244 includes information on the height of the metal pins P. However, it is not limited to this. The same-type metal pin identification unit 231 may also identify similar metal pins with the same height from the 3D model 243. The 3D model 243 is 3D CAD (computer-aided design) data of multiple metal pins P placed on the table 20, and the 3D models of multiple metal pins P are placed based on the placement information 241. Note that "identifying similar metal pins with the same height from the 3D model" is not limited to the method in which the 3D model 243 includes information on the height of each metal pin P and the same-type metal pin identification unit 231 identifies similar metal pins based on that information. For example, the same-type metal pin identification unit 231 may also set a virtual plane relative to the 3D model 243 and identify the tip faces of the 3D models of the metal pins P to obtain relative height information between the metal pins P and identify similar metal pins.

[0061] The same-type metal pin identification unit 231 then classifies all metal pins P arranged on the table 20 into one or more groups of the same type of metal pins. In this embodiment, the control unit 230 (specifically, the same-type metal pin identification unit 231, the scanner pattern creation unit 233, and the processing cycle creation unit 235) is configured to perform a one-cycle processable pin identification process (S6 in Figure 23) based on the arrangement information 241, which identifies one-cycle processable pins from among a plurality of similar metal pins that can be welded simply by rotating the table 20 in the circumferential direction without moving the position of the welding head 30. In this embodiment, the one-cycle processable pins are the metal pins P of a plurality of scanner sections SS that have one or more scanner patterns SP included in the processing cycle C.

[0062] In the process of identifying pins that can be machined in one cycle, the same-type metal pin identification unit 231 is configured to perform a metal pin classification process (S7 in Figure 23) that classifies multiple same-type metal pins included in the same-type metal pin group into same-angle metal pins that have the same arrangement angle, based on the arrangement information 241. In this embodiment, the arrangement angle is the rotation angle along the circumferential direction of the table 20 with respect to the rotation angle of the origin of the table 20.

[0063] For example, in the example of arrangement information 241 of this embodiment shown in Figure 5, "metal pin 1" is located on the rotation angle of the table 20 at the origin. Therefore, the arrangement angle of "metal pin 1" is 0°. Also, the rotation angle of "metal pin 2" along the circumferential direction of the table 20 with respect to the rotation angle of the table 20 at the origin is 7.5°. Therefore, the arrangement angle of "metal pin 2" is 7.5°. Similarly, the rotation angle of "metal pin 37" along the circumferential direction of the table 20 with respect to the rotation angle of the table 20 at the origin is 270°. Therefore, the arrangement angle of "metal pin 37" is 270°.

[0064] In this embodiment, the arrangement angle of the metal pins P is defined as positive if it aligns with the counterclockwise direction (rotation angle -) of the table 20, and the arrangement angles of all metal pins P are indicated as positive values, but this is not limited to this. The arrangement angle of the metal pins P may also be defined as positive if it aligns with the clockwise direction (rotation angle +) of the table 20. In that case, the arrangement angle of the "metal pin 37" is 90°.

[0065] Figure 6 shows an example of the arrangement of metal pins in this embodiment. Figure 7 shows an example of the metal pin classification process in this embodiment. For example, as shown in Figure 6, if metal pins "1" to "8" are arranged such that they have the same height P, shape P, material information MI of metal pin P, and processing conditions PC of metal pin P, the same type metal pin identification unit 231 classifies "1" to "8" into six groups according to their arrangement angle, as shown in Figure 7. Specifically, as shown in Figure 6, "1" is positioned at an angle of "0°" in "association row 1", "2" is positioned at an angle of "90°" in "association row 1", and "3" is positioned at an angle of "135°" in "association row 3".

[0066] Furthermore, "metal pin 4" is positioned at an angle of "180°" to "association row 1," and "metal pin 5" is positioned at an angle of "180°" to "association row 2." In addition, "metal pin 6" is positioned at an angle of "225°" to "association row 3," "metal pin 7" is positioned at an angle of "270°" to "association row 1," and "metal pin 8" is positioned at an angle of "270°" to "association row 2."

[0067] Therefore, as shown in Figure 7, the same-type metal pin identification unit 231 classifies "metal pin 4" and "metal pin 5," which have the same arrangement angle, into the same "classification 4" group. Similarly, the same-type metal pin identification unit 231 classifies "metal pin 7" and "metal pin 8," which have the same arrangement angle, into the same "classification 6" group.

[0068] In this embodiment, as described above, the column selection acceptance process accepts the selection of the innermost column as the first column to be processed. Therefore, the columns are named "Column 1", "Column 2", and "Column 3" in order from the innermost column. However, the order of the column numbers is not limited to this.

[0069] The scanner pattern creation unit 233 is configured to perform a temporary position identification process (S8 in Figure 23) in the process of identifying pins that can be processed in one cycle, which identifies the temporary position of the welding head 30 during welding for each identical metal pin. In this embodiment, the temporary position of the welding head 30 during welding for an identical metal pin is the processing position of the welding head 30 in the scanner section SS of that identical metal pin.

[0070] Figure 24 is a flowchart showing the processes performed by the scanner pattern creation unit in this embodiment during the temporary position identification process. In this embodiment, the temporary position identification process includes a same-angle metal pin determination process (S82, S87 in Figure 24) that determines whether there is a combination of same-angle metal pins from the group of same-angle metal pins that falls within the processing range PR of the welding head 30. The scanner pattern creation unit 233 is configured to identify the position where multiple combinable same-angle metal pins fall within the processing range PR as the temporary position of the welding head 30 if the same-angle metal pin determination process determines that there is a combination of same-angle metal pins that falls within the processing range PR (S83, S88 in Figure 24). That is, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 identifies the processing position of the welding head 30 in the scanner section SS, which includes multiple combinable same-angle metal pins, as the temporary position.

[0071] On the other hand, if the scanner pattern creation unit 233 determines that there are no combinations in the same-angle metal pin determination process, it is configured to identify the position where each same-angle metal pin falls within the processing range PR as the temporary position of the welding head 30 for each same-angle metal pin (S85 in Figure 24). In other words, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 identifies the processing position of the welding head 30 in the scanner section SS for each same-angle metal pin as the temporary position for each same-angle metal pin.

[0072] Specifically, in the temporary position identification process, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 is configured to execute a scanner section creation process (S80 in Figure 24) which creates one scanner section SS for each group classified by the same type of metal pin identification unit 231 in the metal pin classification process. In the scanner section creation process, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 executes a bounding box determination process to determine whether the bounding box BB of the metal pin P on the column side, which was received in the column selection acceptance process, is within the processing range PR of the welding head 30 among the metal pins of the same angle included in the group.

[0073] Specifically, in the bounding box determination process, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 virtually moves the position of the metal pin P on the column side (in this embodiment, the metal pin P on the innermost column side) received in the column selection acceptance process to the machining position in the CAM software, and also virtually moves the position of the welding head 30 in the CAM software so that the center of the machining range PR of the welding head 30 coincides with the center point Pc of the metal pin P that has been virtually moved to the machining position (the center of the bounding box BB), thereby performing the determination. However, it is not limited to this. The scanner pattern creation unit 233 does not have to perform the bounding box determination process.

[0074] In this embodiment, the processing position of the welding head 30 is the position where the angle of the center point Pc of the pair of metal pins P is 270°, as shown in the example of arrangement information 241 in Figure 5. However, it is not limited to this. Furthermore, moving the metal pins P to the processing position means moving the metal pins P to the processing position by rotating the table 20 along the circumferential direction.

[0075] Furthermore, the metal pins P on the column side accepted in the column selection acceptance process include metal pins P located in the column accepted in the column selection acceptance process. In other words, if there is a metal pin P located in the column accepted in the column selection acceptance process among the metal pins of the same angle included in the group, that metal pin P is virtually moved to the processing position and the determination is made.

[0076] In this embodiment, the bounding box BB is the smallest rectangle capable of enclosing one or more metal pins P. In the bounding box determination process, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 performs the determination based on numerical values ​​on the coordinate plane, specifically the coordinates of the center point Pc of the pair of metal pins P, the outer diameter of the pair of metal pins P, and the coordinates of the four corners that constitute the rectangle of the bounding box BB.

[0077] If the classified group contains only one metal pin of the same angle (NO in S81 of Figure 24), the scanner pattern creation unit 233 identifies the position of the processing range PR during bounding box determination as the processing position of the welding head 30 in the scanner section SS for that metal pin of the same angle (metal pin P). In other words, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 identifies the position of the processing range PR during bounding box determination as the temporary position of the welding head 30 during welding for that metal pin of the same angle (metal pin P). If the scanner pattern creation unit 233 does not perform bounding box determination processing, it virtually moves the position of the welding head 30 in the CAM software to determine the processing position of the welding head 30 in the scanner section SS.

[0078] On the other hand, if there are other metal pins of the same angle in the classified group (YES in S81 of Figure 24), the bounding box determination process is executed again. Specifically, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 executes a bounding box determination process to determine whether the bounding box BB surrounding the metal pins of the same angle determined in the initial bounding box determination process and the metal pins of the same angle adjacent to the determined metal pins of the same angle falls within the processing range PR of the welding head 30, or in other words, whether there is a combination of metal pins of the same angle that falls within the processing range PR (S82 of Figure 24).

[0079] Specifically, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 virtually moves the positions of the two metal pins of the same angle to be determined and the welding head 30 so that the center of the bounding box BB, which surrounds the metal pin of the same angle determined in the initial bounding box determination process and the metal pin of the same angle adjacent to the determined metal pin of the same angle, coincides with the center of the processing range PR of the welding head 30, and then performs the determination.

[0080] If the scanner pattern creation unit 233 determines that a bounding box BB surrounding two metal pins of the same angle is contained within the processing range PR (YES in S82 of Figure 24), it adds the determined metal pins of the same angle to the scanner section SS, identifies the position of the processing range PR in the bounding box determination process performed again as the processing position of the welding head 30 in the scanner section SS, and updates the scanner section SS (S83 of Figure 24: Scanner section update process).

[0081] Furthermore, if there are other metal pins at the same angle (YES in S84 of Figure 24), the scanner pattern creation unit 233 repeatedly performs the process described above.

[0082] On the other hand, if the scanner pattern creation unit 233 determines that the bounding box BB surrounding two metal pins of the same angle does not fit within the processing range PR (NO in S82 of Figure 24), it does not update the scanner section SS, but instead creates an additional scanner section SS for the group (S85 in Figure 24: scanner section addition process). The additionally created scanner section SS is the scanner section SS of the metal pin of the same angle adjacent to the metal pin of the same angle determined in the initial bounding box determination process. If there are other metal pins of the same angle (YES in S86 of Figure 24), the scanner pattern creation unit 233 repeatedly performs the above process on the added scanner section SS.

[0083] Figure 8 shows an example of the scanner section creation process in this embodiment. Figure 10 shows an example of the result of the scanner section creation process in this embodiment. For example, in the case of the arrangement of metal pins P shown in Figure 6, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 first creates "Scanner Section 1" of group "Classification 1". Then, as shown in Figure 8, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 virtually moves "Metal Pin 1" of group "Classification 1" to the processing position and determines whether the bounding box BB of "Metal Pin 1" is within the processing range PR. This determination is made with the center of the bounding box BB surrounding "Metal Pin 1" (the same as the center point Pc of "Metal Pin 1") coinciding with the center of the processing range PR. The scanner pattern creation unit 233 then determines that the bounding box BB of "Metal Pin 1" is within the processing range PR and adds "Metal Pin 1" to "Scanner Section 1" as shown in Figure 10.

[0084] Since no metal pins P other than "metal pin 1" are classified in group "Classification 1", the scanner pattern creation unit 233 then creates "scanner section 2" for group "Classification 2". Then, as shown in Figure 8, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 virtually moves "metal pin 2" to the processing position and determines whether the bounding box BB of "metal pin 2" is within the processing range PR. The scanner pattern creation unit 233 then determines that the bounding box BB of "metal pin 2" is within the processing range PR and adds "metal pin 2" to "scanner section 2", as shown in Figure 10.

[0085] Next, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 creates "scanner section 3" for group "classification 3". Then, similar to "metal pin 1" and "metal pin 2", the scanner pattern creation unit 233 virtually moves "metal pin 3" to the processing position, determines that the bounding box BB of "metal pin 3" is within the processing range PR, and adds "metal pin 3" to "scanner section 3" as shown in Figure 10.

[0086] Figure 9 shows an example of the scanner section creation process in this embodiment. Subsequently, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 creates a "scanner section 4" for group "classification 4". Then, as shown in Figure 9, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 determines whether or not the bounding box BB of the "metal pin 4" is within the processing range PR. The scanner pattern creation unit 233 determines that the bounding box BB of the "metal pin 4" is within the processing range PR, and adds the "metal pin 4" to the "scanner section 4" as shown in Figure 10.

[0087] Since "Metal Pin 5" is classified in group "Classification 4" in addition to "Metal Pin 4", the scanner pattern creation unit 233 then determines whether the bounding box BB surrounding "Metal Pin 4" and "Metal Pin 5" is within the processing range PR, as shown in Figure 9. This determination is made with the centers of the bounding box BB surrounding "Metal Pin 4" and "Metal Pin 5" aligned with the center of the processing range PR. The bounding box BB surrounding "Metal Pin 4" and "Metal Pin 5" extends beyond the processing range PR.

[0088] Therefore, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 determines that the bounding boxes BB surrounding "metal pin 4" and "metal pin 5" are not within the processing range PR, and creates a new "scanner section 5" of group "classification 3". The scanner pattern creation unit 233 then determines whether the bounding box BB of "metal pin 5" is within the processing range PR. The scanner pattern creation unit 233 determines that the bounding box BB of "metal pin 5" is within the processing range PR, and adds "metal pin 5" to "scanner section 5" as shown in Figure 10.

[0089] In other words, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 determines that there are no combinations of metal pins of the same angle that fall within the processing range PR of the welding head 30 in group "Classification 4," and identifies the position where only "metal pin 4" falls within the processing range PR and the position where only "metal pin 5" falls within the processing range PR as the temporary positions of the welding head 30 for the respective metal pins of the same angle ("scanner section 4" and "scanner section 5").

[0090] Subsequently, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 adds "metal pin 6" and "metal pin 7" to the "scanner section 6" of group "classification 5" and the "scanner section 7" of group "classification 6," respectively, as shown in Figure 10, similar to "metal pin 1" to "metal pin 4." Also, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 adds "metal pin 8" to the newly created "scanner section 8" of group "classification 6," as shown in Figure 10, similar to "metal pin 5."

[0091] Figure 12 shows an example of the arrangement of metal pins in this embodiment. Figure 13 shows an example of the scanner section creation process and pattern division process (scanner pattern creation process) in this embodiment. On the other hand, in the example of metal pin arrangement P shown in Figure 12, "membership column 2" and "membership column 3" are closer to "membership column 1" than in the example shown in Figure 6, so the bounding boxes BB surrounding "metal pin 4" and "metal pin 5" are included in the processing range PR. Therefore, when determining whether the bounding boxes BB surrounding "metal pin 4" and "metal pin 5" are included in the processing range PR, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 determines that the bounding boxes BB surrounding "metal pin 4" and "metal pin 5" are included in the processing range PR. Then, as shown in Figure 13, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 adds "metal pin 5" to the "scanner section 4" of group "classification 3" in addition to "metal pin 4".

[0092] In other words, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 determines that there is a combination of metal pins of the same angle that falls within the processing range PR of the welding head 30 in group "Classification 4", and identifies the position where "metal pin 4" and "metal pin 5" fall within the processing range PR as the temporary position of the welding head 30 ("scanner section 4").

[0093] Furthermore, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 is configured to perform a pattern separation process (S9 in Figure 23) that groups similar metal pins with the same identified temporary position into a single pattern. That is, in the pattern separation process, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 groups together scanner sections SS from among the created plurality of scanner sections SS that relate to similar metal pins and have the same number of metal pins P and belong to the same column, and creates a scanner pattern SP that includes these scanner sections SS. In other words, in this embodiment, the pattern separation process can be called a scanner pattern creation process.

[0094] In this embodiment, the pattern sorting process (scanner pattern creation process) is performed sequentially from the scanner sections SS of the same type of metal pins located in the selected column during the column selection acceptance process. In this embodiment, the innermost column is selected during the column selection acceptance process, and the processing is set to start from the innermost column. Therefore, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 identifies scanner sections SS that can be grouped together sequentially, starting from the scanner section SS containing the metal pins P of the innermost column, and creates a scanner pattern SP.

[0095] Furthermore, in the pattern sorting process (scanner pattern creation process), the scanner pattern creation unit 233 creates a scanner pattern SP that includes only the scanner section SS that is related to the same type of metal pins, and if there are no other scanner sections SS that have the same number of metal pins and belong to the same column as the metal pins P included in the scanner section SS, then the scanner pattern creation unit 233 creates a scanner pattern SP that includes only that scanner section SS.

[0096] Figure 11 shows an example of the pattern sorting process (scanner pattern creation process) of this embodiment. For example, in the case of the arrangement of metal pins P shown in Figure 6, "Scanner Section 1," "Scanner Section 2," "Scanner Section 4," and "Scanner Section 7" are all scanner sections SS that contain one metal pin P located in "Association Column 1." That is, the number of metal pins P included in scanner section SS and the association column of each metal pin P are the same. Therefore, as shown in Figure 11, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 combines "Scanner Section 1," "Scanner Section 2," "Scanner Section 4," and "Scanner Section 7" to create a scanner pattern SP called "Pattern 1."

[0097] Furthermore, "Scanner Section 5" and "Scanner Section 8" are scanner sections SS that include one metal pin P located in "Association Column 2". Therefore, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 combines "Scanner Section 5" and "Scanner Section 8" to create a scanner pattern SP called "Pattern 2". In addition, "Scanner Section 3" and "Scanner Section 6" are scanner sections SS that include one metal pin P located in "Association Column 3". Therefore, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 combines "Scanner Section 3" and "Scanner Section 6" to create a scanner pattern SP called "Pattern 3".

[0098] Furthermore, in the example of metal pin P arrangement shown in Figure 12, "Scanner Section 1" and "Scanner Section 2" are scanner sections SS that include one metal pin P located in "Association Column 1". That is, the number of metal pins P included in scanner section SS and the association column of each metal pin P are the same. Therefore, as shown in Figure 13, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 combines "Scanner Section 1" and "Scanner Section 2" to create a scanner pattern SP called "Pattern 1".

[0099] Furthermore, "scanner section 4" is a scanner section SS that includes one metal pin P located in "association column 1" and one metal pin P located in "association column 2". In the example shown in Figure 12, there are no other scanner sections SS besides "scanner section 4" that include one metal pin P located in "association column 1" and one metal pin P located in "association column 2". Therefore, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 creates a scanner pattern SP called "pattern 2" that includes only "scanner section 4".

[0100] Similarly, "scanner section 6" is a scanner section SS that includes one metal pin P located in "association row 2". Therefore, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 creates a scanner pattern SP called "pattern 3" that includes only "scanner section 6". Furthermore, "scanner section 3" and "scanner section 5" are scanner sections SS that include one metal pin P located in "association row 3". Therefore, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 combines "scanner section 3" and "scanner section 5" to create a scanner pattern SP called "pattern 4".

[0101] The processing cycle creation unit 235 is configured to execute a processing cycle creation process (S11 in Figure 23) that creates a welding processing cycle C for each group of identical metal pins. For example, if only one row of metal pins P is arranged on the table 20, the welding apparatus 10 can perform welding on each metal pin P simply by rotating the table 20 in the circumferential direction without moving the position of the welding head 30.

[0102] Therefore, for example, if a row of metal pins P arranged in a single row includes a first to a third group of identical metal pins, the processing cycle creation unit 235 creates a processing cycle C for welding the first group of identical metal pins, a processing cycle C for welding the second group of identical metal pins, and a processing cycle C for welding the third group of identical metal pins.

[0103] Furthermore, the processing cycle creation unit 235 is configured to create a processing cycle C for each pin that can be processed in one cycle during the processing cycle creation process. For example, if there are two rows of metal pins P arranged on the table 20, and the welding device 10 cannot weld each of the metal pins in the two rows without moving the position of the welding head 30, and the first row contains first and second identical metal pins, and the second row contains only first identical metal pins, then a processing cycle C is created for each pin that can be processed in one cycle.

[0104] In other words, the processing cycle creation unit 235 creates processing cycle C for welding a first 1-cycle machinable pin (a first group of identical metal pins arranged in the first row), processing cycle C for welding a second 1-cycle machinable pin (a second group of identical metal pins arranged in the first row), and processing cycle C for welding a third 1-cycle machinable pin (a first group of identical metal pins arranged in the second row).

[0105] Furthermore, the machining cycle creation unit 235 is configured to create a machining cycle C for each pattern classified by the scanner pattern creation unit 233 during the pattern sorting process during the machining cycle creation process. In other words, the machining cycle creation unit 235 is configured to create a machining cycle C for each scanner pattern SP during the machining cycle creation process.

[0106] Furthermore, in the processing cycle creation process, the processing cycle creation unit 235 is configured to identify combinations of patterns from among the multiple patterns classified by the scanner pattern creation unit 233 in the pattern sorting process, in which the same type of metal pins included in the patterns fall within the processing range PR of the welding head 30, and to make the identified combination of patterns into a single processing cycle C.

[0107] In other words, the processing cycle creation unit 235 is configured to identify, in the processing cycle creation process, a combination of scanner patterns SP from among multiple scanner patterns SP in which the same type of metal pins of the scanner sections SS included in the scanner pattern SP fall within the processing range PR of the welding head 30, and to make the identified combination of scanner patterns SP into a single processing cycle C.

[0108] Specifically, the machining cycle creation unit 235 is configured to execute a cycle list creation process (S10 in Figure 23) that, prior to the machining cycle creation process, classifies scanner patterns SP in which the height of the metal pins P, the shape of the metal pins P, the material information MI of the metal pins P, and the machining conditions PC of the metal pins P are the same into the same category, and creates a cycle list CL for each classified category.

[0109] The machining cycle creation unit 235 then creates a machining cycle C in each created cycle list CL. As described above, a machining cycle C is created for each scanner pattern SP, but if the machining cycle creation unit 235 identifies a combination of scanner pattern SP in which the same type of metal pins of the scanner section SS included in the scanner pattern SP fall within the machining range PR of the welding head 30, then the identified combination of scanner pattern SP becomes one machining cycle C. In other words, the cycle list CL contains one or more machining cycle Cs.

[0110] Figure 25 is a flowchart showing the processes that the cycle list creation unit of this embodiment executes in the machining cycle creation process. Specifically, in the machining cycle creation process, the machining cycle creation unit 235 first creates one machining cycle C for each cycle list CL, and then adds one scanner pattern SP of the category related to each cycle list CL to the created machining cycle C (S110 in Figure 25). If there are multiple scanner pattern SPs classified within a category, the scanner pattern SP added here will include the metal pin P located in the column selected in the column selection acceptance process. If there is no scanner pattern SP in the category that includes the metal pin P located in the column selected in the column selection acceptance process, the scanner pattern SP that includes the metal pin P located in the column closest to the selected column will be added.

[0111] Then, if there are other scanner pattern SPs in the category besides the scanner pattern SP added when creating machining cycle C (YES in S111 of Figure 25), that is, if there are multiple scanner pattern SPs classified in the category, it is determined whether or not that scanner pattern SP can be added to the existing machining cycle C (S112 of Figure 25: Scanner pattern addition feasibility determination process). In the scanner pattern addition feasibility determination process, if there are multiple scanner pattern SPs besides the scanner pattern SP added when creating machining cycle C, the scanner pattern SP that includes the metal pin P located in the column closest to the column selected in the column selection acceptance process is the one to be determined.

[0112] On the other hand, if there are no other scanner pattern SPs in a category besides the one added when creating machining cycle C (NO in S111 of Figure 25), that is, if only one scanner pattern SP is classified in that category, the creation of machining cycle C for that category is terminated. In other words, the cycle list CL for that category will contain only one machining cycle C.

[0113] If there are other scanner pattern SPs in the category besides the one added when creating machining cycle C, the system will determine whether the bounding box BB surrounding the metal pins P of the scanner section SS included in the already registered scanner pattern SP and the metal pins P of the scanner section SS included in the scanner pattern SP to be judged are within the machining range PR when these metal pins P are virtually moved to the machining position.

[0114] If the machining cycle creation unit 235 determines that the bounding box BB is within the machining range PR, it determines that the scanner pattern SP to be judged can be added to the existing machining cycle C (YES in S112 of Figure 25). Then, the machining cycle creation unit 235 adds the scanner pattern SP to be judged to the existing machining cycle C (S113 of Figure 25: Scanner pattern addition process).

[0115] On the other hand, if the machining cycle creation unit 235 determines that the bounding box BB is not within the machining range PR, it determines that the scanner pattern SP to be judged cannot be added to the existing machining cycle C (NO in S112 of Figure 25). Then, the machining cycle creation unit 235 creates an additional machining cycle C and adds the scanner pattern SP that was determined to be unsuitable for addition to the created machining cycle C (S114 of Figure 25: Machining cycle addition creation process).

[0116] After the scanner pattern addition process or machining cycle addition creation process is executed, the machining cycle creation unit 235 executes the scanner pattern addition feasibility determination process again if there are other scanner patterns SP in the category that have not yet been added to the machining cycle C (YES in S111 in Figure 25).

[0117] Furthermore, when the process of adding a processing cycle is executed and there are multiple existing processing cycles C, in the scanner pattern addition feasibility determination process, the processing cycle creation unit 235 determines whether the scanner pattern SP to be determined can be added to the processing cycles C in the order in which the processing cycles C were created earliest. If it is determined that the scanner pattern SP can be added to any of the processing cycles C, it is determined that the scanner pattern SP can be added to an existing processing cycle C (YES in S112 of Figure 25), and the scanner pattern SP to be determined is added to the existing processing cycle C that was determined to be addable (S113 of Figure 25). On the other hand, if it is determined that the scanner pattern SP cannot be added to any of the processing cycles C, it is determined that the scanner pattern SP can be added to an existing processing cycle C (NO in S112 of Figure 25), and an additional processing cycle C is created and the scanner pattern SP to be determined is added to the new processing cycle C (S114 of Figure 25).

[0118] Figure 14 shows an example of the arrangement of metal pins in this embodiment. Figure 15 shows an example of the cycle list creation process in this embodiment. Here, the cycle list creation process and the machining cycle creation process will be explained with reference to an example of the arrangement of metal pins P shown in Figure 14. In the example of the arrangement of metal pins P shown in Figure 14, the height, shape, material information MI, and machining conditions PC of all the metal pins P are the same. Also, in the example of the arrangement of metal pins P shown in Figure 14, as shown in Figure 15, each scanner section SS is registered to one of three scanner patterns SP, "Pattern 1" to "Pattern 3".

[0119] Therefore, the machining cycle creation unit 235 classifies all scanner patterns SP from "Pattern 1" to "Pattern 3" as belonging to the same category, "Category 1". Then, the machining cycle creation unit 235 creates a cycle list CL and a machining cycle C for "Category 1", and adds "Pattern 1" to "Pattern 3" to the created machining cycle C.

[0120] In this embodiment, since the innermost row is selected in the row selection acceptance process and the setting is to process from the innermost row, the processing cycle creation unit 235 adds each scanner pattern SP ("Pattern 1" to "Pattern 3") to the processing cycle C in order, starting with the scanner pattern SP in which the scanner section SS containing the metal pin P of the innermost row is registered.

[0121] Figure 16 shows an example of the machining cycle creation process in this embodiment. Specifically, the machining cycle creation unit 235 first creates a cycle list CL for "Category 1" and creates a machining cycle C called "Cycle 1" in the cycle list CL for "Category 1". Then, as shown in Figure 16(a), the machining cycle creation unit 235 determines whether the bounding box BB of the metal pin P of the scanner section SS included in "Pattern 1" is within the machining range PR when the metal pin P is virtually moved to the machining position. The scanner pattern creation unit 233 determines that the bounding box BB is within the machining range PR and adds "Pattern 1" to "Cycle 1", as shown in Figure 16(b).

[0122] Figure 17 shows an example of the machining cycle creation process in this embodiment. Next, the machining cycle creation unit 235 determines whether "Pattern 2" can be added to "Cycle 1". Specifically, as shown in Figure 17(a), the machining cycle creation unit 235 determines whether the bounding box BB surrounding these metal pins P is within the machining range PR when one metal pin P (a pair of metal pins P) included in the scanner section SS of "Pattern 1" which has already been added to "Cycle 1" and two metal pins P (two pairs of metal pins P) included in the scanner section SS of "Pattern 2" are virtually moved to the machining position.

[0123] This determination is made with the center of the bounding box BB surrounding the three metal pins P aligned with the center of the machining area PR. The bounding box BB surrounding the three metal pins P is located within the machining area PR. Therefore, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 determines that the bounding box BB is within the machining area PR and adds "Pattern 2" to "Cycle 1" as shown in Figure 17(b).

[0124] Figure 18 shows an example of the machining cycle creation process in this embodiment. Similarly, the machining cycle creation unit 235 determines whether "Pattern 3" can be added to "Cycle 1". Specifically, as shown in Figure 18(a), the machining cycle creation unit 235 determines whether the bounding box BB surrounding the metal pins P is within the machining range PR when the one metal pin P included in the scanner section SS of "Pattern 1", the two metal pins P included in the scanner section SS of "Pattern 2", and the two metal pins P included in the scanner section SS of "Pattern 3" are virtually moved to the machining position.

[0125] The bounding box BB surrounding the five metal pins P is within the machining range PR. Therefore, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 determines that the bounding box BB is within the machining range PR and adds "Pattern 3" to "Cycle 1" as shown in Figure 18(b). Since there are no other scanner patterns SP in "Category 1", the machining cycle creation unit 235 finishes registering the scanner pattern SP to the cycle list CL for "Category 1".

[0126] If there are other categories into which scanner patterns SP are classified, the machining cycle creation unit 235 creates a cycle list CL for that category and also creates a machining cycle C for that category's cycle list CL, and registers the scanner patterns SP using the same procedure.

[0127] Figure 19 shows an example of the arrangement of metal pins in this embodiment. Figure 20 shows an example of the cycle list creation process in this embodiment. Next, we will explain how to handle cases where all scanner patterns SP cannot be added to a single machining cycle C in the cycle list CL, referring to an example of metal pin arrangement P shown in Figure 19. In the example of metal pin arrangement P shown in Figure 19, all placed metal pins P have the same height, shape, material information MI, and machining conditions PC. Also, in the example of metal pin arrangement P shown in Figure 19, as shown in Figure 20, each scanner section SS is registered to one of three scanner patterns SP, "Pattern 1" to "Pattern 3".

[0128] Therefore, the machining cycle creation unit 235 classifies all scanner patterns SP from "Pattern 1" to "Pattern 3" as belonging to the same category, "Category 1". Then, the machining cycle creation unit 235 creates a cycle list CL and a machining cycle C for "Category 1", and adds "Pattern 1" to "Pattern 3" to the created machining cycle C.

[0129] Specifically, the machining cycle creation unit 235 creates a cycle list CL for "Category 1" and a machining cycle C called "Cycle 1" in the cycle list CL for "Category 1". Then, after determining "Pattern 1", the machining cycle creation unit 235 adds "Pattern 1" to "Cycle 1".

[0130] Figure 21 shows an example of the machining cycle creation process in this embodiment. Next, the machining cycle creation unit 235 determines whether "Pattern 2" can be added to "Cycle 1". Specifically, as shown in Figure 21(a), the machining cycle creation unit 235 determines whether the bounding box BB surrounding the metal pins P, when one metal pin P included in the scanner section SS of "Pattern 1" which has already been added to "Cycle 1", and one metal pin P included in the scanner section SS of "Pattern 2", are virtually moved to the machining position, is within the machining range PR.

[0131] The bounding box BB surrounding the two metal pins P extends beyond the machining range PR. Therefore, the machining cycle creation unit 235 determines that the bounding box BB is not within the machining range PR and does not add "Pattern 2" to "Cycle 1". Instead, as shown in Figure 21(b), the machining cycle creation unit 235 creates a new machining cycle C called "Cycle 2" in the cycle list CL of "Category 1", and adds "Pattern 2" to the created "Cycle 2".

[0132] Figure 22 shows an example of the machining cycle creation process in this embodiment. Next, the machining cycle creation unit 235 determines whether "Pattern 3" can be added to "Cycle 1". Specifically, as shown in Figure 22(a), the machining cycle creation unit 235 determines whether the bounding box BB surrounding the metal pins P, when one metal pin P included in the scanner section SS of "Pattern 1" which has already been added to "Cycle 1", and one metal pin P included in the scanner section SS of "Pattern 3", are virtually moved to the machining position, is within the machining range PR.

[0133] Similar to "Pattern 2," the bounding box BB surrounding the two metal pins P extends beyond the machining range PR. Therefore, the machining cycle creation unit 235 determines that the bounding box BB is not within the machining range PR and does not add "Pattern 2" to "Cycle 1." Subsequently, the machining cycle creation unit 235 determines whether or not "Pattern 3" can be added to "Cycle 2." Specifically, as shown in Figure 22(a), the machining cycle creation unit 235 virtually moves one metal pin P included in the scanner section SS of "Pattern 2," which has already been added to "Cycle 2," and one metal pin P included in the scanner section SS of "Pattern 3" to the machining position, and determines whether or not the bounding box BB surrounding these metal pins P is within the machining range PR.

[0134] The bounding box BB surrounding the two metal pins P is within the machining range PR. Therefore, the scanner pattern creation unit 233 determines that the bounding box BB is within the machining range PR and adds "Pattern 3" to "Cycle 2" as shown in Figure 22(b). Since there are no other scanner patterns SP in "Category 1", the machining cycle creation unit 235 finishes registering the scanner pattern SP to the cycle list CL for "Category 1".

[0135] Furthermore, the machining cycle creation unit 235 is configured to perform a welding head positioning process (S12 in Figure 23) that sets the position of the welding head 30 in each machining cycle C. If there is only one scanner pattern SP included in the machining cycle C, the machining position in the scanner section SS of that scanner pattern SP is set as the position of the welding head 30 in that machining cycle C. In other words, the temporary position of the welding head 30 identified in the temporary position identification process is set as the machining position of the welding head 30 during welding.

[0136] On the other hand, if the machining cycle C includes multiple scanner patterns SP, the machining cycle creation unit 235 virtually moves the metal pins P included in the scanner sections SS of all scanner patterns SP included in the machining cycle C to the machining position, and sets the position where the center of the bounding box BB encompassing those metal pins P coincides with the center of the machining range PR of the welding head 30 as the position of the welding head 30 in that machining cycle C.

[0137] The angle identification unit 239 is configured to perform a machining start rotation information identification process that identifies the rotation direction and rotation angle of the table 20 from the origin rotation angle at the start of the first machining cycle C included in the cycle list CL, based on the arrangement information 241 and the cycle list CL created by the machining cycle creation unit 235.

[0138] Specifically, the angle determination unit 239 acquires the arrangement information 241 and the rotation range information of the table 20. If the arrangement information 241 and the rotation range information are stored in the storage unit 240, the angle determination unit 239 reads the arrangement information 241 and the rotation range information from the storage unit 240. If the arrangement information 241 and the rotation range information are stored in another device such as a server, the angle determination unit 239 acquires and reads the arrangement information 241 and the rotation range information from that device.

[0139] Furthermore, the angle identification unit 239 is configured to perform an initial processing scanner section identification process, which identifies the scanner section SS that should be processed first among the one or more scanner sections SS included in the first processing cycle C, based on the arrangement information 241 and the rotatable range. In addition, in the rotation information identification process at the start of processing, the angle identification unit 239 identifies the rotation direction and rotation angle in which the metal pin group of the scanner section SS identified in the initial processing scanner section identification process is included in the processing range PR of the welding head 30 when the table 20 is rotated.

[0140] In this embodiment, the angle determination unit 239 is configured to perform a clockwise determination process to determine whether at least one of the multiple metal pins P included in the first machining cycle C is positioned in a location that cannot reach the machining range PR, assuming that the table 20 is rotated clockwise to a predetermined tolerance, and a counterclockwise determination process to determine whether at least one of the multiple metal pins P included in the first machining cycle C is positioned in a location that cannot reach the machining range PR, assuming that the table 20 is rotated counterclockwise to a predetermined tolerance. The initial machining scanner section determination process is configured to determine the initial machining scanner section based on the determination results of the clockwise determination process and the counterclockwise determination process.

[0141] Note that the execution order of the clockwise and counterclockwise determination processes is not limited to any particular order. That is, the clockwise determination process may be executed after the counterclockwise determination process. In this embodiment, if the scanner section SS to be processed first among the one or more scanner sections SS included in the first processing cycle C contains multiple metal pins P, then, as described above, the metal pins P located in the processing start column accepted in the column selection acceptance process are given priority. That is, for example, if the innermost column is selected in the column selection acceptance process, the metal pins P located in the innermost column within the scanner section SS to be processed first are identified as the first processing metal pins to be processed first.

[0142] Furthermore, the angle determination unit 239 according to this embodiment identifies a scanner section SS adjacent to the first rotation direction side or the second direction opposite to the first rotation direction side that causes the initial processing scanner section to reach the processing range PR, based on the determination results of the clockwise determination process and the counterclockwise determination process, as the second processing scanner section.

[0143] When the angle determination unit 239 determines that the scanner section SS adjacent to the first rotation direction side that brings the initial processing scanner section to the processing range PR is the second processing scanner section, it determines that the scanner section SS adjacent to the first rotation direction side of the second processing scanner section is the third processing scanner section. Furthermore, the angle determination unit 239 determines that the scanner section SS adjacent to the second rotation direction side opposite to the first rotation direction of the initial processing scanner section is the scanner section SS to be processed at the end of the first processing cycle C.

[0144] Furthermore, if the angle determination unit 239 identifies a scanner section SS adjacent to the second rotation direction side opposite to the first rotation direction that brings the initial processing scanner section to the processing range PR as the second processing scanner section, it identifies a scanner section SS adjacent to the second rotation direction side of the second processing scanner section as the third processing scanner section. Also, the angle determination unit 239 identifies a scanner section SS adjacent to the first rotation direction side of the initial processing scanner section as the scanner section SS to be processed at the end of the first processing cycle C.

[0145] Furthermore, if there are multiple machining cycles C included in the cycle list CL, in the second and subsequent machining cycles C, the angle identification unit 239 identifies the scanner section SS to be machined first among the one or more scanner sections SS included in that machining cycle C, based on the arrangement information 241 and the clockwise and counterclockwise rotation ranges based on the rotation angle of the table 20 at the end of machining in the previous machining cycle C, and identifies the rotation direction and rotation angle in which the metal pin group of the scanner section SS identified in the machining range PR is included when the table 20 is rotated from the rotation angle at the end of machining in the previous machining cycle C.

[0146] In this embodiment, the angle determination unit 239 is configured to perform clockwise rotation determination processing and counterclockwise rotation determination processing, similar to the first machining cycle C, and to identify the scanner section SS that should be machined first among the scanner sections SS included in that machining cycle C, based on the determination results of the clockwise rotation determination processing and counterclockwise rotation determination processing.

[0147] Note that the explanation of the processing in the second and subsequent machining cycles C will be omitted as it will overlap with the explanation of the processing in the first machining cycle C. Also, the processing performed by the angle determination unit 239 is not limited to the processing described above. The angle determination unit 239 can be configured to perform various arbitrary processing.

[0148] The control unit 230, having the above configuration, is configured to execute a program creation process that creates a welding program 245 that includes one or more processing cycles C (S in Figure 23).

[0149] The storage unit 240 has a storage medium such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or SSD (Solid State Drive) and stores various data in a read-write manner. As shown in Figure 3, the storage unit 240 stores arrangement information 241, a 3D model 243, pin information 244, a welding processing program 245, and a welding processing program creation program 248. Furthermore, the storage unit 240 stores programs necessary for controlling each part of the welding processing program creation device 200.

[0150] The welding program 245 includes one or more processing cycles C, and in each processing cycle C, the table 20 is rotated circumferentially without moving the position of the welding head 30, thereby enabling the welding of each metal pin P. In this embodiment, the table 20 rotates a maximum of once clockwise and once counterclockwise in a single processing cycle C. That is, in a single processing cycle C, the table 20 does not rotate, for example, twice clockwise.

[0151] Furthermore, the welding program 245 may be configured to perform a first rotation control process that rotates the table 20 in a first rotation direction to bring the initial processing scanner section to the processing range PR, and a second rotation control process that rotates the table 20 in a second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction to bring the second processing scanner section adjacent to the first processing scanner section on the first rotation direction side to the processing range PR.

[0152] Furthermore, the welding program 245 may be configured to perform a first rotation control process that rotates the table 20 in a first rotation direction to bring the initial processing scanner section to the processing range PR, and a second rotation control process that rotates the table 20 in the first rotation direction to bring the second processing scanner section, which is adjacent to the first processing scanner section on the side of the second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction, to the processing range PR.

[0153] The welding program creation program 248 causes the welding program creation device 200 to perform the following: a process to identify identical metal pins from among a plurality of metal pins P arranged circumferentially on a circumferentially rotatable table 20 and moving circumferentially in accordance with the rotation of the table 20; a process to create a welding cycle C for each group of identical metal pins; and a program creation process to create a welding program 245.

[0154] [Advantages of the welding program creation apparatus, welding program creation method, and welding program creation program according to this embodiment] As described above, the welding program creation apparatus 200 according to this embodiment is configured to perform a same-type metal pin identification process for identifying the same type of metal pins from among a plurality of metal pins P arranged along the circumferential direction on a circumferentially rotatable table 20 and moving in the circumferential direction in accordance with the rotation of the table 20; a processing cycle creation process for creating a welding processing cycle C for each group of the same type of metal pins; and a program creation process for creating a welding program 245 that includes one or more processing cycles C. The welding program 245 is configured to perform welding of each metal pin P in each processing cycle C by rotating the table 20 in the circumferential direction without moving the position of the welding head 30 that irradiates the metal pins P with laser light.

[0155] Furthermore, the welding program creation device 200 according to this embodiment has the advantage of being able to identify similar metal pins and create a welding cycle C for each group of similar metal pins, thereby minimizing the number of movements of the welding head 30 and shortening the processing cycle time, thus enabling the creation of a welding program 245 that allows for more efficient welding than conventional methods.

[0156] Furthermore, in the welding program creation device 200 according to this embodiment, identical metal pins are metal pins P that share at least one of the following characteristics: height of the metal pin P, shape of the metal pin P, material information MI of the metal pin P, and processing conditions PC of the metal pin P. By having such a configuration, it is possible to create a welding program 245 that can weld more efficiently than conventional methods while ensuring the processing accuracy of each metal pin P. In particular, when identical metal pins are metal pins P that share the same height of the metal pin P, shape of the metal pin P, material information MI of the metal pin P, and processing conditions PC of the metal pin P, it is possible to create a welding program 245 that can weld efficiently while ensuring sufficient processing accuracy of each metal pin P. In addition, when identical metal pins are metal pins P that share at least the same height, it is possible to create a welding program 245 that shortens the processing cycle time by minimizing the number of times the laser beam focus is adjusted, for example, the number of times the welding head 30 moves in the height direction.

[0157] Furthermore, the welding program creation device 200 according to this embodiment is configured to perform a placement information acquisition process to acquire placement information 241 of a plurality of metal pins P, and a one-cycle machinable pin identification process to identify pins that can be machined in one cycle from among a plurality of identical metal pins, without moving the position of the welding head 30, simply by rotating the table 20 in the circumferential direction. In the machining cycle creation process, it is configured to create a machining cycle C for each one-cycle machinable pin. By having such a configuration, it has the advantage of being able to create a welding program 245 that can weld more efficiently than conventional methods, with a reduced number of movements of the welding head 30 in the planar direction.

[0158] Furthermore, the welding program creation device 200 according to this embodiment is configured to perform, in the pin identification process for one cycle of processing, a temporary position identification process for identifying the temporary position of the welding head 30 during welding for each identical metal pin, and a pattern separation process for grouping identical metal pins with the same identified temporary position into one pattern. In the processing cycle creation process, it is configured to create a processing cycle C for each pattern. By having such a configuration, the number of movements of the welding head 30 in the planar direction and the total number of processing cycles C are reduced, and there is an advantage in being able to create a welding program 245 that shortens the processing cycle time, that is, a welding program 245 that can weld more efficiently than conventional methods.

[0159] Furthermore, the welding program creation device 200 according to this embodiment is configured to perform a metal pin classification process in the pin identification process for one cycle, which classifies a plurality of identical metal pins into identical angle metal pins based on the arrangement information 241, wherein the arrangement angle of the identical metal pins is the same. The temporary position identification process includes an identical angle metal pin determination process that determines whether or not there is a combination of identical angle metal pins from the identical angle metal pin group that falls within the processing range PR of the welding head 30. If it is determined that there is a combination, the position in which the plurality of combinable identical angle metal pins fall within the processing range PR is identified as the temporary position of the welding head 30. If it is determined that there is no combination, the position in which each identical angle metal pin falls within the processing range PR is identified as the temporary position of the welding head 30 for each identical angle metal pin. The arrangement angle is the rotation angle along the circumferential direction of the table 20 with respect to the rotation angle of the origin of the table 20. By having this configuration, it becomes possible to weld multiple metal pins of the same angle that are positioned within the processing range PR of the welding head 30 together in a single processing cycle C. Compared to welding each row of metal pins of the same angle one by one, the number of planar movements of the welding head 30 and the total number of processing cycles C are reduced, resulting in a welding program 245 that shortens the processing cycle time, i.e., a welding program 245 that can weld more efficiently than conventional methods.

[0160] Furthermore, the welding program creation device 200 according to this embodiment is configured to identify combinations of patterns in which the same type of metal pins included in the patterns fall within the processing range PR of the welding head 30, from among the multiple patterns classified in the pattern sorting process, and to make the identified combination of patterns into one processing cycle C. By having such a configuration, the number of movements of the welding head 30 in the planar direction and the total number of processing cycles C are minimized, and there is an advantage in being able to create a welding program 245 that shortens the processing cycle time, that is, a welding program 245 that can weld more efficiently than conventional methods.

[0161] [Differentiation] Although preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above. Various modifications or improvements can be made to the embodiments described above.

[0162] For example, in the embodiments described above, identical metal pins were described as metal pins P having the same height, shape, material information MI, and processing conditions PC, but this is not limited to this. Identical metal pins may differ in at least one of the height, shape, material information MI, and processing conditions PC.

[0163] In the embodiment described above, the welding program creation device 200 is configured to perform a placement information acquisition process to acquire placement information 241 of a plurality of metal pins P, and a one-cycle machinable pin identification process to identify pins that can be machined in one cycle from among a plurality of identical metal pins, where welding can be performed simply by rotating the table 20 in the circumferential direction without moving the position of the welding head 30. In the machining cycle creation process, it has been described as being configured to create a machining cycle C for each one-cycle machinable pin, but it is not limited to this. The welding program creation device 200 does not need to be able to perform the one-cycle machinable pin identification process.

[0164] In the embodiments described above, the welding program creation device 200 is configured to perform a temporary position identification process to identify the temporary position of the welding head 30 for each identical metal pin during welding, and a pattern sorting process to group identical metal pins with the same identified temporary position into one pattern, in the pin identification process for one cycle. However, it is not limited to this configuration. The welding program creation device 200 does not need to be able to perform the temporary position identification process and the pattern sorting process.

[0165] In the embodiment described above, the welding program creation device 200 is configured to perform a metal pin classification process in the pin identification process for one cycle, classifying multiple identical metal pins into pairs of identical angle metal pins based on the arrangement information 241. The temporary position identification process includes an identical angle metal pin determination process that determines whether there is a combination of identical angle metal pins from the identical angle metal pin group that falls within the processing range PR of the welding head 30. If a combination is determined to exist, the position where multiple combinable identical angle metal pins fall within the processing range PR is identified as the temporary position of the welding head 30. If no combination is determined to exist, the position where each identical angle metal pin falls within the processing range PR is identified as the temporary position of the welding head 30 for each identical angle metal pin. The arrangement angle has been described as the rotation angle along the circumferential direction of the table 20 with respect to the rotation angle of the origin of the table 20, but is not limited to this. The welding program creation device 200 does not need to be able to perform the metal pin classification process.

[0166] In the embodiments described above, the welding program creation device 200 was described as being configured to identify combinations of patterns in which the same type of metal pins included in the patterns fall within the processing range PR of the welding head 30, and to make the identified combination of patterns into a single processing cycle C, but is not limited to this. The welding program creation device 200 does not necessarily have to be able to identify combinations of patterns and make the identified combination of patterns into a single processing cycle C in the processing cycle creation process.

[0167] In the embodiments described above, the welding program creation device 200 was described as being provided separately from the control device 100 of the welding apparatus 10, but this is not limited to this. The control device 100 and the welding program creation device 200 may be configured as a single unit.

[0168] In the embodiments described above, the camera 50 was described as being mounted above the table 20, such as on the ceiling surface, but it is not limited to this. The camera 50 may be built into the welding head 30 and oriented in the same direction as the welding head 30 emitting laser light. Alternatively, the camera 50 may be mounted on the outside of the welding head 30. Furthermore, if the camera 50 is built into the welding head 30 or mounted on the outside of the welding head 30, the control device 100 may rotate the image data to match the orientation of the welding head 30 (camera 50). [Explanation of Symbols]

[0169] 1. Welding System 10 Welding equipment 20 tables 30 welding heads 50 Cameras 100 Control device 200 Welding Processing Program Creation Device 210 Input section 220 Display section 230 Control Unit 231 Identifying part of the same type of metal pin 233 Scanner Pattern Creation Section 235 Machining Cycle Creation Section 237 Machining order setting section 239 Angle identification part 240 Storage section 241 Placement information 242 Location information 243 3D models 244 Pin Information 245 Welding Process Programs 248 Welding Process Program Creation Program BB Bounding Box C Machining Cycle CL Cycle List MI material information P Metal pin PC processing conditions PR range PC center point SC stator core SP Scanner Pattern SS Scanner Section

Claims

1. A process for identifying identical metal pins from among a plurality of metal pins arranged along the circumferential direction on a table that can rotate in the circumferential direction and move in the circumferential direction in accordance with the rotation of the table, A processing cycle creation process that creates a welding process for each group of identical metal pins, A program creation process for creating a welding program that includes one or more of the aforementioned processing cycles. It is configured to be executable, The welding program is configured to perform welding on each metal pin by rotating the table in the circumferential direction without moving the position of the welding head that irradiates the metal pin with laser light during each processing cycle. Welding process program creation device.

2. The aforementioned identical metal pins are metal pins that share at least one of the following characteristics: height of the metal pin, shape of the metal pin, material information of the metal pin, and processing conditions of the metal pin. A welding program creation apparatus according to claim 1.

3. A process for acquiring arrangement information to acquire arrangement information of the aforementioned multiple metal pins, Based on the arrangement information, a pin identification process for a pin that can be machined in one cycle is performed from among a plurality of identical metal pins, by rotating the table in the circumferential direction without moving the position of the welding head. It is configured to be executable, In the aforementioned machining cycle creation process, the machining cycle is created for each pin that can be machined in one cycle. A welding program creation apparatus according to claim 1 or 2.

4. In the aforementioned process for identifying pins that can be machined in one cycle, A temporary position identification process for identifying the temporary position of the welding head during welding for each identical metal pin, A pattern sorting process that groups identical metal pins with the same identified provisional position into a single pattern. It is configured to be executable, In the processing cycle creation process, the processing cycle is created for each pattern. The welding program creation apparatus according to claim 3.

5. In the pin identification process that allows for one cycle of machining, the system is configured to perform a metal pin classification process that classifies a plurality of identical metal pins into groups of identical angle metal pins based on the arrangement information, where the arrangement angle of the identical metal pins is the same. The aforementioned provisional position identification process includes a same-angle metal pin determination process that determines whether or not there is a combination of same-angle metal pins from the group of same-angle metal pins that falls within the processing range of the welding head. If it is determined that a combination exists, the position in which multiple combinable metal pins of the same angle fall within the processing range is identified as the provisional position of the welding head. If it is determined that there is no combination, the system is configured to identify the position where each metal pin of the same angle falls within the processing range as the temporary position of the welding head of each metal pin of the same angle. The aforementioned arrangement angle is the rotation angle of the table along the circumferential direction with respect to the rotation angle of the table at the origin. The welding program creation apparatus according to claim 4.

6. In the processing cycle creation process, the system is configured to identify combinations of patterns from among the multiple patterns classified in the pattern sorting process in which the same type of metal pins included in the pattern fall within the processing range of the welding head, and to make the identified combination of patterns into a single processing cycle. The welding program creation apparatus according to claim 4.

7. A process for identifying identical metal pins from among a plurality of metal pins arranged along the circumferential direction on a table that can rotate in the circumferential direction and move in the circumferential direction in accordance with the rotation of the table, A process for creating a welding process for each group of identical metal pins, A program creation step of creating a welding program that includes one or more of the aforementioned processing cycles. The welding process program creation device executes this, The welding program is configured to perform welding on each metal pin by rotating the table in the circumferential direction without moving the position of the welding head that irradiates the metal pin with laser light during each processing cycle. Method for creating welding processing programs.

8. A process for identifying identical metal pins from among a plurality of metal pins arranged along the circumferential direction on a table that can rotate in the circumferential direction and move in the circumferential direction in accordance with the rotation of the table, A processing cycle creation process that creates a welding process for each group of identical metal pins, A program creation process for creating a welding program that includes one or more of the aforementioned processing cycles. The welding process program creation device is made to execute this. The welding program is configured to perform welding on each metal pin by rotating the table in the circumferential direction without moving the position of the welding head that irradiates the metal pin with laser light during each processing cycle. A program for creating welding processing programs.

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