Film roll replacement and connection-and-attachment robot that travels autonomously

An autonomous film roll replacement robot automates the film roll replacement process, improving productivity and safety by performing tasks like transporting, separating, cutting, and connecting film rolls, addressing the challenges of manual replacement in secondary battery manufacturing.

WO2025216604A1PCT designated stage Publication Date: 2025-10-16AI ROBOTICS CO LTD
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Patent Information

Application Number
PCT/KR2025/095176
Authority / Receiving Office
WO · WO
Patent Type
Applications
Current Assignee / Owner
Priority Date
2025-04-02
Filing Date
2025-04-08
Publication Date
2025-10-16

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

Manual film roll replacement in secondary battery manufacturing is labor-intensive, disrupts productivity, and poses safety risks due to the increasing size and weight of film rolls, making it difficult to manage manually.

Method used

An autonomous film roll replacement robot that autonomously drives to the film roll supply position and performs tasks such as transporting, separating, cutting, and connecting film rolls without human intervention, using a cart-shaped vehicle with robot arms, film and tape units, and a unit replacement device for efficient film roll replacement.

Benefits of technology

Enhances productivity by automating film roll replacement and prevents safety accidents, allowing for safer and more efficient operation of roll-to-roll processes.

✦ Generated by Eureka AI based on patent content.

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Abstract

A film roll replacement and connection-and-attachment robot that travels autonomously, according to an embodiment of the present invention, comprises: a cart-shaped self-driving vehicle for transporting a film roll to a roll-to-roll supply position of a film for electronic devices or components; a main body frame coupled to an upper portion of the self-driving vehicle and having a space part therein; a pair of robot arms provided in the space part of the main body frame; a film cutting / connecting unit coupled to one of the robot arms; a tape cutting unit provided in the internal space part of the main body frame and preparing a tape by cutting tape to a predetermined length from an adhesive tape roll; a tape attachment unit coupled to one of the robot arms so as to attach the tape to the end of the film for connection; and a film roll attachment / detachment unit for removing the film roll or installing a new film roll at the roll-to-roll supply position.
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Description

Autonomous film roll replacement and attachment robot

[0001] The present invention relates to an autonomous film roll replacement and connection attachment robot, and more specifically, to an autonomous film roll replacement and connection attachment robot that, when replacement of a film roll is required in a secondary battery manufacturing process or the like, autonomously drives to a film roll supply position of a film roll-using facility such as a roll-to-roll device and automatically performs a series of film roll replacement tasks, such as transporting, separating, cutting, mounting, and connecting the film roll, without the intervention of a worker.

[0002] In general, various types of films are used in the manufacturing of electronic devices or electronic components such as LCDs (Liquid Crystal Displays), OLEDs (Organic Light Emitting Diodes), TSPs (Touch Screen Panels), Flexible Printed Circuit Boards, and secondary batteries, including polyimide, polyester films, and metal films.

[0003] In particular, in the secondary battery manufacturing process, anode rolls, cathode rolls, separator rolls, protective films, etc. are used, and in addition to laminating electrodes and separators or roll-to-roll in the jelly roll method, various roll-to-roll processes are performed, such as laminating pouch films in the case of pouch cells.

[0004] These films are usually replaced by being mounted or separated on a supply line by a film roll wound in a roll form. In the past, workers carried out the work of transporting, separating, and mounting the replacement film roll to any position in a roll-to-roll process line that required replacement of the film roll entirely manually.

[0005] However, since the film roll replacement work is done manually by workers, excessive manpower and work time are required to replace the heavy film roll, which not only causes a disruption in productivity due to the stoppage of the roll-to-roll process line, but also poses a serious problem of exposing workers to safety accidents. In addition, as the size of secondary batteries increases, the size and weight of the film roll also increase, and situations that are difficult to respond to manually frequently occur.

[0006] Accordingly, the present invention has been devised to solve the above-mentioned problems, and for the purpose of providing an autonomous film roll replacement and connection robot that autonomously drives to an arbitrary film roll supply location that requires replacement of a separator film roll, which is a secondary battery material, and automatically performs a series of film roll replacement tasks, such as transporting, separating, cutting, mounting, and connecting the film roll, without the intervention of a worker.

[0007] In order to achieve the above object, according to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided an autonomous vehicle in the form of a cart for transporting a film roll to a roll-to-roll supply position of a film for electronic devices or parts; a main body frame coupled to the upper portion of the autonomous vehicle and having a space therein; a pair of robot arms provided in the space of the main body frame; a film cutting / connecting unit coupled to one of the robot arms and cutting a film of the roll-to-roll supply line when a film roll being supplied in a roll-to-roll is replaced or pulling the end of a newly replaced film roll to connect it to the end of the cut film; a tape cutting unit provided in the internal space of the main body frame and cutting a tape to a predetermined length from an adhesive tape roll and preparing it when it is time to replace a film roll being supplied in a roll-to-roll; It comprises a tape attaching unit which is connected to another one of the above robot arms and attaches the cut film end of a film roll to be replaced with the tape cut by the tape cutting unit to fix the film end or attaches the tape to the end of a film that is waiting to be pulled by the film cutting / connecting unit and is in contact with each other; and a film roll detaching unit which detaches the film roll from the roll-to-roll supply position or attaches a new film roll when the time comes to replace the film roll.

[0008] Additionally, according to one embodiment, the inner space of the main body frame is further provided with a unit replacement device for replacing the film cutting / connecting unit and the tape attaching unit, each of which is coupled to a pair of robot arms, with different units.

[0009] In addition, according to one embodiment, the unit replacement device includes a reference pin having a predetermined length and fixed to an internal space of a main body frame; an up-down cylinder installed adjacent to the vertical direction of the reference pin; and an alignment pin coupled to an end of the up-down cylinder and moved in a direction away from or closer to the reference pin by driving the up-down cylinder.

[0010] In addition, according to one embodiment, the film cutting / connecting unit and the tape attaching unit are characterized in that a pair of reference holes are formed so that a reference pin and an alignment pin of a unit replacement device can be fitted therein.

[0011] In addition, according to one embodiment, the reference hole is configured as a pair of slot shapes arranged at a certain interval along the vertical direction, and the reference pin and the alignment pin are fitted at the upper and lower ends of the slots without any play while being spread apart, thereby forming an alignment groove that allows the film cutting / connecting unit or the tape attaching unit to be aligned in the vertical direction.

[0012] Additionally, according to one embodiment, the autonomous vehicle is characterized by being one of an Automatic Guided Vehicle (AGV), an Autonomous Mobile Robot (AMR), and a Laser Guided Vehicle (LGV).

[0013] In addition, according to one embodiment, the film cutting / connecting unit includes a fixed suction stage that selectively suctions a film of a roll to be replaced or a film of a roll to be replaced using vacuum pressure; a moving suction stage that suctions an end of one of the films using vacuum pressure and moves the films to an adjacent position to connect them to each other; and a film cutter for selectively cutting an end of the film.

[0014] In addition, according to one embodiment, the tape cutting unit includes a tape gripper that moves horizontally and selectively grips one end of an adhesive tape rolled in a roll shape and pulls it out to one side; and a tape cutter that moves up and down vertically and selectively cuts the adhesive tape pulled out by the tape gripper.

[0015] In addition, according to one embodiment, the tape attaching unit includes a first tape suction pad for attaching and fixing the film end of the roll to be replaced with a fixing tape; a second tape suction pad for connecting the film end of the roll to be replaced with the film end of the roll to be replaced with a connecting tape; and a vision camera for inspecting whether the connection of the film ends is normally made after connecting the film end of the roll to be replaced with the film end of the roll to be replaced with the film end of the roll to be replaced with the second tape suction pad.

[0016] As described above, the present invention autonomously operates to any roll-to-roll supply location requiring replacement of, for example, a separator film roll, which is a secondary battery material, and automatically performs a series of film roll replacement operations, such as transporting, separating, cutting, mounting, and connecting the film roll, without the intervention of a worker. Therefore, compared to the conventional method where multiple workers depend on manual work to slowly replace film rolls, not only is the productivity of the roll-to-roll process line greatly improved, but there is also an effect of preventing safety accidents that may occur to workers during manual replacement work.

[0017] Figure 1 is a front view showing the entirety of the autonomous film roll replacement and connection attachment robot of the present invention.

[0018] Figure 2 is an enlarged perspective view of the unit replacement device according to the present invention.

[0019] Figure 3 is a left side view of Figure 2.

[0020] Figure 4 is an enlarged view of the 'A' portion of Figure 3.

[0021] Figure 5 is an enlarged perspective view of a film cutting / connecting unit according to the present invention.

[0022] Figure 6 is an enlarged perspective view of a tape cutting unit according to the present invention.

[0023] Figure 7 is an enlarged perspective view of a tape attachment unit according to the present invention.

[0024] Figures 8a to 8g are operation status diagrams of a film cutting / connecting unit, a tape cutting unit, and a tape attaching unit according to the present invention.

[0025] The terminology used herein is merely used to describe specific embodiments and is not intended to limit the present invention. The singular expression includes the plural expression unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. In this specification, it should be understood that the terms "comprises" or "has" or "has" or "has" indicate the presence of a feature, number, step, operation, component, part, or combination thereof described in this specification, but do not exclude in advance the possibility of the presence or addition of one or more other features, numbers, steps, operations, components, parts, or combinations thereof.

[0026] Unless otherwise defined herein, all terms used herein, including technical or scientific terms, have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention belongs.

[0027] Terms defined in commonly used dictionaries should be interpreted as having a meaning consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant technology, and should not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly defined herein.

[0028] Hereinafter, with reference to the attached drawings, the configuration and operational relationship of an autonomous film roll replacement and connection attachment robot according to one embodiment of the present invention will be specifically examined as follows.

[0029] Fig. 1 is a front view showing the entirety of the autonomous film roll replacement and connection attachment robot of the present invention, Fig. 2 is an enlarged perspective view showing a main part of the unit replacement device according to the present invention, Fig. 3 is a left side view of Fig. 2, and Fig. 4 is an enlarged view of part 'A' of Fig. 3.

[0030] Referring to the above drawings 1 to 4, a configuration according to an embodiment of the present invention will be examined. The autonomous driving film roll replacement and connection attachment robot (100) of the present invention is largely composed of an autonomous vehicle (1100), a main body frame (1200), a pair of robot arms (1310, 1320), a film cutting / connecting unit (1400), a tape cutting unit (1500), a tape attachment unit (1600), and a film roll detachment unit (1700).

[0031] First, the autonomous vehicle (1100) may be a cart-shaped bogie for transporting a film roll (R) to a roll-to-roll supply location for film for electronic devices or components. For example, the autonomous vehicle (1100) may be an AGV (Automatic Guided Vehicle), AMR (Autonomous Mobile Robot), or LGV (Laser Guided Vehicle) for transporting a film roll (R) to an arbitrary roll-to-roll supply location (not shown) where replacement of the film roll (R) is required.

[0032] In addition, the main body frame (1200) may be a booth-shaped structure that is coupled to the upper part of the autonomous vehicle (1100) and has a space (1200a) inside.

[0033] In addition, a pair of robot arms (1310, 1320) are provided in the space portion (1200a) of the main body frame (1200). That is, the pair of robot arms (1310, 1320) may be referred to as a first robot arm (1310) shown on the left side and a second robot arm (1320) shown on the right side in FIG. 1. According to one embodiment, the first robot arm (1310) and the second robot arm (1320) may be multi-joint robots that are free to perform movements such as linear movement or rotational motion, and the bases (no symbols) of the first robot arm (1310) and the second robot arm (1320) may be coupled to the inner ceiling portion of the space portion (1200a) of the main body frame (1200).

[0034] In addition, the film cutting / connecting unit (1400) is coupled to the end of one of the first and second robot arms (1310, 1320) according to one embodiment, and when it is time to replace the film roll (R) being supplied in a roll-to-roll manner, it cuts the film (not shown) of the roll-to-roll supply line (not shown) or pulls the end of the film unwound from the newly replaced film roll (R) and connects it to the end of the cut film. That is, by connecting the end of the film unwound from the newly replaced film roll (R) and the end of the cut film to each other using an adhesive tape described below, the film (not shown) is continuously and continuously supplied to the roll-to-roll supply line. In addition, although the replacement time of the film roll (R) described above is not shown in the drawing, the replacement time can be determined by automatically checking the thickness of the film roll (R) being unwound or wound by various sensors (not shown), such as a photo sensor, and when the replacement time comes, the control unit (not shown) can immediately move the autonomous vehicle (1100) of the present invention to a point where the film roll (R) needs to be replaced.

[0035] In addition, the tape cutting unit (1500) is provided on one side of the main body frame (1200) (e.g., the lower part of the main body frame (1200)), and prepares by cutting a tape (T, see FIG. 2) of a certain length from an adhesive tape roll (not shown) when it is time to replace a film roll (R) being supplied in a roll-to-roll manner.

[0036] In addition, the tape attaching unit (1600) is connected to the other end of the first and second robot arms (1310, 1320), and transfers the tape (T) cut by the tape cutting unit (1500) to the position of the film roll (R), and then attaches it to the end of the cut film (not shown) of the film roll (R) to be replaced, thereby fixing the end of the film, or attaches the tape (T) to the end of the film that is waiting to be pulled by the film cutting / connecting unit (1400) and brought into contact with each other.

[0037] In addition, the film roll detaching unit (1700) detaches the film roll (R) from the roll-to-roll supply position or mounts a new film roll (R) when the time comes to replace the film roll (R). According to one embodiment, the film roll detaching unit (1700) may be a tower-type robot using a linear motion (LM) guide. Accordingly, the film roll detaching unit (1700) automatically performs a film roll (R) replacement task, such as detaching the film roll (R) that needs to be replaced from the main body frame (1200) at the roll-to-roll supply position by means of rotation and up-and-down (vertical) and horizontal linear motion, or mounting and replacing a new film roll (R).

[0038] In addition, the internal space (1200a) of the main body frame (1200) is provided with a unit replacement device (1800) for moving and mounting a film cutting / connecting unit (1400) or a tape attaching unit (1600) respectively connected to a pair of first and second robot arms (1310, 1320) to another robot arm or exchanging them with each other.

[0039] Referring to FIG. 2, the unit replacement device (1800) is configured to include a reference pin (1810) having a predetermined length and fixed to an internal space (1200a) of a main body frame (1200); an up-down cylinder (1820) installed adjacent to the vertical direction of the reference pin; and an alignment pin (1830) coupled to an end of the up-down cylinder and moved in a direction away from or closer to the reference pin (1810) by driving the up-down cylinder (1820).

[0040] At this time, a pair of reference holes (1840, see FIG. 3) are formed in the operating units mounted on the ends of the robot arms (1310, 1320), such as the film cutting / connecting unit (1400) and the tape attaching unit (1600), so that the reference pin (1810) and the alignment pin (1820) of the unit replacement device (1800) can be inserted and placed therein, respectively.

[0041] More specifically, referring to FIG. 4, the reference hole (1840) is configured as a pair of slot shapes arranged at a certain interval along the vertical direction, and a reference pin (1810) and an alignment pin (1830) are fitted at the upper and lower ends of the slot-shaped reference hole (1840) respectively while being spread apart, thereby forming an alignment groove (1841) that allows an operating unit such as a film cutting / connecting unit (1400) or a tape attaching unit (1600) to be aligned in the vertical direction. That is, the inner diameter of the alignment groove (1841) is almost identical to the outer diameter of the reference pin (1810) or the alignment pin (1830), and thus, the reference pin (1810) or the alignment pin (1830) slides and fits snugly into the alignment groove (1841), and in this state, the operating unit, such as the film cutting / connecting unit (1400) or the tape attaching unit (1600), is fixedly aligned in the vertical direction by the reference pin (1810) and the alignment pin (1830) that are trying to separate from each other.

[0042] Hereinafter, referring to FIGS. 2 to 4, the process of transferring (or replacing) a film cutting / connecting unit (1400) or a tape attaching unit (1600) from a first robot arm (1310) to a second robot arm (1320) using a unit replacement device (1800) of the above-described configuration will be described as follows.

[0043] First, the first robot arm (1310) is mounted by inserting the reference hole (1840) formed in the tape attachment unit (1600) to which the end is connected into the reference pin (1810) and alignment pin (1830) of the unit replacement device (1800).

[0044] Next, by the driving of the up-down cylinder (1820), the reference pin (1810) and the alignment pin (1830) are spread apart, and the reference pin (1810) and the alignment pin (1830) slide into the alignment groove (1841) of the reference hole (1840) and fit without any play, thereby placing the tape attachment unit (1600) while being accurately aligned in the vertical direction. That is, the tape attachment unit (1600) is positioned so that the second robot arm (1320) described below is at the exact replacement position to be docked.

[0045] Next, the second robot arm (1320) approaches the replacement position where the tape attachment unit (1600) is mounted and mounts the tape attachment unit (1600) fixedly mounted on the reference pin (1810) and the alignment pin (1830) to the end of the second robot arm (1320).

[0046] Accordingly, the process of transferring (replacing) the film cutting / connecting unit (1400) or the tape attaching unit (1600) from the first robot arm (1310) to the second robot arm (1320) is completed through the above-described process.

[0047] Through this, the replacement of individual units mounted on each robot arm (1310, 1320) during operation can be easily performed, and as a result, the second robot arm (1320) that has received the film cutting / connecting unit (1400) or tape attaching unit (1600) has its reach extended to the action radius of the second robot that the first robot arm (1310) cannot reach, so that film roll (R) replacement work such as cutting or attaching or connecting film or tape can be performed within a wider reach.

[0048]

[0049] Hereinafter, the configuration and operational relationship of the film cutting / connecting unit (1400), tape cutting unit (1500), and tape attaching unit (1600) according to the present invention will be examined in more detail with reference to FIGS. 5 to 8g.

[0050] Figure 5 is an enlarged perspective view of a film cutting / connecting unit (1400) according to the present invention.

[0051] Referring to the above FIG. 5, according to one embodiment, a film cutting / connecting unit (1400) according to the present invention comprises a fixed suction stage (1410) that selectively suctions a film (F1) of a roll (R1) to be replaced or a film (F2) of a roll (R2) to be replaced using vacuum pressure; a moving suction stage (1420) that suctions an end of one of the films (F1, F2) using vacuum pressure and moves the films (F1, F2) to an adjacent position to connect them to each other; and a film cutter (1430) for selectively cutting the ends of the films (F1, F2).

[0052] In addition, the fixed adsorption stage (1410) is composed of a first fixed adsorption stage (1411) and a second fixed adsorption stage (1412) arranged at a certain interval.

[0053] Figure 6 is an enlarged perspective view of a main part of a tape cutting unit according to the present invention.

[0054] Referring to the above Fig. 6, according to one embodiment, a tape cutting unit (1500) according to the present invention is provided at the lower portion of the main body frame (1200). The tape cutting unit (1500) is configured with a tape gripper (1510) that moves horizontally and selectively grips one end of an adhesive tape (T) rolled in a roll shape and pulls it out to one side; and a tape cutter (1520) that moves up and down vertically and selectively cuts the adhesive tape (T) pulled out by the tape gripper (1510).

[0055] Figure 7 is an enlarged perspective view of a main part of a tape attachment unit according to the present invention.

[0056] Referring to the above FIG. 7, according to one embodiment, a tape attaching unit (1600) according to the present invention comprises: a first tape suction pad (1610) for attaching and fixing an end of a film (F1) of a roll (R1) to be replaced with a fixing tape (T1); a second tape suction pad (1620) for connecting an end of a film (F1) of a roll (R1) to be replaced with an end of a film (F2) of a roll (R2) to be replaced with a connecting tape (T2); and a vision camera (1630) for inspecting whether the end of the film (F1, F2) of the roll (R1) to be replaced with an end of a film (F2) of a roll (R2) to be replaced is normally connected after connecting an end of a film (F1) of a roll (R1) to be replaced with an end of a film (F2) of a roll (R2) to be replaced with the second tape suction pad (1620).

[0057]

[0058] Meanwhile, FIGS. 8a to 8g are operation state diagrams of a film cutting / connecting unit (1400), a tape cutting unit (1500), and a tape attaching unit (1600) according to the present invention. Referring to FIGS. 8a to 8g, a process for replacing a film roll (R) using a film roll replacement device (100) according to the present invention will be described as follows according to one embodiment.

[0059] 1) Film cutting / connecting process

[0060] First, when the film (F1) of the roll (R1) to be replaced mounted on the equipment (not shown) is almost unwound and replacement of the roll (R1) is required, the film roll replacement device (100) of the present invention moves to a predetermined equipment (not shown) that uses the film roll in an autonomous manner. Thereafter, the first robot arm (1310) is driven, and at this time, the film cutting / connecting unit (1400) coupled to the end of the first robot arm (1310) moves to a position adjacent to the film (F1) for replacement of the roll (R1) mounted on the equipment (not shown), as shown in FIG. 8A.

[0061] The first robot arm (1310) positions the film cutting / connecting unit (1400) so that the film (F1) of the roll (R1) to be replaced is inserted into the space between the film cutter (1430) and the fixed and moving suction stages (1410, 1420), and accordingly, the film (F1) of the roll (R1) to be replaced is vacuum-adsorbed on the first fixed suction stage (1411) and the second fixed suction stage (1412) of the film cutting / connecting unit (1400) and waits for cutting.

[0062] Next, as illustrated in Fig. 8b, the film cutter (1430) of the film cutting / connecting unit (1400) descends to cut the film (F1) adsorbed on the first fixed adsorption stage (1411) for replacement of the film roll (R1). Here, the roll (R1) to be replaced is fixed using a fixing tape (T1) with the end of the cut film (F1) wrapped around the roll (R1) to be replaced before being transported.

[0063] Referring to FIG. 8c to explain the preparation process of the fixing tape (T1), the tape gripper (1510) of the tape cutting unit (1500) pulls the adhesive tape (T) wound on the roll to one side (left side in the drawing) and then the tape cutter (1520) moves upward to cut the adhesive tape (T) to a certain length. That is, the adhesive tape (T) is cut to a certain length and a fixing tape (T1) is prepared to attach and fix the end of the film (F1) of the roll (R1) to be replaced to the roll (R1) before removal.

[0064] At this time, the first tape suction pad (1610) of the tape attachment unit (1600) mounted on the second robot arm (1320) moves to a position above the tape cutter (1520) and absorbs the fixing tape (T1) cut by the tape cutter (1520). Thereafter, the second robot arm (1320) and the tape attachment unit (1600) rotate to the position of the roll (R1) to be replaced mounted on the roll use equipment (not shown), and the first tape suction pad (1610) that has absorbed the roll fixing tape (T1) attaches the fixing tape (T1) to the end of the cut film (F1) of the roll (R1) to be replaced, thereby completing preparation for removal of the roll (R1) to be replaced. Next, the replacement target roll (R1) that has been prepared for export is mounted on the film roll removal unit (1700) and then removed to the outside of the equipment (not shown) by the rotational movement of the film roll removal unit (1700).

[0065] Continuing, as described above, in the equipment (not shown) from which the replacement target roll (R1) has been removed, as shown in FIG. 8d, a new roll (R2) to be replaced is brought into the equipment (not shown) by the film roll removal unit (1700) and then mounted at the location where the replacement target roll (R1) was located.

[0066] Next, the moving suction stage (1420) pulls the end of the film (F2) of the new roll (R2) that has been replaced toward the first fixed suction stage (1411), and then the film cutter (1430) rises to cut and remove the end (F2a, hereinafter referred to as “scrap portion”) of the film (F2) of the new roll (R2) together with the fixing tape (T1) that was attached when the roll (R2) was shipped. That is, since the end (F2a) of the film (F2) of the new roll (R2) may be contaminated by the adhesive of the fixing tape (T1) that was attached when the roll (R2) was shipped, it is preferable to cut and remove the end (F2a) of the film (F2) together with the fixing tape (T1) before connecting the films (F1, F2).

[0067] Specifically, the moving adsorption stage (1420) adsorbs the cut scrap portion (F2a) and then removes the scrap portion (F2a) by dropping it downward into the space between the first fixed adsorption stage (1411) and the second fixed adsorption stage (1412) as shown in FIG. 8d.

[0068] Next, as illustrated in FIG. 8e, the moving adsorption stage (1420) pulls the end of the film (F2) of the new roll (R2) from which the scrap portion (F2a) has been removed toward the film (F1) adsorbed on the first fixed adsorption stage (1411) so that the ends of the two films (F1, F2) are brought into contact with each other. Then, while the ends of the two films (F1, F2) are brought into contact with each other, a connecting tape (T2) is attached to the ends of the two films (F1, F2) to connect them.

[0069]

[0070] 2) Tape cutting and attachment process

[0071] Referring to Fig. 8f, the adhesive tape (T) is cut to a length corresponding to the width of the film (F1, F2) in the tape cutting unit (1500) to prepare a connecting tape (T2).

[0072] At this time, the connecting tape (T2) cut as described above is absorbed by the second tape absorption pad (1620) of the tape attachment unit (1600) located above, and in this state, the second robot arm (1320) rotates from the main body toward the equipment to move the second tape absorption pad (1620) and the connecting tape (T2) to the ends of the two films (F) that are waiting in a state of facing each other as described above, and attaches the connecting tape (T2) on the ends of the two films (F) to connect the ends of the two films (F) to each other.

[0073] Finally, referring to FIG. 8g, the ends of the two films (F1, F2) connected to each other by the connecting tape (T2) as described above are inspected (OK or NG) through the vision camera (1630) of the tape attaching unit (1600) to see whether the ends of the two films (F1, F2) are normally connected by the connecting tape (T2), and if there is no abnormality, the film roll replacement process according to the present invention (replacing R1 with R2 in the drawing) is finally completed.

[0074]

[0075] Meanwhile, the autonomous vehicle (1100) of the present invention is a robot that must move autonomously and automatically find the target coordinates where the roll-use facility (not shown) is located, and is characterized by being equipped with a 3D Vision system to find the target coordinates.

[0076] At this time, according to one embodiment, the 3D Vision applies a method of setting target coordinates through a 3D relative coordinate detection method using a ToF (Time of Flight) sensor and edge detection. That is, the shape of the target object is recognized through the ToF sensor, the XY plane inclination value is calculated, the docking value of the robot is corrected, and the operation is performed until the correction value reaches a certain value or less, the center point is derived through edge detection, and the error range is confirmed before the robot docking is performed.

[0077] In addition, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and the same effect can be created even when the detailed configuration, number, and arrangement structure of the device are changed. Therefore, it is stated that a person having ordinary skill in the art can add, delete, and modify various configurations within the scope of the technical idea of ​​the present invention.

[0078]

[0079] Description of the symbol

[0080] 100: (The present invention) autonomous film roll replacement and connection robot

[0081] 1100: Autonomous Vehicles

[0082] 1200: Body frame

[0083] 1200a: Space

[0084] 1310, 1320: 1st robot arm, 2nd robot arm

[0085] 1400: Film cutting / connecting unit

[0086] 1410, 1420, 1430: Fixed suction stage, moving suction stage, film cutter

[0087] 1500: Tape Cutting Unit

[0088] 1510, 1520: Tape gripper, tape cutter

[0089] 1600: Tape attachment unit

[0090] 1610, 1620, 1630: 1st tape suction pad, 2nd tape suction pad, vision camera

[0091] 1700: Film roll removal unit

[0092] 1800: Unit replacement device

[0093] 1810, 1820, 1830, 1840: Reference pin, up-down cylinder, alignment pin, reference hole

[0094] R: Film Roll

[0095] R1, R2: Roll to be replaced, new roll to be replaced

[0096] F1, F2: Film (of the equipment), Film (of the new roll to be replaced)

[0097] T: Adhesive tape

Claims

1. An autonomous vehicle in the shape of a cart for transporting film rolls to a roll-to-roll supply location for electronic devices or parts; A body frame coupled to the upper part of the autonomous vehicle and having a space inside; A pair of robot arms provided in the space of the above main body frame; A film cutting / connecting unit coupled to one of the above robot arms, which cuts the film of the roll-to-roll supply line or pulls the end of a newly replaced film roll to connect it to the end of the cut film when the time comes to replace the film roll being supplied in roll-to-roll; A tape cutting unit provided in the internal space of the above main body frame, which cuts and prepares tape to a certain length from an adhesive tape roll when it is time to replace a film roll being supplied in a roll-to-roll manner; A tape attaching unit coupled to one of the above robot arms, which attaches the cut film end of a film roll to be replaced with the tape cut by the tape cutting unit to fix the film end or attaches the tape to the end of a film waiting to be pulled by the film cutting / connecting unit and connected to each other; and When the time comes to replace the above film roll, a film roll detaching unit is included that detaches the film roll from the roll-to-roll supply position or mounts a new film roll; Autonomous film roll replacement and attachment robot.

2. In paragraph 1, The inner space of the above main body frame is further provided with a unit replacement device for replacing the film cutting / connecting unit and the tape attaching unit, each of which is connected to a pair of robot arms. Autonomous film roll replacement and attachment robot.

3. In paragraph 2, The above unit replacement device is, A reference pin having a certain length and fixed to the internal space of the main body frame; An up-down cylinder installed adjacent to the vertical direction of the above reference pin; and An alignment pin coupled to the end of the up-down cylinder and moved in a direction away from or closer to the reference pin by the driving of the up-down cylinder; Autonomous film roll replacement and attachment robot.

4. In paragraph 3, The above film cutting / connecting unit and tape attaching unit are characterized in that a pair of reference holes are formed so that a reference pin and an alignment pin of a unit replacement device can be inserted into them. Autonomous film roll replacement and attachment robot.

5. In paragraph 4, The above reference hole is configured as a pair of slot shapes arranged at a certain interval along the vertical direction, and the upper and lower portions of the slots are provided with a reference pin and an alignment pin that are fitted without any play while being spread apart, thereby forming an alignment groove that allows the film cutting / connecting unit or the tape attaching unit to be aligned in the vertical direction. Autonomous film roll replacement and attachment robot.

6. In paragraph 1, The above autonomous vehicle is characterized by being one of AGV (Automatic Guided Vehicle), AMR (Autonomous Mobile Robot), and LGV (Laser Guided Vehicle). Autonomous film roll replacement and attachment robot.

7. In paragraph 1, The above film cutting / connecting unit, A fixed adsorption stage that selectively adsorbs a film of a roll to be replaced or a film of a roll to be replaced using vacuum pressure; A moving adsorption stage that moves the films to adjacent positions to connect them with each other while adsorbing the end of one of the films using vacuum pressure; and a film cutter for selectively cutting the end of the film; Autonomous film roll replacement and attachment robot.

8. In paragraph 1, The above tape cutting unit, A tape gripper for moving horizontally and pulling out one end of an adhesive tape wound in a roll shape by selectively gripping it; and A tape cutter for vertically ascending and descending and selectively cutting the adhesive tape pulled out by the tape gripper; Autonomous film roll replacement and attachment robot.

9. In paragraph 1, The above tape attachment unit, A first tape absorption pad for fixing the film end of the roll to be replaced with a fixing tape; A second tape absorption pad for connecting the film end of the roll to be replaced and the film end of the roll to be replaced with a connecting tape; and A vision camera for inspecting whether the film ends of the roll to be replaced and the film ends of the roll to be replaced are connected to each other by the second tape suction pad; Autonomous film roll replacement and attachment robot.

Citation Information

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