Mounting Head Collision Avoidance via Motion Controller Feedback
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing electronic component mounting apparatuses face challenges in avoiding collisions between mounting heads, which can lead to damage and reduced productivity due to restricted movement and high-speed operations, especially when handling a variety of printed boards with different component distributions.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a collision avoidance mechanism where motion controllers continuously monitor and share position, speed, and acceleration information between mounting heads, allowing them to adjust their movements and apply brakes as necessary to prevent collisions, while maintaining a minimal safe distance to maximize movement range and speed.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If mounting heads are allowed to move freely to increase component mounting speed, then productivity is improved, but the risk of collision between mounting heads increases
Solution Approach 1:
The motion controllers continuously acquire position information from encoders and exchange this data between controllers. This feedback mechanism allows real-time monitoring of mounting head positions and enables dynamic adjustment of movements to prevent collisions while maintaining high-speed operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The system calculates predicted stop positions based on current speed and acceleration information before collisions occur. By taking preliminary action to determine safe stopping points in advance, the system can brake mounting heads proactively to avoid collisions rather than reacting after a collision risk is detected.
2Device complexity
If mounting heads are positioned closer to maximize movement range, then device complexity is reduced, but the likelihood of collision increases
Solution Approach 1:
Real-time position information exchange between motion controllers enables the system to maintain minimal safe distances between mounting heads. The continuous feedback on relative positions allows the controllers to coordinate movements precisely, ensuring heads can operate close together without colliding.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adjusts the operational parameters of mounting heads based on real-time conditions. By continuously monitoring position, speed, and acceleration, the motion controllers can adaptively control head movements to maintain safe distances when necessary while maximizing movement range overall.
3Reliability
If program control is used to prevent collision, then reliability is improved, but program bugs can cause undetected collisions
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses real-time position feedback from encoders and inter-controller communication to monitor actual mounting head positions and movements. This physical feedback mechanism provides an independent verification layer that can detect potential collisions even when program logic fails, as it relies on actual measured positions rather than program assumptions.
Solution Approach 2:
The motion controllers act as intermediaries between the host computer's program commands and the actual mounting head movements. They translate program instructions into controlled movements while continuously monitoring positions, providing a buffer that can detect and respond to collision risks independently of the host program's correctness.
4Productivity
If mounting heads operate at high speeds to increase productivity, then component mounting speed is improved, but collision damage becomes more severe
Solution Approach 1:
The system calculates predicted stop positions using current speed and acceleration data before collisions occur. By determining where mounting heads will naturally stop based on their current motion state, the system can proactively apply brakes at appropriate points to prevent collisions, reducing the severity of potential damage from high-speed operations.
Solution Approach 2:
Real-time monitoring of speed and position information allows the system to detect when mounting heads are approaching each other at high speeds. The feedback mechanism enables timely brake application to reduce relative speeds before collision, thereby reducing the kinetic energy and potential damage if a collision were to occur.
Data Source
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AI summary
In a mounting apparatus (1) for electronic components, a command from a host computer is transmitted to a linear motor M via a motion controller and a servo amplifier to thereby drive a mounting head H1 or a mounting head H2. To prevent collision between the two mounting heads H1, H2, position information from a linear encoder E is fed back to not only the servo amplifier, but also the motion controller. Once determining that the two mounting heads H1, H2 collide, the motion controller applies brake to the mounting heads H1, H2 to avoid collision therebetween, regardless of the command from the host computer.