Robot Gas Cylinder Cap Mounting With Sensor-Based Alignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
The manual management of gas cylinders in semiconductor manufacturing processes poses safety risks and lacks automation, necessitating an improved system for their storage and management.
Innovation Solution
An apparatus and method utilizing an articulated robot equipped with vision and distance sensors to automate the mounting and management of gas cylinders, ensuring precise positioning and safe coupling of components, such as caps, onto gas cylinders using a nut runner, thereby enhancing safety and efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If manual management of gas cylinders is performed by workers, then flexibility and adaptability are maintained, but safety risks increase and automation level remains low
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables automated self-management of gas cylinders through the articulated robot that autonomously performs detection, positioning, and coupling operations without requiring human workers to physically handle the cylinders, thereby improving safety while achieving automation
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual mechanical operations with an automated robotic system equipped with sensors (vision sensor, distance sensor) and control units that detect cylinder positions and execute coupling actions, substituting human labor with automated mechanical and optical systems
2Extent of automation
If automated robot system with sensors is implemented, then automation level and precision are improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The articulated robot serves multiple functions including movement to gas cylinders, detection of mounting positions using sensors, positioning components, and coupling operations with the nut runner, consolidating multiple operations into a single multi-functional device to manage complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The control unit acts as an intermediary that receives data from vision sensors and distance sensors, processes the information to determine mounting positions, and controls the articulated robot's movements and coupling actions, centralizing the complexity in a dedicated control system
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus for mounting a component includes an articulated robot mounting a component on a replacement target where the component is provided at a mounting position, a first sensor unit provided in the articulated robot and sensing the mounting position or whether or not the component is provided, a second sensor unit provided in the articulated robot and sensing spaced distances between the articulated robot and the mounting position at a plurality of points, and a control unit controlling the articulated robot to mount the component on the replacement target and controlling a position of the articulated robot so that a difference between spaced distance values between the articulated robot and the plurality of points sensed by the second sensor unit converges to zero, when the component is not sensed or a surface of the mounting position is sensed by the first sensor unit.