Welding Electrode Pull-Out Direction for Interference-Free Retraction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional methods for avoiding interference between welding equipment and workpieces during off-line teaching of articulated robots often result in excessive clearance, leading to inefficient path determination and potential inability to retract the welding equipment, requiring skilled techniques and reducing manufacturing line efficiency.
Innovation Solution
A method involving the creation of parallel lines in contact with the workpiece's outer edges to determine the optimal pull-out direction, ensuring the maximum separation threshold is met, and dividing interference avoidance regions as needed to accurately set the clearance between welding electrodes and the workpiece, allowing for efficient retraction without interference.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Extent of automation
If the conventional method using grid-shaped solid filling is employed to determine the pull-out path, then the interference avoidance process is automated, but the clearance between welding electrodes and workpiece becomes excessively large, leading to inefficient path determination
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a two-dimensional cross-sectional view model of the workpiece instead of using three-dimensional grid-filled solid model. This cross-sectional model accurately represents the workpiece geometry in the pull-out direction while reducing computational complexity, enabling both automation and precision in path determination
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts only the essential cross-sectional geometry of the workpiece that is relevant to the pull-out path, eliminating the need for complete three-dimensional solid filling. This extraction approach maintains accuracy for interference avoidance while significantly reducing computation time and complexity
2Productivity
If the conventional method is used for off-line teaching, then teaching data can be created without stopping the manufacturing line, but the path determination requires skilled operators and reduces manufacturing line efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs self-service by automatically determining the optimal pull-out path using the cross-sectional view model and interference avoidance algorithm. This eliminates the need for skilled operators to manually plan paths, making the off-line teaching process accessible to ordinary operators while maintaining high efficiency
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the manual mechanical process of path planning by skilled operators with an automated computational system. The computer automatically calculates the pull-out path based on the cross-sectional model, substituting human expertise with algorithmic processing
3Extent of automation
If the conventional method determines the pull-out path, then automation is achieved, but the welding equipment may be determined incapable of retractation even when it can be retracted, reducing path determination accuracy
Solution Approach 1:
The patent focuses analysis on the local cross-sectional geometry at the welding point rather than the entire three-dimensional space. By examining only the critical two-dimensional cross-section where the gun unit pulls out, the system achieves precise assessment of retraction capability without excessive conservatism
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the modeling approach from three-dimensional solid filling to two-dimensional cross-sectional representation. This parameter change in dimensionality and representation method improves the accuracy of retraction assessment by focusing on the essential geometric constraints without the distortions introduced by volumetric approximation
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention includes a reference parallel line creation step of creating a pair of parallel lines that are respectively in contact with outer edges of a workpiece cross-section without traversing the workpiece cross-section and that are located on an extension plane of the workpiece cross-section, a first determination step of comparing a width between the pair of parallel lines that have been created in the reference parallel line creation step with a maximum separation threshold of the welding electrodes, and determining whether the maximum separation threshold is larger than the width between the parallel lines, and a pull-out direction determination step of determining a direction of the parallel lines as a pull-out direction, in a case where the maximum separation threshold is larger than the width between the parallel lines in the first determination step.