WO2023145361A1

WO2023145361A1 - Robot control system and method for configuring robot control system

Info

Publication number: WO2023145361A1
Application number: PCT/JP2022/047966
Authority: WO
Inventors: ディエゴエスクデロ; ダビドフォルナス; アントニオペナルヴェル; イゴールジョバノビッチ; マジッドカサワット; 嘉英田村; 圭安田
Original assignee: オムロン株式会社
Priority date: 2022-01-31
Filing date: 2022-12-26
Publication date: 2023-08-03
Also published as: JP2023111377A

Abstract

This control system includes: a first module for generating an intermediate expression in accordance with an interpretation result of a control program; a second module for generating a command value for a robot in accordance with the generated intermediate expression; a main calculation resource for realizing the first module and the second module; and an auxiliary calculation resource for executing, in place of the main calculation resource, a predesignated process among a first process and a second process. The main calculation resource includes a first interface for exchanging data between the process executed by the main calculation resource and the process executed by the auxiliary calculation resource.

Description

A robot control system and how to configure a robot control system

The present invention relates to a robot control system and a method of configuring the robot control system.

Various robots are being introduced and put into practical use at production sites. Since there is a need to operate robots in cooperation with production equipment, configurations are disclosed in which one or more robots are controlled by a common control device (see Patent Documents 1 to 4).

JP 2021-142625 A JP 2021-144586 A JP 2021-144587 A JP 2021-144588 A

For example, the computational cost of processing can be high when multiple robots are to work together or perform complex actions.

The purpose of the present invention is to provide technology that can flexibly respond to changes in computational resources required to realize robot operations.

According to one aspect of the invention, a control system is provided for controlling one or more robots. The control system includes a first module that generates an intermediate representation according to an interpretation result of a control program by executing one or more first processes, and a first module that generates an intermediate representation by executing one or more second processes. a second module for generating a command value for the robot according to the intermediate representation, a main computing resource for realizing the first module and the second module, and the first processing and the second processing, wherein and auxiliary computing resources that perform specified processing on behalf of the primary computing resource. The primary computing resource includes a first interface for exchanging data between processing performed on the primary computing resource and processing performed on the auxiliary computing resource.

According to this configuration, among the processes executed by the main computing resources, the auxiliary computing resources can be made to execute arbitrarily specified processes. Execution becomes possible by combining resources. This makes it possible to flexibly respond to changes in computational resources required to realize robot motions.

The auxiliary computing resource may include a second interface for exchanging data between processing performed on the auxiliary computing resource and processing performed on the primary computing resource. According to this configuration, arbitrary data can be exchanged between the process executed by the main computational resource and the process executed by the auxiliary computational resource.

It may further include a development support device that accepts a user's specification of processing and performs settings for executing the processing specified by the user with an auxiliary computing resource. According to this configuration, the user can operate the development support device to cause the auxiliary computing resource to execute arbitrary processing.

The development support device may present at least part of the first process and the second process, and information indicating the degree of computational resources required for the at least part of the process. According to this configuration, the user can more easily determine which process should be executed by the auxiliary computing resource.

The development support device may present information indicating the size of computational resources that can be provided by the main computational resource and the auxiliary computational resource. According to this configuration, the user can more easily determine which of the main computational resource and the auxiliary computational resource is to be used for processing.

Auxiliary computing resources may be general-purpose computers. According to this configuration, auxiliary computational resources can be realized at relatively low cost.

The auxiliary computing resource may be an industrial computer. According to this configuration, it is possible to realize an auxiliary computing resource capable of stable operation.

According to another aspect of the invention, a method of configuring a control system for controlling one or more robots is provided. The method includes placing on a main computing resource a first module that generates an intermediate representation according to an interpretation result of a control program by executing a plurality of first processes; and one or more second processes. arranging a second module on the main computing resource for generating a command value for the robot according to the generated intermediate representation by execution; , configuring the auxiliary computing resource to execute on behalf of the primary computing resource; and providing the primary computing resource with an interface for passing data to and from the processing running on the auxiliary computing resource. include.

According to the present invention, it is possible to flexibly respond to changes in computational resources required to realize robot operations.

1 is a schematic diagram showing an application example of a robot control system according to an embodiment; FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of a robot control system according to an embodiment; FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a hardware configuration example of a control device according to the present embodiment; FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a hardware configuration example of a robot according to an embodiment; FIG. 2 shows an example hardware configuration of an auxiliary processing device according to the present embodiment. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a hardware configuration example of a development support device according to an embodiment; FIG. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a functional configuration example related to robot control of the robot control system according to the present embodiment; 1 is a schematic diagram showing an implementation example of a robot control system according to an embodiment; FIG. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing a usage example of a computation node in the robot control system according to the present embodiment; FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing another usage example of the computation node in the robot control system according to the present embodiment; FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing a processing example for distributing processing in the robot control system according to the present embodiment; FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a user interface screen provided by the robot control system according to the present embodiment; 4 is a flow chart showing a processing procedure for realizing distributed arrangement of processing in the robot control system according to the present embodiment;

Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The same or corresponding parts in the drawings are given the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will not be repeated.

<A. Application example>
First, with reference to FIG. 1, an example of a scene to which the present invention is applied will be described.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an application example of the robot control system 1 according to this embodiment. A robot control system 1 controls one or more robots.

With reference to FIG. 1(A), the robot control system 1 includes an interpretation section 50, an integrated instruction section 60, and a robot control section 70 as functional modules related to robot control. Since the robot control units 70 are basically associated with the robots to be controlled, the same number of robot control units 70 as the robots to be controlled are arranged.

The interpretation unit 50 sequentially interprets the control program 30 .
The integration instruction unit 60 corresponds to a first module, and generates an intermediate representation according to the interpretation result of the control program 30 by executing one or more processes. More specifically, the integration instruction section 60 executes one or more first processes 80 .

The robot control unit 70 corresponds to a second module, and by executing one or more processes, generates a command value for the robot according to the generated intermediate representation. More specifically, the robot controller 70 executes one or more second processes 90 .

In this specification, the terms "first processing" and "second processing" are merely expressions for specifying that the executing subject modules are different. Therefore, processes included in a plurality of "first processes" may be the same or different as long as they are originally scheduled to be executed by the integration instruction unit 60 . Similarly, processes included in a plurality of "second processes" may be the same or different as long as they are originally scheduled to be executed by the robot control unit 70. .

The robot control system 1 has main computational resources for realizing the integrated instruction section 60 and the robot control section 70 . Although FIG. 1 shows an example in which the control device 100 is used as the main computational resource, a robot controller mounted on a robot may be used as at least part of the main computational resource.

With reference to FIG. 1B, the robot control system 1 includes a first process 80 executed by the integrated instruction section 60 (first module) and a first process 80 executed by the robot control section 70 (second module). Among the second processes 90, it has an auxiliary computational resource that executes a predesignated process instead of the main computational resource. Although FIG. 1B shows an example in which one auxiliary processing unit 300 is used as an auxiliary computing resource, a plurality of auxiliary processing units 300 may be used.

In the example shown in FIG. 1B, the processing 82 that is part of the first processing 80 executed by the integration instruction unit 60 is executed using the computational resources (main computational resources) of the control device 100, and the first The remainder of process 80, process 84, is performed using the computational resources of the auxiliary processor 300 (auxiliary computational resources).

In this case, the control device 100, which is the primary computing resource, has a relay connector 86 (first interface) for exchanging data between the process 82 executed by the primary computing resource and the process 84 executed by the auxiliary computing resource. ).

Similarly, the auxiliary computing resource, auxiliary processing unit 300, has a relay connector 88 (second interface).

It should be noted that the interpreting unit 50 and the robot control unit 70 can also have the auxiliary processing device 300 execute part of the processing for realizing the functional modules.

By adopting such a configuration, even if the calculation resources of the main calculation resources are insufficient, the necessary calculation resources can be secured by appropriately adding the auxiliary processing unit 300 (auxiliary calculation resources). . Therefore, it is possible to flexibly respond to changes in computational resources required to realize the motion of the robot.

<B. Hardware configuration example>
Next, a hardware configuration example of the robot control system 1 according to this embodiment will be described.

(b1: Overall configuration example)
FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of the robot control system 1 according to this embodiment. Referring to FIG. 2, robot control system 1 comprises control device 100 and one or more robots 200-1, 200-2, 200-3, . include. A robot control system 1 controls one or more robots 200 .

The control device 100 controls the robot 200 according to any control program. The control program may be written, for example, in any high-level language (for example, programming language for robot control such as V+ language or programming language for NC control such as G code).

The robot 200 is controlled by the control device 100. Robot 200 can be, for example, an articulated robot, a scalar robot, a mobile robot, an arbitrarily configured robot, or anything else.

The control device 100 may be connected to the display device 500 via the host network 10 . For the upper network 10, a protocol for industrial networks such as EtherNet/IP can be used. Control device 100 is connected to robot 200 via field network 20 . For the field network 20, protocols for industrial networks such as EtherCAT (registered trademark) and EtherNet/IP can be used. It should be noted that the field network 20 preferably employs a communication protocol capable of periodic communication. A development support device 400 may be connectable to the control device 100 .

The robot control system 1 further includes auxiliary processors 300-1, 300-2, ... (hereinafter collectively referred to as "auxiliary processors 300"). In the configuration example shown in FIG. 2, the auxiliary processing device 300-1 is connected to the host network 10, and the auxiliary processing device 300-2 is connected to the field network 20. FIG.

(b2: control device 100)
FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing a hardware configuration example of the control device 100 according to this embodiment. Referring to FIG. 3, control device 100 includes processor 102, main memory 104, storage 110, host network controller 106, field network controller 108, and USB controller 120 that provides a USB (Universal Serial Bus) interface. , and a memory card interface 122 . These components are connected via processor bus 130 .

The processor 102 corresponds to an arithmetic processing unit that executes control arithmetic, and is composed of a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), and the like. Specifically, the processor 102 reads out a program stored in the storage 110, develops it in the main memory 104, and executes it, thereby realizing processing as described later.

The main memory 104 is composed of volatile storage devices such as DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory) and SRAM (Static Random Access Memory). The storage 110 is configured by, for example, a non-volatile storage device such as an SSD (Solid State Drive) or HDD (Hard Disk Drive).

The storage 110 stores system programs 112 and the like for realizing basic functions.

The host network controller 106 exchanges data with arbitrary information processing devices (auxiliary processing device 300-1 and display device 500, etc. shown in FIG. 2) via the host network 10. FIG.

The field network controller 108 exchanges data with the robot 200 and the auxiliary processing device 300-2 via the field network 20.

The USB controller 120 exchanges data with any information processing device via a USB connection.

The memory card interface 122 accepts a memory card 124, which is an example of a removable storage medium. The memory card interface 122 is capable of reading/writing arbitrary data from/to the memory card 124 .

(b3: robot 200)
FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing a hardware configuration example of the robot 200 according to this embodiment. Referring to FIG. 4, robot 200 includes a robot controller 250 and a servo driver 260 .

The robot controller 250 includes a field network controller 210 and a control processing circuit 220.

The field network controller 210 exchanges data with the control device 100 via the field network 20.

The control processing circuit 220 executes arithmetic processing necessary to drive the robot 200 . As an example, control processing circuitry 220 includes processor 222 , main memory 224 , storage 226 , and interface circuitry 230 .

The processor 222 executes control operations for driving the robot. The main memory 224 is composed of, for example, a volatile memory device such as DRAM or SRAM. The storage 226 is configured by, for example, a non-volatile storage device such as SSD or HDD.

A system program 228 for controlling the robot 200 is stored in the storage 226 .

The interface circuit 230 exchanges signals with the servo driver 260 .
Servo driver 260 powers and drives one or more motors 262-1, 262-2, 262-3, . . . , 262-N. Motors 262-1, 262-2, 262-3, . Rotation of motors 262-1, 262-2, 262-3, . . . , 262-N changes the position and orientation of robot 200. FIG.

(b4: Auxiliary processing device 300)
Auxiliary processing device 300 according to the present embodiment may be a general-purpose computer or an industrial computer. That is, the auxiliary computing resource can be either a general purpose computer or an industrial computer.

FIG. 5 shows a hardware configuration example of the auxiliary processing device 300 according to this embodiment. 5, auxiliary processing unit 300 includes processor 302 such as a CPU or GPU, main memory 304, input unit 306, display unit 308, storage 310, USB controller 320, and network controller 322. including. These components are connected via bus 330 .

The processor 302 reads various programs stored in the storage 310, develops them in the main memory 304, and executes them.

The storage 310 is composed of, for example, an HDD or SSD. The storage 310 typically stores an OS 312 , a system program 314 and a process execution program 316 . The process execution program 316 may be transferred from the development support device 400 or the like. Further, the storage 310 may store necessary programs other than the programs shown in FIG.

The input unit 306 is composed of a mouse, keyboard, touch panel, etc., and receives instructions from the user. A display unit 308 includes a display, various indicators, and the like, and outputs processing results from the processor 302 and the like.

The USB controller 320 exchanges data with any information processing device via a USB connection.

The network controller 322 exchanges data with any information processing device via any network.

(b5: development support device 400)
FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing a hardware configuration example of the development support device 400 according to this embodiment. 6, development support apparatus 400 includes processor 402 such as a CPU or GPU, main memory 404, input unit 406, display unit 408, storage 410, USB controller 420, network controller 422, and , and an optical drive 424 . These components are connected via bus 430 .

The processor 402 reads various programs stored in the storage 410, develops them in the main memory 404, and executes them, thereby realizing the processing described later by the development support device 400.

The storage 410 is composed of, for example, an HDD or SSD. The storage 410 typically stores an OS 412 and a development support program 414 for realizing processing as described later. Note that the storage 410 may store necessary programs other than the programs shown in FIG.

The input unit 406 is composed of a mouse, keyboard, touch panel, etc., and receives instructions from the user. A display unit 408 includes a display, various indicators, and the like, and outputs processing results from the processor 402 and the like.

The USB controller 420 exchanges data with any information processing device via a USB connection.

The network controller 422 exchanges data with any information processing device via any network.

The optical drive 424 reads the program from a recording medium 426 (for example, an optical recording medium such as a DVD) that stores a computer-readable program non-transitory, and stores the program in the storage 410 or the like.

Various programs executed by the development support device 400 may be installed via the computer-readable recording medium 426, or may be installed by downloading from any server on the network.

(b6: display device 500)
Display device 500 according to the present embodiment may be realized using a general-purpose personal computer as an example. Since the basic hardware configuration example of the display device 500 is well known, detailed description thereof will not be given here.

(b7: other forms)
3 to 6 show configuration examples in which one or more processors execute programs to provide necessary functions. It may be implemented using a hardware circuit (for example, ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) or FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array)).

Also, part or all of the processing necessary for realizing the robot control system according to the present embodiment may be executed using so-called computing resources on the cloud. What kind of hardware resources and software resources are used to realize the robot control system according to the present embodiment can be arbitrarily designed and selected.

<C. Functional configuration example>
Next, a functional configuration example of the robot control system 1 according to the present embodiment will be described.

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing a functional configuration example related to robot control of the robot control system 1 according to the present embodiment. Referring to FIG. 7, robot control system 1 includes an interpreter 50, an integrated instruction unit 60, and one or more robot controllers 70 as functional modules related to robot control.

The interpretation unit 50 sequentially interprets the control program 30 and generates an intermediate representation as an interpretation result.

The integrated instruction unit 60 generates an intermediate representation directed to the target robot control unit 70 from the intermediate representation as the interpretation result, and sequentially provides the generated intermediate representation to the target robot control unit 70 . More specifically, the integration instruction unit 60 determines the robot control unit 70 to which the intermediate representation is to be sent, based on the identification information included in the intermediate representation.

The robot control unit 70 is prepared for each robot 200. Each robot control unit 70 generates an internal command corresponding to the intermediate representation received from the integrated instruction unit 60, and generates a command value for each control cycle according to the generated internal command. The command value for each control cycle may be, for example, a target position (target angle) or target velocity (target angular velocity) for each of the motors 262 forming the robot 200 .

More specifically, the robot control unit 70 generates a trajectory for the robot 200 to move according to the generated internal command, and calculates the position (angle) of each axis for realizing the generated trajectory by kinematics calculation. calculate.

The interpretation unit 50, the integrated instruction unit 60, and one or more robot control units 70 may all be implemented in the control device 100, or some of them may be implemented in another device.

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram showing an implementation example of the robot control system 1 according to this embodiment.
FIG. 8A shows an example in which the interpretation unit 50, the integrated instruction unit 60, and one or more robot control units 70 are implemented in the control device 100. FIG. In this implementation, controller 100 is used as the primary computing resource.

FIG. 8(B) shows an example in which the integrated instruction unit 60 and the robot control unit 70 are implemented in the control device 100 and each of the robot control units 70 is implemented in the robot 200 . In this implementation, controller 100 and robot 200 (robot controller 250) are used as primary computing resources.

In FIG. 8C, the integrated instruction unit 60 and the robot control unit 70 are implemented in the control device 100, part of the robot control unit 70 is implemented in the control device 100, and the remaining robot control unit 70 is implemented by the robot. 200 implementation. In this implementation, controller 100 and robot 200 (robot controller 250) are used as primary computing resources.

Moreover, the interpretation unit 50 may be implemented in an information processing device different from the control device 100 .
Thus, in the robot control system 1 according to the present embodiment, functional modules for realizing robot control can be arranged in any device. Note that it is an arbitrary design matter in which device each functional module is arranged.

<D. Distributed Arrangement of Processing>
In the robot control system 1 according to this embodiment, the auxiliary processing device 300 can be used as a computation node. More specifically, the auxiliary processing device 300 can execute any part of the processing executed by the functional modules related to robot control. That is, the auxiliary processing unit 300 is used as an auxiliary computing resource.

As described above, in the robot control system 1 according to the present embodiment, a plurality of functional modules related to robot control can be distributed to different computational resources, and processes executed by arbitrary functional modules can also be different. It can be distributed in computing resources (auxiliary computing resources).

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram showing an example of use of computation nodes in the robot control system 1 according to this embodiment.

FIG. 9A shows an example in which the integration instruction unit 60 executes one or more processes. The first processing 80 executed by the integration instruction section 60 includes processing for realizing the functions that the integration instruction section 60 should provide.

The first process 80 requires hardware resources such as the processor 102 and the main memory 104 of the control device 100, for example. Therefore, when a plurality of functional modules are installed in the control device 100, there is a possibility that computational resources will be insufficient. In such a case, computational resources provided by the auxiliary processing unit 300 may be used.

FIG. 9(B) shows an example in which the auxiliary processing device 300 executes part of the first process 80 executed by the integration instruction unit 60 arranged in the control device 100 . That is, the processing 82, which is a part of the first processing 80 executed by the integration instruction unit 60, is executed using the computational resources of the control device 100, and the processing 84, which is the remainder of the first processing 80, is executed by the auxiliary processing device 300. of computational resources.

In this case, a relay connector 86 is arranged in the control device 100 and a relay connector 88 is arranged in the auxiliary processing device 300 in order to exchange necessary data between processes. Also, the process execution program 316 (FIG. 5) required for the auxiliary processing unit 300 to execute the process 84 is transferred to the auxiliary processing unit 300 .

In the configuration example shown in FIG. 9B, an auxiliary processing device 300-1 connected to the control device 100 via the host network 10 can be used, or an auxiliary processing device 300-1 connected to the control device 100 via the field network 20 can be used. An auxiliary processor 300-2 can also be used.

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing another usage example of the computation node in the robot control system 1 according to this embodiment. FIG. 10A shows an example in which the robot control unit 70 executes one or more processes. The second processing 90 executed by the robot control unit 70 includes processing for realizing functions to be provided by the robot control unit 70 .

The second process 90 requires hardware resources such as the processor 222 and main memory 224 of the robot controller 250 of the robot 200 . Processing beyond the computational resources of the robot controller 250 may be required to achieve the desired motion. In such a case, computational resources provided by the auxiliary processing unit 300 may be used.

FIG. 10B shows an example in which the auxiliary processing device 300 executes part of the second processing 90 executed by the robot control unit 70 arranged in the control device 100 . That is, the processing 92, which is a part of the second processing 90 executed by the robot control unit 70, is executed using the computational resources of the control device 100, and the processing 94, which is the remainder of the second processing 90, is executed by the auxiliary processing device 300. of computational resources.

In this case, a relay connector 96 is arranged in the control device 100 and a relay connector 98 is arranged in the auxiliary processing device 300 in order to exchange necessary data between processes. Also, the processing execution program 316 (FIG. 5) required for executing the processing 94 executed by the auxiliary processing unit 300 is transferred to the auxiliary processing unit 300 .

In the configuration example shown in FIG. 10B, an auxiliary processing device 300-1 connected to the control device 100 via the host network 10 can be used, or an auxiliary processing device 300-1 connected to the control device 100 via the field network 20 can be used. An auxiliary processor 300-2 can also be used. Alternatively, if the robot control unit 70 is arranged in the robot 200, an auxiliary processor 300-2 connected to the robot 200 via the field network 20 can be used.

It should be noted that not only the processing executed by the integrated instruction unit 60 and the robot control unit 70, but also the processing executed by the interpretation unit 50 may be executed using the computational resources of the auxiliary processing device 300.

As shown in FIGS. 9B and 10B, the auxiliary processing device 300, which is an auxiliary computational resource, preliminarily performs The specified processing is executed instead of the control device 100 (or the robot controller 250), which is the main computing resource.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 9B and 10B, the control device 100 (or the robot controller 250), which is the main computing resource, performs processing executed by the main computing resource and processing executed by the auxiliary computing resource.

Intermediate connectors

86 and 96 are included as an interface for exchanging data to and from processes that On the other hand, auxiliary processing unit 300, which is an auxiliary computing resource, includes

relay connectors

88 and 98 as an interface for exchanging data between the processing executed by the auxiliary computing resource and the processing executed by the main computing resource. .

The configurations as shown in FIGS. 9(B) and 10(B) are typically realized by the processing shown below.

<E. Processing for Distributing Processing>
Next, the processing for distributing the processing as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 will be described. Processing for distributing processing may be mainly executed by development support device 400 .

The development support device 400 accepts the user's specification of processing, and makes settings for executing the processing specified by the user with the auxiliary computing resource.

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram showing a processing example for distributing processing in the robot control system 1 according to the present embodiment. Referring to FIG. 11, first, development support device 400 receives settings from the user ((1) user settings). The settings from the user include designation of processing to be executed by the auxiliary processing unit 300, and the like.

Subsequently, the development support device 400 generates necessary data according to the settings from the user ((2) data generation). More specifically, the data to be generated includes the processing execution program 316 for causing the auxiliary processing unit 300 to execute the designated processing, and the setting of relay connectors arranged in the control unit 100 and the auxiliary processing unit 300. include.

Subsequently, the development support device 400 performs necessary settings for the control device 100 (or the robot 200) based on the generated data ((3) settings). Based on the generated data, the development support device 400 transfers necessary programs to the auxiliary processing device 300 and performs necessary settings for the auxiliary processing device 300 ((4) program transfer + setting).

Through such a series of processes, it is possible to cause the auxiliary processing unit 300 to execute the processing specified by the user, and exchange necessary data between the control unit 100 (or the robot 200) and the auxiliary processing unit 300. can do.

FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a user interface screen provided by the robot control system 1 according to this embodiment. Typically, the user interface screen shown in FIG. 12 is provided by development support device 400 . Note that FIG. 12 shows an example of a user interface screen directed to the integration instruction section 60. As shown in FIG.

Referring to FIG. 12, user interface screen 450 includes a resource display portion 460, a processing setting portion 470, and an apply button 480.

The resource display section 460 shows available computing resources for each device capable of executing processing (in this example, the control device 100 and the auxiliary processing device 300). In the example shown in FIG. 12, the resource display section 460 includes a value 461 indicating computing resources available in the control device 100 and a value 462 indicating computing resources available in the auxiliary processing device 300 .

In this way, the development support device 400 presents information indicating the size of computational resources that can be provided by the main computational resource (control device 100) and the auxiliary computational resource (auxiliary processing device 300).

The processing setting unit 470 accepts selection of a device that executes processing. More specifically, the process setting unit 470 includes a process name column 471 indicating the target process, a description column 472 indicating the details of each process, a parameter column 473 indicating parameters required by each process, and each process and a cost column 475 indicating the calculation cost required by each process.

When the user determines the process to be executed by the auxiliary processing unit 300 by referring to the description of the process and the calculation cost displayed in the process setting section 470, the value of the distributed arrangement setting column 474 corresponding to the determined process is set. Set to "Yes".

　Finally, when the user presses the apply button 480, the development support device 400 generates the necessary data according to the settings from the user.

In this way, the development support device 400 performs at least some of the processes executed by the integrated instruction unit 60 and the processes executed by the robot control unit 70 (process name column 471) and at least some of the processes executed by the robot control unit 70. A cost column 475 is presented that indicates the degree of computational resources required for processing.

Note that the target process differs for each functional module, so the user interface screen 450 may be prepared for each functional module.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure for realizing distributed arrangement of processing in the robot control system 1 according to this embodiment. That is, FIG. 13 shows a method of configuring a robot control system 1 that controls one or more robots 200 . Each step shown in FIG. 13 may typically be implemented by processor 402 of development support device 400 executing development support program 414 .

First, the basic functional module layout of the robot control system 1 is configured. Referring to FIG. 13, development support apparatus 400 sets each of interpretation unit 50, integrated instruction unit 60 and robot control unit 70 as main computational resources according to user's setting operation. 250) (step S100).

Next, when receiving a setting operation from the user (step S102), the development support device 400 acquires the processing states of the target control device 100, the robot 200, and the auxiliary processing device 300 (step S104). A user interface screen 450 as shown in is displayed (step S106).

The development support device 400 receives a setting operation from the user on the user interface screen 450 (step S108), and when the apply button 480 is pressed (step S110), generates necessary data according to the setting contents (step S112). ).

Then, the development support device 400 performs necessary settings for the control device 100 and/or the robot 200 based on the generated data (step S114). With this setting, an interface (relay connector) for exchanging data with the process executed by the auxiliary computing resource is arranged in the control device 100 or the robot 200 (robot controller 250), which is the main computing resource.

In addition, the development support device 400 transfers necessary programs to the auxiliary processing device 300 based on the generated data, and performs necessary settings for the auxiliary processing device 300 (step S116). With this setting, predesignated processing among the processing executed by the integration instruction unit 60 and the processing executed by the robot control unit 70 is executed by the auxiliary computing resource instead of the main computing resource.

A series of processes are completed by the above.
The control device 100 and/or the robot 200 stops execution of a part of the process and activates the relay connector according to the settings from the development support device 400 . On the other hand, the robot controller 350 stores and activates the program transferred from the development support device 400 and activates the relay connector according to the settings from the development support device 400 . Such a series of processes allows the processes to be distributed.

<F. Variation>
An example has been described in which the computational resource for executing processing is changed from the control device 100 and/or the robot 200 to one auxiliary processing device 300, but a plurality of auxiliary processing devices 300 may be used. In this case, the controller 100 and/or the robot 200 are provided with relay connectors respectively corresponding to the plurality of auxiliary processing devices 300 .

<G. Note>
The present embodiment as described above includes the following technical ideas.

[Configuration 1]
A control system (1) for controlling one or more robots (200), comprising:
a first module (60) for generating an intermediate representation according to the interpreted result of the control program (30) by performing one or more first processes (80);
a second module (70) for generating command values for the robot according to the generated intermediate representation by performing one or more second processes (90);
a main computing resource (100; 250) for implementing said first module and said second module;
an auxiliary computational resource (300) that executes a predesignated process (84; 94) out of the first process and the second process instead of the main computational resource;
A control system, wherein said primary computing resource includes a first interface (86; 96) for exchanging data between processing performed on said primary computing resource and processing performed on said auxiliary computing resource.

[Configuration 2]
A configuration 1, wherein said auxiliary computing resource includes a second interface (88; 98) for exchanging data between processing performed on said auxiliary computing resource and processing performed on said primary computing resource. Control system as described.

[Configuration 3]
3. The control system according to configuration 1 or 2, further comprising a development support device (400) that accepts designation of processing by a user and performs settings for executing the processing designated by the user on the auxiliary computing resource.

[Configuration 4]
The development support device presents at least part of the first process and the second process (471) and information (475) indicating the degree of computational resources required for the at least part of the process. The control system of configuration 3, wherein:

[Configuration 5]
5. The control system according to configuration 3 or 4, wherein the development support device presents information (460) indicating the size of computing resources that the primary computing resource and the auxiliary computing resource can provide.

[Configuration 6]
6. The control system of any one of the arrangements 1-5, wherein the auxiliary computing resource is a general purpose computer.

[Configuration 7]
6. The control system of any one of the configurations 1-5, wherein the auxiliary computing resource is an industrial computer.

[Configuration 8]
A method of configuring a control system (1) for controlling one or more robots (200), comprising:
Placement (S100) of a first module (60) that generates an intermediate representation according to an interpretation result of a control program by executing one or more first processes (80) on a main computing resource (100; 250) )and,
Placing (S100) a second module (70) on said main computing resource for generating command values for said robot according to said generated intermediate representation by executing one or more second processes (90); )and,
A step of setting a predesignated process (84; 94) out of the first process and the second process to be executed by the auxiliary computing resource (300) instead of the main computing resource (S116). and,
arranging (S114) in said primary computing resource an interface (86; 96) for exchanging data to and from processes performed in said auxiliary computing resource.

The embodiments disclosed this time should be considered illustrative in all respects and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is indicated by the scope of the claims rather than the above description, and is intended to include all modifications within the scope and meaning equivalent to the scope of the claims.

1. Robot control system, 10. Upper network, 20. Field network, 30. Control program, 50. Interpretation unit, 60. Integrated instruction unit, 70. Robot control unit, 80. First processing, 82, 84, 92, 94. Processing, 86, 88, 96, 98 relay connector, 90 second processing, 100 control device, 102, 222, 302, 402 processor, 104, 224, 304, 404 main memory, 106 upper network controller, 108, 210 field network controller, 110, 226 , 310, 410 storage, 112, 228, 314 system program, 120, 320, 420 USB controller, 122 memory card interface, 124 memory card, 130 processor bus, 200 robot, 220 control processing circuit, 230 interface circuit, 250, 350 Robot controller, 260 servo driver, 262 motor, 300 auxiliary processing unit, 306, 406 input unit, 308, 408 display unit, 312, 412 OS, 316 processing execution program, 322, 422 network controller, 330, 430 bus, 400 development Support device, 414 Development support program, 424 Optical drive, 426 Recording medium, 450 User interface screen, 460 Resource display section, 461, 462 Value, 470 Processing setting section, 471 Processing name column, 472 Description column, 473 Parameter column, 474 Distributed arrangement setting column, 475 cost column, 480 apply button, 500 display device.

Claims

A control system for controlling one or more robots, comprising:
a first module that generates an intermediate representation according to an interpretation result of the control program by executing one or more first processes;
a second module that generates a command value for the robot according to the generated intermediate representation by executing one or more second processes;
a main computing resource for implementing the first module and the second module;
an auxiliary computational resource that executes a predesignated process out of the first process and the second process instead of the main computational resource;
The control system, wherein the primary computing resource includes a first interface for exchanging data between processing performed on the primary computing resource and processing performed on the auxiliary computing resource.
2. The control system of claim 1, wherein said auxiliary computing resource includes a second interface for exchanging data between processing performed on said auxiliary computing resource and processing performed on said primary computing resource. .
3. The control system according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a development support device that accepts designation of processing by a user and performs settings for executing the designated processing with the auxiliary computing resource.
The development support device presents at least part of the first process and the second process, and information indicating a degree of computational resources required for the at least part of the process. 4. The control system according to 3.
5. The control system according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the development support device presents information indicating the size of computational resources that can be provided by the main computational resource and the auxiliary computational resource.
The control system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein said auxiliary computing resource is a general-purpose computer.
The control system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein said auxiliary computing resource is an industrial computer.
A method of configuring a control system for controlling one or more robots, comprising:
Placing a first module on a main computing resource for generating an intermediate representation according to an interpretation result of a control program by executing one or more first processes;
Placing a second module on the main computing resource that generates a command value for the robot according to the generated intermediate representation by executing one or more second processes;
setting a predesignated process out of the first process and the second process to be executed by an auxiliary computing resource instead of the main computing resource;
arranging an interface on said primary computing resource for exchanging data to and from a process running on said auxiliary computing resource.