CN111606178B - Manipulator and method for operating a manipulator - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a control device and a method for operating a control device, in particular a control device (1) for supporting a manual movement of a load (2), having a base body (36) and a load receiving means (3) and a fluid actuator (4) and having a position sensor means (24) for detecting a relative position of a second actuating part (21) of the fluid actuator (4) with respect to a first actuating part (17) of the fluid actuator (4) and having a pressure sensor (23) for detecting a pressure in a working space (20) of the fluid actuator (4) and having an input means (10) for detecting an operating request of an operator and having a control means (16) for providing a control signal to a valve means (26) and having a valve means (26) which is configured for providing a working fluid to the working space (20) in dependence on the control signal.

Description

Manipulator and method for operating a manipulator

Technical Field

The invention relates to a manipulator for supporting a manual movement of a load. The invention further relates to a method for operating such a control device.

Background

DE 10 2014 001 677 A1 discloses a working device having an actuating mechanism which is suitable for actuating a fluid-actuated drive mechanism, wherein the actuating mechanism comprises a working valve which can be actuated on the basis of a pneumatic control pressure which can be continuously variably preset by means of a control mechanism, wherein the actuating mechanism further comprises a closed pneumatic cavity system which supplies the control pressure, to which cavity system a variable-volume control chamber belongs, the internal pressure of which control chamber forms the pneumatic control pressure, wherein by manually moving a manual actuating means, the volume of the control chamber belonging to the cavity system can be varied to influence the control pressure.

Disclosure of Invention

The object of the present invention is to provide a control device and a method for operating a control device, by means of which a precise control of a load is achieved.

This object is achieved by the invention in a manipulator of the type mentioned at the outset. It is provided here that the control device comprises a base body, a load receiving means which is movably connected to the base body and is designed to receive a load, a fluid actuator for inducing a relative movement between the base body and the load receiving means by means of a first actuating part which is connected to the base body and by means of a second actuating part which is connected to the load receiving means, wherein the first actuating part and the second actuating part are connected to one another in a relatively movable manner and bound a variable-size working space which can be charged with a working fluid, and wherein the control device furthermore comprises a position sensor device for detecting the relative position of the second actuating part with respect to the first actuating part, a pressure sensor for detecting the pressure in the working space, an input device for detecting an operating request by an operator, a control device for supplying a control signal to the valve device, and a valve device for supplying a working fluid to the working space in dependence on the control signal, wherein the control device is designed to determine the control signal in particular solely in dependence on the operating signal of the input device and on the position signal of the position sensor device and on the pressure signal of the pressure sensor device.

The base is, for example, fixed in a stationary manner at a building part, in particular at a building ceiling or a building wall or at a machine frame or is configured as a component of a guide mechanism (which guides the displacement of the entire manipulator within a predefinable spatial region), for example as a guide vehicle (fuhungswagen) at a rail system.

The load receiving means is configured for receiving a load and can be configured as a suction gripper, which can comprise a suction disk that can be subjected to a negative pressure for temporarily adhering to a load surface. The load receiver is, for example, fastened to a second actuating part of the fluid actuator, wherein the second actuating part is connected to the first actuating part in a relatively movable manner and the first actuating part is connected to the base body. The fluid actuator is configured as a pneumatic cylinder, wherein one of the two actuating members is formed by a cylinder housing and the other of the two actuating members is formed by a piston rod movably received in the cylinder housing. In this case, the variable-size working space of the fluid actuator is formed by a cylinder opening formed in the cylinder housing and a piston arranged at the end face at the piston rod. The working space can be loaded with a working fluid in order to induce a force on the load receiver and thus to achieve a lifting or lowering of the load received at the load receiver.

Furthermore, the manipulator comprises a position sensor mechanism configured for detecting the relative position of the second actuation part with respect to the first actuation part and configured for providing an electrical position signal. For example, the position sensor mechanism can comprise an assembly of a permanent magnet assigned to the piston of the fluid actuator and a magnetic field sensor, which is arranged at the outside of the cylinder housing of the fluid actuator.

A pressure sensor is assigned to the working space of the manipulator, which pressure sensor is configured for detecting a pressure in the working space. The pressure sensor is configured to provide an electrical pressure signal.

In order to be able to detect an operating request of the operator, an input mechanism is provided, which can be configured as an actuating lever mounted pivotably on the second actuating part or on the load receiving means and which can be used by the operator to preset a lifting or lowering movement for the load.

Furthermore, the manipulator comprises a control mechanism configured for providing control signals to the valve mechanism, wherein the control mechanism is configured for processing input signals of the position sensor assembly, the pressure sensor and the input mechanism in order to determine therefrom the control signals, which are provided to the valve mechanism. The valve mechanism itself is configured for supplying a working fluid to the working space in order to achieve a relative movement of the second actuating part of the fluid actuator relative to the first actuating part of the fluid actuator and thereby to cause a desired lifting or lowering movement for the load.

The control device is designed to determine the control signal as a function of the operating signal of the input device and of the position signal of the position sensor device and of the pressure signal of the pressure sensor. The control signal relates, for example, to an analog or digital electrical signal which is supplied by the control unit to the valve unit. Purely exemplarily, the valve mechanism comprises a proportional valve, by means of which the working pressure in the working chamber can be optionally increased or decreased.

When measuring the control signal for the valve mechanism, the control mechanism first considers an operation request input by an operator via the input mechanism. The operation request relates to a lift request or a sink request. Furthermore, the control unit takes into account the relationship between the position signal and the pressure signal, from which it can be concluded that the operating request can be converted in a suitable manner by changing the pressure for the fluid present in the working space, without manual override by the operator being required in this case. The mode of action of the control mechanism can be explained, for example, by the load having a variable mass. The load is exemplarily a container for plastic granules with which the injection molding machine should be fed. For this purpose, the containers are lifted from the plate by means of a manipulator and moved over a filling funnel (Einf ü lltrichter) of an injection molding machine, in order to empty the plastic granulate received in the containers into the filling funnel in a pouring process (schuttvorgang). During the pouring process, the mass of the load received at the manipulator is reduced, without a change in the position of the container being expected in this case, and accordingly no operating request is entered at the input mechanism during the pouring process. In the case of the use of compressed air as the working fluid, an undesired lifting movement of the load-receiving means is caused without influencing the working fluid in the working space. The control means takes into account the position signal and the pressure signal in addition to the operation request, and in the previous example, the control means causes: in the absence of an operating signal, the position of the load receiving means remains constant despite the reduced mass of the load. In this case, it is provided, in particular, that the actuation of the valve mechanism takes place by the control mechanism without indirect (generally interpreted as direct) or direct measurement of the weight force of the load, since a weighing cell or a force meter would be required for this purpose, which would increase the costs for the control device.

Advantageous further developments of the invention are further aspects of the invention.

Suitably, the position sensor arrangement comprises a first position sensor for providing a first position signal and a second position sensor for providing a second position signal and the position sensor arrangement or the control arrangement is configured for processing the first and second position signals into position signals. By means of the at least two position sensors, redundant processing of the position signals can be provided in order to be able to satisfy, for example, safety-relevant operating requirements of the control device. It is preferably provided that the two position sensors each generate a position signal independently of one another, which are processed in the processing means and compared with the respective other position signal in order to, for example, inhibit a further lifting movement or a lowering movement of the load if the deviation between the two position signals is outside a predefinable deviation interval. In particular, it is preferably provided that the position signals of the two position sensors are processed in the control unit in a diversified manner, i.e. each of the position signals is processed with a different calculation algorithm. In particular, it is provided that the position sensor is designed to be redundant in variety, i.e., the position measurement is carried out with respectively different measurement methods.

It is preferably provided that the control device is designed to calculate the mass of the load received at the load receiver from the position signal and the pressure signal and to take the calculated mass into account when determining the control signal. By calculating the mass, a reliable presetting of the required pressure change can be determined, so that both a favorable acceleration of the load and an exact reaching of the desired position can be ensured in view of the desired position change.

For this purpose, it is provided, in particular, that the control device is designed to compare a movement behavior of the load, simulated by means of the position signal and the pressure signal, with an actual movement behavior of the load, determined by means of the position signal and the pressure signal, in order to determine the mass of the load received at the load receiver. For this purpose, a so-called observer algorithm is used, which is designed to calculate the mass of the load received at the load receiver initially on the basis of the measured values of the pressure sensor and a stored mathematical description of the control device. Based on the quality calculation, the observer algorithm can then generate a prediction of the motion behavior of the manipulator. The predicted movement behavior is then compared with the actual movement behavior of the manipulator, which is represented by the position signal. The difference between the predicted and the actual movement behavior is supplied as a position deviation to an adaptive algorithm (anpasungsalgorithms) for correcting the calculated quality. The mass value corrected by the adaptive algorithm can then be provided directly to the observer algorithm on the one hand and can be subtracted from the pressure calculated from the pressure signal after conversion to gravity on the other hand, in order to form an input signal for the observer algorithm therefrom. Furthermore, from the corrected mass value, a control signal for actuating the valve mechanism can be determined in order to ensure that the working fluid is appropriately supplied to the fluid actuator.

Advantageously, the control device is designed to determine the mass of the load received at the load receiver internally without covering the load signal of the load measuring unit. For the internal determination of the mass, the control device does not need to indirectly measure the mass, as it can be done, for example, by a load measuring unit. The load measuring unit or weighing unit needs to be integrated mechanically at the manipulator, in particular in the region between the load receiving means and the fluid actuator. Furthermore, the load measuring unit involves additional cost factors and typically rather sensitive components which impair the load capacity of the manipulator. When the manipulator is constructed without a load measuring unit, i.e. without a measuring device for determining the mass and/or the weight, no load signal is available either. For an advantageous operation of the control device, an internal mass calculation in the control unit must therefore be carried out on the basis of the given sensor signals, in particular on the basis of the position signals and the pressure signals, which can be carried out by means of observer algorithms and adaptive algorithms processed in the control unit.

According to a second inventive aspect, the object of the invention is achieved by a method for operating a control for moving a load. Here, the method comprises the steps of: the control device detects an operating request of an operator by means of an input device and provides an operating signal to a control device, determines a working pressure for a working fluid in a working space of the fluid actuator by means of a pressure signal of a pressure sensor associated with the fluid actuator and determines a relative position of a second actuating part of the fluid actuator relative to a first actuating part of the fluid actuator by means of a position signal of a position sensor associated with the fluid actuator, and changes the working pressure in the working space by actuating a valve device by means of the control signal provided by the control device in dependence on the operating signal, such that a change in position of a load received at a load receiving device which is movable by the fluid actuator corresponds to the operating signal, wherein the control device determines the control signal in particular solely in dependence on the operating signal and the pressure signal and the position signal.

In a further development of the method, provision is made for a first processing of the first position signal of the first position sensor and a second processing of the second position signal of the second position sensor to be provided in the position sensor arrangement or in the control arrangement, and the control arrangement is configured for processing the first and second position signals into a common position signal.

In a further embodiment of the method, it is provided that, in the control unit, for the determination of the control signal, a mass calculation of the load received at the load receiver is carried out in such a way that a simulation of the movement behavior of the load is compared with the actual movement behavior determined by means of the position signal and the pressure signal.

In an advantageous development of the method, it is provided that the control means determine the control signal as a function of the operating signal and the pressure signal and the position signal without covering the load signal.

In a further embodiment of the method, it is provided that the control device determines the mass of the load received at the load receiver only internally, in particular without covering the load signal of the load measuring unit.

Drawings

Advantageous embodiments of the invention are shown in the figures. In this case, the amount of the solvent to be used,

fig. 1 shows a very schematic representation of a manipulator, how the manipulator can be used for supporting manual manipulation of a load, and

fig. 2 shows a strictly schematic illustration of the control mechanism of the manipulator according to fig. 1.

Detailed Description

The manipulator 1, which is shown purely schematically in fig. 1, serves for supporting an operator, not shown, while handling a load 2, which purely exemplarily relates to a square container.

For handling the load 2, the manipulator 1 comprises a suction gripper 3, also referred to as a load receiving means, which is arranged at the end face at a fluid actuator 4 and which comprises a base plate 5 and a suction plate 6, which is arranged at the base plate 5 and is made of a rubber-elastic material and is constructed purely exemplarily in the form of cone segments. The base plate 5 is connected to the fluid actuator 4 and comprises a fluid connection 7, which is designed to be coupled to a fluid line 8. The fluid line 8 connects the suction gripper 3 to a negative pressure source 9, which is designed to briefly supply a negative pressure to the suction gripper 3, so that it grips the load 2 by the negative pressure application of the suction cup 6.

An input mechanism 10 is arranged, purely exemplarily, at the base plate 5 of the suction gripper 3, which input mechanism comprises an operating lever 11 and a switch assembly 12 and which input mechanism is configured for inputting an operating request by an operator, not shown in more detail. It is provided by way of example that the operating lever 11 is connected to the switch assembly 12 in such a way that an operating request in the sense of a lifting or lowering movement for the load 2 can be input by a pivoting movement of the operating lever 11. The switch assembly 12 is connected via a signal line 15 to a control mechanism 16, which is described in more detail below in connection with fig. 2.

In order to convert an operating request given at the input mechanism 10 into a movement of the load 2, the fluid actuator 4, which is configured purely exemplarily as a pneumatic cylinder, comprises a cylinder housing 17, which can also be referred to as a first actuating part, and in which a cylinder recess 18 is configured, in which a working piston 19 is movably received. Here, the working piston 19 is received in a fluid-tight manner in the cylinder recess 18 and, together with the cylinder housing 17, delimits a variable-size working space 20.

In order to connect the linearly movably mounted working piston 19 to the suction gripper 3, a piston rod 21, also referred to as a second actuating element, is provided, which is fastened to the working piston 19 and to the base plate 5 of the suction gripper 3, respectively, and which passes through the cylinder housing 17 in a sealing manner. The linear movement of the working piston 19 along the cylinder axis 14 can thus be converted non-indirectly into an equivalent linear movement of the suction gripper 3. A fluid connection 21, a pressure sensor 23 and a position sensor 24 are associated with the cylinder housing, wherein a fluid line 25 is arranged at the fluid connection 22, which is designed for a communication connection to a valve mechanism 26. The pressure sensor 23 is connected to the control mechanism 16 via a signal line 27, and the position sensor 24 is connected to the control mechanism 16 via a signal line 28.

Purely by way of example, it is provided that a ring magnet 29 is arranged at the working piston 19, which ring magnet is designed to provide a magnetic flux, wherein the provided magnetic flux can be detected by the position sensor 24 and can be converted into a position signal, which can be transmitted as an analog signal or as a digital signal to the control unit 16 via the signal line 28.

The pressure sensor 23 detects the pressure in the working space 20 and supplies an analog or digital electrical signal to the control unit 16 for use via a signal line 27.

The valve means 26 is connected to the control means 16 via a control line 30, wherein the valve means 26 can comprise one or more proportional valves, not shown, in order to be able to convert a control signal provided by the control line 30 into a fluid flow of a working fluid, in particular compressed air, in order to thereby effect an influence on the working pressure in the working space 20.

For this purpose, the valve mechanism 26 is connected in fluid-communicating manner with a compressed air source 31 via a connecting line 32, and the valve mechanism 26 is also connected with a fluid discharge 33 via a discharge line 34 in order to achieve the discharge of the pressurized fluid from the working space 20, the fluid discharge 33 being provided here purely exemplarily with a muffler.

The underpressure source 9 is likewise connected in fluid communication with the compressed air source 31 via a connecting line 32, and the underpressure source 9 comprises, purely by way of example, in addition to a control valve, which is not shown in greater detail, which is electrically connected to the control means 16 via a control line 35, an ejector, which is also not shown in greater detail, in order to achieve a conversion of the compressed air provided by the compressed air source 31 into underpressure. A negative pressure generated by an ejector, not shown in greater detail, can then be provided to the suction gripper 3 via the fluid line 8.

It is provided by way of example that the fluid actuator 3 is fastened with its cylinder housing 17 to a boom (Konsole) 36, also referred to as a base body, which is received in a purely exemplary manner in a horizontally linearly movable manner on a support rail 37, so that the displacement of the manipulator 1 can take place, for example, parallel to a floor region, not shown, of a building, also not shown.

The functional manner of the manipulator 1 for transporting the load 2 can be described as follows:

it is provided by way of example that the load 2 is transported by means of the manipulator 1 from a first storage position into a second storage position, wherein the first storage position and the second storage position are arranged such that the load 2 can be lifted in the vertical direction by means of the manipulator 1 in the first storage position and can be transported in the course of a linear movement along the carrying track 37 into the second storage position. For this purpose, in a first step the manipulator 1 is arranged above the load 2 by an operator, not shown in more detail, in such a way that the suction gripper 3 is arranged above the surface of the load 2, which is not marked in more detail. In a subsequent step, the operator can request a lowering movement of the suction gripper 3 by entering an operating request at the input mechanism 10. For this purpose, it can be provided, for example, that the operator pivots the operating lever 11 downward in the counterclockwise direction, as shown in fig. 1, as a result of which the switch assembly 12 is actuated and the introduced operating request is relayed as an electrical signal to the control device 16 via the signal line 15. The detection of the operating request and the actuation of the valve mechanism 26 are carried out in the control mechanism 16 in order to cause a reduction in the pressure of the working fluid present there in the working space 20 and thus a desired sinking movement for the suction gripper 3 due to the weight of the working piston 19, the piston rod 21 and the suction gripper 3 until said suction gripper rests with the suction disk 6 against the surface of the load 2.

Furthermore, by inputting an operating request at the input means 10, it is also possible to activate the vacuum source 9 via the control means 16, so that the suction cup 6 adheres to the load 2 when it strikes the surface of the load 2 and there is thus a releasable coupling between the suction gripper 3 and the load 2.

In the event that an operating request is subsequently further input at the input mechanism 10 in the clockwise direction (for example by introducing a swiveling movement) to the operating lever 11 in accordance with the illustration in fig. 1, the operator can cause a lifting of the load 2 by means of the manipulator 1. For this purpose, a corresponding control signal is supplied from the switch assembly 12 via the signal line 15 to the control device 16, so that, by the targeted actuation of the valve device 26, said control device brings about an increase in the pressure of the working fluid in the working space 20 and thus can bring about a linear displacement of the working piston 19 and thus of the suction gripper 3.

Once the load 2 has been lifted by the manipulator 1, a displacement of the load 2 along the extension of the carrying rail 37 can be performed in order then to sink the load 2 again at the new storage position by a renewed input of the operating request at the input mechanism 10, wherein the sinking movement is performed by lowering the pressure of the working fluid in the working space 20.

In principle, it would be possible to execute an operating request for a lifting movement or a lowering movement, which is input at the input means 10, by directly coupling the input means 10 with the valve means 26, without the control means 16 being omitted. However, a problem situation arises here in that the operator must perform a very careful (feinf uhige) input of his operating request in order to avoid too sudden lifting or sinking of the load.

In contrast, in order to ensure comfortable and safe operation of the manipulator 1, it is provided that the operating requests entered at the input 10 are processed in the control unit 16 in a manner described in more detail below and that the valve mechanism 26 is actuated as a result of said processing. The manipulator 1 thus does not require the operator to pay special attention to the transport process of the load 2, whereby safe handling of the load 2 is also supported, since the operator can concentrate, for example, on avoiding a collision with the load 2.

In order to be able to ensure a comfortable and safe execution of the lifting and sinking processes, the control device 16 is configured as shown purely schematically in fig. 2:

purely exemplarily, the control means 16 comprises a first input coupling 40 connected to the input means 10 via a signal line 15, a second input coupling 41 connected to the pressure sensor 23 via a signal line 27, a third input coupling 42 connected to the position sensor 24 via a signal line 28, and an output coupling 43 connected to the valve assembly 26 via the control line 30.

Purely exemplarily, the input signals arriving at the input connections 40 to 42 and the control signals supplied at the output connection 43 are each present as electrical signals.

For processing the input signals and outputting the control signals, the control means 16 can, for example, comprise a microprocessor which is not shown in more detail. Software can be run (aufgespielt) on the microprocessor, which software processes the incoming input signals and generates therefrom control signals, which are supplied at the output connection 43.

The schematic illustration according to fig. 2 represents a system for processing input signals and thus represents an important function (programming) of the software of the microprocessor.

It is provided by way of example that the control unit 16 comprises three functional blocks 44, 45, 46, which are coupled to one another for signal processing in order to achieve a desired determination and output of the control signal for the valve unit 26.

Purely exemplarily, the first functional block 44 is configured for simulating a behavior of the manipulator 1 and for enabling an output of an estimated position value x-est (x-estimate).

The second functional block 45 is configured for correcting the estimate of the mass of the load 2 and for outputting an estimated mass value m-est (m-estimate).

The third functional block 46 is provided for regulating the pressure in the working space 20 and for outputting a control signal p-solwell (p-setpoint), which is converted in the valve mechanism 26 into a corresponding valve position in order to provide the required pressure in the working space 20.

Based on the foregoing description of the functional manner of the manipulator 1, the signal processing in the control mechanism 16 can be described as follows:

an operating request input by the operator at the input means 10 arrives as an input signal S-d (S-desired) of the input means 10 at the input coupling 40 and is directed to the function block 46. It is provided as an example that the purpose of the operation request is to lift up, for example, a load 2 that has not yet been lifted up in a subsequent step. For this purpose, a control signal is supplied by the function block 46 to the output connection 43 in order to initiate actuation of the valve mechanism 26. Since no information about the mass of the load 2 to be lifted is available at this point in time, the mass value stored in the control unit 16 is used as an example to determine a control signal by means of which the pressure change in the working space 20 is predetermined.

As the pressure in the working space 20 increases, the value of the pressure signal measured by the pressure sensor 23 increases, which is provided at the input connection 41. The arriving pressure signal p-r (p-actual) is multiplied by a correction factor k1 for further processing in the control unit 16 in order to calculate the actually acting force F-r (F-actual) over system parameters such as, for example, the effective piston area of the working piston 19 in the working space 20. The assumed gravitational force F-est (F-estimate) is subtracted from the actual applied force F-r, and is determined in a manner described in more detail below.

The resulting force F-diff (F-difference) determined from the difference is supplied to a function block 44, in which function block 44 a simulation of the movement behaviour of the manipulator 1 is stored. The simulation enables an estimation of the change in position x-est (x-estimate) of the suction gripper 3 along the cylinder axis 14, covering the resultant force F-r. The estimated position change x-est is subtracted from the actual position x-r (x-actual) provided as an input signal to the position sensor 24 at the input connection 42 and is supplied as a position error x-diff (x-difference) to the function block 45 for correcting the assumed mass.

If, for example, a position error x diff is present, which indicates that the assumed mass for the load 2 is smaller than the actual mass of the load 2, an increase in the value of the assumed mass for the load 2 is carried out in a functional block 45. The corrected value m-est (m-estimate) for the assumed mass is supplied to the function block 46 on the one hand and, after multiplication by the gravitational acceleration g, on the other hand to the previously described difference from the actual force F-p.

As a result, the determination of the mass of the load 2 can be carried out in an approximate manner by means of the described behavior in the control unit 16, covering the pressure signal of the pressure sensor 23 and the position signal of the position sensor 24, without the mass of the load 2 having to be measured indirectly for this purpose. Accordingly, the manipulator 1 can be operated without a load measuring or weighing cell.

More precisely, the function block 44 with the simulation of the movement behavior of the actuator and the function block 45 with the correction of the assumed mass form an observer system, by means of which the mass of the load 2 can be determined efficiently and precisely purely on the basis of mathematical algorithms, whereby an advantageous provision of control signals at the output connection 43 can be made for actuating the valve mechanism 26.

Claims (11)

1. A control device (1) for supporting a manual movement of a load (2), having a base body (36), having a load receiving means (3) for receiving the load (2), which is movably connected to the base body (36), having a fluid actuator (4) for introducing a relative movement between the base body (36) and the load receiving means (3), which fluid actuator comprises a first actuating part (17) connected to the base body (36) and a second actuating part (21) connected to the load receiving means (3), wherein the first actuating part (17) and the second actuating part (21) are movably connected to one another in relation to one another and delimit a variable-sized working space (20) which can be loaded with a working fluid, having a position sensor mechanism (24) for detecting the relative position of the second actuating part (21) in relation to the first actuating part (17), having a pressure sensor (23) for detecting a pressure in the working space (20), having a control signal input (26) for providing a control signal to an operator for controlling a valve (10), and having a control mechanism (26) for providing a control signal to the control mechanism (10), the valve mechanism is configured for providing a working fluid to the working space (20) in dependence on the control signal, wherein the control mechanism (16) is configured for determining the control signal in dependence on an operating signal of the input mechanism (10) and a position signal of the position sensor mechanism (24) and a pressure signal of the pressure sensor (23), and wherein the control mechanism (16) is configured for calculating a mass of a load (2) received at the load receiving mechanism (3) from the position signal and the pressure signal and for taking into account the calculated mass when determining the control signal.

2. Manipulator according to claim 1, characterized in that the position sensor mechanism (24) comprises a first position sensor for providing a first position signal and a second position sensor for providing a second position signal, and in that the position sensor mechanism (24) or the control mechanism (16) is configured for processing the first and second position signals into the position signal.

3. The manipulator according to claim 1, characterized in that the control means (16) are configured for determining the control signal solely on the basis of the operating signal of the input means (10) and the position signal of the position sensor means (24) and the pressure signal of the pressure sensor (23).

4. The control device as claimed in claim 3, characterized in that the control means (16) are configured to compare a movement behavior of the load (2) simulated by means of the position signal and the pressure signal with an actual movement behavior of the load (2) determined by means of the position signal and the pressure signal in order to determine a mass of the load (2) received at the load receiving means (3).

5. The manipulator according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the control means (16) are configured for internally determining the mass of the load (2) received at the load receiving means (3) without covering the load signal of the load measuring unit.

6. Method for operating a manipulator (1) for moving a load (2), comprising the following steps: detecting an operator's actuating request by means of an input device (10) and providing an actuating signal to a control device (16), determining a working pressure for the working fluid in a working space (20) of the fluid actuator (4) by means of a pressure signal of a pressure sensor (23) associated with the fluid actuator (4), determining a relative position of a second actuating part (21) of the fluid actuator (4) with respect to a first actuating part (17) of the fluid actuator (4) by means of a position signal of a position sensor device (24) associated with the fluid actuator (4), changing the working pressure in the working space (20) as a function of the actuating signal by actuating a valve device (26) by means of the control signal provided by the control device (16), whereby a change in the position of the load (2) received at a load receiving means (3) which is movable by the fluid actuator (4) corresponds to the operating signal, wherein the control means (16) determines the control signal as a function of the operating signal and the pressure signal and the position signal, and wherein, in the control means (16), for determining the control signal, a mass calculation of the load (2) received at the load receiving means (3) is carried out in such a way that the simulation of the movement behavior of the load (2) by means of the position signal and the pressure signal and the simulation by means of the position signal and the pressure signal correspond to the operating signal The actual movement behaviour determined by the pressure signal is compared.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein a first processing of a first position signal of a first position sensor and a second processing of a second position signal of a second position sensor are performed in the position sensor mechanism (24) or in the control mechanism (16), and wherein the control mechanism (16) is configured for processing the first position signal and the second position signal into a common position signal.

8. Method according to claim 6, characterized in that the control means (16) determine the control signal solely on the basis of the operating signal and the pressure signal and the position signal.

9. Method according to claim 6 or 7, characterized in that the control means (16) determine the control signal in dependence on the operating signal and the pressure signal and the position signal without covering a load signal.

10. Method according to claim 6 or 7, characterized in that the control means (16) only internally determine the mass of the load (2) received at the load receiving means (3).

11. Method according to claim 10, characterized in that the control means (16) only internally determine the mass of the load (2) received at the load receiving means (3) without covering the load signal of the load measuring unit.

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