JP2005150575A - Double arm type robot - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a double arm type robot which can carry out the movement of two horizontal multi-joint arms mutually independently including vertical movement. <P>SOLUTION: In the double arm type robot having two multi-joint arms 5A, 5B in upper and lower parts which are connected rotatively by a joint part, transmit rotation forces by a rotation driving source and carry out desired movement, two arm supporting structures 4A, 4B supporting two multi-joint arms 5A, 5B, respectively, are connected to movement mechanisms 1A, 1B for enabling the two arm supporting structures 4A, 4B to move up and down mutually independently. By such a constitution, the two multi-joint arms 5A, 5B can carry out not only the unique joint movement of each multi-joint arm but also its vertical movement mutually independently. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a robot that conveys a thin plate-like workpiece such as a glass substrate, and more particularly, to a double arm robot that carries in and out a workpiece by two arms.

  Conventionally, a so-called double-arm robot having two articulated arms for gripping and transporting a workpiece has been used for transporting a thin plate-like workpiece such as a glass substrate for liquid crystal or a semiconductor wafer. Each of the two multi-joint arms is rotatably connected by a joint portion, and transmits a rotational force from a rotational drive source such as a motor so that a desired operation is performed. If two arms for gripping and transporting a workpiece are provided in this way, for example, when loading a workpiece into or out of the stocker, one arm is used for loading, and the other By using this arm for unloading, there is an effect that the loading operation and unloading operation of the workpiece can be performed simultaneously by a single double arm type robot, and space saving and cycle time can be shortened. .

As the configuration of the two articulated arms in the double arm type robot, the initial one is as shown in FIGS. The rotating shafts of these were arranged differently. However, in the invention disclosed in Patent Document 1, the rotation axes of the base ends of the two horizontal articulated arms are arranged coaxially, and as a result, the two horizontal articulated arms are arranged one above the other. The double-arm robot was designed to be small and space-saving.
JP 2001-274218 A

  However, the invention according to Patent Document 1 described above has the following problems. In the invention according to Patent Document 1, the base ends of the two horizontal articulated arms are connected to a movable member that can move in the vertical direction, thereby enabling the vertical movement of the two horizontal articulated arms. However, in the invention according to Patent Document 1, the vertical distance between the two horizontal articulated arms is constant and the vertical movement of the two horizontal articulated arms is a mechanism that is performed simultaneously. There is a problem that the movements of the horizontal articulated arm including can not be performed independently of each other. For example, when a double-arm robot is used to carry out a work from a stocker having a multistage storage shelf, the pitch (interval) between any two storage shelves for carrying out the work is the vertical direction of two horizontal articulated arms. It does not necessarily match the interval. Therefore, in this case, after carrying out the work stored in the first storage shelf on one of the two horizontal articulated arms, the two horizontal articulated arms are moved up and down by the moving member, Thereafter, the work stored in the second storage shelf is carried out by the other horizontal articulated arm. Therefore, although it has two horizontal articulated arms, there is a problem that the work cannot be carried out simultaneously from any two storage shelves, and the cycle time becomes long.

  By the way, with the recent increase in demand and increase in size of liquid crystal monitors, semi-finished liquid crystal substrates in production lines tend to increase in size. In order for the double arm robot to cope with the increase in size of the liquid crystal substrate, it is necessary to have high mechanical rigidity. However, the invention according to Patent Document 1 has a structure in which two horizontal articulated arms are connected to each other at one side of the moving member, that is, a cantilevered structure. When the load applied to is increased, there is a problem in rigidity in a structure in which two horizontal articulated arms are connected by a single moving member in a cantilever manner.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and is a double-arm robot capable of performing the operations of two horizontal articulated arms independently of each other, including the vertical movement thereof. The purpose is to provide. It is another object of the present invention to provide a double arm type robot having high mechanical rigidity.

  In order to achieve the above-described object, in the invention according to claim 1, a multi-joint that is rotatably connected by a joint part and transmits a rotational force by a rotational drive source to perform a desired operation. In a double arm robot with two arms at the top and bottom, the two arm support structures that support the two articulated arms can move up and down independently of each other. Provided is a double arm robot characterized in that it is connected to a moving mechanism for making it move. By adopting such a configuration, regarding the operations of the two multi-joint arms, not only the joint operations unique to each multi-joint arm but also the vertical movement thereof can be performed independently of each other.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, the moving mechanism is configured to slide up and down two struts and a connected member provided on each of the two struts. A linear motion guide for enabling movement and an actuator for moving a member connected to the linear motion guide along the linear motion guide are used. With this configuration, the two arm support structures that respectively support the two multi-joint arms can move up and down while being so-called both supported by the linear motion guides provided on each of the two columns. become.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the second aspect of the invention, the moving mechanism including the two support columns is placed on a pedestal, and the pedestal is centered on the horizontal intermediate position of the two support columns. It has a turning mechanism for enabling rotation around a vertical axis. With such a configuration, the operation range of the double arm type robot is expanded.

  In the invention according to claim 4, in the invention according to claim 3, the pedestal is placed on a base, and the pedestal is movable on the base in a horizontal direction. With this configuration, the double arm type robot main body can be moved.

  Further, in the invention according to claim 5, in the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 4, the rotation axis of the joint shaft connected to the arm support structure in the multi-joint arm is the two multi-joints. The arms were coaxial with each other. With this configuration, even when the two multi-joint arms are turned by the rotation of the pedestal, the rotation axes of the joint shafts connected to the arm support structure in the two multi-joint arms are coaxial with each other. The entire robot can be turned with a small turning radius.

  Furthermore, in the invention according to claim 6, in the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 5, the two articulated arms are supported by the two arm support structures so as to face each other. It was supposed to be. By adopting such a configuration, it is possible to reduce the minimum approach interval in the vertical direction between the two articulated arms.

  The invention according to claim 7 is the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the two articulated arms are a horizontal articulated arm comprising a plurality of articulated shafts rotatable about a vertical axis. did. Generally, in the horizontal articulated arm, the vertical height of the structure constituting each joint axis is smaller than that of the vertical articulated arm. Therefore, by adopting such a configuration, it is possible to reduce the minimum approach interval in the vertical direction between the two articulated arms.

  According to the double arm type robot of the first aspect, regarding the operations of the two articulated arms, not only the articulated motions unique to each articulated arm but also the vertical motions thereof can be performed independently of each other. became. Therefore, the work can be performed in parallel by the two articulated arms, so that the work can be performed efficiently.

  According to the double arm type robot according to claim 2, the two arm support structures that respectively support the two articulated arms are so-called both supported by the linear motion guides provided on the two columns. However, since it moved up and down, it has higher mechanical rigidity than that of the prior art which is a cantilever mechanism.

  According to the double arm type robot according to the third aspect, since the operation range of the double arm type robot is expanded, the conveyance range of the work conveyed by the articulated arm is expanded. In addition, the operating range of the double arm type robot can be expanded without increasing the size of the articulated arm itself.

  According to the double arm type robot according to the fourth aspect, since the double arm type robot main body can be moved, the conveyance range of the workpiece conveyed by the articulated arm is remarkably expanded.

  According to the double arm type robot of the fifth aspect, even when the two articulated arms are turned by the rotation of the pedestal, the double arm robot as a whole can be turned with a small turning radius. Even when two multi-joint arms turn while holding a workpiece, it is possible to turn with a small turning radius.

  According to the double arm type robot according to the sixth aspect, since it is possible to reduce the minimum approach distance in the vertical direction between the two articulated arms, for example, a plurality of storage shelves are provided vertically for substrate storage. In the work loading / unloading work to / from the stocker, two horizontal articulated arms can load and unload each work at the same time even if the vertical distance between the two works housed in the stocker is close. It became possible.

  According to the double arm type robot according to the seventh aspect, the minimum approach interval in the vertical direction between the two articulated arms can be reduced, so that it is the same as the double arm type robot according to the sixth aspect described above. The effect was obtained.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the overall structure of a double arm type robot according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a horizontal cross-sectional view of the gate-type structure portion of the double arm type robot according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  In FIG. 1, 10 is a base fixedly installed on the installation surface. The pedestal 10 is connected to a lower fastening plate 11 having a substantially rectangular flat plate shape. The pedestal 10 has a turning mechanism (not shown), whereby the lower fastening plate 11 turns around a vertical axis with respect to the installation surface. Further, at the both ends in the longitudinal direction of the lower fastening plate 11 of the substantially rectangular flat plate shape, the substantially rectangular left column 1A and the right column 1B constituting the moving mechanism are respectively perpendicular to the installation surface. It is attached to become. Further, an upper fastening plate 12 having a mesh structure is attached to the upper ends of the left column 1A and the right column 1B as a whole, although it has a substantially rectangular flat plate shape as a whole.

  Thus, the structure in which the portal structure composed of the lower fastening plate 11, the left column 1A, the right column 1B, and the upper fastening plate 12 rotates about the vertical axis with respect to the pedestal 10 placed on the installation surface. It has become. The reason why the above-described upper fastening plate 12 has a mesh structure is that when the double arm robot according to the present embodiment is installed in a clean room such as a semiconductor manufacturing factory, the flow of air circulating in the clean room is not blocked. Therefore, the mesh structure itself is not the gist of the present embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 2, linear motion guides 2 </ b> A and 2 </ b> B for movement in the vertical direction (vertical direction) are provided on the left column 1 </ b> A described above as a moving mechanism. Similarly, linear motion guides 3A and 3B for moving in the vertical direction (vertical direction) are provided on the right column 1B described above as a moving mechanism. The lower arm supporting structure 4A is connected to the linear motion guide 2A of the left column 1A and the linear motion guide 3A of the right column 1B except for both ends. Similarly, an upper arm supporting structure 4B having a substantially rectangular flat plate shape is connected to the linear motion guide 2B of the left column 1A and the linear motion guide 3B of the right column 1B except for both ends thereof. Further, the left column 1A is provided with a ball screw 6B directly connected to a motor (not shown) as an actuator, and the linear motion guide 2B described above is fastened to the ball screw 6B by a fastener 7B. Similarly, the right column 1B is provided with a ball screw 6A directly connected to a motor (not shown) as an actuator different from the motor for driving the above-described ball screw 6B. The motion guide 3A is fastened.

  Accordingly, the lower arm support structure 4A provided between the left column 1A and the right column 1B moves in the vertical direction by driving the ball screw 6A. Similarly, the upper arm support structure 4B provided between the left column 1A and the right column 1B moves in the vertical direction by driving the ball screw 6B. Thus, the lower arm support structure 4A and the upper arm support structure 4B move up and down independently of each other by the separate ball screws 6A and 6B.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a horizontal articulated arm 5A is provided on the upper surface of the lower arm supporting structure 4A, while a horizontal articulated arm 5B is provided on the lower surface of the upper arm supporting structure 4B. . Thus, in this embodiment, both horizontal articulated arms 5A and 5B are supported by the two arm support structures 4A and 4B so as to face each other. Fork-shaped workpiece holding hands 8A and 8B on which a glass substrate as a workpiece can be placed are attached to the respective distal ends of the horizontal articulated arms 5A and 5B. The horizontal articulated arms 5A and 5B have a structure in which two arms are rotatably connected by three joint portions to transmit a rotational force from a rotational drive source such as a motor (not shown).

  Therefore, by driving each joint at a constant ratio by a drive source (not shown) in the horizontal articulated arms 5A and 5B, the fork-shaped work holding hands 8A and 8B described above are moved in the front-rear direction, that is, the left and right columns 1A and 1B. A linear motion is performed in a direction orthogonal to the connecting line. In addition, as the above-described rotational force transmission mechanism in the horizontal articulated arms 5A and 5B, for example, a known technique in which a timing pulley is provided in each joint portion and the timing pulleys are connected by a timing belt is used. Can be used.

  With the above configuration, in the double arm type robot according to the present embodiment, the workpiece such as the glass substrate placed on the workpiece holding hands 8A and 8B is moved in the front-rear direction by the operation of the horizontal articulated arms 5A and 5B. The upper arm supporting structure 4A and the upper arm supporting structure 4B are moved up and down, and further, the base 10 is turned around the vertical axis with respect to the installation surface. Thereby, the double arm type robot according to the present embodiment can transport non-conveyed objects between a processing machine (not shown), a stocker, and other transport devices arranged within the operation range.

  The lower arm support structure 4A and the upper arm support structure 4B described above have shapes having side portions that protrude alternately as shown in FIG. Thereby, while maintaining high mechanical rigidity, the distance between the arm supporting structures 4A and 4B, that is, the vertical distance between the horizontal articulated arms 5A and 5B can be set to a minimum.

  Further, the rotation axis of the joint shaft connected to the lower arm support structure 4A of the horizontal multi-joint arm 5A and the rotation axis of the joint shaft connected to the upper arm support structure 4B of the horizontal multi-joint arm 5B Even when the portal structure composed of the lower fastening plate 11, the left support column 1A, the right support column 1B, and the upper fastening plate 12 is turned by the rotation of the pedestal 10, the entire double arm robot is obtained. Makes it possible to turn it with a small turning radius. For this reason, even when the two horizontal articulated arms 5A and 5B turn while holding the workpiece together with their hands 8A and 8B, it is possible to turn with a small turning radius.

  Next, operations (operations) and effects of the double arm type robot according to the present embodiment will be described in comparison with the conventional technique according to Patent Document 1 described above. Here, both are compared about the operation | work which carries out thin plate-like workpieces, such as a glass substrate stored in each storage shelf, from the stocker which has a plurality of storage shelves for storing a work in the up-and-down direction.

  First, the case where the double arm type robot in the prior art according to Patent Document 1 described above is used will be described with reference to FIG. 4 and FIG. Here, FIG. 4 illustrates an operation when the workpieces 31 and 32 stored in different storage shelves in the stocker 30 are carried out using the double arm type robot in the related art according to Patent Document 1. It is explanatory drawing for. FIG. 4 is a vertical sectional view of the two horizontal articulated arms 22A and 22B and the stocker 30 as viewed from the side. FIG. 5 is a cycle diagram showing the back-and-forth movement and the vertical movement in the operation according to the explanatory diagram of FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 4, in the conventional double arm robot according to Patent Document 1, the lower horizontal articulated arm 22 </ b> A and the upper horizontal articulated arm 22 </ b> B are both attached to the same fastening structure 21. ing. Therefore, the vertical movement between the lower horizontal articulated arm 22A and the upper horizontal articulated arm 22B cannot be changed, and the vertical movement of the two horizontal articulated arms 22A and 22B is not limited. It will be done at the same time.

  When the workpieces 31 and 32 stored in different storage shelves in the stocker 30 shown in FIG. 4 are carried out using the double arm type robot in the prior art according to Patent Document 1, the double arm in the prior art is used. The arm type robot performs the operations described below.

  First, in a state where the work holding hand 23A attached to the tip of the lower horizontal articulated arm 22A is not inserted into the stocker 30, a lower horizontal articulated arm is operated by operating a vertical movement mechanism (not shown). 22A is moved up and down to the height of the work 31 stored in the stocker 30 (101 in FIG. 5). Next, the work holding hand 23A is advanced into the stocker 30 by operating each joint axis of the lower horizontal multi-joint arm 22A (102 in FIG. 5). When this forward movement is completed, the work holding hand 23A is positioned immediately below the work 31 stored in the stocker 30. Next, the work 31 is placed on the work holding hand 23A by operating a vertical movement mechanism (not shown) (103 in FIG. 5). Next, by operating each joint axis of the lower horizontal articulated arm 22A, the work holding hand 23A is retracted out of the stocker 30 (104 in FIG. 5). Thereby, the unloading of the work 31 stored in one of the storage shelves in the stocker 30 is completed.

  Next, when the work holding hand 23B attached to the tip of the upper horizontal articulated arm 22B is not inserted into the stocker 30, the upper horizontal articulated arm 22B is moved by operating a vertical movement mechanism (not shown). The workpiece 32 is moved up and down to the height of the workpiece 32 stored in the stocker 30 (105 in FIG. 5). Next, by operating each joint axis of the upper horizontal articulated arm 22B, the work holding hand 23B is advanced into the stocker 30 (106 in FIG. 5). When this advancement is completed, the work holding hand 23B is positioned immediately below the work 32 stored in the stocker 30. Next, the workpiece 32 is placed on the workpiece holding hand 23B by operating a vertical movement mechanism (not shown) (107 in FIG. 5). Next, by operating each joint axis of the upper horizontal articulated arm 22B, the work holding hand 23B is moved backward out of the stocker 30 (108 in FIG. 5). Thereby, the unloading of the work 32 stored in one of the storage shelves in the stocker 30 is completed.

  As described above, when the two-arm robot in the prior art according to Patent Document 1 is used to carry out two workpieces stored in different storage shelves in the stocker, 101 to 108 in FIG. As shown in FIG. 8, eight cycles (steps) are required. As described above, in the double-arm robot in the prior art according to Patent Document 1, the vertical distance between the lower horizontal articulated arm 22A and the upper horizontal articulated arm 22B can be changed. Furthermore, since these two horizontal articulated arms 22A and 22B are moved up and down at the same time, the work of carrying out the two workpieces cannot be performed in parallel.

  Next, the case where the double arm type robot in this embodiment is used will be described with reference to FIGS. Here, FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the operation when the workpieces 35 and 36 stored in different storage shelves in the stocker 34 are carried out using the double arm type robot in the present embodiment. It is. FIG. 6 is a vertical sectional view of the two horizontal articulated arms 5A and 5B, the stocker 34, and the like when viewed from the side. FIG. 7 is a cycle diagram showing the back-and-forth movement and the vertical movement in the operation according to the explanatory diagram of FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 6, in the double arm type robot in the present embodiment, the lower horizontal articulated arm 5A and the upper horizontal articulated arm 5B are the lower arm supporting structure 4A and the separate structures. The upper arm support structure 4B is attached to the upper arm support structure 4B, and the lower arm support structure 4A and the upper arm support structure 4B are operable by separate actuators (motor and ball screw). Therefore, the vertical movement between the lower horizontal articulated arm 5A and the upper horizontal articulated arm 5B can be changed, and the vertical movement of the two horizontal articulated arms 5A and 5B can be changed. It will be done independently of each other.

  When the workpieces 35 and 36 stored in different storage shelves in the stocker 34 shown in FIG. 6 are carried out using the double arm type robot in this embodiment, the double arm type robot in this embodiment is used. Will perform the operations described below.

  First, when the work holding hand 8A attached to the tip of the lower horizontal articulated arm 5A is not inserted into the stocker 34, the above-described ball screw 6A shown in FIG. The horizontal articulated arm 5A is moved up and down to the height of the workpiece 35 accommodated in the stocker 34. In parallel with the vertical movement of the lower horizontal articulated arm 5A, the vertical movement of the upper horizontal articulated arm 5B is also performed. That is, when the work holding hand 8B attached to the tip of the upper horizontal articulated arm 5B is not inserted into the stocker 34, the above-described ball screw 6B shown in FIG. The joint arm 5B is moved up and down to the height of the workpiece 36 stored in the stocker 34. (201 in FIG. 7).

  Next, the work holding hand 8A is advanced into the stocker 34 by operating each joint shaft of the lower horizontal multi-joint arm 5A. In parallel with the forward movement of the lower horizontal articulated arm 5A, the forward movement of the upper horizontal articulated arm 5B is also performed. That is, the work holding hand 8B is advanced into the stocker 34 by operating each joint axis of the upper horizontal articulated arm 5B. (202 in FIG. 7). When the advancement of the horizontal articulated arms 5A and 5B is completed, the workpiece holding hand 8A is positioned immediately below the workpiece 35 stored in the stocker 34, and the workpiece holding hand 8B is stored in the stocker 34. It will be located directly under the workpiece 36.

  Next, the workpiece 35 is placed on the workpiece holding hand 8A by operating the above-described ball screw 6A shown in FIG. In parallel with the operation of the ball screw 6A, the operation of the ball screw 6B is also performed. That is, the work 36 is placed on the work holding hand 8B by operating the above-described ball screw 6B shown in FIG. (203 in FIG. 7).

  Next, by operating each joint axis of the lower horizontal multi-joint arm 5 </ b> A, the work holding hand 8 </ b> A is retracted out of the stocker 34. In parallel with the backward movement of the lower horizontal articulated arm 5A, the backward movement of the upper horizontal articulated arm 5B is also performed. That is, by operating each joint axis of the upper horizontal articulated arm 5 </ b> B, the work holding hand 8 </ b> B is retracted out of the stocker 34. (204 in FIG. 7). Thereby, the simultaneous carry-out of the two works 35 and 36 stored in separate storage shelves in the stocker 34 is completed.

  As described above, when carrying out two workpieces stored in different storage shelves in the stocker using the double arm type robot in the present embodiment, as shown in 201 to 204 in FIG. Four cycles (steps) are sufficient. As described above, in the double arm type robot according to the present embodiment, the lower horizontal multi-joint arm 5A and the upper horizontal multi-joint arm 5B are different structures, ie, the lower arm support structure 4A. And the lower arm support structure 4A and the upper arm support structure 4B can be operated independently from each other by separate actuators (ball screws 6A and 6B). Because.

  Therefore, when the double arm type robot according to the present embodiment is compared with the prior art according to Patent Document 1 described above, the number of cycles in the prior art according to Patent Document 1 is 8 cycles. In the embodiment, the number of cycles is four. As a result, the double arm type robot according to this embodiment has a shorter cycle time than that of the prior art according to Patent Document 1.

  As described above, according to the double arm type robot according to the present embodiment, the two horizontal articulated arms 5A and 5B can be operated independently of each other including the vertical movement. The work can be efficiently performed in the work loading / unloading work to / from the stocker having a plurality of storage shelves in the direction. Further, according to the double arm type robot according to the present embodiment, the lower arm support structure 4A and the upper arm support structure 4B that support the two multi-joint arms 5A and 5B each have two columnar structures. Since it is connected to a moving mechanism having an object (the left column 1A and the right column 1B), it becomes a so-called dual-supported mechanism and has a higher mechanical rigidity than that of the prior art Patent Document 1 which is a cantilever mechanism. It becomes.

  The embodiment according to the present invention has been described above. In the above-described embodiment, the pedestal 10 is fixedly installed on the installation surface. Instead, the pedestal 10 has a moving mechanism for moving the pedestal 10 in the horizontal direction with respect to the installation surface. You may make it mount the base 10 on the base which does not carry out. With such a configuration, the double arm type robot main body moves on the base, so that the work can be moved over a wide range without expanding the operation range of the horizontal articulated arms 5A and 5B itself. Become. Thereby, for example, it is possible to carry a workpiece even between stockers arranged at positions separated from each other.

  In the above-described embodiment, the arm supporting structures 4A and 4B are moved in the vertical direction by driving ball screws 6A and 6B connected to a motor (not shown) as an actuator. However, the present invention is not limited to such a form. Examples of the form of the actuator for moving the arm supporting structures 4A and 4B in the vertical direction include, for example, a belt connected to a motor, It may be a cylinder.

  Further, in the embodiment described above, the pedestal 10 has a turning mechanism, whereby the portal structure including the lower fastening plate 11, the left column 1A, the right column 1B, and the upper fastening plate 12 is provided on the installation surface. On the other hand, it turned around the vertical axis. However, when the workpiece only needs to be conveyed in the vertical direction, for example, when the workpiece is moved vertically from the stocker provided in the lower stage to the stocker provided in the upper stage, the mechanism for turning the aforementioned gate-type structure is used. In this case, the pedestal 10 does not need to be provided with a turning mechanism.

  In the above-described embodiment, the rotation axis of the joint shaft connected to the lower arm support structure 4A of the horizontal articulated arm 5A and the upper arm support structure 4B of the horizontal articulated arm 5B are connected. The rotation axes of the joint axes are coaxial with each other. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and it is not necessary that the two rotation shafts described above be coaxial. However, by making the two rotation shafts coaxial, as described above, even when the two horizontal articulated arms 5A and 5B swivel together with their hands 8A and 8B while turning the workpiece, they turn with a small turning radius. It becomes possible to make it.

  In the above-described embodiment, the articulated arm 5A is provided on the upper surface of the lower arm supporting structure 4A, and the articulated arm 5B is provided on the lower surface of the upper arm supporting structure 4B. That is, both the articulated arms 5A and 5B are supported by the two arm supporting structures 4A and 4B so as to face each other. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the articulated arm 5A may be provided on the lower surface of the lower arm supporting structure 4A, or the articulated arm may be provided on the upper surface of the upper arm supporting structure 4B. An arm 5B may be provided. However, if the two multi-joint arms 5A and 5B are supported by the two arm support structures 4A and 4B so as to face each other as in the embodiment described above, the two multi-joint arms It is possible to reduce the vertical minimum approach interval between 5A and 5B. Thus, for example, in the work loading / unloading work to / from a stocker having a plurality of storage shelves above and below for substrate storage, even when the vertical distance between two works stored in the stocker is close The two articulated arms 5A and 5B can be simultaneously advanced (inserted) into two storage shelves whose vertical intervals are close to each other.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, the multi-joint arm provided in the lower arm support structure 4A and the upper arm support structure 4B is a horizontal multi-joint type, but the present invention is not limited to this. . In the work unloading work from the stocker described above, it is only necessary that the work moves in the front-rear direction. Therefore, if this movement can be realized, the articulated arm is not limited to the horizontal articulated type, and the vertical articulated arm. It may be a mold. However, in general, in the horizontal articulated arm, considering that the vertical height of the structure constituting each joint axis is smaller than that of the vertical articulated arm, the articulated arm is arranged horizontally as in the above-described embodiment. In the case of the articulated type, for example, in the work loading / unloading work to / from a stocker having a plurality of storage shelves above and below for substrate storage, the vertical distance between two works stored in the stocker is close However, two horizontal articulated arms can carry in and out each workpiece simultaneously.

1 is a perspective view showing an overall structure of a double arm type robot according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a horizontal sectional view of the gate type structure part of the double arm type robot concerning one embodiment of the present invention. It is the perspective view shown about the structure of the lower arm support structure 4A and the upper arm support structure 4B of the double arm type robot which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating operation | movement in the case of carrying out the workpiece | work 31 and 32 accommodated in the separate storage shelf in the stocker 30 using the double arm type robot in the prior art which concerns on patent document 1. FIG. FIG. 5 is a cycle diagram illustrating forward and backward movement and vertical movement in the operation according to the explanatory diagram of FIG. 4. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating operation | movement in the case of carrying out the workpiece | work 35,36 accommodated in the separate storage shelf in the stocker 34 using the double arm type robot in this embodiment. FIG. 7 is a cycle diagram illustrating forward and backward movement and vertical movement in the operation according to the explanatory diagram of FIG. 6.

Explanation of symbols

1A Left column (movement mechanism)
1B Right column (moving mechanism)
2A Direct acting guide for the lower horizontal articulated arm 5A (direct acting guide)
2B Linear guide for upper horizontal articulated arm 5B (linear guide)
3A Linear guide for the lower horizontal articulated arm 5A (linear guide)
3B Upper linear articulated arm 5B linear motion guide (linear motion guide)
4A Lower arm support structure (arm support structure)
4B Upper arm support structure (arm support structure)
5A Lower horizontal articulated arm (articulated arm)
5B Upper horizontal articulated arm (articulated arm)
6A Ball screw (actuator) for driving the lower horizontal articulated arm 5A
6B Ball screw (actuator) for upper horizontal articulated arm 5B drive
7A Fastening parts 7B Fastening parts 8A Work holding hand for the lower horizontal articulated arm 5A 8B Work holding hand for the upper horizontal articulated arm 5B 10 Base 11 Lower fastening plate 12 Upper fastening plate 34 Stocker 35 Work 36 work

Claims (7)

In a double-arm type robot that is rotatably connected by a joint part, transmits a rotational force by a rotational drive source, and has two multi-joint arms that are designed to perform a desired operation.
The two arm support structures that respectively support the two articulated arms are connected to a moving mechanism for allowing the two arm support structures to move in the vertical direction independently of each other. A featured double-arm robot. The moving mechanism is
Two struts,
A linear motion guide provided on each of the two struts to allow the connected members to slide in the vertical direction;
The double-arm robot according to claim 1, wherein the double-arm robot is composed of an actuator for moving a member connected to the linear guide along the linear guide. The moving mechanism composed of the two columns is placed on a pedestal,
The double-arm robot according to claim 2, wherein the pedestal has a turning mechanism for allowing the two struts to rotate about a vertical axis centered on a horizontal intermediate position thereof. . The pedestal is mounted on a base;
The double-arm robot according to claim 3, wherein the pedestal is movable in a horizontal direction on the base.   The double shaft according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein a rotation axis of a joint shaft connected to the arm supporting structure in the multi-joint arm is coaxial with each other in the two multi-joint arms. Arm type robot.   6. The double-arm robot according to claim 1, wherein the two articulated arms are supported by the two arm support structures so as to face each other.   7. The double-arm robot according to claim 1, wherein the two articulated arms are horizontal articulated arms composed of a plurality of articulated shafts that are rotatable about a vertical axis.

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