JP2007144588A - Robot control device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a robot control device improved in the degree of freedom in installing each member. <P>SOLUTION: A planar partition wall 60 is provided in the substantially vertical center of a casing 2. A motor driver 40 is provided in a lower storing space S1 formed by the partition wall 60. A first switching power supply board 70 and a second switching power supply board 72 are provided in the upper storing space S2. A CPU board is provided on the inside surface of a base 3 of the casing 2, and a drive control board 20 is provided on the top face of the CPU board and the top face of the projecting part 3b of the base 3 formed by being projected from fronts 4a, 5a of a left side plate 4 and a right side plate 5. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a robot control apparatus.

Conventionally, an industrial robot is electrically connected to a robot controller via a connection cable such as a power cable for supplying power to a motor mounted on the robot or a signal cable for transmitting information necessary for operation control. It is connected to the. Then, the robot control device gives an operation command to the industrial robot via these connection cables, thereby causing the industrial robot to perform an arbitrary operation (see Patent Document 1).
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-188686

  By the way, in the robot control apparatus described in Patent Document 1, when the size of the housing is determined, each member such as a motor driver for driving a motor built in the housing and mounted on the industrial robot is installed. The installation space that can be done is also decided. Therefore, the freedom of installation of each member has been limited.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a robot control apparatus capable of improving the degree of freedom of installation of each member.

  The robot control device of the present invention is a robot control device that is electrically connected to an industrial robot via a connection cable and controls the operation of the industrial robot. In the plurality of housing spaces, a plurality of boards mounted with circuit elements serving as heat sources are divided and disposed, and a heat dissipation mechanism is disposed for each housing space in which the boards are disposed.

  According to the robot control apparatus of the present invention, the plurality of housing spaces are formed by the partition walls formed in the housing, so that the installation space can be increased. Therefore, the freedom degree of installation of each member can be improved. In addition, a plurality of boards, which are heat sources, are arranged in a plurality of housing spaces, and a heat dissipation mechanism is provided in the housing space. Therefore, the heat source can be dispersed and the heat source can be efficiently dissipated by the heat dissipating mechanism, so that the temperature rise in the housing can be suitably suppressed.

In this robot control apparatus, a cooling fan may be further provided for each accommodation space in which the board is arranged.
According to this robot control apparatus, since the accommodation space in which the board is arranged can be cooled by the cooling fan, the temperature rise in the housing can be more suitably suppressed.

  In this robot controller, an actuator drive board for driving an actuator mounted on the industrial robot is centrally arranged in one of the plurality of housing spaces, and a cooling fan is provided at least in the housing space. May be.

According to this robot control device, the actuator drive board with the largest amount of heat generation is concentrated in one housing space, and the cooling fan is provided in the housing space. Therefore, the actuator drive board can be cooled by the cooling fan. Therefore, by providing a cooling fan in the accommodation space in which the actuator drive board is disposed, the heat generation source with the largest amount of heat generation can be cooled, so that the temperature rise in the housing can be suitably suppressed.

In this robot control apparatus, the cooling fan may be disposed so as to face and be parallel to one side surface of all the actuator drive boards.
According to this robot control device, the actuator drive board can be arranged along the heat dissipation direction of the cooling fan, so that the actuator drive board can be cooled more efficiently.

  In this robot control device, a drive control board that controls an actuator drive board that drives an actuator of the industrial robot is protruded from the casing, and one side surface of the casing is placed on the protruding surface, and the protrusion The connection cable may be connected to the surface.

  According to this robot control apparatus, since the connection cable is connected to the projecting surface of the drive control board, the connection cable can be directly connected to the drive control board. Therefore, since it is not necessary to route the connection cable in the housing, the structure in the housing can be simplified.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment embodying the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 is a perspective view for explaining wiring between the robot RB and the robot controller 1, and FIGS. 2 and 3 are exploded perspective views for explaining the internal structure of the housing 2 of the robot controller 1. 2 and 3, illustration of circuit elements such as capacitors mounted on a board or the like is omitted.

  In FIG. 1, a robot RB is a four-axis controlled horizontal articulated industrial robot, and is driven and controlled by a robot controller 1. The housing 2 of the robot controller 1 includes a base portion 3 having a front mounting surface 3a, left and right side plates 4 and 5, a top plate 6 facing the base portion 3, a back plate 7 and a back plate 7 relative to each other. A substantially rectangular parallelepiped box is formed by the facing front plate 8.

  As shown in FIG. 2, base side interface connectors 12 and 13 are attached to the front mounting surface 3 a of the base portion 3, and the base side interface connectors 12 and 13 are provided on the inner side surface of the base portion 3. Is electrically connected to a CPU board (not shown). The base-side interface connectors 12 and 13 are attached so that the longitudinal direction thereof is horizontal, and as shown in FIG. 1, the connection cables 14 and 15 whose tips are connected to the personal computer PC and the teaching pendant TP are connected. They are electrically connected to the cable-side interface connectors 16 and 17 at the base end. The base side interface connectors 12 and 13 are supplied with drive information signals for driving the robot RB such as information on the robot RB and teaching data from the personal computer PC and the teaching pendant TP. The base side interface connectors 12 and 13 are configured to output drive information signals input from the personal computer PC and the teaching pendant TP to the CPU board.

As shown in FIG. 2, the protrusion 3b formed on the upper side of the base 3 is bent at the tip in a crank shape, and the drive control board 20 is placed on the upper surface of the protrusion 3b. Has been. The drive control board 20 is further placed on the upper surface of the CPU board, and the CPU board and the drive control board 20 are electrically connected by a connector (not shown) provided on the CPU board and the drive control board 20. It is connected. The CPU board generates a position command signal based on drive information signals input from the personal computer PC and the teaching pendant TP, and outputs the position command signal to the drive control board 20.

  A board-side power connector 22 is attached to the right side of the projecting portion upper surface 20a as the projecting surface of the drive control board 20 projecting from the left side plate 4 and the front surfaces 4a, 5a of the right side plate 5 and the right side plate 5. A board-side signal connector 24 is attached to the upper surface 20 a of the projecting portion of the drive control board 20 on the left side of the board-side power connector 22. The longitudinal direction of the board-side power connector 22 and the board-side signal connector 24 is attached along the longitudinal direction of the protrusion upper surface 20a. As shown in FIG. 1, the board-side power connector 22 and the board-side signal connector 24 are for the cable-side power at the proximal ends of the power connection cable 26 and the signal connection cable 28 connected to the robot RB. The connector 30 and the cable side signal connector 32 are each electrically connected.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2, the front plate 8 is formed with a stepped portion 8a formed by bending the lower side into a crank shape and upper and lower surfaces 8b and 8c sandwiching the stepped portion 8a. A through hole 34 through which the board-side power connector 22 penetrates and a through hole 36 through which the board-side signal connector 24 penetrates are formed in the upper surface 8d of the stepped portion 8a. When the lower surface 8e of the stepped portion 8a is placed on the protruding portion upper surface 20a of the drive control board 20 and the housing 2 is closed by the front plate 8, the board-side power connector 22 and the board-side signal connector 24 are connected to the through holes 34, 36 is exposed to the outside. The cable-side power connector 30 and the cable-side signal connector 32 are electrically connected to the board-side power connector 22 and the board-side signal connector 24 thus exposed to the outside. At this time, the cable-side power connector 30 and the cable-side signal connector 32 are respectively connected to the board-side power connector 22 and the board-side signal connector 24 in a direction opposite to the connection portion.

  As a result, the power connection cable 26 is connected to the board-side power connector 22 provided on the protruding portion upper surface 20a of the drive control board 20 via the cable-side power connector 30, so that the power connection cable 26 is In this case, the front plate 8 is disposed in parallel along the surface 8b. Further, since the signal connection cable 28 is connected to the board-side signal connector 24 provided on the projecting portion upper surface 20a of the drive control board 20 via the cable-side signal connector 32, the signal connection cable 28 is They are arranged in parallel along the surface 8 b of the front plate 8. Therefore, the power connection cable 26 and the signal connection cable 28 (the cable-side power connector 30 and the cable-side signal connector 32) that are thick and difficult to bend can be suitably suppressed from overhanging the housing 2. it can. Since the board-side power connector 22 and the board-side signal connector 24 are directly connected to the drive control board 20, the board-side power connector 22 and the board-side signal connector 24 usually extend into the housing 2. Internal wiring can be omitted. Therefore, the structure in the housing 2 can be simplified. When the front plate 8 is disposed on the front surface of the housing 2, the surface 8 c of the front plate 8 is disposed so as to cover the drive control board 20.

  As shown in FIG. 3, a motor driver 40 as an actuator drive board on which various circuit elements for driving each motor of the robot RB are mounted is provided on the upper surface 20b of the drive control board 20 for each motor. Specifically, four power connectors 42 are attached at predetermined intervals in the X direction on the upper surface 20b of the drive control board 20 and closer to the X arrow direction side than the board-side power connector 22. . Further, four signal connectors 44 are attached to the left side of the power connector 42 at a predetermined interval in the X direction, similarly to the power connector 42. The connector portions C1 and C2 of the motor driver 40 are electrically connected to the power connector 42 and the signal connector 44, respectively. As a result, the drive control board 20 and the motor driver 40 are electrically connected, and the motor driver 40 is controlled by the drive control board 20.

  A cooling fan 46 is provided on the right side of the motor driver 40 and on the inner surface of the right side plate 5 of the housing 2. In addition, on the left and right side plates 4 and 5, vents W <b> 1 and W <b> 2 constituting a heat dissipation mechanism are formed at positions facing the cooling fan 46, respectively. Then, by driving the cooling fan 46, outside air is taken into the housing 2 from the vent W <b> 2 and heated in each circuit element mounted on the motor driver 40 and the drive control board 20. Air is discharged out of the housing 2 from the vent W1. Note that the four motor drivers 40 are arranged so that the right side surface 40a as one side surface thereof faces the cooling fan 46 and is parallel thereto. As a result, the cooling air from the cooling fan 46 can be efficiently applied to all the motor drivers 40.

  Further, the power input terminal 50 is attached to the lower left side portion of the back surface of the front plate 8 so as to be arranged on the lower left side in the housing 2. The power input terminal 50 is electrically connected to the base end of the power cable 52 so that AC power is supplied from an external power source (not shown) electrically connected to the tip of the power cable 52. Yes. An internal input wiring (not shown) extending from the power input terminal 50 is electrically connected to a noise filter 54 provided on the inner surface of the left side plate 4 on the X arrow direction side from the power input terminal 50. The noise filter 54 is electrically connected to a circuit protector 62 provided on the left side of the upper surface 60 a of the flat partition wall 60 provided in the housing 2. As shown in FIG. 2, the partition wall 60 is formed substantially at the top and bottom center of the housing 2, and the housing 2 has two housing spaces (a lower housing space S <b> 1 formed below the partition wall 60 and a partition wall. The upper housing space S2) formed above 60 is divided into a two-stage structure. Further, a notch 60 b is formed on the left side of the partition wall 60 so as not to contact the noise filter 54. Note that the power cable 52 and the power switch SW formed on the circuit protector 62 penetrate through the through groove 64 and the through hole 66 formed in the front plate 8 when the housing 2 is closed by the front plate 8. It is supposed to be.

  A main power supply board DB is attached to the inner surface of the top plate 6. The main power supply board DB is electrically connected to the circuit protector 62 by a connection cable (not shown). As a result, the AC power supplied from the external power supply via the power cable 52 is supplied to the main power supply board DB. The main power supply board DB distributes AC power to the CPU board and the drive control board 20.

  A first switching power supply board 70 is attached to the inner surface of the back plate 7 of the housing 2 and the upper surface 60 a of the partition wall 60. The first switching power supply board 70 has an upper end portion electrically connected to the main power supply board DB by a connection cable (not shown) and a lower end portion electrically connected to the drive control board 20 by a connection cable (not shown). The first switching power supply board 70 generates DC power from AC power supplied from the main power supply board DB, and supplies the DC power to the drive control board 20.

  A second switching power supply board 72 is attached to the upper surface 60 a of the partition wall 60 on the front side of the first switching power supply board 70. The second switching power supply board 72 is electrically connected to the main power supply board DB and the CPU board by a connection cable (not shown). The second switching power supply board 72 generates DC power from AC power supplied from the main power supply board DB and supplies the DC power to the CPU board.

Ventilation holes W3 and W4 are respectively formed on the left and right side plates 4 and 5 of the housing 2 and above the ventilation holes W1 and W2. A cooling fan 74 is disposed on the upper surface 60 a of the partition wall 60 and on the inner surface of the right side plate 5. Then, by driving the cooling fan 74, outside air is taken into the housing 2 from the vent W4 and heated by the circuit elements mounted on the boards 70 and 72, and the upper accommodation space in the housing 2 is heated. The air of S2 is discharged out of the housing 2 from the vent W3.

  Thus, by providing the partition wall 60 in the housing 2, the installation space for each member provided in the housing 2 can be increased. Further, since the heat source (the motor driver 40 and the switching power supply boards 70 and 72, etc.) can be separately arranged in the lower housing space S1 and the upper housing space S2, cooling by the cooling fans 46 and 74 is efficiently performed. Wind can be applied to each circuit element or the like. Therefore, the inside of the housing 2 can be efficiently cooled.

Next, the operation of the robot controller 1 configured as described above will be described.
A partition wall 60 is provided at a substantially vertical center of the housing 2. Thereby, since each member can be provided also on the upper surface 60a and the lower surface of the partition wall 60, the installation space of each member can be increased, and the freedom degree of installation of each member can be improved. Further, a CPU board is provided in the lower accommodation space S1, and a drive control board 20 is provided on the upper surface of the CPU board. Further, the CPU board and the drive control board 20 are directly connected by a connector (not shown). Then, the connector portions C1 and C2 of the motor driver 40 are electrically connected to the power connector 42 and the signal connector 44 provided on the upper surface of the drive control board 20, and the motor driver 40 is concentrated in the lower accommodation space S1. Deploy. Thus, the cooling air from the cooling fan 46 provided on the right side of the motor driver 40 can be efficiently applied to the motor driver 40, so that the inside of the housing 2 can be efficiently cooled.

  In addition, the drive control board 20 is formed so as to protrude from the front surfaces 4 a and 5 a of the left and right side plates 4 and 5 of the housing 2. A board-side power connector 22 and a board-side signal connector 24 are provided on the upper surface 20 a of the projecting portion of the drive control board 20, and cable-side power connectors at the base ends of the connection cables 26, 28 are connected to the connectors 22, 24. 30 and the cable side signal connector 32 are electrically connected. Accordingly, since the connection cables 26 and 28 are arranged in parallel along the surface 8b of the front plate 8, the connection cables 26 and 28 (the cable-side power connector 30 and the cable-side signal signal are thick and difficult to bend). It is possible to suitably suppress the connector 32) from greatly protruding from the housing 2. Since the board-side power connector 22 and the board-side signal connector 24 are directly connected to the drive control board 20, the board-side power connector 22 and the board-side signal connector 24 usually extend into the housing 2. Internal wiring can be omitted. Therefore, the structure in the housing 2 can be simplified.

  On the other hand, the first and second switching power supply boards 70 and 72 are provided in the upper accommodation space S2. A cooling fan 74 is provided on the upper surface 60 a of the partition wall 60 and on the inner surface of the right side plate 5. Accordingly, the cooling air from the cooling fan 74 can be efficiently applied to each circuit element, and thus the upper accommodation space S2 can be efficiently cooled.

Next, the effect of this embodiment is described below.
(1) According to this embodiment, the flat partition wall 60 is provided in the housing 2. Accordingly, each member can be installed on the upper surface 60a, the lower surface, and the like of the partition wall 60, so that the installation space for each member provided in the housing 2 can be increased. Moreover, the freedom degree of installation of each member can be improved.

  (2) According to the present embodiment, the heat generation sources (the motor driver 40 and the switching power supply boards 70, 72, etc.) are arranged separately in the lower accommodation space S1 and the upper accommodation space S2. Further, cooling fans 46 and 74 are provided in the lower housing space S1 and the upper housing space S2, respectively. Accordingly, since the cooling air from the cooling fans 46 and 74 can be efficiently applied to each circuit element, the lower housing space S1 and the upper housing space S2 can be efficiently cooled. As a result, the entire inside of the housing 2 can be efficiently cooled.

  (3) According to the present embodiment, the cable-side power connector 30 and the cable-side signal connector 32 at the proximal ends of the power connection cable 26 and the signal connection cable 28 are formed on the upper surface 20 a of the drive control board 20. Board-side power connector 22 and board-side signal connector 24 are formed. As a result, the power connection cable 26 and the signal connection cable 28 can be directly connected to the drive control board 20 by connectors. For this reason, it is usually possible to omit internal wiring extending from the proximal ends of the board-side power connector 22 and the board-side signal connector 24 into the housing 2. Therefore, the structure in the housing 2 can be simplified, and the housing 2 can be reduced in size.

  (4) According to the present embodiment, the stepped portion 8a is formed in the front plate 8, and the board-side power connector 22 and the board side that respectively penetrate the through hole 34 and the through hole 36 on the upper surface 8d of the stepped portion 8a. The connectors 30 and 32 at the base ends of the power connection cable 26 and the signal connection cable 28 are connected to the signal connector 24, respectively. As a result, the power connection cable 26 and the signal connection cable 28 can be arranged in parallel to the surface 8 b of the front plate 8. Therefore, the extension of the power connection cable 26 and the signal connection cable 28 that are thick and difficult to bend from the housing 2 can be suitably suppressed. As a result, the installation space of the robot controller 1 including the wiring of the power connection cable 26 and the signal connection cable 28 can be reduced.

In addition, you may change the said embodiment into the following aspects.
In the above embodiment, the partition wall 60 is provided at the substantially vertical center in the housing 2. However, the position of the partition wall 60 and the size of the partition wall 60 are not particularly limited. A plurality of partition walls may be provided in the housing 2.

In the above embodiment, the cooling fan 74 is provided in the upper accommodation space S2. However, the cooling fan 74 may be omitted.
In the above-described embodiment, the four motor drivers 40 are arranged so that the right side surface 40a faces the cooling fan 46 and is in parallel. Not only this but all four motor drivers 40 should just be arranged in lower accommodation space S1.

  In the above embodiment, the heat source (the motor driver 40 and each switching power supply board 70, 72, etc.) is arranged separately in the lower accommodation space S1 and the upper accommodation space S2, but the arrangement positions of these members Is not particularly limited. For example, the motor driver 40 may be centrally arranged in the upper accommodation space S2. Further, the motor driver 40 may be arranged in a distributed manner in the lower accommodation space S1 and the upper accommodation space S2. In this case, the cooling fans 46 and 74 provided in the lower accommodation space S1 and the upper accommodation space S2 may be omitted.

  In the above embodiment, the drive control board 20 is formed so as to protrude from the front surface 4a of the left side plate 4 of the housing 2. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the drive control board 20 is accommodated in the housing 2. May be.

  In the above embodiment, the power connection cable 26 and the signal connection cable 28 are specifically configured to be individually configured. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the power connection cable 26 and the signal connection cable 28 are bundled, for example. You may make it connect to a common connector.

  In the above embodiment, the personal computer PC and the teaching pendant TP are connected to the robot controller 1, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, in addition to the personal computer PC and the teaching pendant TP, an emergency stop switch, a programmable logic controller, or the like may be connected to the robot controller 1.

  In the above embodiment, the robot RB is embodied as a four-axis control horizontal articulated industrial robot, but is not limited thereto, for example, a single-axis to three-axis control industrial robot or an industrial robot with five or more axes It may be changed to a robot (for example, a 6-axis control vertical articulated industrial robot). In this case, the robot controller is changed to a robot controller that can incorporate a motor driver 40 corresponding to the motor mounted on the robot RB.

The perspective view for demonstrating the wiring of the robot and robot controller in this embodiment. Similarly, the exploded perspective view for demonstrating the internal structure of the housing | casing of a robot controller. Similarly, the exploded perspective view for demonstrating the internal structure of the housing | casing of a robot controller.

Explanation of symbols

  RB ... Robot, S1 ... Lower accommodation space, S2 ... Upper accommodation space, W1 to W4 ... Ventilation holes constituting the heat dissipation mechanism, 1 ... Robot controller, 2 ... Housing, 3 ... Base part, 3a ... Front mounting surface, 4 ... left side plate, 4a ... front surface, 5 ... right side plate, 5a ... front surface, 8 ... front plate, 8a ... stepped portion, 8b ... surface, 8e ... bottom surface, 20 ... drive control board, 20a ... projecting portion as projecting surface Upper surface, 26: power connection cable, 28: signal connection cable, 40: motor driver as an actuator drive board, 40a: right side surface as one side surface, 46, 74 ... cooling fan, 60 ... partition wall, 60a ... upper surface, 70: a first switching power supply board, 72: a second switching power supply board.

Claims (5)

In a robot controller that is electrically connected to an industrial robot via a connection cable and controls the operation of the industrial robot,
A partition is formed in the housing to form a plurality of housing spaces, and a plurality of boards mounted with circuit elements serving as heat generation sources are divided and arranged in the plurality of housing spaces, and the boards are respectively disposed. A robot controller characterized by disposing a heat dissipation mechanism for each space. The robot control device according to claim 1,
A robot control apparatus, further comprising a cooling fan for each housing space in which the board is disposed. The robot control device according to claim 1,
A robot control characterized in that an actuator drive board for driving an actuator mounted on the industrial robot is centrally arranged in one housing space among the plurality of housing spaces, and a cooling fan is provided at least in the housing space. apparatus. The robot controller according to claim 3, wherein
The robot control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cooling fan is disposed so as to face and be parallel to one side surface of all the actuator drive boards. In the robot control device according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
A drive control board that controls an actuator drive board that drives an actuator of the industrial robot is projected from the housing, and one side surface of the housing is placed on the projecting surface, and the connection cable is mounted on the projecting surface. A robot controller characterized by being connected.

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