JP2009045707A - Manipulator for conveying article to be conveyed and method of conveying the article - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a manipulator having a hand device capable of stably conveying sheet articles without falling, conveying a large number of articles at one time, and densely stacking the articles. <P>SOLUTION: This manipulator for conveying comprises a hand device 30 having at least a pair of holding members 3 and a holding member drive part 5 for so horizontally driving the holding members 3 as to be approach each other, and holds and conveys an article A by the holding operation of the holding members 3. The hand device 30 further comprises a movable receiving claw 37 projecting from the holding members 3 or the lower surfaces of the holding members 3 for engagement with the lower surface of the sheet article A, a receiving claw drive part 4 for storing the movable receiving claw 37 inside or on the lower surfaces of the holding members 3 without projecting to the sheet article A non-holding side of the holding members 3, and a fixed receiving claw 36 projecting from the inner surface of the holding members for preventing the rise of the sheet. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a mechanism that does not drop a thin plate in a transport manipulator that transports one or more objects to be transported simultaneously, and a hand equipped with the mechanism and a method therefor.

In general, an article conveying hand device using a parallel hand that grips an article from a horizontal direction when a substantially square article is stacked has been known (see Patent Document 1).
JP 2007-15026 A

  As this type of article transport hand device, for example, the one shown in FIG. 16 is used. FIG. 16 shows a conventional hand configuration in this type of transfer manipulator. The hand device 30 includes a pair of parallel flat plates 34 and 35 for gripping the article A from the horizontal direction (left and right in the figure) and a movable receiving claw 37 for preventing the article from dropping while the article A is being gripped. As shown in FIG. 16, when the articles are densely stacked, the thickness of the flat plate 34 is thin so as to be as close as possible to the obstacle side such as an already placed article, and the frame base 31 of the hand 30. It is fixed without moving it. The flat plate 35 moves in parallel in the direction in which the article is gripped, and closes when the article is conveyed and opens when the article is stacked. The movable receiving claw 37 provided on the movable flat plate 35 rotates around the shaft 42 by the operation of the claw receiving cylinder 40, and the movable receiving claw 37 is positioned below the article and latches the lower surface thereof when the article is conveyed. Therefore, when the article is stacked, the movable receiving claw 37 moves to the non-article gripping side of the flat plate 35 so that the article can be easily separated from the article and stacked at a predetermined place. As described above, the conventional article transport hand device is provided with the article fall prevention device on the movable flat plate side, so that the articles can be stacked densely without dropping the articles when the articles are conveyed. It is. As shown in FIG. 17, when transporting thin sheet articles one by one, by using a suction plate 171 whose inside is in a vacuum state, the thin sheet articles can be gripped while maintaining the shape thereof, and the thin sheet articles can be transported. Is possible.

As described above, a manipulator equipped with a conventional transfer hand with an article drop prevention device has a certain thickness, or has a sufficient rigidity even if it is gripped. It can be transported without causing
However, when the article is a thin plate, the rigidity of the article is not always high, and there is a problem that the thin plate is bent by holding and cannot be stably conveyed.
In addition, in the method of sucking the inside in a vacuum state as shown in FIG. 17, there is a problem that only one sheet can be conveyed and it takes time to convey a large number.
The present invention has been made in view of such problems, and solves the above inconveniences, so that it can be stably transported without dropping the thin plate in the transport of the thin plate in addition to the thick article. In addition, an object of the present invention is to provide a manipulator equipped with a thin plate transporting hand capable of transporting a large number of thin plates simultaneously.

In order to solve the above problem, the present invention is configured as follows.
The invention of a manipulator for conveying an object according to claim 1 includes at least a pair of gripping members and a gripping member driving unit that drives at least one of the pair of gripping members in a horizontal direction so that the pair of gripping members approach each other. In a hand, and a transport object transport manipulator that sandwiches and transports a transport object by a sandwiching operation of the pair of grip members, and protrudes from the inside or the bottom surface of the grip member to one of the grip members. A movable catch claw for latching a lower surface of the conveyance object is provided, and a fixed catch claw for projecting from the inner side surface of the gripping member to latch the lifting of the conveyance object is provided on the other side of the gripping member. It is said.
The invention according to claim 2 is the manipulator for transporting the object to be transported according to claim 1, wherein the pair of gripping members are substantially flat plate members that hold the object to be transported by a flat plate surface.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the transport object transport manipulator according to the second aspect of the present invention, the movable target claw is provided with a catch claw driving portion that houses the movable catch claw in an inside or a lower surface of the gripping member. A rod-shaped member having a letter shape, wherein the claw driving part projects so as to latch the lower surface of the object to be transported by rotating the substantially L-shaped longitudinal axis. Yes.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a transport object transport manipulator according to the third aspect, wherein a plurality of the movable catch claws are provided.
A fifth aspect of the present invention is the manipulator for conveying an object according to the third aspect, wherein the claw driving portion is a rotary actuator driven by a motor or air.
According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the transport target object manipulator according to the third aspect, the claw driving portion includes an air cylinder and a link mechanism provided at a tip of the air cylinder.
The invention according to claim 7 includes at least a pair of gripping members, and a gripping member driving unit that drives at least one of the pair of gripping members in a horizontal direction so that the pair of gripping members approach each other. In the method for transporting a transport object using a transport object transport manipulator that sandwiches and transports the transport object by a sandwiching operation of the pair of gripping members, the transport object is supported by the gripping operation of the gripping member. A holding claw that protrudes from the inner side surface of the gripping member to prevent the transported object from rising, and protrudes from the inside of the gripping member or from the lower surface of the gripping member. The object to be conveyed is slanted so that the article is brought into contact with the movable catching nail that holds the lower surface, and the movable catching nail is driven when the conveyance object is raised. When the movable catch is protruded from the lower surface of the conveyance object and the conveyance object is conveyed and lowered to a desired position, the movable reception claw is driven to move the movable catch claw to the gripping member. The object to be conveyed is housed in the gripping member or the lower surface of the gripping member so as not to protrude substantially toward the non-gripping side of the transporting object, the transporting object is released from the gripping member, and the transporting object is placed at a desired position. It is characterized by doing.

  With the above configuration, the movable receiving claw is hooked on one of the gripping members of the transporting object transporting manipulator that sandwiches and transports the transporting object by holding the pair of gripping members, and the lifting of the transporting object is latched on the other. Because it is equipped with a fixed catching claw, it is possible to transport one sheet or many stably at the same time without dropping the thin plate, especially when transporting the thin plate, and to stack the thin plate densely become.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

First, a manipulator including the hand of the present invention will be described.
FIG. 1 is a front view of a manipulator provided with a thin article conveying hand device of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a top view of the manipulator 20 in FIG. In both figures, the thin plate article conveying hand device 30 of the present invention is attached to a manipulator body 21. The manipulator main body 21 has been conventionally known, and a swivel base 24 is attached on a base 23 supported by a gantry 22, and a lower end portion of a lower arm 25 is connected to the swivel base 24. The rear end portion of the upper arm 26 is connected to the upper arm 26, and the wrist member 27 is provided at the distal end portion of the upper arm 26.
Here, the swivel base 24 has a degree of freedom around the S axis, and is swung by a motor (not shown). The lower arm 25 has a degree of freedom around the L axis and is swung by a motor (not shown). Further, the upper arm 26 has a degree of freedom around the U axis and is swung in the vertical direction around the U axis by a motor (not shown). Further, the wrist member 27 has a degree of freedom around the B axis and the T axis, and is swung around the B axis by each of two motors incorporated in the upper arm 26, and the T axis is It is rotated around the center.
The manipulator 20 configured as described above is operated according to pre-registered data, and the position, angle, and posture of the wrist member 27 are controlled.

Next, the hand device of the present invention provided in the manipulator will be described.
3 to 5 show details of the hand device 30. FIG. 3 is a bottom view of the hand device. 4 is a side view of the manipulator seen from the hand side in FIG. FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of the hand portion in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 3, the vertical frame 32 and the horizontal frame 33 are attached to the frame base 31 (FIG. 5) connected to the wrist member 27 (FIG. 4) to ensure rigidity. A flat plate cylinder 38 (FIG. 3) and a linear rail 40 (FIG. 3) are attached to the horizontal frame 33 in parallel with the vertical frame 32, and a movable flat plate 35 (FIGS. 3 and 5) is attached to the flat plate cylinder 38 and the linear rail 40. ) Is attached. The movable flat plate 35 moves along the linear rail 40 by the operation of the flat plate cylinder 38. Note that an L-shaped movable catch nail 37 (FIG. 5) is attached to the movable flat plate 35 with a shaft 41 (FIG. 5) as a fulcrum. Rotate around 41. The lower end portion of the movable receiving claw 37 moves downward or outward from the article by rotation. This part has the same structure as the movable receiving claw 37 (FIG. 16) of the conventional hand device.
Moreover, the upper part of the fixed flat plate 34 (FIG. 5) is attached to one side of the horizontal frame 33. The fixed flat plate 34 is provided with a fixed receiving claw 36 on the side of the movable flat plate.
With the above configuration, as shown in FIG. 1, the hand device 30 can stably convey the thin plate article without dropping the thin plate during conveyance by applying the thin plate article to the fixed catch 36 when gripping the thin plate article. It is possible.
In this embodiment, the fixed receiving claw 37 is fixed to the fixed flat plate 34, but it may be movable in the vertical direction of the fixed flat plate 34 in accordance with the size of the thin article and the number of conveyed sheets. Further, when a thick article is conveyed instead of a thin article, the normal receiving article may be conveyed by moving the fixed receiving claw 37 further upward.

Next, conveyance of the article by the manipulator configured as described above will be described.
FIG. 6 is a plan view showing a layout of a transport apparatus in which the thin plate article A stopped on the supply station 1 is gripped by the manipulator 20 and transported and stacked on the pallet station 2 shifted by 90 °.
7 to 14 show the operation state of the hand in a stepwise manner when the thin article fed to the supply station 1 is transported and stacked on the pallet station 2.
As shown in FIG. 7, when the thin article A is lined up on the supply station 1, the hand device 30 that has been waiting above is lowered by the operation of the manipulator body 21. At this time, each of the movable flat plate 35 and the movable receiving claw 37 is open.
Then, the lower end of the fixed receiving claw 36 is lowered to the height of the upper surface of the thin plate article A, and the lower end of the movable receiving claw 37 is lowered to a height lower than the lower surface of the thin plate article A, and the hand device 30 stops (see FIG. 8). .
As shown in FIG. 9, the fixed receiving claw 36 of the fixed flat plate 34 (FIG. 5) comes into contact with the thin plate article A by the operation of the manipulator body 21. Thereafter, or in synchronism with the operation of the manipulator body, the movable flat plate 35 and thus the movable receiving claw 37 are closed. In this state, the thin plate article A is obliquely fixed between the fixed flat plate 34 and the movable flat plate 35, and the length of the thin plate article A is longer than the distance between the fixed flat plate 34 and the movable flat plate 35. A does not fall from the hand device 30.
Thereafter, the hand device 30 is lifted together with the thin article A as shown in FIG. 10 by the operation of the manipulator body 21 (FIG. 1).
The hand device 30 and the thin plate article A are conveyed to above the stacking position of the pallet 2 by the operation of the manipulator body 21 (see FIG. 11).
As shown in FIG. 12, the hand device 30 is lowered by the operation of the manipulator body 21.
The movable receiving claw 37 is opened, and then the movable flat plate 35 is opened, and the thin article A is stacked in a predetermined place. The hand device 30 is raised by the operation of the manipulator body 21 (FIGS. 13 and 14).
Thereafter, the above-described operation is repeatedly performed, so that the thin plate article A can be stably conveyed without dropping, and the articles can be densely stacked.

  In the above embodiment, the case where a single sheet article is conveyed has been described as an example. However, as shown in FIG. 15, if the present invention is adopted even when a large number of sheets are conveyed, the sheet article can be stably produced in a short time. Can be transported.

  In addition, since the thickness of the fixed flat plate is not increased as in the case of a normal article transporting hand device, the thin article can be packed densely.

The front view of the manipulator for goods conveyance using the conveyance hand by the Example of this invention It is a top view in FIG. It is a bottom view of the hand apparatus part in FIG. In FIG. 1, it is the figure which looked at the manipulator from the hand side. It is a front enlarged view of the hand apparatus part in FIG. FIG. 2 is a layout diagram of article conveyance using the manipulator in FIG. 1. It is a figure which shows the operating state of the hand apparatus at the time of article conveyance. It is a figure which shows the operating state of the hand apparatus at the time of article conveyance. It is a figure which shows the operating state of the hand apparatus at the time of article conveyance. It is a figure which shows the operating state of the hand apparatus at the time of article conveyance. It is a figure which shows the operating state of the hand apparatus at the time of article conveyance. It is a figure which shows the operating state of the hand apparatus at the time of article conveyance. It is a figure which shows the operating state of the hand apparatus at the time of article conveyance. It is a figure which shows the operating state of the hand apparatus at the time of article conveyance. It is a figure which shows the conveyance state at the time of conveying many thin-plate articles | goods. It is a front view of the conventional hand apparatus. It is a figure which shows the article conveyance state of the conventional hand apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

A Article B Article 20 already stacked on pallet 20 Manipulator 21 Manipulator body 22 Base 23 Base 24 Swivel base 25 Lower arm 26 Upper arm 27 Wrist member 30 Hand device 31 Frame base 32 Vertical frame 33 Horizontal frame 34 Fixed flat plate 35 Movable flat plate 36 Fixed claw 37 Movable claw 38 Flat plate cylinder 39 Claw cylinder 40 Linear rail 41 Axis

Claims (7)

The hand includes at least a pair of gripping members and a gripping member driving unit that drives at least one of the pair of gripping members in a horizontal direction so that the pair of gripping members approach each other. In a transport object transport manipulator that sandwiches and transports a transport object by operation,
One of the gripping members is provided with a movable receiving claw that protrudes from the inside or the bottom surface of the gripping member and hooks the bottom surface of the conveyance object,
A transport object transport manipulator comprising a fixed receiving claw projecting from the inner surface of the grip member on the other side of the grip member to latch the transport object.   The transport object transport manipulator according to claim 1, wherein the pair of gripping members are substantially flat plate members that hold the transport target object between flat plates.   A receiving claw driving portion that houses the movable receiving claw inside or on the lower surface of the gripping member, wherein the movable receiving claw is a substantially L-shaped rod-shaped member, and the claw driving portion is a substantially L-shaped member. The manipulator for conveying an object according to claim 2, wherein the short axis protrudes so as to hook the lower surface of the object to be conveyed by rotating the longitudinal axis.   The transport object transport manipulator according to claim 3, wherein a plurality of the movable receiving claws are provided.   The manipulator for conveying an object according to claim 3, wherein the claw driving unit is a rotary actuator driven by a motor or air.   The manipulator for conveying an object according to claim 3, wherein the claw driving unit includes an air cylinder and a link mechanism provided at a tip of the air cylinder. The hand includes at least a pair of gripping members and a gripping member driving unit that drives at least one of the pair of gripping members in a horizontal direction so that the pair of gripping members approach each other. A transport object transport method by a transport object transport manipulator that sandwiches and transports a transport object by operation,
A fixed receiving claw that protrudes from the inner side surface of the gripping member and holds the transported object up when the transporting object is pinched by the gripping operation of the gripping member, and from the inside of the gripping member or the gripping Gripping the transport object obliquely so as to contact the article with a movable receiving claw protruding from the lower surface of the member and hooking the lower surface of the transport object;
When raising the transport object, the movable catch tab is driven to project the movable catch tab on the lower surface of the transport object,
When the transport object is transported to a desired position and lowered, the movable catch is driven so that the movable catch does not substantially protrude toward the non-grip side of the transport object of the grip member. Inside or the lower surface of the gripping member,
A transport object transport method for releasing the transport object from the gripping member and placing the transport object at a desired position.

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