JP2018103286A - Method for reducing power consumption in radio communication device, and radio communication device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To suppress or reduce power consumption of a battery comprised in a length measuring machine or a gauge, when wirelessly acquiring information from the length measuring machine and various kinds of monitoring sensors or a measurement gauge, that are attached to a machine tool such as a machining center.SOLUTION: A radio communication device communicates wirelessly between a base station comprised in a control device of a machine tool and a remotely located gauge including a battery based on JIS standards, and the gauge is attached to a tool of a machining tool. The gauge includes: a communication part and a measuring part driven by a battery; and activation means for activating the communication part and the measuring part. Both the communication part and the measuring part are used in three different modes including: a non-conductive sleep mode; a standby mode in which the communication part is conductive while the measuring part is non-conductive; and a measuring mode in which both the communication part and the measuring part are conductive.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a method for reducing power consumption in a wireless communication device and a wireless communication device, and more particularly to a method for reducing power consumption in a wireless communication device and a wireless communication device suitable for a sensor of a machine tool to which a tool or a measuring tool is attached.

  Conventionally, in order to reduce the power consumption of a battery-powered power supply for operating a remotely located wireless communication device, the wireless communication device has conventionally been put to sleep in a time zone that does not require wireless communication, and a situation requiring wireless communication has occurred. It is known to start or restart a wireless communication device when For example, in the position detection sensor described in Patent Document 1, after a probe is attached to a spindle of a machine tool instead of a processing tool, the probe is rotated for a short time to react with a centrifugal switch built in the probe, and the position detection sensor is It is running.

  Since the position detection sensor described in Patent Document 1 detects a centrifugal force applied to the probe, there is a risk of detecting an acceleration caused by other than the rotational movement of the probe. Therefore, the object position detection probe described in Patent Document 2 includes a switch or other sensor in order to supply power from the battery according to the movement of the probe used in the machine tool. This switch responds to both the rotation and linear acceleration of the probe on the spindle of the machine tool, but has a circuit for discriminating the rotational movement and linear acceleration of the probe. Ignoring the detection of the centrifugal force due to the mounting operation, etc., the useless battery consumption is suppressed.

  Another method for suppressing the power consumption of a conventional wireless communication device disposed remotely is described in Patent Document 3. The wireless communication device described in this publication is used for a machine tool or the like, and includes a spread spectrum RF communication unit such as a Bluetooth (registered trademark) module and an auxiliary RF receiver unit. The spread spectrum RF communication unit is activated when the auxiliary RF receiver unit receives the characteristic RF signal. Since the power consumption of the auxiliary RF receiver unit is much less than the power consumption of the spread spectrum RF communication unit, a standby mode with low power consumption is possible.

US Pat. No. 4,599,524 Publication No. 2006-522931 Japanese Patent Publication No. 2011-504671

  The position detection sensor described in Patent Document 1 can certainly suppress battery consumption until the centrifugal force is applied, but it detects the centrifugal force even in operations other than the measurement by the probe. Can not be ignored. In particular, when a probe is attached to the spindle tip of a machine tool, power cannot be supplied by wire, so a battery must be used, and energization other than the original measurement work time expedites battery replacement. Resulting in increased frequency.

  In order to suppress energization other than the original measurement work time, in Patent Documents 2 and 3 that detect the rotational movement at the time of measurement, only the centrifugal force is detected. It can be distinguished and battery consumption can be suppressed. However, in the position detection sensors described in these patent documents, a large amount of power is consumed between energizing the detection unit to obtain measurement data and energizing the communication unit to wirelessly communicate the obtained data. The difference is not taken into account. Generally, the power consumption of the measurement unit is several to several tens of times the power consumption of the communication unit. Therefore, it is desired to suppress the power consumption of the measurement unit during communication that is not being measured.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and its object is to suppress the power consumption of a battery of a remotely located sensor that uses a battery, and in particular, a machining center or the like. Control or reduce battery power consumption of length measuring devices and sensors when wirelessly acquiring information from length measuring devices attached to machine tools, position detection, temperature, vibration, etc. or monitoring sensors. There is. In addition to the above object, another object of the present invention is a length measurement that extends the battery life and reduces the frequency of battery replacement, and can substantially eliminate the inconvenience of replacement frequency even when a commercially available battery is used. Is to realize a vessel and sensor.

  A feature of the present invention that achieves the above object is a wireless communication device that wirelessly communicates between a base station and a gauge having a battery disposed remotely, wherein the gauge is attached to a machine tool. Comprises a communication unit and a measurement unit driven by the battery, and an activation means for activating the communication unit and the measurement unit, wherein the communication unit and the measurement unit are both in a non-energized sleep mode, and the communication unit Is used in three different operation modes: a standby mode in which the energization is performed and the measurement unit is not energized, and a measurement mode in which both the communication unit and the measurement unit are energized.

  In this feature, the machine tool is one of a machining center and a composite lathe capable of automatic tool change, and the gauge includes a length measuring device, a position detection sensor, a temperature sensor, a vibration sensor, a pressure sensor, and a humidity sensor. At least one.

  Another feature of the present invention that achieves the above object is to provide a method for reducing power consumption in a wireless communication apparatus that wirelessly communicates between a base station and a gauge having a battery disposed in a machine tool, wherein the gauge has a predetermined size. When the above vibration or displacement is detected, the starting means is operated, and the battery is energized to at least the communication unit that is provided in the gauge and communicates with the base station. The communication unit is used to communicate between the base station and the communication unit after the measurement of the gauge is completed by energizing the measurement unit that measures a predetermined physical quantity with the attached measuring element and shifting to the measurement mode. Only to energize and to shift to a standby mode in which the measurement unit is de-energized.

  And in this feature, after the measurement by the measurement unit is completed or before the measurement, the communication unit is in a state where the communication is completed, and the sleep / non-energization is performed between both the communication unit and the measurement unit and the battery. Preferably, the machine tool is an automatic tool changeable machining center or a combined lathe, and the gauge is a length measuring device, a position detection sensor, a temperature sensor, a vibration sensor, a pressure sensor, a humidity It may be at least one of the sensors.

  According to the present invention, in a machine tool capable of changing an automatic tool such as a machining center or a composite lathe, a length measuring device such as an electric micrometer or an optical scale capable of sensing a machining state by wireless communication, a position detection probe, a temperature sensor The measurement time of the measuring unit with high power consumption is controlled because the current-carrying time from the battery to the measuring unit used for measuring gauges such as vibration sensor, barometric sensor, pressure sensor, humidity sensor and the communication unit used for communication is controlled. Can be substantially limited to the required time, and battery consumption can be suppressed. In addition, since it has become possible to extend the battery life, the frequency of battery replacement can be reduced, and JIS standard batteries that are generally available on the market can be used, so that the auto tool change work does not feel the inconvenience of battery replacement frequency. It becomes possible.

1 is a schematic front view of an embodiment of a machining center according to the present invention and a wireless communication device included in the machining center. It is a block diagram of an example of the gauge with which the machining center concerning the present invention is provided. It is an example of the time chart of the machining center which concerns on this invention, and is a figure which shows an operation state. It is an example of the time chart of the gauge shown in FIG. 2, and is a figure explaining each operation mode of a gauge part. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the machining center which concerns on this invention. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of the wireless communication apparatus according to the present invention.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of a wireless communication apparatus 100 according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, an inner diameter measurement using a bore gauge (an inner diameter measurement sensor) 120 attached to a machining center which is one of the machine tools 10 will be described as an example. In the present invention, the machine tool 10 is The present invention is not limited to machining centers and can be applied to compound lathes. The gauge 120 of the wireless communication apparatus 100 is described by taking an inner diameter measurement sensor as an example. However, the gauge 120 is not limited to the inner diameter measurement sensor, and various length measuring devices such as an electric micrometer and an optical scale, and position detection. The present invention can be applied to sensors such as a probe, a temperature sensor, a vibration sensor, an atmospheric pressure sensor, a pressure sensor, and a humidity sensor. Furthermore, the present invention is suitable for the battery 131, particularly the gauge 120 using a small JIS standard battery because wiring with a commercial power source is difficult, and the representative battery 131 is an easily available alkaline AA battery. It is intended to reduce the frequency of replacement.

  FIG. 1 is a front view schematically showing a machining center 10 as an example of a machine tool in order to clarify its function. In the machining center 10, a shank portion 18 a (not shown in FIG. 1) in which a tool such as a machining drill or an end mill is attached to the tip of a spindle housing 15 constituting the spindle, and the machining content is checked after machining. For this purpose, an automatic tool changer 30 is provided which can automatically change the shank part 18a (see FIG. 2a) to which the measurement probe or gauge 120 is attached (hereinafter collectively referred to as the tool 18).

  The machining center 10 includes a processing / measuring unit 20 and a tool changing unit 30, a processing / measuring tool mounting unit 40, and a control device 11 that controls these units. The processing / measurement unit 20 is mounted on the bed 27 as a base member on which a protrusion extending in the longitudinal direction is formed in order to attach the workpiece W to be processed and move it in the horizontal XY plane. A saddle 25 having a protrusion in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction formed on the upper surface, and a table 24 mounted on the saddle 25 and fixedly holding the workpiece W are provided.

  The machining / measuring tool mounting portion 40 includes a column 12 forming a vertically extending plane and a spindle head 14 mounted on the vertically extending plane. The spindle head 14 has a spindle (not shown) vertically. A main shaft housing 15 is provided on the lower end side of the main shaft. A tool 18 made of a shank to which a processing tool and a gauge 120 are attached can be fitted to the lower part of the spindle housing 15. Drive means 13 for rotating the spindle is attached to the upper end of the spindle head 14. The spindle head 14 is movable in the vertical direction (Z direction) along the column 12.

  The automatic tool changer 30 takes out the tool 18 made of a general-purpose shank equipped with a measuring probe or gauge 120 together with the tool 18 made of a general-purpose shank to which various tools such as various drills and end mills are attached to the tool magazine 21. Hold it possible. In this embodiment, the tool 18 is vertically inserted from above into a plurality of tool pots 21a opened at intervals in the circumferential direction on the outer peripheral portion of a tool magazine 21 made of a horizontal disk. The tool magazine 21 is fixed to a rotatable rotary table 22 via a support 22b. The rotary table 22 is placed on a table 23, and the table 23 can move in the X direction on a bed 27 a integrated with the bed 27 of the processing / measurement unit 20.

  Therefore, when exchanging the tool 18, the table 22 is moved to a predetermined position in the X direction on the beds 27a and 27, and then the rotary table 22 is rotated by a predetermined angle. Then, after the used tool 18 is removed from the spindle housing 15, it is placed in an empty tool pot 21a, the rotary table 22 is further rotated by a predetermined angle, and the predetermined tool 18 is grasped from the tool pot 21a. 15 is attached. In the machining center 10, these operations are automatically executed by a program provided in advance in the control device 11, so that automatic tool change is possible.

  In the above embodiment, the rotary table 22 is combined with the X-axis movable beds 27, 27a and the table 22, and the tool 18 is exchanged. However, this is only an example, and the conveyance of the tool 18 by a chain, There are various methods such as moving the main shaft portion including the main shaft head 14 to the automatic replacement position. In any case, a method that can reduce the time required for replacement is desirable.

  Next, FIG. 2 shows an outline of the wireless communication apparatus 100 according to the present invention. FIG. 2A is a partial cross-sectional front view of the tool 18 having a built-in gauge 120 that is a measuring unit of the wireless communication device 100. FIG. 2B is a block diagram of the wireless communication device 100. The tool 18 has a general-purpose shank portion 18 a on the upper end side so that it can be attached to the spindle housing 15 of the machine tool 10. Below the shank portion 18a, a gauge 120 that is integrated with or attached to the shank portion 18a is provided. In this embodiment, the gauge 120 is a bore gauge used for inspection after inner diameter processing.

  The wireless communication device 100 includes a communication base station 110 built in the control device 11 of the machine tool 10 or disposed in a remote management room or the like of the machine tool 10, and a gauge 120 that wirelessly communicates with the communication base station 110. Composed. As shown in FIG. 2B, the communication base station 110 includes a transmitter / receiver (hereinafter referred to as a receiver) 112 capable of transmitting and receiving, and transmits a command signal to the gauge 120 via the antenna means 115 attached to the receiver 112. At the same time, a data signal is received from the gauge 120. A display 113 and a communication bus 114 are connected to the receiver 112 via an interface (I / F) 111. The bus 114 uses an industrial network such as RS232C, Ethernet (registered trademark), I / O contact (signal exchange), CCLink, Profibus, and Devicenet. The display 113 is used to display data transmitted from the gauge 120.

  The gauge 120 includes a communication unit 123 that communicates with the communication base station 110 via the antenna unit 125 and is arranged immediately below the shank portion 18a of the tool. The gauge 120 is provided at the tip of the gauge and also includes a measuring unit 124 that measures and detects the inner diameter of the workpiece W. The communication unit 123 and the measurement unit 124 are arranged in parallel on the circuit, and are connected to the power supply unit 130 via the switches 122 and 134. An acceleration sensor 133 whose function will be described later is connected to the switch 134. The power supply unit 130 is disposed between the communication unit 123 and the measurement unit 124 of the tool 18 and includes a power supply circuit 132 that controls on / off of the switches 122 and 134. The power supply circuit 132 is connected to the battery 131. ing. As described above, the battery is an AA alkaline battery.

The operation of the wireless communication apparatus 100 of the present invention configured as described above will be described using the time chart and flow chart shown in FIGS. 3A to 5. 3A and 3B show the operation of the machine tool 10 (FIG. 3A (a)), the operation of the machine tool 10, the receiver 112, and the gauge 120 (FIG. 3A (b)), the operation of the gauge 120, and the output current of each part thereof. It is the figure (FIG. 3B) showing this. In these figures, Hi indicates that the items described in the leftmost column are being performed (in operation), and Lo is in a state in which the items described in the leftmost column are not being performed (not operating). It shows that. Moreover, the horizontal axis of the (a) figure of FIG. 3B and the (b) figure shows the same time passage. A time t _{0 on the} horizontal axis indicates the operation reference time of the wireless communication apparatus 100, and t _{1 to} t ₂₃ indicate switching timings at which a change occurs in some event.

Machining of the machine tool until the machine tool 10 actually starts machining and finishes machining, measurement of the machine tool, measurement of the machine tool from the start of measurement using the machine tool 10 to completion of measurement The process from the end to the start of the next processing is called a machine tool standby. Note that when the next machining is started immediately after the measurement is completed, there is no waiting for the machine tool.
FIG. 3A (a) is a diagram illustrating changes in each event when moving from machining of the machine tool to measurement of the machine tool. In this figure, the event (1) from the work conveyance (4) gauge boot occurs at t ₁ ~t _11, changes corresponding to these events has occurred. At that time, the gauge 120 is in a sleep mode, which will be described later, and only the power supply unit 130 is energized.

More specifically, the workpiece W is transferred to the main spindle position between times t ₁ and t ₂ for machining ((1) workpiece transfer). Next, the processing tools (drill A, drill B) are set for processing at times t ₃ to t ₄ and t _{5 to} t ₆ ((2) tool replacement), and times t _{4 to} t ₅ and t _{6 to} t are set. ₇ is processed ((3) processing). As shown in the figure, two types of tools are used, and the workpiece is set at the same position during both operations.

Since the machining is completed, the machine tool 10 moves from the operation of the machine tool to the measurement of the machine tool, and the inspection after the machining is executed. Perform an automatic exchange of the tool 18 by using the tool exchange unit 30 at time t _8. In other words, replacing the bore gauge 120 from the drill B until the time _{t 9} ((2) tool exchange). Once t ₉ to replace the tool 18 has been completed, and starts communication with the gauge 120 and the communication base station 110 to the control device 11 is incorporated in the machine tool 10 attached to the spindle housing 15. To be able to communicate between them in the beginning, at time _{t 10} between the time _t 9 _{~t 11,} waits for the interrupt output of the acceleration sensor 133, is ready to use a gauge 120. That is, the acceleration sensor 133 detects the acceleration applied to the gauge 120, and makes the gauge 120 usable by the output. (See FIG. 3A (b) (11) Acceleration sensor detection signal output event). As a result, the gauge mode shifts from the sleep mode to the standby mode ((4) gauge activation operation). The above is the stage before machining and measurement mainly for machine tools.

Turning now to FIG. 3A (b), the time _{t 9} after the setting of the gauge 120 is completed, (5) events to gauge movement to (16) the power supply unit is generated. Among them, events (8) to (10) are events related to the receiver 112, and events (11) to (16) are related to the gauge.

When the gauge 120 is moved in order to measure the inner diameter using the gauge 120 after the gauge 120 is attached to the spindle housing 15, the acceleration sensor 133 built in the power supply unit 130 of the gauge 120 detects the acceleration, and the detection signal ( Acceleration signal) is output. This output signal switches on mechanically or electrically for a predetermined time (t _{10 to} t ₁₂ ).

When an acceleration signal is generated in the gauge 120, the gauge 120 outputs a signal synchronized with the receiver 112 to establish communication in order to enable transmission of commands and data between the receiver 112 of the communication base station 110 and the gauge 120. ((12) Synchronization establishment). Once the communication is established, unless disturbance to the time t ₂₃ to the measurement program previously set in the control unit 11 of the machine tool 10 is completed, communication becomes established state.

Next, the gauge 120 is moved to the measurement position of the workpiece W. This movement includes an operation of bringing the gauge 120 into contact with or approaching the workpiece W. In the gauge movement event (5), a gauge 120 is moved to the workpiece W during the time _t 13 _{~t 14,} it sets the state of the measurement preparation completed.
In the measurement ready time t _14, the transmission request of the data obtained in response to the execution of the execution of a preset measurement program to the control unit 11 of the machine tool 10 and the measurement is sent to the receiver 112. The machine tool 10 continues the measurement until time t ₂₄ when the operating state continues to be the measurement of the machine tool. These requests are sent with a header ((6) communication establishment). Further, these requests are transmitted from the receiver 112 to the gauge 120 ((8) measurement instruction). The measurement instruction continues during between, that is, the time _t 15 _{~t 19} that data transmission from the gauge 120 to the receiver 112 continues.

Receiving a measurement instruction signal from the receiver 112 at time t ₁₆ ((13) measurement instruction received), the gauge 120 is shifted from the standby mode until it measurement mode. The gauge 120 automatically starts measurement based on the measurement procedure programmed in the machine tool 10, and transmits the measurement data to the receiver 112 according to the transmission data format specified by the measurement instruction signal ((14) Data transmission) ). The data transmission event (13) Measurement instruction receiving an event (14) continues until the time t ₁₉ where the actual measurement is completed.

Measurement data transmitted from the gauge 120 is received for the first time to the time t ₁₈ in the receiver 112, they are received intermittently or continuously until time t _19, hereinafter the actual measurement is terminated. In the machine tool 10 preprogrammed measurement time has ended all t _19, gauge 120 moves to the standby mode again. When the gauge 120 enters the standby mode, the machine tool 10 generates a sleep signal during the time t _{20 to} t ₂₁ ((7) sleep signal), and passes through the receiver 112 during the time t ₂₁ to t ₂₂ (( 10) Sleep signal), a sleep signal is transmitted to the gauge 120. Gauge 120 receives between a sleep signal time _t 22 _{~t 23} ((15) sleep signal), the operating state of the machine tool 10 at time _{t 24,} transferred to the standby machine tool from the measurement of the machine tool. In this standby of the machine tool, the tool 18 is returned to the initial position because automatic replacement of the tool 18 is necessary for processing the next workpiece W or a different part of the same workpiece W. At the same time as the state of the machine tool 10 becomes standby of the machine tool, the gauge 120 shifts from the standby mode to the sleep mode. During the series of events described above, the power supply unit 130 of the gauge 120 is always in operation ((16) power supply unit).

  The outline of the communication between the machine tool 10 and the receiver 112 and the gauge 120 as the communication base station 110 provided in the machine tool 10 is as described above. In the gauge 120 of the present invention, a battery for supplying power to each unit during that time is described. Energization to each part is selectively stopped to suppress wear. The details will be described with reference to FIG. 3B. FIG. 3B (a) is a diagram illustrating the movable and non-operating states of the power supply unit 130, the communication unit 123, and the measurement unit 124 that constitute the gauge 120 according to the time chart shown in FIG. 3A. The uppermost power supply unit 130 is always in an operating state, and the middle communication unit 123 operates at a time when the state of the machine tool 10 is in the measurement of the machine tool, and operates in the machine tool processing and the machine tool standby state. do not do. The measuring unit 124 is operated for a shorter time than the time during which the communication unit 123 is in the measurement state, and, like the communication unit 123, is not operated during machining of the machine tool and standby of the machine tool.

  On the other hand, FIG. 3B (b) is a diagram showing an output current state of each part of the receiver 112 corresponding to FIG. 3B (a). In FIG. 3B (a), since the power supply unit 130 is always in an operating state, its output current is always flowing, but since the current consumption of the communication unit 123 and the measuring unit 124 is added, the measuring unit 124 is in operation. When the state of the gauge 120 is in the measurement mode, the amount of consumption is significantly increased. On the other hand, when the measurement unit 124 is not in operation, even if the communication unit 123 is in a standby mode state during communication, the current consumption is small compared to when the measurement unit is in operation. When the communication unit 123 is not in operation, the switches 134 and 122 are switched to stop energization of the communication unit 123 in addition to the measurement unit 124. This state is called a sleep mode of the gauge 120.

Conventionally, as indicated by cross-hatching in the figure, since the measurement unit 124 is energized even when the measurement unit 124 is not measuring, the current consumption increases as a whole. In the present invention, the power consumption of the cross-hatching portion is suppressed, the battery life is increased, and the battery replacement frequency is reduced. _{Incidentally, I Psmax} is the maximum output current of the power supply unit (supply _{current), I COMmax} is the maximum output current of the communication unit (current consumption) _is the _{I MSmax} the maximum output current of the measuring section (current consumption) .

  FIG. 4 shows a flow chart of processing using the machining center 10 and measurement after processing. When machining and inspection of a workpiece are instructed according to a program stored in advance in the control device 11 of the machining center 10, first, in step S410, the workpiece W is placed on the table 23, and the machining position below the spindle is processed. Set to In accordance with a program stored in the machining center 10, the process proceeds to machining step S 412, and the tool 18 corresponding to the machining content is automatically exchanged using the automatic tool exchange unit 30. In step S414, the shape is processed in advance.

  After the workpiece W has been machined, the process proceeds to step S416 to measure the machining portion. The measurement will be described in detail with reference to FIG. If there are a plurality of measurement points, the measurement is continued until the measurement is completed (step S418). Regarding measurement, since the measurement position, the number of times, and the like are determined in advance by the program, this determination is usually unnecessary. When the measurement is completed, the process proceeds to step S420. Next, in order to shift to the processing and measurement of the next workpiece W, the workpiece W is transferred to the next process, and a series of automatic processing and measurement is finished (step S422). Note that if the program stored in the machining center 10 instructs other than conveyance after measurement, such as waiting for measurement or processing, the process proceeds to step S424 of the standby routine in step S420 after the measurement end step S418. Thereafter, the machining center 10 restarts due to an interrupt signal or the like, and branches to the routines of termination, measurement (step S416), and processing (step S412) according to the program (step S426).

  Next, FIG. 5 shows details of the workpiece measurement shown in step S416 of FIG. FIG. 5A is a diagram for mainly explaining the operation of the receiver 112, and FIG. 5B is a diagram for mainly explaining the operation of the gauge 120. When the machining center 10 is in the measurement state of the machine tool, the tool 18 attached to the spindle housing 15 is replaced with the tool 18 with the gauge 120 in step S510. Next, the gauge 120 is connected with the acceleration sensor 133 of the power supply unit 130 so that wireless communication, here, spread spectrum communication such as Bluetooth (registered trademark) is established between the gauge 120 and the receiver 112 built in the control device 11. Start (step S512). Thereafter, in step S514, the machine tool 10 moves the gauge 120 to the measurement position of the workpiece W in accordance with a program incorporated in the control device 11. In step S516, the receiver 112 requests the gauge 120 to transmit a measurement instruction and data in a predetermined format. The receiver 112 receives the measurement data wirelessly transmitted from the gauge 120 in step S518. When a series of data transmission / reception is completed, the receiver 112 transmits a measurement end command signal to the gauge 120 in step S520. Next, in step S522, it is confirmed whether there is another measurement, and if there is, the process returns to step S514, and steps S514 to S520 are repeated. If not, the process proceeds to step S524, and energization of the measurement unit 124 is stopped when the measurement instruction signal is stopped. Then, the energization of the communication unit 123 is stopped by the sleep signal.

  On the other hand, on the gauge 120 side, when the state of the machine tool 10 is the measurement of the machine tool, in step S530, the operation of the acceleration sensor 133 is waited. When the acceleration sensor 133 is activated, the switch 134 is turned on to energize the communication unit 123. Then, the gauge 120 is shifted to the standby mode (step S532). The state of the gauge 120 so far is the sleep mode. Thereafter, in step S534, the gauge 120 and the receiver 112 are synchronized to establish communication. In step S536, it waits for reception of a measurement command and a data transmission request from the receiver 112. Upon receipt, the switch 122 is turned on in step S538 to energize the measurement unit 124, and the gauge 120 is moved from the standby mode to the measurement mode. . Since the gauge 120 has moved to the measurement mode, the measurement is executed according to the program stored in the control device 11 (step S540), and the measurement data is transmitted in the format determined by the receiver 112 (step S542). In step S544, it is confirmed whether a measurement signal is being received from the receiver 112. If reception is in progress, the process returns to step S540 and steps S540 to S542 are repeated. If the reception is completed, the process proceeds to step S546, where the switch 122 is disconnected to stop energization of the measurement unit 124, and the gauge 120 is set to the standby mode. Thereafter, it waits for the sleep signal to be transmitted from the receiver 112 (step S548). When the sleep signal is transmitted, the switch 134 is disconnected to de-energize the communication unit 123, and the gauge 120 is shifted to the sleep mode (step S550). ).

  As described above, according to the present invention, when wireless communication is performed between a receiver provided in a control device on the machine tool body side and a gauge provided on a tool attached to the tip of the spindle of the machine tool, the gauge is based on the gauge. Measurement mode that energizes not only the communication unit but also the measurement unit at the time of measurement, standby mode in which the communication unit is energized and communication is possible, but only the power supply unit is energized Since the sleep mode is provided, power consumption when only communication is executed is suppressed, and a gauge that is provided remotely and cannot use a commercial power source and can be supplied with power only from a battery can be extended in life. Therefore, the inconvenience of battery replacement in an automatic machine such as a machining center that automatically changes tools can be reduced.

  In the above embodiment, the vertical machining center has been described as an example, but it goes without saying that the present invention can also be applied to a horizontal type or a portal type. Moreover, it can be easily imagined that the movement of the workpiece and the tool is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and the automatic replacement method of the tool is not limited to the above-described embodiment. In short, since the tool is attached to the tip of a machine tool, the present invention has to rely on wireless for data transmission, and the power consumption in a situation where the power supplied to the gauge on the sensor side must be a battery. The present invention provides a method and apparatus capable of reducing the above.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Machine tool (machining center), 11 ... Control apparatus, 12 ... Column, 13 ... (Rotation) drive means, 14 ... Spindle head, 15 ... Spindle housing, 18 ... Tool, 18a ... Shank part, 20 ... Processing Measuring unit, 21 ... tool magazine, 21a ... tool pot, 22 ... (rotary) table, 22b ... column, 23, 24 ... table, 25 ... saddle, 27, 27a ... bed, 30 ... tool changer, 40 ... machining Measuring instrument mounting part, 100: wireless communication device, 110: communication base station, 111: interface (I / F), 112 ... (transmitter) receiver, 113 ... display, 114 ... bus, 115 ... antenna means, 120 ... Gauge (measuring instrument), 122 ... switch, 123 ... communication section, 124 ... measurement section, 125 ... antenna means, 130 ... power supply section, 131 ... battery, 13 ... power circuit, 133 ... acceleration sensor, 134 ... switch, Hi ... running, Lo ... in _non-working, t 1 ~t _{24 ...} switching timing

Claims (5)

A wireless communication device that wirelessly communicates between a base station and a gauge having a battery disposed remotely, wherein the gauge is attached to a machine tool.
The gauge is
A communication unit and a measurement unit driven by the battery, and an activation unit that activates the communication unit and the measurement unit,
Sleep mode in which both the communication unit and the measurement unit are de-energized,
A standby mode in which the communication unit is energized and the measurement unit is de-energized;
A wireless communication apparatus, which is used in three different operation modes: a measurement mode in which both the communication unit and the measurement unit are energized.   The machine tool is an automatic tool changeable machining center or a combined lathe, and the gauge is at least one of a length measuring device, a position detection sensor, a temperature sensor, a vibration sensor, a pressure sensor, and a humidity sensor. The wireless communication apparatus according to claim 1. In a method for reducing power consumption in a wireless communication device that wirelessly communicates between a base station and a gauge having a battery disposed in a machine tool,
When the gauge detects a vibration or displacement of a predetermined size or more, the starting means is activated, and at least the gauge is provided, and the battery is energized to the communication unit that communicates with the base station,
At the same time or after that, the measurement unit that measures a predetermined physical quantity with a probe attached to the machine tool is energized to shift to the measurement mode,
After the measurement of the gauge is completed, wireless communication is performed in which only the communication unit is energized to communicate between the base station and the communication unit, and a transition is made to a standby mode in which the measurement unit is de-energized. A method for reducing power consumption in an apparatus.   After the measurement by the measurement unit or before the measurement, the communication unit has a sleep mode in which communication between the communication unit and the measurement unit and the battery is de-energized in a state where communication is completed. The method for reducing power consumption in the wireless communication apparatus according to claim 3.   The machine tool is an automatic tool changeable machining center or a combined lathe, and the gauge is at least one of a length measuring device, a position detection sensor, a temperature sensor, a vibration sensor, a pressure sensor, and a humidity sensor. A method for reducing power consumption in a wireless communication device according to claim 3 or 4.