JP4520029B2 - Photoelectric switch for picking - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a picking photoelectric switch provided with setting means for selecting and setting one setting condition from a plurality of setting conditions.
[0002]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
Conventionally, for example, in a production / assembly line in a factory, a photoelectric switch for picking has been provided at the entrance of a part accommodating part that accommodates a part, and this photoelectric switch allows an operator to take out the part from the part accommodating part. When a picking operation is performed, this is detected.
Usually, when assembling a product composed of a plurality of parts, each component is housed in an individual part housing part, and a photoelectric switch for picking is installed in each part housing part. Each photoelectric switch includes a control unit and a work instruction light, and is a component that causes the control unit to turn on the work instruction light based on an external signal input from an external control device such as a sequencer and picks it to an operator The component accommodating part accommodated is indicated.
[0003]
In this way, the operator picks each component part of the product sequentially from the part accommodating part according to the instruction of the work instruction light of each picking photoelectric switch, and assembles it by assembling mistakes due to forgetting to remove the parts. The structure is such that the assembly work can be performed efficiently.
Since a plurality of such picking photoelectric switches are often arranged adjacent or close to each other, it is necessary to change a plurality of types of setting conditions so that the light from these photoelectric switches does not interfere with each other. The photoelectric switch is provided with setting means for selecting the setting conditions.
[0004]
Specifically, a rotary switch is provided as the setting means. A plurality of setting conditions are set in advance corresponding to the position (scale) of the rotary knob of the rotary switch, and the setting condition corresponding to the position of the knob is set by rotating the rotary knob. ing. Therefore, for photoelectric switches that may interfere with each other, by setting the setting conditions different from each other so that they do not interfere with each other, it is possible to reliably detect the picking of the operator without causing erroneous detection. Yes.
[0005]
On the other hand, in recent years, the downsizing of sensors and the like has progressed, and the photoelectric switch for picking is not an exception, and has become smaller. In addition, there are many types of products that can be assembled, from large to small, and some of the components that make up the product are large and some are very small. If the component is small, the space for the component housing for housing it may be small, and the picking photoelectric switch installed in the component housing for such a small space is naturally small. Is desirable.
For this reason, when the picking photoelectric switch is downsized, the rotary switch (setting means) provided in the photoelectric switch is also reduced accordingly.
[0006]
However, in the conventional configuration, the rotary switch is set by the operator turning the rotary knob to adjust the position and checking the position (scale) of the rotary knob with the operator's own eyes. For this reason, as the rotary switch becomes smaller, the visibility in checking the set state becomes worse. Moreover, the user cannot confirm whether the setting is really selected. In addition, since the rotary switch is small, there is a problem that a moving range at the time of setting is very small and a feeling of clicking is reduced, so that there is a high possibility of causing a setting error.
[0007]
The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a picking photoelectric switch capable of easily confirming the setting state of the setting means without causing an increase in the number of parts and an increase in cost. In offer.
[0008]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, the present invention has a visible light emitting element, a work instruction lamp that lights up the light emitting element in response to an external signal to instruct picking work, and a plurality of setting conditions. In the picking photoelectric switch, comprising: setting means for selecting and setting one setting condition from the control means; and control means having a function of performing a picking operation detection operation based on the setting condition set by the setting means. The work instruction lamp is configured to have the same number of light emitting elements as the number of setting conditions that can be set by the setting means, and the control means includes a plurality of setting conditions that can be set by the setting means and the plurality of setting conditions in the work instruction light. The light emitting device is configured to have a function of lighting the light emitting device corresponding to the setting state based on the setting of the setting means.
[0009]
In the above configuration, since the setting state of the setting means is displayed by the light emitting element in the work instruction light, the user can check the setting state of the setting means by looking at the work instruction light, Therefore, the setting state of the setting means can be easily confirmed. In this case, since the display of the setting state of the setting means is performed using the light emitting element in the work instruction lamp, the number of parts is increased unlike the case where a display unit for displaying the setting state of the setting means is separately provided. There is no cost increase.
[0010]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
First, FIG. 6 shows an example of use of a photoelectric switch for picking. In FIG. 6, the component storage shelf 1 is provided with a plurality of component storage portions 2, in this case six, and the component 3 is stored in each component storage portion 2. A transmissive type picking photoelectric switch 4 is provided on the left and right side surfaces of the entrance of each component housing portion 2. Each photoelectric switch 4 includes a light projector 5 and a light receiver 6, and the light projector 5 and the light receiver 6 are arranged in an opposed state.
[0011]
Of these projector 5 and light receiver 6, the configuration on the projector 5 side will be described first. As shown in FIG. 1, the case 5a of the projector 5 has a rectangular shape that is long in the vertical direction. At the center of the case 5a, a plurality of lenses 7a of the light projecting unit 7, in this case, five are arranged in the vertical direction, and a light projecting element 7b made of LED is provided after each lens 7a. Yes. Therefore, this projector 5 has five optical axes.
[0012]
A rotary switch 8 constituting setting means is provided on the left side of the case 5a in FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the rotary switch 8 has a rotary knob 10 in which a groove 9 into which a tool (not shown) such as a minus driver can be inserted. The rotary knob 10 is rotatable, and a setting display section 11 for displaying a setting position of the rotary knob 10 is provided around the rotary knob 10 by printing, for example. The setting display section 11 displays L-ON (light-on) side 1, 2, 3 and D-ON (dark-on) side 1, 2, 3. Accordingly, the rotary switch 8 has a configuration in which one setting condition can be selected and set from the six setting conditions depending on the rotational position of the rotary knob 10. FIG. 4 shows the correspondence between the six positions (channels) of the rotary switch 8 and the setting conditions. In FIG. 4, “L” indicates “L-ON”, “D” indicates “D-ON”, and Fre. Reference numerals 1, 2 and 3 indicate preset frequencies.
[0013]
In addition, a work instruction lamp 12 is provided on the right side of the case 5a in FIG. The work instruction lamp 12 has a plurality of light emitting elements 13 which are the same as the number of channels of the rotary switch 8 in this case. Each light emitting element 13 is formed of a visible light LED and is covered with a cover 14. Further, a power indicator lamp 15 is provided at the lower part on the right side of the case 5a in FIG. The light emitting element 15a of the power indicator lamp 15 is also made of visible light LED and is covered with a cover 15b.
[0014]
Inside the projector 5, as shown in FIG. 2, a control circuit 17 constituting a control means is provided. The control circuit 17 includes a CPU. An external signal S1 from an external device (not shown) such as a sequencer is input to the control circuit 17 via an input circuit 18 and the signal of the rotary switch 8 is input. The control circuit 17 controls the operations of the light emitting elements 13 and the power indicator lamp 15 of the work instruction lamp 12 based on those signals and a control program prepared in advance, and projects the light through the light projecting circuit 19. It has a function of controlling the operation of the light projecting element 7a of the light section 7.
[0015]
Next, the configuration on the light receiver 6 side will be described. As shown in FIG. 1, the case 6 a of the light receiver 6 also has a rectangular shape that is long in the vertical direction. In the central portion of the case 6a, a plurality of lenses 20a of the light receiving unit 20, in this case, five are arranged in the vertical direction corresponding to the light projecting unit 7, and the light receiving element 20b is provided after each lens 20a. Is provided.
[0016]
A rotary switch 21 constituting setting means is provided on the right side of the case 6a in FIG. The rotary switch 21 has the same configuration as the rotary switch 8 on the projector 5 side, and a setting display section 11 for displaying a setting position is provided around the rotary knob 10.
[0017]
Further, a work indicator lamp 22 having the same configuration as the work instruction lamp 12 of the projector 5 is provided on the upper left side of the case 6a in FIG. This work instruction lamp 22 also has light emitting elements 23 composed of six visible light LEDs as many as the number of channels of the rotary switch 21, and each light emitting element 23 is also covered with a cover 24. Further, a stable light incident indicator lamp 25 and an operation indicator lamp 26 are provided at the lower left part of the case 6a in FIG. The light emitting elements 25a and 26a of the stable light incident indicator lamp 25 and the operation indicator lamp 26 are also made of visible light LEDs and are covered with covers 25b and 26b.
[0018]
As shown in FIG. 2, a control circuit 27 constituting control means is also provided inside the light receiver 6. The control circuit 27 also includes a CPU. An external signal S1 from an external device (not shown) such as a sequencer is input to the control circuit 27 via an input circuit 28, and the signal of the rotary switch 21 is input. The received signal is input via the light receiving circuit 29. The control circuit 27 controls the operations of the light emitting elements 23 of the work instruction lamp 22, the stable light incident indicator lamp 25, and the operation indicator lamp 26 based on those signals and a control program prepared in advance. The detection signal S2 is output to an external device such as a sequencer via the output circuit 30.
[0019]
Next, the operation of the above configuration will be described. When setting conditions for a set of photoelectric switches 4, the setting positions (channels) of the rotary switch 8 on the light projector 5 side and the rotary switch 21 on the light receiver 6 side are set to be the same. The setting is performed by turning the rotary knob 10. FIG. 3 shows a state in which “2” on the L-ON side is set.
Here, L-ON (light on) is a state in which all five optical axes pass (a state in which the light receiving unit 20 of the light receiver 6 receives all the light emitted from the light projecting unit 7 of the light projector 5). ), The detection signal S2 is output from the output circuit 30 to the external device, and the operation indicator lamp 26 is turned on, and even one of the five optical axes is interrupted (part of the light receiving unit 20 or When all light is shielded), the output of the detection signal S2 from the output circuit 30 to the external device is stopped and the operation indicator lamp 26 is turned off. In contrast to the above-described case, D-ON (dark on) means that the output of the detection signal S2 from the output circuit 30 to the external device is stopped when all five optical axes pass. When the operation indicator lamp 26 of the light receiver 6 is turned off and one of the five optical axes is interrupted, the detection signal S2 is output from the output circuit 30 to the external device, and the operation indicator lamp 26 Is set to light up.
[0020]
Then, when the light projector 5 and the light receiver 6 of the photoelectric switch 4 are turned on, the control circuit 17 of the light projector 5 and the control circuit 27 of the light receiver 6 confirm the setting states of the corresponding rotary switches 8 and 21. Execute. FIG. 5 shows a flowchart of the control circuit 17 of the projector 5. When the power is turned on, first, the power indicator lamp 15 is turned on (step A1), and the setting state of the rotary switch 8 is read (step A2). Then, the operating condition corresponding to the set state is read (step A3), and then, among the six light emitting elements 13 in the work instruction lamp 12, the light emitting element corresponding to the set state of the rotary switch 8, in this case, the upper The second light emitting element 13 is turned on (the lighted portion is indicated by hatching in FIG. 1) (step A4). Then, when a predetermined time has elapsed, the setting state confirmation operation is terminated.
[0021]
Here, in the control circuit 27, six channels (1, 2, 3 on the L-ON side and 1, 2, 3 channels on the D-ON side) in the rotary switch 8 and six light emitting elements. 13 are sequentially associated with each other from the top. Accordingly, the user confirms that the setting state of the rotary switch 8 is “2” on the L-ON side by seeing that the second light emitting element 13 from the top is lit in the projector 5. Can do.
[0022]
Although detailed explanation is omitted also on the light receiver 6 side, when the rotary knob 10 of the rotary switch 21 is set to “2” on the L-ON side in the same manner as the projector 5 side, The light-emitting element corresponding to the set state, in this case, the second light-emitting element 23 from the top is turned on (the lighted portion is shown by hatching in FIG. 1). Since there is no power indicator on the light receiver 6 side, there is no step A1. Therefore, the user confirms that the setting state of the rotary switch 21 is “2” on the L-ON side by seeing that the second light emitting element 23 from the top is lit in the light receiver 6. be able to.
[0023]
On the other hand, when an external signal S1 from an external device is input to the input circuit 18, 28 of the photoelectric switch 4 and the light receiver 6 corresponding to the component 3 to be extracted next in a normal use state, The control circuit 17 turns on all the light emitting elements 13 of the work instruction lamp 12, and the control circuit 27 on the light receiver 6 turns on all the light emitting elements 23 of the work instruction lamp 22. In this case, since the display area of the work instruction lamps 12 and 22 is large, the user can easily understand the display.
[0024]
Then, the user performs a so-called picking operation in which the user inserts his / her hand into the component housing portion 2 corresponding to the lit work instruction lights 12 and 22 and takes out the component 3. At this time, as the optical axis of the photoelectric switch 4 is blocked by hand, the light receiving state of the light receiving unit 20 in the light receiver 6 changes, and the control circuit 27 detects this. Then, the control circuit 27 outputs the detection signal S2 to the external device via the output circuit 30. Based on this detection signal S2, the external device determines that the instructed component 3 has been taken out and outputs the external signal S1 to the input circuits 18 and 28 again. Each of the control circuits 17 and 27 turns off all the light emitting elements 13 and 23 of the corresponding work instruction lamps 12 and 22 based on the input of the external signal S1.
[0025]
According to the above-described embodiment, the setting state of the rotary switches 8 and 21 as setting means is displayed by the light emitting elements 13 and 23 in the work instruction lamps 12 and 22 in the projector 5 and the light receiver 6. The person can check the setting state of the rotary switches 8 and 21 by looking at the work instruction lamps 12 and 22, and thus can easily check the setting state of the rotary switches 8 and 21. You can prevent mistakes. In this case, since the setting state of the rotary switches 8 and 21 is displayed using the light emitting elements 13 and 23 in the work instruction lamps 12 and 22, the display unit for displaying the setting state of the rotary switches 8 and 21. Unlike the case of separately providing, there is no increase in the number of parts or an increase in cost.
[0026]
FIG. 7 shows a second embodiment of the present invention. In the second embodiment, a dip switch 31 is used as setting means instead of the rotary switch. The dip switch 31 has four operation portions 32a to 32d that can be pressed. Of these, the operation unit 32a is for switching between L-ON and D-ON, and the other three operation units 32b to 32d are for frequency setting.
[0027]
The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and can be modified or expanded as follows.
When checking the setting state of the rotary switches 8 and 21, the light emitting elements 13 and 23 corresponding to the work instruction lamps 12 and 22 are turned on, but they may be blinked.
The setting state of the rotary switches 8 and 21 is confirmed when the power is turned on. However, for example, a dedicated switch may be provided and configured based on the operation of the switch.
[0028]
In the above-described embodiment, the transmissive photoelectric switch 4 is provided with the work instruction lamps 12 and 22 in both the projector 5 and the light receiver 6, but the work instruction lamp is provided only in one of them. Also good.
The photoelectric switch can also be applied to a reflective type having a light projecting unit and a light receiving unit. Moreover, not only a multi-optical axis type but a single optical axis type may be used.
[0029]
【The invention's effect】
As is clear from the above description, according to the photoelectric switch for picking of the present invention, the setting state of the setting means is displayed by the light emitting element in the work instruction light, so that the user looks at the work instruction light. Thus, the setting state of the setting means can be easily confirmed. In this case, since the display of the setting state of the setting means is performed using a light emitting element in the work instruction lamp, unlike the case where a display unit is separately provided, there is no increase in the number of parts and an increase in cost. .
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a front view of a projector and a light receiver according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration. FIG. 3 is an enlarged front view of a rotary switch portion. FIG. 5 is a flow chart of an operation for confirming a setting state. FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a usage example. FIG. 7 is a front view of a dip switch portion showing a second embodiment of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]
In the drawings, 4 is a photoelectric switch, 5 is a projector, 6 is a light receiver, 8 is a rotary switch (setting means), 12 is a work instruction lamp, 13 is a light emitting element, 17 is a control circuit (control means), and 21 is a rotary switch. (Setting means), 22 is a work instruction lamp, 23 is a light emitting element, 27 is a control circuit (control means), and 31 is a dip switch (setting means).

Claims (1)

A work instruction lamp having a light emitting element for visible light, and instructing picking work by turning on the light emitting element according to an external signal;
A setting means for selecting and setting one setting condition from a plurality of setting conditions;
In the picking photoelectric switch provided with the control means having a function of performing the detection operation of the picking work based on the setting condition set by the setting means,
The work instruction lamp is configured to have the same number of light emitting elements as the number of setting conditions that can be set by the setting means,
The control means associates the plurality of setting conditions settable by the setting means with the plurality of light emitting elements in the work instruction lamp, and lights the light emitting elements corresponding to the setting state based on the setting of the setting means. A photoelectric switch for picking characterized by having a function of operating.

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