JP5169425B2 - Processing machine control panel - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an operation panel, and more particularly to an operation panel of a processing machine for operating a processing machine.

  A processing machine for processing a workpiece such as a computer-controlled lathe, turning center, or press machine is provided with an operation panel for automatic or manual operation (see, for example, Patent Document 1). Along with the recent automation of processing, many processing machines are provided with accessory devices such as a transport device for loading and unloading a workpiece and a loading device for mounting the workpiece on the machine.

The conventional operation panel is disposed at a position where the processing tool on the front surface of the processing machine can be seen, for example, about 90 degrees around the vertical axis. The operation panel is provided with operation members such as a display unit for displaying information on processing contents and alarms and operation buttons for operation.
In a conventional operation panel, an operator operates a processing machine including an accessory device with an operation member, and confirms the operation on a display unit.
Japanese Patent No. 3719167

In a conventional processing machine operation panel, the amount of movement of the operation panel from the processing machine is limited. For this reason, if it is going to operate the workpiece | work in the position away from the operation panel, for example, it will be difficult to operate with an operation panel.
An object of the present invention is to provide an operation panel that is easy to operate regardless of the position of the operator.

  The operation panel of the processing machine according to the present invention is an operation panel for operating the processing machine, and includes a panel body, a detection unit, and a display change unit. The board body has a display unit and is freely movable with respect to the processing machine. The detection means is means for detecting a relative position and a relative direction of the board body with respect to the processing machine. The display change unit is a unit that changes the display on the display unit based on the detection result of the detection unit.

In this operation panel, when the operator moves the panel body relative to the processing machine, the relative position and the relative direction with respect to the processing machine are detected, and the display on the display unit is changed based on the detection result.
Here, since the board main body can be freely moved with respect to the processing machine, it can be arranged at a position where the operator can easily operate the board main body. In addition, the relative position and relative direction of the board body relative to the processing machine can be detected, and the display content of the display unit can be changed according to the relative position and relative direction between the board body and the processing machine. Can be displayed. For example, at the moved position, the display can be changed in accordance with the visual scenery where the operator is looking at the processing machine, or the display can be changed in accordance with the operation of the processing machine. For this reason, it becomes easy to operate regardless of the position of the operator.

When changing the display on the display unit in accordance with the viewing scenery where the operator looks at the processing machine, the display changing means can visually recognize the worker at that position regardless of the position of the panel main body. Can be displayed, making it easier for the operator to operate.
The display unit can display at least one operation unit, and has a touch-type display panel that can operate the processing machine by touching the operation unit. When the display position is changed, the display content of the operation unit is changed in accordance with the viewing scenery, so that the operation becomes easier.
When the operator can carry the board body by hand, the board body can be easily moved, and the operator can easily handle the operation panel.

  According to the present invention, since the board body can be freely moved with respect to the processing machine, it can be arranged at a position where the operator can easily operate the board body. In addition, the relative position and relative direction of the board main body with respect to the processing machine can be detected, and the display content of the display unit can be changed according to the relative position and relative direction between the board main body and the processing machine. Yes. For example, at the moved position, the display can be changed in accordance with the visual scenery where the operator is looking at the processing machine, or the display can be changed in accordance with the operation of the processing machine. For this reason, it becomes easy to operate regardless of the position of the operator.

  1 and 2, a processing machine 1 on which an embodiment of the present invention is mounted is, for example, a CNC parallel twin-axis lathe, and loads and unloads a workpiece W to and from a lathe body 10 and a machining portion of the lathe body 10. Loader 12, a carry-out conveyor 14 for receiving the workpiece W from the loader 12, and a chip conveyor 16 for discharging the processed chips. Further, the processing machine 1 is provided with a main operation panel 20 for operating the lathe body 10 and the loader 12 and a sub operation panel 22 for operating the carry-out conveyor 14.

  The lathe body 10 includes a frame portion 24, a pair of main shaft portions 26a and 26b arranged in parallel to the frame portion 24, and turret portions 28a and 28b arranged outside the main shaft portions 26a and 26b. doing. The main shaft portions 26a and 26b are provided with chucks 27a and 27b capable of holding the workpiece W, and the workpiece W can be rotated. A plurality of tools (not shown) for turning the workpiece W can be attached to the turret portions 28a and 28b. The turret portions 28a and 28b can be positioned at a plurality of positions (for example, 8 to 10) in the rotation direction in order to select a tool, and also have a cutting direction (direction approaching / separating from the workpiece W) and a feeding direction (spindle). In the axial direction of the portions 26a and 26b).

The loader 12 includes a gate-shaped guide rail 30 that extends along the direction in which the two main shaft portions 26 a and 26 b of the lathe body 10 are juxtaposed (the left-right direction in FIGS. 1 and 2), and a carriage portion that is guided by the guide rail 30. 32. The carriage unit 32 is provided with an elevating arm 32a, and a chuck (not shown) for holding the workpiece W is provided at the tip of the elevating arm 32a.
The carry-out conveyor 14 receives the processed workpiece W from the loader 12 and conveys the workpiece W in a direction crossing the conveying direction of the loader 12 (vertical direction in FIG. 2). The carry-out conveyor 14 is, for example, a chain conveyor having a pair of endless chains, and a transport plate 14a on which a workpiece W can be placed is provided between the pair of endless chains.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the carry-out conveyor 14 has a control box 34 in which a conveyor control unit 33 made of, for example, a microcomputer is built. The conveyor control unit 33 performs intermittent operation control of the carry-out conveyor 14 at every predetermined pitch. The carry-out conveyor 14 communicates wirelessly with a motor driving unit 35 that drives a motor M for driving the conveyor, a conveyance position sensor 37 that detects a conveyance position of the carry-out conveyor 14 based on the rotational position of the motor M, and the sub operation panel 22. Is connected to the wireless communication unit 39. The wireless communication unit 39 is connected to the sub-operation panel 22 by radio waves based on a relatively low-power wireless communication standard that can identify communication partners such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth (registered trademark), and ZigBee (registered trademark), for example. Wireless communication is possible. Note that the wireless communication standards are not limited to those described above, and various wireless communication standards such as specific low power standards can be applied.

  The main operation panel 20 is mainly for numerically controlling the lathe body 10 and controlling the loader 12. The main operation panel 20 has a height that is easy to operate, and is attached to the frame portion 24 so as to be able to turn about 90 degrees around the vertical axis. The main operation panel 20 has a display unit 20a composed of a liquid crystal display disposed in the upper portion, and an operation key unit 20b disposed in a portion excluding the display unit 20a.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the sub operation panel 22 that is an operation panel according to an embodiment of the present invention has a mass and a size that can be carried by the operator OP by hand. It operates with a rechargeable power source. As shown in FIG. 1, the sub operation panel 22 is normally detachably held on a panel mounting portion 24 a disposed on the left side of the frame portion 24 in FIG. 1. Further, the sub operation panel 22 can be held not only by hand, but also by placing stands 18a and 18b arranged at two places around the carry-out conveyor 14, as shown in FIG. The mounting stand 18 a is disposed on the receiving end side (the lower side in FIG. 2) of the carry-out conveyor 14, and the loading stand 18 b is disposed on the carry-out side portion of the carry-out conveyor 14. The sub operation panel 22 is configured to be charged when it is disposed on the panel mounting portion 24a or the mounting stands 18a and 18b. The charging method may be a contact type or a non-contact type.

The sub-operation panel 22 includes a display unit 36, a panel main body 38 that is freely movable with respect to the carry-out conveyor 14 that is a part of the processing machine, and a relative position and a relative direction of the board main body 38 to the carry-out conveyor 14 Detection means 40 for detecting, and display change means 42 for changing the display of the display unit 36 based on the detection result of the detection means 40 are provided.
The sub operation panel 22 is arranged on one side (right side in FIG. 3) of the display unit 36, an emergency stop button 44 for stopping the carry-out conveyor 14 in an emergency, an on / off button 46 for turning on / off the display, Is further provided.

  The board body 38 has a space inside, for example, is formed in a box shape. As shown in FIG. 4, a board control unit 48 formed of a microcomputer is provided inside the board body 38. The panel control unit 48 controls display of the display unit 36 and outputs an operation signal corresponding to an operation of an emergency stop button 44, an on / off button 46, and forward and backward operation keys 58 and 60 described later displayed on the display unit 36. Generate and send. The panel control unit 48 functions as the display change means 42 by controlling the display 36.

An emergency stop button 44, an on / off button 46, and a position sensor 50 and an orientation sensor 52, which are an example of the detection means 40, are connected to the panel control unit 48. In addition, a display unit 36, a wireless communication unit 54, and a storage unit 56 are connected to the panel control unit 48.
The position sensor 50 receives radio waves transmitted from, for example, three radio wave transmitters 62a, 62b and 62c installed in the factory building where the processing machine 1 is installed, and the sub operation panel 22 from the direction of the received radio waves. Can be detected three-dimensionally. The azimuth sensor 52 is a magnetic azimuth sensor capable of detecting azimuths in eight directions by changing magnetic impedance, for example. The position and direction of the conveyor 14 are stored in the storage unit 56 in advance. For this reason, it is possible to detect the relative position and relative direction between the carry-out conveyor 14 constituting the processing machine 1 and the board main body 38 based on the outputs of the position sensor 50 and the azimuth sensor 52.

The display unit 36 has a liquid crystal touch panel screen. The display unit 36 displays an image of the carry-out conveyor 14 that matches the worker's viewable scenery based on the detection result of the detection means 4, and, for example, an arrow that indicates the carry-out direction of the workpiece W according to the viewable scenery An image of AR and an image of the forward operation key 58 and the backward operation key 60 of the work W according to the viewing scenery, which are examples of the operation unit, are displayed.
The wireless communication unit 54 can perform wireless communication with the wireless communication unit 39 of the carry-out conveyor 14 in accordance with the wireless communication standard described above.

  The storage unit 56 is composed of, for example, a non-volatile memory such as a flash memory, and includes a plurality of visual data VD of the carry-out conveyor 14 in accordance with the visual scenery of the worker, and image data of the forward operation key 58 and the backward operation key 60. Some key data KD is stored. Here, the visual recognition data VD may be, for example, image data actually captured at a plurality of positions around the carry-out conveyor 14 or graphic data created similar to the image data. These visual data VD are stored in the storage unit 56 in association with the combination of the outputs of the position sensor 50 and the azimuth sensor 52. The key data KD is also stored in the storage unit 56 in association with the combination of outputs from the position sensor 50 and the direction sensor 52.

Specifically, the case where the sub operation panel 22 is arranged on any of the side portions of the carry-out conveyor 14, the case where it is arranged at the carry-out end and the receiving end of the carry-out conveyor 14, and the vicinity of the carry-out end and the receive end A total of eight sets of visual data VD and key data KD for the case where they are arranged obliquely on both sides of the are prepared in the storage unit 56 in advance. Therefore, the position data and the direction data are stored for every eight areas. However, the numbers of the visual data VD and the key data KD are not limited to the above numbers, and can be appropriately set according to the form of the processing apparatus.
The sub-control panel 22 shown in FIG. 3 shows a display screen in a state of being mounted on the panel mounting portion 24a, and displays a visual scenery where the worker is viewing the carry-out conveyor 14 at an angle on the side on the receiving end side. ing.

Next, the control operation of the panel control unit 48 will be described based on the flowchart shown in FIG.
When power is turned on to the panel control unit 48, initialization is performed in step S1 of FIG. In step S <b> 2, the position and direction information of the panel main body 38 is captured from the position sensor 50 and the orientation sensor 52. In step S3, the storage unit 56 is accessed from the obtained position and direction information to read the visual data VD. In step S4, the storage unit 56 is accessed from the obtained position and direction information to read the key data KD. In step S5, the read visual data VD and key data KD images are displayed, and the process proceeds to step S6. Thereby, when the position of the sub-operation panel 22 changes, the image displayed on the display unit 36 is changed according to the viewing scenery.

In step S6, it is determined whether or not the forward operation key 58 has been touched. In step S7, it is determined whether or not the backward operation key 60 has been touched. In step S8, it is determined whether or not the emergency stop button 44 has been pressed. In step S9, it is determined whether or not the on / off button 46 has been operated.
When it is determined that the forward operation key 58 is touched, the process proceeds from step S6 to step S11, and a forward signal is transmitted to the wireless communication unit 39 of the carry-out conveyor 14 via the wireless communication unit 54. Thereby, the conveyor control part 33 controls the motor M, and the carry-out conveyor 14 conveys the workpiece | work W in the carrying-out direction only one pitch.

If it is determined that the reverse operation key 60 has been touched, the process proceeds from step S7 to step S12, and a reverse signal is transmitted to the wireless communication unit 39 of the carry-out conveyor 14 via the wireless communication unit 54. Thereby, the conveyor control part 33 controls the motor M, and the carry-out conveyor 14 conveys the workpiece | work W in a receiving direction only one pitch.
If it is determined that the emergency stop button 44 has been pressed, the process proceeds from step S8 to step S13, and an emergency stop signal is transmitted to the wireless communication unit 39 of the carry-out conveyor 14 via the wireless communication unit 54. Thereby, the conveyor control part 33 stops the motor M, and the carry-out conveyor 14 stops immediately.

If it is determined that the on / off button 46 has been pressed, the process proceeds from step S9 to step S14, and is turned off when the display unit 36 is turned on and turned on when turned off. When these processes are completed, the process returns to step S2.
Here, for example, when the sub operation panel 22 is mounted on the mounting stand 18a or is held by the vicinity thereof, the visual data VD is displayed so that the carry-out conveyor 14 extends vertically as shown in FIG. The forward operation key 58 is displayed on the lower side of the display screen, and the backward operation key 60 is displayed on the upper side. The arrow AR is displayed facing upward.

Further, when the sub-operation panel 22 is placed on the placement stand 18b or held in the vicinity thereof, as shown in FIG. 7, the visual data VD such that the carry-out conveyor 14 extends to the left and right is displayed, and the forward operation key is displayed. 58 is displayed on the upper left side of the display screen, and the backward operation key 60 is displayed on the upper right side. The arrow AR is displayed facing leftward.
Further, when the sub-operation panel 22 is held by the side on the carry-out side away from the mounting stand 18b, visual data VD is displayed so that the carry-out conveyor 14 extends left and right and appears oblique as shown in FIG. The forward operation key 58 is displayed on the upper left side of the display screen, and the backward operation key 60 is displayed on the upper right side. The arrow AR is displayed facing leftward.

Furthermore, in the state where the sub operation panel 22 is mounted on the panel mounting portion 24a shown in FIG. 3, the visual data VD is displayed so that the carry-out conveyor 14 extends left and right and appears obliquely, and the forward operation key 58 is displayed on the display screen. The retreat operation key 60 is displayed on the upper left side. The arrow AR is displayed in the right direction.
Here, since the board main body 38 is freely movable with respect to the processing machine, it can be arranged at a position where the operator can easily operate the board main body 38. In addition, the relative position and relative direction of the board main body 38 with respect to the carry-out conveyor 14 can be detected, and the display content of the display unit 36 can be changed according to the relative position and relative direction between the board main body 38 and the carry-out conveyor 14. And display according to the direction. For example, at the moved position, the display can be changed according to the visual scenery where the worker is looking at the carry-out conveyor 14. For this reason, it becomes easy to operate regardless of the position of the operator.

In addition, since the display on the display unit 36 is changed in accordance with the visual scenery when the worker looks at the carry-out conveyor 14, the visual scenery of the worker at that position can be changed regardless of the position of the sub-operation panel 22. It can be displayed, and the operator can operate it more easily.
Since the forward operation key 58 and the backward operation key 60 are displayed on the display unit 36, the carry-out conveyor 14 can be operated by touching the operation unit. Further, since the display positions of the operation keys 58 and 60 are changed in accordance with the viewing scenery, the display contents such as the display positions and display shapes of the operation keys 58 and 60 are changed in accordance with the viewing scenery. It becomes easy to do.
Furthermore, since the operator can carry the panel main body 38 by hand, the panel main body 38 can be easily moved, and the operator can easily handle the sub-operation panel 22.

<Other embodiments>
(A) In the above embodiment, the carry-out conveyor is exemplified as the processing machine, and the present invention has been described by taking the sub operation panel 22 as the operation panel as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the processing machine may be a machine that processes a workpiece such as a lathe, a machining center, or a press machine. These processing machines also include accessory devices such as conveyors and loaders for conveying workpieces and tools attached to them.
(B) In the above embodiment, the detection means is configured using the position sensor and the azimuth sensor, but the detection means of the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a contact-type or non-contact-type sensor that can detect the board main body may be arranged on the mounting stand, and a sensing unit that can detect the sensor may be provided on the board main body. In this case, by storing the position and direction data of the mounting stand in the storage unit in advance, the sensing unit detected by the sensor realizes a function as a detection unit.

  The present invention can improve the operability of the operation panel for operating the processing machine, and thus is useful in the field of the operation panel of the processing machine.

The front view of the processing machine by which one Embodiment of this invention was employ | adopted. The top view of the processing machine. The front view of the sub operation panel which is the operation panel by one Embodiment of this invention. The block diagram which shows the structure of the control system. The control flowchart of a panel control part. The figure which shows an example of the display screen of a sub operation panel. The figure which shows an example of the display screen of a sub operation panel. The figure which shows an example of the display screen of a sub operation panel.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Processing machine 22 Sub control panel 36 Display part 38 Panel main body 40 Detection means 42 Display change means 58,60 Forward / backward operation key (an example of an operation part)

Claims (4)

An operation panel for operating a processing machine,
A board body having a display unit and freely movable with respect to the processing machine;
Detecting means for detecting a relative position and a relative direction of the board body with respect to the processing machine;
An operation panel for a processing machine, comprising: a display changing unit that changes a display of the display unit based on a detection result of the detecting unit.   2. The processing machine operation panel according to claim 1, wherein the display changing unit changes the display of the display unit in accordance with a viewing scene in which an operator views the processing machine. The display unit can display at least one operation unit, and has a touch-type display panel capable of operating the processing machine by contacting the operation unit,
The operation panel of a processing machine according to claim 2, wherein the display change unit changes the display content of the operation unit in accordance with the viewing scenery. The operation panel of a processing machine according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the panel main body is portable by an operator.

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