JP7468863B2 - Sensor and painting device equipped with said sensor - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a sensor and a coating device equipped with the sensor.

Patent Document 1 discloses a coating equipment in which a pair of sensors are arranged at opposing positions, sandwiching a component piece (measurement object). In this coating equipment, sprayers are arranged to sandwich the component piece, and each sprayer moves back and forth based on the dimensions of the component piece measured by detection light emitted from each sensor, thereby allowing paint to be sprayed effectively onto the component piece. Each sensor is inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to a vertical plane that is perpendicular to the conveyor movement axis. This configuration is thought to be intended to prevent the sensors from interfering with each other, and suggests that the sensors are operating simultaneously.

JP 2018-506427 A

The direction in which the detection light is reflected from the component pieces is not uniform, and it is thought that it can be reflected in various directions depending on factors such as the angle the component pieces make with respect to the direction in which the detection light is irradiated. For this reason, when the sensors are operating simultaneously, it is possible that the detection light emitted by one sensor and reflected by a component piece will be received by the other sensor. In such cases, there is a risk that the dimensions of the component pieces cannot be measured accurately.

The present invention was developed based on the above circumstances, and aims to provide a sensor that can accurately measure the external shape of an object to be measured, and a coating device equipped with this sensor.

The sensor of the first invention comprises:
a three-dimensional shape recognition unit having a plurality of three-dimensional shape specifying means for specifying a three-dimensional shape of a measurement object, each of the three-dimensional shape specifying means being disposed so as to face the measurement object;
a control device that individually controls the measurement operation of each of the three-dimensional shape specifying means;
It is equipped with:

The coating device of the second invention is
A sensor according to the first aspect of the present invention;
a paint gun that sprays paint onto the object to be measured while moving relative to the object to be measured;
Equipped with
the three-dimensional shape specifying means measures a distance to a surface of the object to be measured and specifies a three-dimensional shape of the object to be measured;
The control device sets or changes the painting conditions for applying paint to the surface to be painted based on the distance information measured by the three-dimensional shape identification means, and controls the movement of the paint gun relative to the measured object.

The sensor of the first invention uses a control device to individually control the measurement operations of multiple three-dimensional shape determination means, making it possible to suppress a decrease in accuracy of the three-dimensional shape determination results of the measured object caused by variations in the measurement operations of each three-dimensional shape determination means.

The coating device of the second invention uses a control device to individually control the measurement operations of multiple three-dimensional shape identification means, making it possible to suppress a decrease in the accuracy of the three-dimensional shape identification results of the measured object caused by variations in the measurement operations of each three-dimensional shape identification means. This makes it possible to accurately identify the three-dimensional shape of the measured object, and therefore to accurately control the movement of the paint gun.

FIG. 1 is a side view of a coating device and a three-dimensional shape recognition unit according to the present invention, as viewed from the left. FIG. 2 is a side view of the coating device as seen from the downstream side. FIG. 3 is a schematic side view of the sensor as seen from the downstream side, showing the state in which the surface of the workpiece is being measured by each three-dimensional shape specifying means. FIG. 4 is a schematic plan view showing the target range of the detection light emitted from the three-dimensional shape specifying means. FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the three-dimensional shape recognition unit and the control device.

The sensor of the first invention performs a measurement operation by emitting a measurement medium, and the control device may control the measurement operation of each three-dimensional shape determination means so that the measurement operations of the multiple three-dimensional shape determination means are performed one by one in the order in which they are arranged in series, and the measurement operations of the other three-dimensional shape determination means are not performed. With this configuration, the multiple three-dimensional shape determination means do not perform measurement operations at the same time, so there is no risk of the measurement media emitted from the multiple three-dimensional shape determination means interfering with each other. This allows the three-dimensional shape of the object to be measured to be measured satisfactorily.

Example 1
A first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to Figures 1 to 5. In the following description, the left side in Figure 1 is defined as the front, and the right side as the rear, the up-down direction is defined as the up-down direction as it appears in Figure 1, and the left-right direction is defined as the left-right direction as it appears in Figures 2 and 3. With respect to the direction of movement of the coating gun 13 of the left reciprocator 14, the direction in which the coating gun 13 approaches the workpiece 40 is defined as the forward direction F1, and the direction in which the coating gun 13 moves away from the workpiece 40 is defined as the backward direction R1 (see Figure 2). Regarding the direction of movement of the paint gun 13 of the right-side reciprocator 14, the direction in which the paint gun 13 approaches the workpiece 40 is defined as the forward direction F2, and the direction in which it moves away from the workpiece 40 is defined as the backward direction R2, based on a reference line CC that is parallel to the direction in which the arm 14A of the reciprocator 14 moves up and down and passes through the center of the conveyor 12 in the left-right direction (see Figure 2).

As shown in Figures 1, 2, and 3, the coating device 10 of this embodiment 1 includes a coating booth 11, a conveyor 12, a coating gun 13, a pair of reciprocators 14, and a sensor 19. The coating booth 11 is box-shaped. The coating booth 11 has a left side 11A and a right side 11B spaced apart from each other (see Figure 2). The left side 11A and the right side 11B are disposed to the left and right of the conveyor 12 (see Figure 2). The conveyor 12 horizontally transports the coating object 40, which is the object to be measured, in the backward direction (hereinafter also referred to as the transport direction Tr) in the coating booth 11 while hanging the coating object 40 at a predetermined interval. The transport speed at which the conveyor 12 transports the coating object 40 is, for example, 0.1 m/min to 6 m/min. The workpiece 40 suspended from the conveyor 12 passes between the left side 11A and the right side 11B in the transport direction Tr.

The paint gun 13 is attached to the tip of the arm 14A of each reciprocator 14 installed outside the paint booth 11, and sprays paint toward the surface 41 of the workpiece 40. The reciprocators 14 are arranged offset from each other in the transport direction Tr (not shown). A slit 11C is formed on the left side of the left side portion 11A of the paint booth 11 and extends in the vertical direction (see FIG. 2). A slit 11D is formed on the right side of the right side portion 11B of the paint booth 11 and extends in the vertical direction (see FIG. 2). The arm 14A of the reciprocator 14 arranged on the left side of the paint booth 11 is inserted into the slit 11C (see FIG. 2). The arm 14A of the reciprocator 14 arranged on the right side of the paint booth 11 is inserted into the slit 11D (see FIG. 2). The paint gun 13 is arranged inside the paint booth 11 (see FIG. 2). Each reciprocator 14 moves the paint gun 13 in two-dimensional directions (up and down, as well as forward directions F1, F2 and backward directions R1, R2 (see FIG. 2)) that intersect with the transport direction Tr (see FIG. 1) of the workpiece 40. In other words, the paint gun 13 sprays paint onto the workpiece 40 while moving relative to the workpiece 40. The reciprocators 14 are positioned so that the paint guns 13 face each other, sandwiching the conveyor 12 between them.

The sensor 19 has a pair of three-dimensional shape recognition units 20 and a control device 34 (see FIG. 5). Each three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 is arranged upstream of the pair of reciprocators 14 and the painting gun 13 in the painting booth 11 in the conveying direction Tr of the workpiece 40 (see FIG. 1). The three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 measures the three-dimensional shape of the coating surface 41 of the conveyed workpiece 40. Each three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 has a plurality of three-dimensional shape identification means 21. The three-dimensional shape identification means 21 of one three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 is arranged on the left side of the conveyor 12. The three-dimensional shape identification means 21 of the other three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 is arranged on the right side of the conveyor 12.

As shown in FIG. 5, each three-dimensional shape determination means 21 includes a motor 22, a light projecting and receiving mirror 23 rotated by the motor 22, a rotational position detector 24, a light projector 25, a light receiver 26, and a distance calculation unit 27 connected to the light receiver 26. Each three-dimensional shape determination means 21 is a so-called ToF (Time Of Flight) sensor. A ToF sensor can measure the distance between itself and an object based on the time it takes for a laser beam, which is a measurement medium emitted from itself, to be irradiated onto the object and for the laser beam reflected from the object to return to itself. The specifications of each three-dimensional shape determination means 21 are the same. Each three-dimensional shape determination means 21 performs a measurement operation to measure the distance between itself and any point on the coating surface 41 of the coating object 40 (i.e., the distance to the coating surface 41) by emitting laser beam (measurement medium), thereby determining the three-dimensional shape of the coating object 40.

The rotation center axis 28 of the motor 22 is oriented in a direction parallel to the transport direction Tr of the workpiece 40 (see FIG. 1). In this embodiment, the rotation center axis 28 of the motor 22 and the rotation center axis 28 of the three-dimensional shape determination means 21 are used synonymously. The rotation speed of the motor 22 is, for example, 2400 rpm. The light projecting and receiving mirror 23 is inclined at an angle of 45° to the rotation center axis 28 of the motor 22. The rotation position detector 24 detects the circumferential position of the light projecting and receiving mirror 23 around the rotation center axis 28. For example, the light projecting and receiving mirror 23 rotates once every 0.025 seconds around the rotation center axis 28 by the motor 22. As a result, each three-dimensional shape determination means 21 can measure the three-dimensional shape of the coating surface 41 of the workpiece 40 every 0.025 seconds. Here, when the conveyor 12 is moving at a speed of 6 m/min, the distance that the conveyor 12 moves the workpiece 40 in 0.025 seconds is 2.5 mm. Therefore, in this case, each three-dimensional shape determination means 21 can measure the three-dimensional shape of the workpiece 41 every 2.5 mm in the horizontal direction. The horizontal direction here refers to the conveying direction Tr of the conveyor 12.

The projector 25 horizontally irradiates infrared laser light as the detection light DL, which is the measurement medium. The detection light DL emitted from the projector 25 is reflected by the light projecting and receiving mirror 23, which is rotated by the motor 22, and is emitted radially outwardly perpendicular to the rotation center axis 28 toward the outside of the three-dimensional shape identification means 21. At a distance of 10 m from the rotation center axis 28, the infrared laser (detection light DL) reflected by the light projecting and receiving mirror 23 expands to approximately 160 mm in the direction perpendicular to the rotation center axis 28 and to approximately 25 mm in the direction parallel to the rotation center axis 28. In other words, the radiation trajectory of the infrared laser reflected by the light projecting and receiving mirror 23 forms a target range 29 (see Figure 4) whose dimensions expand in the direction parallel to the rotation center axis 28 as it moves away from the rotation center axis 28.

The three-dimensional shape identification means 21 thus configured are arranged in series in the vertical direction to form the three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20. Specifically, the rotation center axes 28 of the three-dimensional shape identification means 21 are parallel to each other. In one three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20, the dimension between the rotation center axes 28 of the three-dimensional shape identification means 21 adjacent in the vertical direction is the same. In one and the other three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20, the dimension between the rotation center axes 28 of the three-dimensional shape identification means 21 adjacent in the vertical direction is different from each other. The pair of three-dimensional shape recognition units 20 are arranged so that each three-dimensional shape identification means 21 faces the workpiece 40, sandwiching the conveyor 12 therebetween. The target range 29 of the three-dimensional shape identification means 21 of one three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 and the target range 29 of the three-dimensional shape identification means 21 of the other three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 are arranged with a predetermined distance K (e.g., 200 mm) offset in the conveying direction Tr (see FIG. 1).

As shown in FIG. 3, a portion of the detection light DL emitted from each three-dimensional shape determination means 21 is directly irradiated onto the surface 41 of the workpiece 40. The detection light DL reflected from the surface 41 is then incident on the three-dimensional shape determination means 21 that emitted the detection light DL, and is received by the receiver 26. The receiver 26 of each three-dimensional shape determination means 21 is configured to receive the detection light DL within a predetermined range R within the target range 29. For example, this predetermined range R is a range between an angle at which the infrared laser is tilted 35° upward and an angle at which the infrared laser is tilted 35° downward with respect to the horizontal direction, with the state in which the infrared laser reflected by the light projecting and receiving mirror 23 is emitted horizontally toward the workpiece 40 as the center. In other words, the predetermined range R is a range of ±35° with the state in which the infrared laser reflected by the light projecting and receiving mirror 23 is emitted horizontally toward the workpiece 40 as the center.

The light receiver 26 receives only the detection light DL that passes through the target range 29, enters the three-dimensional shape identification means 21, and is reflected by the light projecting and receiving mirror 23. The distance calculation unit 27 receives phase information of the detection light DL received by the light receiver 26 and rotational position information of the light projecting and receiving mirror 23 from the rotational position detector 24. The rotational position information of the light projecting and receiving mirror 23 is processed as information on the emission angle of the infrared laser (detection light DL) in the target range 29.

The distance calculation unit 27 performs calculations based on the input information, and obtains data on the three-dimensional shape of the surface 41 (workpiece 40) to be coated within the target range 29 of the detection light DL. The speed sensor 30 alternately inputs high and low level signals to the distance calculation unit 27 at a predetermined cycle according to the transport speed of the conveyor 12 (the relative displacement speed of the workpiece 40 with respect to the three-dimensional shape identification means 21). For example, the speed sensor 30 is configured to alternately output two signals, a high level and a low level, once every 10 mm movement of the conveyor 12.

The distance calculation unit 27 associates the three-dimensional shape data thus obtained with the signal input from the speed sensor 30, thereby sequentially generating three-dimensional shape data for each predetermined interval in the lateral direction of the coating surface 41 of the workpiece 40. If the light receiver 26 does not receive the detection light DL even though the light projector 25 is emitting the detection light DL, the distance calculation unit 27 outputs a value (e.g., 65533) indicating that the light has not been received.

The control device 34 is mainly composed of a microcomputer, and has an arithmetic device such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a memory such as a ROM (Read Only Memory) or a RAM (Random Access Memory), an A/D converter, etc. The control device 34 is configured to be able to individually control the measurement operation of each three-dimensional shape identification means 21. The control device 34 is configured to be able to control the operation of the conveyor 12, the reciprocator 14, the paint gun 13, etc. based on the three-dimensional shape data generated in the distance calculation unit 27 (i.e., information on the distance to the surface 41 of the workpiece 40 measured by the three-dimensional shape identification means 21), set or change the painting conditions when applying paint to the surface 41, and control the movement of the paint gun 13 relative to the workpiece 40.

Next, we will explain how the sensor 19 measures the three-dimensional shape of the coating surface 41 of the coating object 40.

As shown in Figures 1 to 3, the object 40 to be coated is generally in the form of a plate with the plate surface facing up and down. An upper protrusion 42 that protrudes to the left like a rib is formed on the upper edge of the surface 41 of the object 40 to be coated, a central protrusion 43 that protrudes to the left like a rib is formed on the center of the height direction of the surface 41 to be coated, and a lower protrusion 44 that protrudes to the left like a rib is formed on the lower edge of the surface 41 to be coated.

In one of the three-dimensional shape recognition units 20, the upper three-dimensional shape identification means 21 (hereinafter also referred to as the upper three-dimensional shape identification means 21) is located slightly above the upper protrusion 42. The three-dimensional shape identification means 21 located in the vertical center (hereinafter also referred to as the central three-dimensional shape identification means 21) is located slightly below the central protrusion 43. The lower three-dimensional shape identification means 21 (hereinafter also referred to as the lower three-dimensional shape identification means 21) is located slightly below the lower protrusion 44.

In the other three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20, the upper three-dimensional shape identification means 21 is located higher than the upper three-dimensional shape identification means 21 in the one three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 and is arranged in a position higher than the upper protrusion 42. The central three-dimensional shape identification means 21 is located higher than the central three-dimensional shape identification means 21 in the one three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 and is arranged in a position slightly higher than the central protrusion 43. The lower three-dimensional shape identification means 21 is located in the same vertical position as the lower three-dimensional shape identification means 21 in the one three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 and is arranged in a position slightly lower than the lower protrusion 44.

For example, point A shown in FIG. 3 is located within a range that can be measured by the central three-dimensional shape identification means 21 of one of the three-dimensional shape recognition units 20. The vertical distance H between point A and the rotation center axis 28, and the distance L in the direction in which the paint gun 13 moves forward and backward can be calculated as H=a×sinθ and L=a×cosθ. In other words, the vertical distance H between any point on the surface 41 in the vertical direction and the rotation center axis 28, and the distance L in the direction in which the paint gun 13 moves forward and backward can be calculated based on the distance a measured by the three-dimensional shape identification means 21. Each three-dimensional shape identification means 21 measures the distance a from itself at a predetermined distance (for example, every 1 cm) in the vertical direction of the surface 41 to be painted. Each three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 can measure the distance a from itself at every 1 cm in the vertical direction of the surface 41 to be painted, for example.

In region B1, the detection light DL from the central three-dimensional shape identification means 21 is blocked by the central protrusion 43. Therefore, the central three-dimensional shape identification means 21 cannot measure its own distance in region B1. In contrast, the upper three-dimensional shape identification means 21 of one of the three-dimensional shape recognition units 20 can irradiate detection light DL onto region B1. Therefore, the upper three-dimensional shape identification means 21 can measure its own distance in region B1.

In region B2, the detection light DL from the lower three-dimensional shape identification means 21 of one of the three-dimensional shape recognition units 20 is blocked by the lower protrusion 44. Therefore, the lower three-dimensional shape identification means 21 cannot measure its own distance from region B2. In contrast, the central three-dimensional shape identification means 21 can irradiate region B2 with detection light DL. Therefore, the central three-dimensional shape identification means 21 can measure its own distance from region B2. The control device 34 acquires data on the distance from itself to the coated surface 41 calculated by the distance calculation unit 27 of each three-dimensional shape identification means 21, and uses the distance data acquired from one of the three-dimensional shape identification means 21 to supplement the distance data in regions B1 and B2.

The distance of the area D1 can be measured from each of the central and upper three-dimensional shape identification means 21. The distance of the area D2 can be measured from both the central and lower three-dimensional shape identification means 21. In other words, the distance data of the areas D1 and D2 are measured in an overlapping manner by one of the three-dimensional shape recognition units 20. The control device 34 acquires the distance data calculated by the distance calculation unit 27 of each three-dimensional shape identification means 21 and selects one of the distance data of the areas D1 and D2 acquired from each three-dimensional shape identification means 21. Specifically, the control device 34 adopts the smaller value of the two distance data measured in an overlapping manner at a predetermined point Dx of the areas D1 and D2 in the vertical direction. In this way, the control device 34 synthesizes the distance data from the upper end to the lower end of the coating surface 41 of the coating object 40. The other three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 also measures the three-dimensional shape of the coating surface 41 on the right side of the coating object 40 in the same way as the other three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20.

The control device 34 controls the measurement operation of each of the multiple three-dimensional shape determination means 21 so that they perform a measurement operation one by one in the order in which they are arranged in series, and prevents the other three-dimensional shape determination means 21 from performing a measurement operation, and synthesizes data on the distance from the top to the bottom of the coating surface 41 as described above.

For example, the control device 34 causes one of the three-dimensional shape recognition units 20 to perform measurement operations in the order of upper three-dimensional shape identification means 21 → central three-dimensional shape identification means 21 → lower three-dimensional shape identification means 21. Next, the control device 34 causes the other three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 to perform measurement operations in the order of upper three-dimensional shape identification means 21 → central three-dimensional shape identification means 21 → lower three-dimensional shape identification means 21. In this way, the control device 34 causes one of the three-dimensional shape identification means 21 to perform a measurement operation at a given time.

In this case, the light projecting/receiving mirror 23 of each three-dimensional shape determination means 21 is constantly rotated by the motor 22, and the control device 34 operates the light projector 25 and light receiver 26 of each three-dimensional shape determination means 21 in the above-mentioned order, thereby causing each three-dimensional shape determination means 21 to perform a measurement operation.

Each three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 also measures the three-dimensional shape of the workpiece 40 in the lateral direction (the conveying direction Tr of the conveyor 12) every predetermined distance (e.g., every 1 cm). The workpiece 40 is transported by the conveyor 12 at a predetermined transport speed. Therefore, the measurement of the three-dimensional shape of the workpiece 40 in the lateral direction is performed by each three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20, in addition to measuring the three-dimensional shape in the vertical direction described above, every time the workpiece 40 is transported a predetermined distance.

In this case, a certain amount of deviation may occur in the lateral position of the three-dimensional shape of the workpiece 40 obtained by the measurement operation of each three-dimensional shape specifying means 21. Specifically, each three-dimensional shape specifying means 21 can measure the three-dimensional shape of the coating surface 41 of the workpiece 40 every 0.025 seconds. For this reason, a time lag of about 0.025 seconds x 6 = 0.15 seconds may occur between the start of the measurement operation of the three-dimensional shape specifying means 21 above one three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 and the end of the measurement operation of the three-dimensional shape specifying means 21 below the other three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20.

For example, when the conveyor 12 is moving at a speed of 6 m/min, the workpiece 40 moves 1.5 cm in 0.15 seconds. Therefore, when the conveyor 12 is moving at a speed of 6 m/min, a deviation of about 1.5 cm may occur between the lateral position of the three-dimensional shape of the workpiece 40 obtained by the measurement operation of the three-dimensional shape specifying means 21 above one three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 and the lateral position of the three-dimensional shape of the workpiece 40 obtained by the measurement operation of the three-dimensional shape specifying means 21 below the other three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20. This deviation can be adjusted by changing the conveyor 12 moving speed, the motor 22 rotation speed, etc. In this way, the control device 34 generates data on the three-dimensional shape of the workpiece 40 in the vertical and horizontal directions of the surface 41 to be coated.

When painting, the conveyor 12 is operated and the workpiece 40 is appropriately positioned and hung on the conveyor 12 to transport the workpiece 40 to the painting booth 11. During this transport process, each three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 outputs the measured three-dimensional shape data to the control device 34. The control device 34 stores the three-dimensional shape data input from each three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 as three-dimensional shape data for a specified position in the lateral direction on the workpiece 40.

Here, the distance in the conveying direction Tr between one three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 and the left paint gun 13, and between the other three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 and the right paint gun 13 are set to a predetermined value. The conveying speed of the conveyor 12 is also set to a predetermined value. Therefore, the time T1 for an arbitrary point on the workpiece 40 to reach a position facing the left paint gun 13 from a position facing one three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 can be obtained by dividing the distance in the conveying direction Tr between one three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 and the left paint gun 13 by the conveying speed of the conveyor 12. In addition, the time T2 for an arbitrary point on the workpiece 40 to reach a position facing the right paint gun 13 from a position facing the other three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 can be obtained by dividing the distance in the conveying direction Tr between the other three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 and the right paint gun 13 by the conveying speed of the conveyor 12. In other words, the control device 34 stores the currently measured data of the three-dimensional shape of the workpiece 40, and after times T1 and T2 have elapsed, the control device 34 outputs a painting control signal based on the stored data.

Then, as shown by the solid and phantom lines in Figure 2, this painting control signal causes each reciprocator 14 to move the painting gun 13 appropriately in accordance with the three-dimensional shape of the surface 41 to be painted, and the painting gun 13 sprays the appropriate paint. The control device 34 outputs the painting control signal based on the three-dimensional shape data corresponding to the current position facing the painting gun 13 in accordance with the transported workpiece 40 to be painted. This allows the painting device 10 to apply paint evenly to the surface 41 of the workpiece 40 to be painted.

The above-described configuration of Example 1 provides the following advantages:

The sensor 19 has a plurality of three-dimensional shape identification means 21 that identify the three-dimensional shape of the workpiece 40, and is equipped with a three-dimensional shape recognition unit 20 in which each three-dimensional shape identification means 21 is arranged to face the workpiece 40, and a control device 34 that individually controls the measurement operation of each three-dimensional shape identification means 21. With this configuration, the sensor 19 individually controls the measurement operation of the plurality of three-dimensional shape identification means 21 by the control device 34, so that it is possible to suppress a decrease in accuracy of the three-dimensional shape identification result of the workpiece 40 caused by variation in the measurement operation of each three-dimensional shape identification means 21.

The sensor 19 performs a measurement operation by emitting infrared laser light. The control device 34 controls the measurement operation of each three-dimensional shape specifying means 21 so that the multiple three-dimensional shape specifying means 21 perform a measurement operation one by one in the order in which they are arranged in series, and does not allow the other three-dimensional shape specifying means 21 to perform a measurement operation. With this configuration, the multiple three-dimensional shape specifying means 21 do not perform a measurement operation at the same time, so there is no risk of the infrared laser light emitted from the multiple three-dimensional shape specifying means 21 interfering with each other. This allows the three-dimensional shape of the workpiece 40 to be measured well.

The coating device 10 includes a sensor 19 and a coating gun 13 that sprays paint onto the workpiece 40 while moving relative to the workpiece 40. A three-dimensional shape identification means 21 measures the distance to the surface 41 of the workpiece 40 to identify the three-dimensional shape of the workpiece 40. A control device 34 sets or changes the coating conditions for applying paint to the surface 41 based on the distance information measured by the three-dimensional shape identification means 21, and controls the movement of the coating gun 13 relative to the workpiece 40.

With this configuration, the coating device 10 individually controls the measurement operations of the multiple three-dimensional shape identification means 21 using the control device 34, making it possible to suppress a decrease in accuracy of the three-dimensional shape identification results of the workpiece 40 caused by variations in the measurement operations of each three-dimensional shape identification means 21. This allows the three-dimensional shape of the workpiece 40 to be accurately identified, and therefore allows the movement of the coating gun 13 to be accurately controlled.

<Other Examples>
The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above and illustrated in the drawings, and the following embodiments, for example, are also included within the technical scope of the present invention.
(1) In the above embodiment, each three-dimensional shape recognition unit has three three-dimensional shape specifying means, but the number of three-dimensional shape specifying means is not limited to this.
(2) In the above embodiment, the outer shapes of the objects to be coated hung from the conveyor are the same, but objects to be coated having different outer shapes may be hung side by side on the conveyor.
(3) In the above embodiment, a pair of three-dimensional shape recognition units are used to measure the three-dimensional shape of the front and rear coating surfaces of the object to be coated, but it is also possible to use a single three-dimensional shape recognition unit to measure the three-dimensional shape of only either the front or rear coating surface of the object to be coated.
(4) In the above embodiment, the three-dimensional shape identification means is a type that rotates the detection light around the central axis of rotation, but the three-dimensional shape identification means may also be a type that irradiates detection light in one direction, and multiple means may be arranged in the vertical direction at a predetermined interval (for example, 1 cm).
(5) In the above embodiment, the control device performs the measurement operation on each of the three-dimensional shape specifying means one by one, but this is not limited to the above. The measurement operation may be performed in the order of the upper and central three-dimensional shape specifying means of one three-dimensional shape recognition unit → the lower three-dimensional shape specifying means of one three-dimensional shape recognition unit, and the upper three-dimensional shape specifying means of the other three-dimensional shape recognition unit → the central and lower three-dimensional shape specifying means of the other three-dimensional shape recognition unit, or the measurement operation may be performed alternately between one three-dimensional shape recognition unit and the other three-dimensional shape recognition unit. In other words, the control device performs the measurement operation on a portion of the multiple three-dimensional shape specifying means in the order in which they are arranged in series.
(6) In the above embodiment, infrared laser light is used as the measurement medium, but ultrasonic waves or the like may also be used.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 10: Coating device 13: Coating gun 19: Sensor 20: Three-dimensional shape recognition unit 21: Three-dimensional shape identification means 34: Control device 40: Workpiece (workpiece to be measured)
41...Painted surface

Claims (3)

a three-dimensional shape recognition unit having a plurality of three-dimensional shape specifying means for specifying a three-dimensional shape of a measurement object, each of the three-dimensional shape specifying means being disposed so as to face the measurement object;
a control device that individually controls the measurement operation of each of the three-dimensional shape specifying means;
Equipped with
Each of the three-dimensional shape determination means performs the measurement operation by projecting a measurement medium in a radial direction perpendicular to the central axis of rotation,
the rotation central axes of the three-dimensional shape specifying means are parallel to each other and to a conveying direction of the object to be measured;
The three-dimensional shape specifying means are disposed on either side of the object to be measured,
the three-dimensional shape specifying means disposed on one side is shifted in the conveying direction with respect to the three-dimensional shape specifying means disposed on the other side ,
The control device causes only one of all the three-dimensional shape specifying means to perform a measurement operation at a given time . The sensor described in claim 1, wherein the control device controls the measurement operation of each of the three-dimensional shape identification means so that the measurement operation is performed one by one in the order in which the multiple three-dimensional shape identification means are arranged in series, and so that the measurement operation of each of the three-dimensional shape identification means is not performed by any of the three-dimensional shape identification means other than the three-dimensional shape identification means performing the measurement operation. A sensor according to any one of claims 1 to 2;
a paint gun that sprays paint onto the object to be measured while moving relative to the object to be measured;
Equipped with
the three-dimensional shape specifying means measures a distance to a surface of the object to be measured and specifies a three-dimensional shape of the object to be measured;
The control device of the coating device sets or changes the painting conditions when applying paint to the surface to be coated based on the distance information measured by the three-dimensional shape identification means, and controls the movement of the paint gun relative to the measured object.

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