JPH02292140A - Automatic assembling device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To faithfully cope with the changes in the production amount in the production of many kinds of products in small quantities by transferring parts assembled with a first robot to a second robot, and at the same time adjusting the difference in the assembling speeds between the robots by means of a buffer mechanism. CONSTITUTION:Multiple shuttles respectively carrying robots 223 through 225 run on a shuttle bed 12 within respective movement ranges, pick up parts out of multiple parts feeding mechanisms 103 through 105, assemble them, reverse them if necessary on reversal mechanisms 51 through 53, and hands over the set assembled with one robot 22 to a neighboring robot. Here, the transfer between the two robots is made via buffer mechanism 42, 43 to adjust the difference in the assembling speeds between the robots. A succeeding robot 22 picks up parts out of multiple parts feeding mechanisms 10 and assembles them to make an assembled set so that the last robot 22 makes a required assembly. Changes in the production amount in the production of many kinds of products in small quantities can be faithfully coped with in this way.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention is an automatic system in which a predetermined assembly (article) is assembled from a plurality of parts while a plurality of robots run on one running rail. Regarding assembly systems.

[Prior art 1] Conventionally, in automatic assembly equipment, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 62-2493
As shown in Publication No. 6, in order to supply multiple parts to a robot, a parts supply shelf is used, a pallet containing the necessary parts is pulled out from this parts supply shelf, and the robot accesses this pallet. A pickup method is known.

[Problem to be Solved by the Invention 1] Here, with conventional automatic assembly equipment, in order to increase production volume, the assembly speed of robots must be increased, but it is difficult to achieve this with one robot. There is a limit to the assembly speed that can be achieved, and it is impossible to cope with a dramatic increase in production volume, for example, a doubling of production volume.

This invention was made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and the purpose of this invention is to create an automatic assembly system that is suitable for high-mix, low-volume production by efficiently running multiple robots and reliably responding to increases and decreases in production volume. The goal is to provide the following.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems and achieve the objectives, an automatic assembly system according to a first aspect of the present invention includes a first shuttle base having a first orbit, and a first shuttle base having a first orbit. a first article supply mechanism disposed near the first shuttle base, on which the first articles are placed in a state arranged on a plane; a second article supply mechanism holding articles on tape; a first shuttle carrying a first robot and a first assembly jig; and a first shuttle running on the first orbit; The first shuttle travels on the orbit, and the first robot sequentially accesses the first and second parts supply mechanisms to obtain predetermined parts from the first and second parts on the first assembly jig. a first control mechanism adapted to assemble the assembly; and a second control mechanism having a second track.
a shuttle base; a third article supply mechanism disposed near the second shuttle base and carrying third articles arranged in a plane; a fourth article disposed and holding a fourth article to the tape;
a second shuttle equipped with an article supply mechanism, a second robot, and a second assembly jig, and configured to run on the second orbit; The second robot sequentially accesses the third and fourth parts supply mechanisms, and applies the third and fourth parts to the assembly assembled by the first robot on the second assembly jig.
A second control mechanism is provided between the first and second shuttle bases for assembling the parts, and is configured to transfer the parts assembled by the first robot to the second robot, and to transfer the parts assembled by the first robot to the second robot. It is characterized by comprising a buffer mechanism that adjusts the difference in assembly speed between the two.

Further, the automatic assembly system according to the second aspect of the present invention includes a first parts supply mechanism in which the first articles are placed in a state arranged on a plane, and a second article in which the second articles are held on a tape. The supply mechanism and these first
and a robot that picks up the first and second articles from the second article supply mechanism and performs assembly work, forming one set of assembly units, and multiple sets of these assembly units are sequentially connected and arranged adjacent to each other. between the assembled units,
It features a buffer mechanism that adjusts the difference in robot assembly speed between both assembly units.

Further, an automatic assembly system according to a third aspect of the present invention includes a shuttle base having a track, a plurality of component supply mechanisms disposed along the track on at least one side of the shuttle base, and a robot and an assembly system. A plurality of shuttles are each mounted with a jig and are configured to travel on the orbits, and these shuttles are made to travel on the orbits within their respective travel areas, and a plurality of robots respond to the shuttles. a control mechanism that accesses a plurality of component supply mechanisms and assembles a predetermined assembly on an assembly jig;
A buffer mechanism is provided between the travel areas of each of the robots to transfer parts assembled by one robot to another adjacent robot and to adjust the difference in assembly speed between the two robots. It is a feature.

Further, in the automatic assembly system according to the present invention, the track is comprised of a finite track having both ends.

[Operation] In the automatic assembly system configured as above,
A plurality of shuttles, each carrying a robot, pick up and assemble parts from a plurality of component supply mechanisms within their own operating ranges, and the assembly assembled by one robot is transferred to the next adjacent robot. The parts are delivered via the packer mechanism, and the delivered robot further assembles the parts picked up from the plurality of parts supply mechanisms. In this way, the assembly is completed one after another in a plurality of robots, and the desired assembly is finally obtained in the last robot.

Margin below? Embodiment] Below, the configuration of an embodiment of the automatic assembly system according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

(Description of Overall Configuration) First, the overall configuration of the automatic assembly system 1 of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

This automatic assembly system 1 includes a pair of first and second automatic assembly devices 2, which extend substantially parallel to each other and are spaced apart from each other.
2), a first connecting conveyance path 31 that connects the terminal end of the first automatic assembly device 2, and the starting end of the second automatic assembly device 2; A second connecting conveyance path 3■ connects the starting end of the first automatic assembly apparatus 2, forming a so-called closed loop (endless) conveyance path.

? Here, each automatic assembly device 2l, 2■ uses a plurality of robots 22, which will be described later, to assemble ( Specifically, the first automatic assembly device 21 assembles a large number of assemblies that make up a finished product, and the second automatic assembly device 2 It is configured to receive a large number of assemblies assembled by the first automatic assembly device 21, and to assemble these to each other via a large number of parts to finally assemble a finished product.

As mentioned above, these parts are assembled using the assembly jig 2.
4, the assembly to be assembled by a predetermined robot 22 is placed on a jig tray T specially prepared for one finished product.
It is passed to the next robot 22 via a buffer mechanism 4, which will be described later.

In the first connecting conveyance path 3, a large number of assemblies assembled in the first automatic assembly apparatus 2l are placed on the jig tray T, and the second automatic assembly apparatus 2, The second connecting conveyance path 3
2 is the starting end of the first automatic assembly device 2, in order to collect the empty jig tray T after the final assembled finished product is removed at the end of the second automatic assembly device 2. It is configured to be transported up to In other words, in this automatic assembly system 1, a finished product is finally assembled from a large number of parts on this jig tray T while transporting one jig tray T endlessly.

On the other hand, the above-mentioned first automatic assembly device 2, and second automatic assembly units 10, 10■ are connected in series, and the second automatic assembly apparatus 2. is composed of third to fifth automatic assembly units 101 to 10+1 connected in series.

Here, each automatic assembly unit l O + ~ 10s is basically configured in the same state, and the detailed configuration will be described later, but each of the automatic assembly units l O + ~10s has one shuttle base 12 and One shuttle 20 running above
And one robot 2 mounted on this shuttle 2o
2, an assembly jig 24, and a plurality of component supply mechanisms 16, 18, each of which is independently and removably disposed. In this embodiment, the first and second automatic assembly units 10. which constitute the first automatic assembly apparatus 2. 10. of? The shuttle bases 12 are connected to each other to form one continuous shuttle base connection body. Furthermore, third to fifth automatic assembly units 10. Each shuttle base 12 of ~10s is
They are connected to each other to form one continuous shuttle base connection body.

Here, in each of the automatic assembly units 101 to 10, for example, as shown in FIG. 2, each robot 22 has a running range (
The shuttle base 12 is defined as an access range) and is set to travel back and forth within this shuttle base l2.

Furthermore, in the first automatic assembly device 2, the jig tray T on which the assembly assembled by the first automatic assembly unit 10+ is placed is transferred to the second automatic assembly unit? 10! A first buffer mechanism for passing to 4. is provided. Further, in the second automatic assembly device 2■, the third automatic assembly unit 10. The jig tray T on which the plurality of assemblies assembled up to now is placed is transferred to the fourth automatic assembly unit 10. a second buffer mechanism 4■ for passing to the device, and a fourth automatic assembly unit 10. The jig tray T on which the plurality of assemblies assembled up to now is placed is transferred to the fifth automatic assembly unit 10. A third buffer mechanism 43 is provided for passing the data to.

Here, the above-mentioned first and second connected conveyance paths 3, 3i
Also, substantially like the buffer mechanism 4, it is configured to have a buffer function. However, buffer mechanism 4
is formed in a substantially U-shape, whereas the first and second
The connecting conveyance paths 31.3■ are both configured in a straight line. They are only different.

The configuration of each buffer mechanism 4 (41 to 4,) is the same, and a detailed explanation thereof will be given later.

On the other hand, in the second automatic assembly device 22 described above, as shown in FIG. The plurality, in this example, the reference numerals 51,5■,
As shown in 53, Yusho is located in a total of three locations.
Since this reversing mechanism 5 utilizes a well-known configuration, its explanation will be omitted.

Further, in this automatic assembly system 1, a plurality of micro-component manufacturing machines 6 for manufacturing and filling corresponding parts into a tape cassette 70 constituting a first component supply mechanism 16, which will be described later, are equipped as described above. They are arranged side by side on the outside of the endless conveyance path of the jig tray T. That is, in each tape cassette 70, when the component supply operation described later is performed and the components stored therein run out, the tape cassette 70 is removed from the corresponding shuttle base 12 and transported to the corresponding micro-component manufacturing machine. , where it will be newly filled with parts. Note that while this empty tape cassette 70 is being removed from the shuttle base 12 and undergoing filling operation, another tape cassette 70 full of parts of the same type is attached to the empty position and the corresponding automatic assembly unit Therefore, the parts supply operation will continue.

(Description of Automatic Assembly Units) Next, with reference to FIG. 3, the overall configuration of each automatic assembly unit 10 (10, to 10,) in this embodiment will be described. In addition, in the following explanation, each automatic assembly unit 1
Since the units 0+ to 10 have basically the same configuration, the automatic assembly unit to be described will be represented by the reference numeral 10.

This automatic assembly unit 10 includes a shuttle base 12 that extends linearly for a predetermined length in one direction. A single main rail 14 is placed on the shuttle base 12, which defines a track extending in the one direction mentioned above.

On one side (the front side in the figure) of this shuttle base 12, a plurality of first component supply mechanisms 16 (
In detail, 12 first component supply mechanisms 16a to 16I
2), and on the other side (the opposite side in the figure), a plurality of second component supply mechanisms 18 (more specifically, ten second component supply mechanisms 18a to 18j) are similarly provided. It is arranged. In other words, the shuttle base 12
The parts supply mechanisms 16 and 18 are disposed so as to extend out of the space sandwiched between them.

Also, on this shuttle base 12, there is a main rail 1
A shuttle 20 is mounted so as to be able to run (self-propelled) along the road 4, and a robot 22, an assembly jig 24, and a first camera 26 as an imaging mechanism are mounted on this shuttle 20. There is. Separately from the shuttle base 12, this shuttle 20 is mounted on a base (not shown), which runs on the main rail 14, and the robot 22 sequentially accesses a plurality of component supply mechanisms 16, 18 to provide an assembly tool. Control mechanism 2 for assembling a predetermined assembly on the tool 24
8 is provided.

The above-described first camera 26 is fixed to the shuttle 20 and moves integrally with the shuttle 20 as the shuttle 20 travels. ) is provided to take an image of the arrangement state of the parts The control mechanism 28 described above
The information is sent to a first recognition unit 30a in which the arrangement state of the parts is recognized.

Here, this control mechanism 28 controls the first recognition unit 30a.
The robot 22 is also configured to control the position and orientation of the parts gripped by the fingers 32 of the robot 22 so that they are in appropriate positions and orientations based on the arrangement information of the parts recognized in the above. In order to control the drive of the robot 22 and the travel control of the shuttle 200 by such a control mechanism 28,
The control mechanism 28 is connected to the shuttle 20 and robot 22 via a flexible connection cord 34.

Further, the control mechanism 28 controls the second component supply mechanism 18 when the robot 22 completes picking up the component X and the arm 36 of the robot 22 retreats from above the second component supply mechanism 18. 1 recognizes the arrangement state of the parts X in the pallet P of the second parts supply mechanism 18 and determines the position of the parts X to be picked up during the next part pick-up operation by the robot 22. It is configured to detect and memorize the part X, and to drive and control the finger 32 of the robot 22 to pick up the part X whose position has been detected during the next pick-up operation.

(Description of Shuttle) Next, the shuttle 20 and the components mounted on the shuttle 20 will be described in detail.

First, a pair of guide rails 38a and 38b are fixed on the above-mentioned shuttle base 12 so as to be located on both sides of the main rail 14 and parallel thereto. and,
The shuttle 20 has the above-mentioned main rail 1 on its lower surface.
4 is inserted into the recess 20a extending along the above-mentioned one direction, and on both sides of the recess 20a,
Fitting into the guide rails 38a and 38b from above, respectively,
Guide bearings 40a and 40b are fixed for defining the running direction of the shuttle 20 in the one direction mentioned above.

Further, a reversible drive motor 42 for running the shuttle is housed within the shuttle 20, and a drive wheel 44 is coaxially fixed to the tip of the drive motor 42. This drive wheel 44 is set to roll into contact with the main rail 14 while being pressurized by a pressurizing mechanism (not shown). With this configuration, when the drive motor 42 starts, the drive wheels 4
4 is rotationally driven, and this drive wheel 44 moves on the main rail 14 with which it frictionally engages. In this way, the shuttle 2o is driven to run (reciprocate) along the main rail 14 in one direction.

A rack 46 is disposed on the shuttle base 12 and extends in one direction, sandwiched between the main rail 14 and one guide rail 38a. On the other hand, inside the shuttle 20, in a state engaged with this rack 46,
A pinion gear 48 is rotatably supported. A rotary encoder 50 is provided on the rotation shaft of the pinion gear 48 to detect the amount of rotation thereof. In this way, the pinion gear 48 rotates as the shuttle 20 travels, so by detecting this amount of rotation via the row encoder 50, the amount of travel (traveling distance) of the shuttle 20 can be detected. This is something that can be done.

(Description of the robot) Next, the robot 22 includes a robot body 52 that is fixed in an upright position on the shuttle 20, and a robot body 52 that is fixed in an upright position on the shuttle 20.
The first rotatable about the vertical axis is attached to the upper part of the second
a swing arm 54, a second swing arm 36 attached to the tip of the first swing arm 54 about a vertical axis, and a Z-axis attached to the tip of the second swing arm 36 so as to be vertically movable. An arm 56 is provided. At the lower end of this Z-axis arm 56, a finger attachment/detachment mechanism 58 is provided.
A finger 32 is attached. Here, this finger 32 is configured as a general-purpose finger having three fingers.

Here, this robot 22 has a first drive motor for rotationally driving the first swing arm 54 and a second drive motor for rotationally driving the second swing arm 36, although details are not shown. It includes a drive motor, a third drive motor for moving the Z-axis arm 56 up and down, and a fourth drive motor for rotationally driving the Z-axis arm 56. By appropriately driving and controlling these first to fourth drive motors, the first swing arm 54 is moved to the second swing arm 36.
It is possible to move the finger 32 to any position within a circular range whose radius is the distance from the center of the robot body 52 to the center of the Z-axis arm 56 when set in a straight line. become.

In other words, since the robot 22 is moved in accordance with the travel of the shuttle 20, it is possible to move the finger 32 to any position within a range of distance ρ from the center of the robot body 52 on both sides. , parts within this range can be freely accessed.

Note that a finger stocker 60 is provided on the shuttle 20 at a position independent of the robot body 52. A plurality of different types of fingers are removably attached to the finger stocker 60, and a finger attachment/detachment mechanism 58
The configuration is such that any finger 32 can be attached to the lower end of the biaxial arm 56 via the . The finger stocker 60 includes a substantially U-shaped notch 60a and a lock pin (not shown), and each finger 32 has a stepped shaft portion (not shown) that fits into the notch 60a. By engaging this stepped shaft portion with the notch 60a, replacement fingers (not shown) can be stocked here.

(Description of Camera) The first camera 26 described above is connected to the second component supply mechanism 18.
It is provided to take an image of the arrangement state of the parts
First camera mounting ball 64 via bracket 62
This ball 64 is fixed to the robot body 5.
2 and is fixed on the shuttle 20 so as to surround it. Here, the ball 64 is attached to the first swing arm 54 so as not to interfere with the swing movement of the first swing arm 54.
An opening 64a is formed over the rotation range of 4.

On the other hand, a second camera 66 is mounted on the shuttle 20 so as to be able to image the finger 32 from below. The image of the finger 32 taken by the second camera 66 is set to be viewed by the second recognition section 30b in the control mechanism 28 described above. here,
This second recognition unit 30b is configured to be able to recognize the gripping state of the component X gripped by the fingers 32 based on the image information sent here from the second camera 66. .

(Description of the assembly jig) Although the assembly jig 24 is not shown in detail, the jig mounting guide 68 and jig positioning pins (not shown) are used to guide the jig mounting on the shuttle 20. 68 and a tray T that is positioned and fixed at 68.

This assembly jig 24 is used for the first component supply mechanisms 16a to 1.
It is configured to be suitable for assembling a predetermined assembly from 12 types of parts supplied from 6β and 10 types of parts supplied from the second component supply mechanisms 18a to 18j.

(Description of the first parts supply mechanism) Next, the first parts supply mechanism 16 will be explained in FIGS. 3 and 4.
This will be explained with reference to the figures.

This first component supply mechanism 16, as shown in FIG.
In order to supply parts via a transport tape (carrier table) 72, which will be described later, in detail, a large number of parts are held in recesses formed in a row along the transport direction of the carrier tape, and this The component is configured to be transported to a take-out position by running the carrier table.

Here, in this embodiment, as described above, 1
Two first component supply mechanisms 16a to 16n are provided, and the first component supply mechanisms 16a to 16I2 are configured to supply different types of components, respectively. In addition, since the configurations of these first component supply mechanisms 16a to 16ρ are the same in the following, when describing the configuration, "16" will be used as a representative reference numeral for the first component supply mechanism. It shall be. The same applies to the second component supply arrangement 18 (18a to 18j).

Each of the first component supply mechanisms 16 is described in detail in patent application (1) i (title of invention: table-type article conveying device, filing date: April 5, 1999) previously filed by the applicant of the present application. However, to briefly explain, a hollow tape cassette 70 is provided, and inside this tape cassette 70,
Carrier tape 7 holding multiple parts X at a constant pitch
2 is built into the wound state.

By conveying this carrier table 72, the held parts X are sequentially supplied to an opening 70a formed on the upper surface of the tape cassette 70 near the shuttle base 12. Here, this opening 70a is located at a position (
That is, it is defined as a range that is laterally separated by a maximum distance β from the center of the robot main body 52.

Specifically, in each tape cassette 70, the above-mentioned carrier tape 7°2 has a plurality of recesses (not shown) therein.
Each component X is housed inside the container, and is wound around a supply reel 76 while being covered by a cover tape 74. Then, the carrier tape 72 is transported to the parts removal position (opening 70a) while being covered by the cover tape 74. Immediately before the parts removal position, the cover tape 74 is transferred to the carrier table 72 via the separation roller 78. The carrier tape 72 is torn off from the carrier tape 72 and the concave portion is exposed.
The cover tape 74 is configured to be wound onto a second take-up reel 82 while passing through the component removal position and being wound onto a first take-up reel 80 .

Note that rotational drive mechanisms (not shown) are connected to these reels 76, 80, and 82, respectively, and when it is detected that the robot 22 has picked up the part In response to this detection, there is a function to feed the tape at a fixed pitch in order to supply the next part
(not shown) is built-in.

Here, as shown in FIG. 4, these tape cassettes 7
0 are positioned on the mounting table 84 in a set of 1, 2, or 3. That is, in one embodiment, six mounting tables 84 are arranged on one side of the shuttle base 12 in order to place twelve tape cassettes 70 thereon. Furthermore, 2
The mounting table on which one tape cassette 70 is placed and the mounting table on which one tape cassette 70 is placed do not each have a dedicated configuration, but the mounting table on which three tape cassettes 70 are placed. It is used in combination with 84.

Further, each mounting table 84 is connected to a second component supply mechanism 1 which will be described later.
It is possible to arrange a maximum of one tape cassette 70 to correspond to the cart 92 as shown in FIG. The placing stand 84 will not be placed corresponding to the cart 92.

In this way, the 12 first component supply mechanisms 16a-
The tape cassettes 70 constituting each of the tape cassettes 1642 are detachably attached to the shuttle base 12 via the corresponding mounting bases 84 in a mutually independent state.

Note that a power-supplied terminal 70c is provided at the bottom of the front surface of the tape cassette 70, and when the tape cassette 70 is placed on the mounting table 84, the lower part of the blocking plate facing the power-supplied terminal 70c is provided. A power supply terminal 84a is provided in such a manner that it can be equalized in the vertical direction. In this manner, with the tape cassette 70 mounted on the mounting table 84, the power-supplied terminal 70c is coupled to the power-supply terminal 84a, and the electrically driven portion of the tape cassette 70, for example, each reel 7
Electric power is supplied to a drive motor etc. for rotationally driving 6, 80, and 82.

Also, on the top surface of each tape cassette 70, the opening 70
A lamp 86 is attached closer to the shuttle base 12 than a to inform that a component can be removed from the tape cassette 70. Here, a cassette control mechanism (not shown) is connected to this lamp 86, and in this cassette control mechanism, the carrier table 7
As soon as the concave parts 2 for storing each part are moved to the position facing the opening 70a, the parts can be taken out.
At this point, the above-mentioned lamp 86 is turned on to notify the completion of preparation for parts removal.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 4, on the side surface of the shuttle 20, in a stopped state facing each of the second component supply mechanisms 18a to 18j, up to three Light receiving elements 88a to 88c are attached to predetermined positions corresponding to the respective lamps 86 of the tape cassette 70 of the stand. Each of the light receiving elements 88a to 88c is connected to the control mechanism 28 described above, and these light receiving elements 88a to 88c are
When 88c receives the light emitted from the corresponding lamp 86 and receives the ON signal output, the control mechanism 28
is configured to permit the robot 22 to start the operation of taking out a component from the tape cassette 70 serving as the first component supply mechanism 16 .

Here, the above-described cassette control mechanism is configured to drive the above-described lamp 86 to blink when it is detected that the remaining number of parts held in the carrier table 22 is less than a predetermined number. has been done. On the other hand, in the control mechanism 28, when the blinking operation of the corresponding lamp 86 is detected via the light-receiving elements 88a to 88c, the control mechanism 28 indicates, via a display mechanism (not shown), that the tape cassette 70 in the first component supply mechanism 16 is displayed. It is configured to display (instruct) a replacement operation.

In the first component supply mechanism 16 configured as described above, when an instruction to replace the tape cassette 70 is issued, the operator can remove the tape when the operation of removing components from the tape cassette 70 is completed. The cassette 70 is removed from the mounting table 84, placed on a cart (not shown), and transported to a parts filling mechanism (not shown).In this parts filling mechanism, the carrier table 22 is replenished with parts, and the parts are prefilled in the parts filling mechanism. The tape cassette 70 filled with parts is placed on a cart, and the tape cassette 70 is removed and attached to the mounting table 84 via the empty cassette receiving part 84f. In this way, while the robot 22 is taking out parts from other tape cassettes 70 and the second parts supply mechanism 18 and performing assembly work, the replacement work of the tape cassette 70 is completed, and this replacement work is carried out by the robot. The assembly work at step 22 is executed without stopping, resulting in high work efficiency.

(Description of the second parts supply mechanism) Next, with reference to FIG. 3 and FIGS. 5A and 5B,
The configuration of the second component supply mechanism 18 will be explained.

This second parts supply mechanism 18 supplies a large number of parts in a state arranged over the entire surface of the pallet P so as to supply parts through the pallet P serving as the above-mentioned parts supply box. It is configured to hold and take out parts from this pallet P.

Here, this palette P is the first camera 26 described above.
In order to be able to recognize the arrangement state of parts,
The upper surface is open over the entire surface, and partition walls 90 are provided perpendicularly to each other to prevent overlapping or contact with adjacent parts. A component storage space S is defined by the space between each partition wall 90, and one component is stored in each component storage space S. In FIG. The symbol P0 indicates an empty pallet that has become empty after using the parts.

The second component supply mechanism 18 is a pallet supply cart (hereinafter simply referred to as
It's called a cart. )92. This cart 92 is based on the patent application application No. 1-36332 filed earlier by the applicant.
No. (filed on February 17, 1999) and patent application No. 1-5960.
No. 7 (filed on March 14, 1999), but to give an overview, multiple pallets P of the same type of parts are stacked and stored, and one actual pallet P is separated. It has the function of positioning the robot 22 at a position and height accessible to it, receiving and stacking used empty pallets P0, and having a drive motor/sensor control mechanism for each function (
It has a built-in cart control mechanism) 92a. That is, as shown in FIG.
A cart control mechanism 92a is provided which is connected to the cart 2c and controls the operation of the cart 92.

Also, on the top surface of each cart 92, the shuttle base 1
A lamp 96 is attached to a portion close to the cart 92 to notify that parts can be taken out from the cart 92. Here, a cart control mechanism 92g is connected to this lamp 96, and this cart control mechanism 92g is connected to the lamp 96.
In g, the parts can be taken out once the pallet P has been moved to the position where it can be taken out, so the above-mentioned lamp 96 is turned on at this point to notify that the preparation for parts taking out is complete. There is.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 4, while the shuttle 20 is stopped facing each of the second component supply mechanisms 18a to 18j, a light receiving device is placed at a predetermined position corresponding to each lamp 96 on the side surface of the shuttle 20. Element 98 is attached. This light receiving element 98 is connected to the control mechanism 28 described above, and when this light receiving element 98 receives the light emitted from the lamp 96 and receives the ON signal output, the control mechanism 28 causes the robot 22 to The configuration is configured to permit the start of an operation of taking out parts from the cart 92 serving as the parts supply mechanism 18 of No. 2.

Here, in the above-mentioned cart control mechanism 92g, when it is detected that the number of parts stored in all the pallets P is less than the remaining number or a predetermined number, the above-mentioned lamp 96 is driven to blink. It is composed of On the other hand, in the control mechanism 28, the lamp 96 is
When the blinking operation is detected, the replacement operation of the cart 92 in the second component supply mechanism 18 is displayed (instructed) via a display mechanism (not shown).

In the second parts supply mechanism 18 configured as described above, when an instruction to replace the cart 92 is issued, the operator can replace the cart 1- 92 is removed from the mounting mechanism 94 and transported to a parts filling mechanism (not shown), and in this parts filling mechanism, each pallet P is replenished with parts, and at the same time, the parts filling mechanism loads the cassette P filled with parts in advance into a cart. 92, remove the cart 92, and attach it to the empty attachment mechanism 94. In this way, while the robot 22 is taking out parts from other carts 92 or the side 16 of the first parts supply machine and performing assembly work, the replacement work of the cart 92 is completed, and this replacement work is carried out by the robot. The assembly work in step 22 is carried out without stopping, resulting in high work efficiency.

(Arrangement relationship between first and second component supply mechanisms) Next, the details of the arrangement relationship between the first and second component supply mechanisms 16 and 18 will be explained with reference to FIG.

As mentioned above, when the robot 22 is in the position So in FIG. 6, the movable area (accessible area) of the robot 22 is within a distance β from the center of the robot body 52 as shown in the figure. It is within the range indicated by the symbol A. Within this range A, the first and second component supply mechanisms 16.1
8 is set. That is, ■
In other words, the front half of the first cart 921 (in the following description, when the ten carts 92 are individually identified, reference numbers 92. to 92,.) are used. , one box of actual pallet P; ? Assembly work jig 22; ■Second camera 66 for recognition inside the finger; ■Double tape cassette 70. , 70■ (In the following explanation, when the 12 tape cassettes 70 are individually identified, reference numbers 701 to 70.■ will be used.) Parts ejection opening 7Qa; ■Finger gas It is Totsuka 60.

The above accessible area of the robot 22 is
The same holds true no matter where the vehicle 2 travels.

For example, the shuttle 20 indicated by a dashed line is at a travel start position S indicated by a solid line. The figure shows a state in which the cart has traveled from a state in which it is located at (i.e., a state in which it is facing the first cart 92) to a position S3 in which it faces the fourth cart 924 along the direction shown by arrow R in the figure. Is the accessible area of robot 22 the front? The changes compared to when the robot 22 was at position 80 are: ■ The accessible cart has changed from 92, to 924; and ■ The accessible tape cassette has changed from 70, 702. 706, 70? ,70. This is what has changed. In this way, the shuttle 20 is located at the leftmost S in the figure. From the position of S+. S2...S,. The carts 921, 92, .・
...one of the 921o and the tape cassette 70. ,7
Each cart 92 and tape cassette 70 are arranged so that one to three of 0■...701■ can be accessed under the same position condition.

Note that when the shuttle 20 and therefore the robot 22 are stopped at the stop positions corresponding to the respective carts 92, the three light receiving elements 88 attached to the shuttle 20
a to 88c, and one light receiving element 98 are lamps 86 mounted on up to three tape cassettes 70 placed on one mounting table 84, lamps 96 mounted on a cart 92, and one light receiving element 98. are set to correspond to each.

As a result, in FIG. 6, the shuttle 20 and the robot 2
2 is positioned at So as shown by the solid line, the light receiving elements 88b and 88c receive light from the lamps 86 mounted on the two tape cassettes 70+ and 70a placed on the first mounting table 84, respectively. The light receiving element 98 receives the light of the first cart 92. The light from the lamp 96 attached to the lamp 96 is received. On the other hand, in FIG.
When the robot 22 is conveyed to the position S and stopped, as shown by the dashed line, the three light receiving elements 88a, 88b, 88c are mounted on the third mounting table 84. Tape cassette 706, 70? ,70
The light receiving element 98 receives light from the lamps 86 attached to the fourth cart 924, respectively.
It will receive light from.

In other words, the arrangement of these light receiving elements 88a to 88c, 98 corresponds to the positional relationship of the cart 92 and tape cassette 70, which are arranged so that they can be accessed under the same position condition after the shuttle 20 moves as described above. . Therefore, the four light receiving elements 88a to 88c attached to the shuttle 20,
At 98, the light emitting state of all the lamps 86 and 96 of the 10 carts 92 and 12 tape cassettes 70 shown in the figure can be detected. As described above, the four light receiving elements 88a to 88c, 98 and the ten carts 92 and 1
Total lamp 86.96 with two tape cassettes 70
Accordingly, the first and second plurality of supply devices 16.18
A communication means connecting the control mechanism 28 and one control mechanism 28 is configured.

Here, the hatched part shown is the first camera l for recognition inside the pallet P when the shuttle 20 is at the position 80.
8 fields of view are shown. As described above, this visual field moves as the shuttle 20 moves, and always covers at least the actual pallet P on the robot 22 side on the cart 92 corresponding to the stop position of the shuttle 20.

(Description of Assembly Procedure) Next, a procedure for assembling a predetermined assembly from a plurality of parts using the automatic assembly unit 10 in this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 7A to 7C.

Here, for the sake of simplicity, three parts are supplied on the pallet P of the cart 92, as shown in FIGS. 7A to 7C.
The explanation will be given assuming that the number of parts supplied by the carrier tape 72 of the tape cassette 70 is four. In the following explanation a~
g indicates a part, and the order of assembling these parts a - g is a (t) - b (c) - c (c) → d
(t)-me (t)-*f (t)-g (c) is set. In addition, the symbol (C) in the part name is Cart 9.
2 represents the supply of parts, and (1) represents the supply of parts by the tape cassette 70.

In the state shown in FIG. 7A, the shuttle 20 on which the robot 22 is placed is moving the part b (c) in the first cart 921.
and tape cassette 70. It shows how the part a (t) inside is stopped and positioned so that it can be accessed.

At this time, the shuttle 20 has moved from the state shown in FIG. 7C, which will be described later, and receives a signal from the row reencoder 50 to determine that the positioning has been completed in the state shown in FIG. 7A, and stops. are doing. In the state shown in FIG. 7A, the part a (t) is first picked up from the carrier table 72 and assembled onto the assembly jig 24, and then,
Part b (c) is picked up from the pallet P of the cart 92 and assembled onto the assembly jig 24.

Here, before this installation, almost simultaneously with the positioning of the shuttle 20 to the state shown in FIG. 7A, the shuttle 20 is
The first tape cassette 70. By detecting the lighting states of the lamps 86 of the cart 92 and the lamps 96 of the cart 92, in other words, it is possible to determine whether preparations for supplying parts a (t) and parts b (c) have been completed via the communication means. Check without contact.

After confirming that the preparation for supplying the parts is complete, the robot 22 performs the assembling work in the order described above. Here, when component a (t) on the tape cassette 70 side is picked up, the sensor built in the finger 32 confirms that the component a (t) has been picked up (that is, it has disappeared from the carrier tape 72 side). This is confirmed by a sensor built into the tape cassette 70.

In the first tape cassette 70I, after this pickup confirmation operation, the carrier tape 72 is pitch-fed by its own drive source, and preparations are made for positioning a new part a (t) n to be used next. This preparation is done in the next part pick-up cycle when part a (t)
It only needs to be completed by the time n is handled, and once completed, lamp 8 will be displayed.
6 lights up.

On the other hand, in response to the positional information of the part b (c) recognized by the first camera 26 for intra-pallet recognition in the previous parts pickup cycle in the first cart 921, the robot 22 is activated and part b
(c) is picked up from pallet P. Then, the sensor built in the finger 32 confirms the pickup state, and then, as the rotating arm 36 and the rotating arm 54 rotate, the picked up part b (
c) is transported to the assembly jig 24 side.

When the rotary arm 36 escapes from the sky above the pallet P that stores the picked-up part b (c) by this transport operation, the first camera 26 for recognizing inside the pallet installed on the shuttle 20 detects the part b (b) immediately before the picked-up part b (c). Parts b (c) n that should be picked up in the next cycle in the pallet P that stores parts b (c) picked up in
, and captures the image into the image memory of the image processing section in the control mechanism 28. After capturing the image, image processing and coordinate transformation to the robot 22 coordinate system are performed in the next cycle for parts b (c) . It only needs to be completed by the time the robot 22 is handled.

When this image capture is completed, the shuttle 20 starts moving along the R direction in response to a command from the control mechanism 28. The above image capture usually takes about 1/30 seconds, so shuttle 20? The movement starts immediately after the rotary arm 36 moves toward the assembly jig 24 as described above, and the movement of the shuttle 20 and the assembly operation on the assembly jig 24 by the robot 22 are performed immediately after the rotation arm 36 moves toward the assembly jig 24 as described above. They will be held at the same time.

After this, the part c to be assembled next by the shuttle 20 (c)
, d (t), e (t), and f (t) are positioned and stopped so that the robot 22 can access them, as shown in FIG. 7B. At this stop position, first, similarly to the case shown in FIG. 7A, the light receiving elements 88a to 88c first connect to the corresponding second to fourth tape cassettes 70a, 70s, . 704, and the light receiving element 98 detects the lighting state of the lamp 96 of the second cart 92.
Each part c (c). d(t), e(t). Check whether f(1) is ready for supply.

Then, after confirming that the assembly work of part b (c) picked up just before has been completed on the assembly jig 24, the part c (c) is assembled in the same manner as in the case of FIG. 7A.
．． d(t), e(t). f(t)
is picked up and assembled onto the assembly jig 24. Also, the part c to be picked up in the next cycle (c).

To capture the image to recognize the position of part C (C)
This is done after the rotary arm 36 moves to the assembly jig 24 side, but in the state shown in FIG. 7B, the assembly work of parts d(t), e(t), f(t) Therefore, unlike the case shown in Fig. 7A, here, after picking up part f (t), finger 3 is
After the finger 32 has risen enough to avoid colliding with the fourth tape cassette 704 even if it moves to the sky, the shuttle 20 moves along the R direction according to a command from the control mechanism 28. Start.

Further, FIG. 7C shows a state in which the shuttle 20 is positioned and stopped in a state where the robot 22 can access the part g (c). Here, the part g (c) is, for example, an extremely thin part, and is set to be picked up by suction. Therefore, even if the completion of the pickup can be confirmed through the sensor built into the finger 32, if the pickup position is deviated from the predetermined position, it will not be possible to assemble the finger 32.

For this reason, in this part g (c), after picking it up, the rotating arm 36 is moved by the finger 3.
2 is moved above the second camera 66 and stopped there, and the second camera 66 images the part g (c) picked up by the finger 32 to accurately determine the pickup position. is set to be detected. Then, the control mechanism 28 receives the imaging information from the second camera 66 and detects the pickup position of the picked-up part g (C), and if it is determined that this detected position is within the allowable range To do this, start the rotating arm 36 again, move the finger 32 onto the assembly jig 24,
Part g (c) is placed on the jig 36.

Here, in the control mechanism 28, the coordinate system of the finger 32 in the robot 22 is corrected when the pickup position is within an allowable range such that installation on the jig 24 is possible by correcting the installation position. In the above, settings are made so that part g (c) is accurately placed on the jig 24.

On the other hand, if it is determined that the pickup position cannot be corrected, the assembly operation is interrupted, a predetermined alarm is sounded, and the operator is prompted to perform a recovery operation.

After picking up the last part g (c) in this way, when the first camera 36 finishes capturing the image as in the case of FIG. The shuttle 20 starts moving along the R' direction opposite to the traveling direction. After arriving at the position shown in FIG. 7A, the process returns to the operation described above with reference to FIG. 7A and is repeated.

Here, the assembled finished product in which part g (C) described with reference to FIG. 7C has been assembled is now ready for the next cycle of part b
(c) Before picking up , store it, for example, by returning it to an empty place on the same pallet P,
Finishing one assembly cycle.

By repeating the above series of operations, one robot 22
The work of assembling a plurality of parts (seven in this case) is performed. In addition, in the above explanation, the first
The camera 26 recognizes the position of the part to be picked up in the next cycle, but only when the last part in the pallet P is picked up and becomes empty, a new pallet P is used. Since it takes time to replace the boxes, images may not be captured here, the boxes may be replaced by the next cycle, and the parts position recognition may be performed immediately before picking up the next part.

(Description of Visual Recognition Operation) Next, the control procedure of the visual recognition operation in the control mechanism 28 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. In addition, in FIG. 8, not only the visual recognition operation but also the related operation control of the robot 22 and the shuttle 20 are shown.

In the following explanation, various parts are represented by symbols a, b, c, d, etc., and the part currently installed is a. , bo, Co+ do+..., and the parts to be picked up in the next cycle are an + k) n l
Indicated by Cn + dn 1 "'.

First, in step SIO, the robot 22 picks up the part ao.
When the part aO is picked up, in step S12, the detection sensor provided in the finger 32 of the robot 22 confirms the completion of the pick-up, and in step S14, the part aO is rotated toward the assembly jig 24 in order to incorporate the picked-up part aO. Move the arm 36. Then, in step S16, the rotary arm 36 is moved toward the jig 24 to a position where it does not block the field of view of the first camera 26 by a rotary encoder (not shown) built into the drive motor that drives it. When something is detected and confirmed,
In step S18, the first camera 26 reads an image of the part an on the pallet P to be picked up by the robot 22 in the next cycle.

On the other hand, simultaneously and in parallel with this step 818, in step S20, the robot 22 moves the assembly jig 24
At the top, the assembly work of part a0 is started.

After the image capture is started in step 318, when it is detected in step S22 that the image capture of part an has ended, in step S24, the shuttle 2o immediately moves to the part b to be accessed next.
Start moving towards. Further, in parallel with this step S24, the placement positions of parts a and l are calculated in step S26 based on the image information captured in step S18.

In this calculation operation, first, the imported part a. The image information of is stored in the image memory of the image processing unit in the control mechanism 28, and in the image processing unit, the robot selects part a in the next cycle. Until the image is picked up, the image processing CPU in the control mechanism 28 executes image processing and conversion processing to the robot coordinate system. When the arithmetic processing in step S26 is completed, the data is stored in the component position data storage section ax of the component position data memory M in the image processing section in step S28.

On the other hand, on the robot 22 side, the above-mentioned step S
In step S20, the assembly work of part a is executed, and in step S30, when the completion of this assembly work is confirmed,
Subsequently, in step S32, the part b0 to be picked up next is selected from the part position data memory M mentioned above.
In step S34, the rotary arm 36 starts moving based on the read position data.

In a state synchronized with this step S34, on the shuttle 20 side, in step S36, the shuttle 20 is part b. Check that the movement to the access point is completed. When the completion of movement is confirmed in step S36, the robot 22 moves to step S38 to move part b. A pickup operation is performed.

Basically, the above steps SIO to S38
The control operations of part b. will be executed repeatedly, but in step 538, the robot 22 moves the part b. is picked up, and when the completion of picking up this part b0 is detected in step S42, the rotating arm 36 moves to the jig 24 side in step S44, and step S42 is performed.
When it is detected in step 46 that the rotary arm 36 is retracted from above the pallet P due to this movement, in step 348 the first camera 26 detects the part bn that the robot 22 should pick up in the next cycle. Simultaneously with capturing the image of , an operation for assembling this part b0 is executed in step S50.

Then, in step S52, until the robot 22 picks up parts b, , in the next cycle,
Image processing and conversion processing to the robot coordinate system are performed, and in step S54, the part bn to be picked up next is stored in the part position data storage section bx of the part position data memory M.
Stores the position of.

Margin below? 9 to 12, from the jig installation guide 68 on the predetermined shuttle 20 after the predetermined assembly,
This assembly is passed along with the jig tray T to the jig installation guide 68 of the next shuttle 20, and the difference in assembly speed between the robots 22 mounted on both shuttles 20 is absorbed, so that the maximum A buffer mechanism 4 (41,
4■. 43) will be explained in detail.

In the following description, these buffer mechanisms 4+,
4m and 4m have the same configuration, so reference number 4 will be used as a representative. Further, the automatic assembly unit 10 on the side that passes the jig tray T on which the assembled assembly is placed is indicated with a suffix a, and the automatic assembly unit 10 on the side that receives the jig tray T is indicated. shall be expressed with the subscript b.

First, as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, this buffer mechanism 4 is connected to an automatic assembly unit 1 to which the jig tray T is transferred.
0. The shuttle base 12 (shuttle base 12. and shuttle base 12. A mounting base 100 is provided so as to be located on one side of the (combined). This mounting base 100 is formed into a U-shape in plan, and one end thereof is connected to the shuttle 20. The other end is the shuttle 20. The shuttle base 12 is set to face the starting end of the travel range, and the middle part is set substantially parallel to the shuttle base 12.

Here, each edge of the upper surface of this mounting base 100 has a shuttle 20. The shuttle 20 guides the sides of the jig tray T received from the shuttle 20 through a U-shaped transport path. A guide member 102 is attached in an upright position for passing the guide member 102 to the outside. Further, at one end of this mounting base 100, a shuttle 20. A pair of receiving rails 104a are mounted to receive the jig tray T passed from the shuttle 20. Upper jig installation guide 68. The height is set so that it is received at the same height.

A pair of passing rails 104b for passing the jig tray T to the jig mounting guide 68b of the shuttle 20b is mounted on the other end of the mounting base 100. The height is set so that the tray T is passed over the jig installation guide 68 at the same height.

Further, in the middle part of the mounting base 100, a pair of running belts 106 are spaced apart from each other with an interval slightly narrower than the width of the jig tray T, and each end is connected to the receiving rail 104a and the passing rail. 104b, and are wound endlessly, facing each other. Here, the conveyance distance of the jig tray T by these running belts 106 is 5
The setting is such that the second jig tray T can exist. Further, the upper side of each running belt 106 is indicated by an arrow R.
It is driven to travel by a drive mechanism (not shown) so as to travel along the direction shown by (the same direction as the traveling direction when each robot 22., 22b is assembled). The heights of the upper sides of these running belts 106 are set slightly lower than the heights of the above-mentioned receiving rails 104a and transfer rails 104b.

Here, between the pair of running rails 106 at the end opposite to the receiving rail 104a, there is a receiving lifter 1
08 is arranged to be vertically movable. As shown in FIG. 12, this receiving lifter 108 is connected to an actuator 110a of a first lifting cylinder 110, and when this cylinder 110 receives the jig tray T via the receiving rail 104a, this The running belt 10 is raised to the same height as the receiving rail 104a.
6, the actuator 110a is driven so as to be lowered to a slightly lower height than the receiving rail 104a.

Moreover, as shown in FIG. 12, between the pair of running belts 106 at the end opposite to the transfer rail 104b,
A transfer lifter 112 is arranged to be vertically movable. This transfer lifter 112 is connected to an actuator 114a of a second lift cylinder 114, and this cylinder 11
4 is a shuttle 20 for transporting the jig tray T via the transfer rail 104b. When transferring to the upper jig installation guide 68t, it is raised to the same height as this transfer rail 104b,
Jig tray T along arrow R direction by running belt 106
When the actuator 1 is allowed to be carried in, the actuator 1 is lowered to a height slightly lower than the transfer rail l04b.
14a.

On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, this buffer mechanism 4 is connected to a shuttle 20 which has traveled to the terminal end and stopped. The jig installation guide 68. The jig tray T is brought into contact with the jig tray T inside the jig installation guide 68. along the direction shown by the arrow Q, through the receiving rail 104a, and the traveling rail 1.
06 to the proximal end side of the receiving button 11.
It is equipped with 6.

This receiving bushing 116 is fixed to the tip of a piston rod 118a of a receiving cylinder 118 for driving the receiving bushing, and in a standby state, this receiving cylinder 118 is moved sideways (opposite to the receiving direction Q) from the jig installation guide 681. Piston rod 1 is pulled out in the side direction).
18a is retracted, and the piston rod 118a is set to be pushed out along the receiving direction Q when the receiving operation of the jig tray T is started.

The receiving cylinder 118 is placed on a first stand 120 installed on the side of the shuttle base 12 opposite to the position where the mounting base 100 is placed. is fixed to the side of the shuttle base 12.

Moreover, this buffer mechanism 4 has been returned to the starting end and is stopped by the shuttle 20. The jig tray T is moved to the end of the pair of running belts 106 facing the transfer rail 104b, and the jig tray T is pushed out from there, and the transfer belt shown by the arrow S is pushed out. Along the direction, the shuttle 20 via the transfer rail 104b.

A transfer button 122 is provided for transferring the upper jig installation guide 68Il.

The transfer button 122 is fixed to the tip of a piston mouth 124a of a transfer cylinder 124 for driving the transfer button, and in a standby state, the transfer cylinder 124 is moved from the running rail 106 to the side (opposite to the transfer direction S). The piston rod 124 is pulled out in the side direction).
a is retracted, and the piston rod 124a is set to be pushed out along the transfer direction S as the transfer operation of the jig tray T is started.

Note that this transfer cylinder 124 is placed on a second pedestal 126 fixed to the side of the mounting base 100.

Here, as shown in FIG. 9, a stopper member 128 is provided to engage with the jig pallet T conveyed as the traveling belt 106 travels and stop the conveyance of the jig pallet T. . Specifically, as shown in FIG. 12, this stopper member 128 is attached to the distal end of the running belt 106, as the running belt 106 runs, the stopper member 128 is conveyed to the jig tray T which is stopped. , engages with the end surface on the upstream side in the conveyance direction Q of the recess formed on the lower surface of the jig tray T that has been conveyed to the immediately upstream side in the conveyance direction R. It is arranged at a position where the conveyance of the jig tray T is temporarily stopped.

In the following description, the jig tray at the receiving position is designated by the symbol T1, the jig tray at the first standby position is designated by the symbol T1, and the jig tray at the second standby position is designated by the symbol T2.
, the symbol T3 is attached to the jig tray in the third standby position, and the symbol T is attached to the jig tray in the transfer position, respectively.

This stopper member 128 is fixed to the tip of a piston rod 130a of a stopper cylinder 130 for driving the stopper member, and when the jig tray T is not present at the transfer position, the stopper cylinder 130 is fixed to the tip of the piston rod 130a of a stopper cylinder 130 for driving the stopper member. is pulled downward to allow transport of the jig tray T1 from the first standby position to the transfer position, and when the jig tray Tb is present at the transfer position, the piston rod 130a is pushed upward to allow the transfer of the jig tray T1 from the first standby position to the transfer position. It is set to operate so as to lock the conveyance of the jig tray T1 from the standby position of No. 1 to the transfer position.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 11, the guide member 102 on the mounting base 100 is provided with a transfer tray confirmation sensor 132 that is turned on when the jig tray T is transferred to the transfer position. When the transfer tray confirmation sensor 132 is turned on, the second lift cylinder 114 operates to push up the transfer lifter 112, lifts the jig tray T5 at the transfer position, and lifts the jig tray T5 at the transfer position.
The jig tray T1 is set to be immediately pushed out from the transfer position toward the next shuttle 2° by pulling the jig tray T1 away from the transfer position and then outputting a transfer signal and activating the transfer cylinder 124.

The second lift cylinder 114 lifts the transfer lifter 112 when a built-in sensor (not shown) detects that the transfer tray confirmation sensor 132 is turned off and the transfer cylinder 124 has returned. It is set to operate so as to be pulled lower than the running belt 106. By pulling down the transfer lifter 112 in this manner, the next jig tray T1 can be transferred to the transfer position.

Further, the guide member 102 is provided with a standby tray confirmation sensor 134 that is turned on when the jig tray T1 is transferred to the first standby position. Here, while the above-mentioned transfer tray confirmation sensor 132 is turned on, the standby tray confirmation sensor 134 is turned on and after a predetermined period of time has elapsed, the above-mentioned stopper cylinder 130 is activated and pushes the stopper member 128 to the locking position. Then, the jig tray T1 that has been transferred to the first standby position is driven so as to be locked at the first standby position.

Note that in the stop cylinder 130, the transfer tray confirmation sensor 132 is turned off, and the transfer lid 112 is connected to the running belt 106.
It is set to operate so as to return the stop flange member 128 to the retracted position after the stop flange member 128 has been pulled down further than the stop flange member 128. In this manner, by returning the stopper member 128 to the retracted position, the jig tray T1 at the first standby position begins to be transferred toward the transfer position.

Furthermore, as shown in the figure, the guide member 102 is provided with a fullness confirmation sensor 136 that is turned on by the third jig tray T that has been sequentially transferred onto the running belt 106 and is waiting in line. has been done. This fullness confirmation sensor 1
36 is turned on, on the running belt 106,
This means that no more jig trays T can stand by, so no more jig trays T can be placed on the running belt 106.
The loading of the receiving lifter 108 is prohibited.

The guide member 102 also has a jig pallet T that has been pushed out to the receiving position. An acceptance confirmation sensor 138 that is turned on by is provided. When the acceptance confirmation sensor 138 is turned on, the first lift cylinder 110 operates to push down the acceptance lifter 108, and the jig tray T.
is placed on the running belt 106.

In this way, as the traveling belt 106 travels, the jig tray T placed on the traveling belt 106 is transported toward the transfer position.

The first lift cylinder 110 is set to operate so as to push up the acceptance lifter 108 to a position where it protrudes from the running belt 106 after a predetermined period of time has elapsed since the acceptance confirmation sensor 138 was turned off. In this way, by pushing up the receiving lifter 108, the shuttle 20. The new jig tray T can now be accepted.

Also, the first mounting table 12 on which the receiving cylinder 118 is mounted
0, in other words, shuttle 20.0 for initiating the receiving operation. A tray discharge start switch 140 is attached for starting the discharge of the tray T from the shuttle 20tl, and also for starting the handing operation, in other words, for starting the operation of loading the tray T into the shuttle 20tl. A closing start switch 142 is attached. The tray ejection start switch 140 is turned on by the robot 22 on the transfer side, and the tray insertion start switch 142 is turned on by the robot 22 on the receiving side.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 10, on the side of the first stand 120 there is a shuttle 20 on the transfer side. A receiving operation completion signal light 146 is disposed at a position facing the above-mentioned light receiving element 98 from above when the light receiving element 98 is stopped at the passing position. Also,
On the lower surface of the transfer rail 104b, there is a shuttle 20 on the receiving side.
With ゎ stopped at the receiving position, the above-mentioned light receiving element 88
A handover operation completion signal light 14 is located at a position facing a from above.
8 are arranged. In addition, these signal lights 146, 168
are both connected to a buffer control mechanism 144, and their lighting states are controlled.

That is, this buffer control mechanism 144 controls the receiving cylinder 1
Shuttle 20. in transfer position by 18. The receiving operation of the jig tray T from 1 is completed, in other words, the receiving button 1
16 is fully returned to the standby position and the receiving standby state is set, and the shuttle 20. When a sensor (not shown) detects that the vehicle is ready for travel, the receiving operation completion signal lamp 146 is turned on. On the other hand, Shuttle 20. The control mechanism 28 on the shuttle 20. Starts execution of a control operation to return the assembly to the assembly start position.

Further, this buffer control mechanism 144 controls the transfer cylinder 1
The transfer operation of the jig tray T from the shuttle 20b at the receiving position by the transfer button 24 is completed.
22 has completely returned to the standby position, the transfer standby state has been set, and the shuttle 20b has been made ready to travel.
At the time of detection by a sensor (not shown), the handover operation completion signal lamp 148 is turned on. On the other hand, Shuttle 20I,
The side control mechanism 28 executes a control operation to start the assembly operation of the shuttle 20b by detecting the lighting of the transfer operation completion signal light 148 via the light receiving element 88a.

In this way, the jig tray T is moved to the shuttle 20. In the buffer mechanism 4 for receiving data from a shuttle 20l and passing it on to the next shuttle 20l, the setting completion information of the receiving standby state and the transfer waiting state are stored in the buffer mechanism 4 for receiving data from the shuttle 20l and passing it on to the next shuttle 20l. , 20b, the receiving operation completion signal light 14
6. With the transfer operation completion signal light 148 provided, communication can be performed in a non-contact manner, eliminating the need for wiring for communication and simplifying the configuration.

Here, the control operation of each component in the buffer mechanism 4 described above is defined by the buffer control mechanism 144. It should be noted that the drive mechanism for driving the running belt 106 to run the running belt 106 always keeps running the running belt 106 when the power is turned on.
06 is driven to run at a predetermined speed, and this predetermined speed is determined by both automatic assembly units 10.06 to which this buffer mechanism 4 is connected. , 10l, each robot 22. , 22. It is set so that the delivery can be completed in a shorter time than the minimum cycle time due to the maximum assembly speed achieved by.

The operation of the buffer mechanism 4 configured as described above will be explained below.

First, in the buffer mechanism 4, after the acceptance confirmation sensor 138 is turned off and a predetermined period of time has elapsed, the first lift cylinder 110 pushes the acceptance lifter 108 up to the acceptance position higher than the running belt 106, so that it is at the acceptance position. The acceptance standby state is set.

When the predetermined assembly is completed in the transfer-side automatic assembly unit lO1, the shuttle 20. is shuttle base 12. The shuttle 20. Robot mounted on top22. The receiving operation is started by turning on the tray ejection start switch 140 via its own finger 32.

That is, with the ON operation of the tray ejection start switch 140, the receiving cylinder 118 is activated and the receiving busher 116 is pushed out along the receiving direction Q, provided that the above-mentioned acceptance confirmation sensor 138 is turned off. , Shuttle 20. Push out the jig tray T from the jig installation guide 68 above. As a result, the jig tray T. will be transferred onto the receiving lifter 108 via the receiving rail 104a.

And this jig tray T. However, acceptance/lifter 10
8 and is correctly transferred to the acceptance position, the acceptance confirmation sensor 138 is turned on and the acceptance operation is completed.

Subsequently, as the acceptance confirmation sensor 138 turns on, the first lift cylinder 110 moves to lower the acceptance lifter 108. As a result, the jig tray T
．． rides on the running belt 106, and is conveyed along the running direction R toward the transfer position as the running belt 106 runs.

Note that when the jig tray T is carried out from the receiving position, the acceptance confirmation sensor 138 is turned off, and immediately after this turning off, the receiving cylinder 118 is moved to the receiving button 116.
By pulling back along the direction opposite to the receiving direction Q, and after a predetermined period of time has passed after turning off, the first lifting cylinder 110 moves to the receiving lifter 1 as described above.
08 is pushed up, and the acceptance standby state at the acceptance position is set again.

As a result, the receiving operation completion signal light 146 mentioned above lights up, and the shuttle 20. A return operation to the assembly start position, that is, a return operation toward the starting end is permitted.

When the jig tray Tb is not waiting at the transfer position, that is, when the transfer tray confirmation sensor 132, the standby tray confirmation sensor 134, and the full confirmation sensor 136 are all turned off, The acceptance waiting state is set. In this state of waiting for acceptance to the transfer position, the second lift cylinder 11
4, the transfer lifter 112 is pushed down to a position lower than the running belt 106, and the transfer cylinder 124 is set in a retracted state with the transfer button 122 removed from the transfer position.

In this way, this jig tray T. is conveyed to the transfer position where it is in a receiving standby state, and at the time of being conveyed to this transfer position, the transfer tray confirmation sensor 132 is turned on. Along with this ON operation, the second lift cylinder 114 is activated and pushes up the transfer lifter 112, and as a result, the jig tray T at the transfer position is moved from the traveling belt 10.
It will be lifted higher than 6.

In this state, a transfer standby state at the transfer position is set.

Then, under the condition that the transfer waiting state is set in this way, the receiving robot 22b turns on the tray insertion start switch 142, thereby starting the transfer operation.

That is, in this transfer operation, when the tray loading start switch 142 is turned on, the transfer cylinder 124 is activated and the transfer button 122 is pushed out along the transfer direction S. In response to this push-out, the jig tray T at the transfer position is moved to the shuttle 20 on the transfer side via the transfer rail 104b. It is transferred to the upper jig installation guide 68b and set there. In this way, one jig tray T
The passing operation is completed.

In addition, by pushing the jig tray T5 out of the transfer position, the transfer tray confirmation sensor 132 is turned off, and immediately after this turning off, the transfer cylinder 124 is moved to the transfer busher 122.
By pulling back along the direction opposite to the transfer direction S, or after a predetermined period of time has elapsed after turning off, the second lifting cylinder 114 moves the transfer lifter 11 as described above.
2 will be lowered, and the acceptance standby state at the transfer position will be set again.

As a result, the above-mentioned transfer operation completion signal lamp 148 lights up, and the shuttle 20. , the start of the next assembly is permitted.

Here, in the transport operation of the jig tray T from the receiving position to the transfer position described above, the jig tray T is placed at the transfer position.
If b is waiting, that is, the transfer tray confirmation sensor 1
32 is turned on, a buffer stock operation is performed.

That is, in this buffer stock operation, the transported,
When the jig tray T to be transferred turns on the standby tray sensor 134 set upstream of the transfer position, the stopper cylinder 130 is activated after a predetermined period of time has elapsed from the time of this on operation.
pushes up the stopper member 128 and locks the jig tray T1 being transported just before the transfer position. As a result,
Regardless of whether the running belt 106 is running, the jig tray T is stopped at the first standby position by the stopper member 128. In this way, the buffer stocking operation when the jig tray Tb remains at the transfer position is completed, and the buffer standby state is set.

Then, as mentioned above, the jig tray T at the transfer position is
The transfer operation of 1 is started, and then the buffer standby state is released in response to the reception standby state being set again at the transfer position.

That is, as the acceptance standby state is set at the transfer position, the stopper cylinder 130 operates to pull down the stopper member 128. As a result, the jig tray T, which was in the first standby position, is transported to the transfer position in accordance with the running of the running belt 106. Subsequently, the transfer standby state at the transfer position is set as described above.

Note that when transporting the jig tray T from the receiving position to the transfer position, the jig tray T1 is also placed in the first standby position in advance at the second standby position set immediately upstream of the first standby position.
When in the standby state at the standby position, a buffer stock operation similar to that described above is executed. In this case, the second jig tray T2 moves to the second standby position and comes into contact with the jig tray T1 that is waiting and stopping at the first standby position, thereby stopping and waiting. Become.

On the other hand, three jig trays T. ,T2,T. If the jig tray T. is on standby, that is, the jig tray T. When the jig tray T is stopped and waiting, the full confirmation sensor 136 is turned on by the jig tray T, so as described above, the buffer mechanism 4 detects the jig stocked in the buffer. Since tray T is full,
In order to prevent further buffer stocking, the transfer side automatic assembly unit 10. jig tray T. The setting is such that the operation of placing the paper on the conveyor belt 106 is prohibited.

As described above, since this buffer mechanism 4 is equipped with a buffer stock function, even if an abnormality occurs in the automatic assembly unit 10t on the receiving side and the assembly operation of the robot 22 is stopped, this While the transfer side automatic assembly unit 10. The assembly operation in , regardless of whether the robot 22's assembly operation stops,
It will continue to be executed.

That is, in the automatic assembly unit 10b on the receiving side, since the assembly operation is stopped, the loading operation of the jig tray T1 at the transfer position will not be started. The assembled assemblies are sequentially fed onto the running belt 106 in the buffer mechanism 4, and a maximum of five jig trays (i.e., the jig tray T at the transfer position and the first to third standby The jig tray T, ~T, in the position and the jig tray T in the receiving position
．． (5 units in total) are waiting to be delivered to the automatic assembly unit 101 on the delivery side.

While the buffer mechanism 4 is buffer stocking the five jig trays in this manner, the abnormal condition in the automatic assembly unit 10Il on the receiving side is resolved, and the assembly operation is resumed in the automatic assembly unit 10b on the receiving side. As a result, the automatic assembly unit 10. In this case, the assembly operation continues independently regardless of the occurrence of an abnormality in the automatic assembly unit 10b on the receiving side, and in this way, the assembly speed in the entire automatic assembly system 1 is not reduced, and the automatic assembly operation continues. will be executed. Therefore, even if an abnormality occurs in one automatic assembly unit 10, since this buffer mechanism 4 is provided, the overall work efficiency will not be hindered.
Efficient assembly work will continue.

It goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to the configuration of the one embodiment described above, and that various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the invention.

For example, in the embodiment described above, the robot 22 mounted on the shuttle 20 was described as being of the SCARA type, but the present invention is not limited to such a configuration. It is also possible to employ cylindrical coordinate system type robots, vertically articulated type robots, and the like.

Further, in the embodiment described above, for example, the first automatic assembly device 21 includes two automatic assembly units 10. ,1
0b are connected in series, each automatic assembly unit 10. Although the shuttle bases 12 in . For example, the first
automatic assembly equipment 2. The shuttle bases 12 of the two automatic assembly units 10- and 10b constituting the apparatus may be configured to be connected in a straight line in a discontinuous manner.

In addition, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the shuttle base l
Although the component supply mechanism disposed on both sides of the tape cassettes 70 and the carts 92 has been described, the present invention is not limited to such a configuration. In addition, various work modules can be arranged. Note that these work modules include, for example, a caulking module, a screw tightening module, a posture change module, an inspection/adjustment module, and the like. By adding these various work modules, the work object and work area in this invention can be expanded.
It is something that can be expanded.

In this case, each work module is ready,
That is, the control mechanism 28 and This achieves the effect that communication means can be shared.

In addition, in the embodiment described above, the shuttle 20 is provided with three light receiving elements 88a to 88c for receiving light from the lamp 86 in the tape cassette 70, and is placed on one mounting table 84. Although it has been described that the light emitting state of each lamp 86 of a maximum of three tape cassettes 70 can be detected at once, the present invention is not limited to such a configuration. A configuration including only the element 88 may be used.

In this case, the shuttle 20 is connected to each tape cassette 70.
The tape cassette 70 is stopped at a position corresponding to the tape cassette 70, and the light-emitting state of the lamp 86 provided in the tape cassette 70 is detected by the light-receiving element 88.

As detailed above, in this embodiment, a plurality of automatic assembly units 10. ,10b :10s ,10-
．． From 10s onwards, the first and second automatic assembly devices 2-, 2b
and a first and a second automatic assembly device 2.
, 2b are connected to the first and second connecting conveyance paths 3. ,3. The automatic assembly system 1 is configured to have an endless conveyance path with the addition of the following. And each automatic assembly unit 10. ~10. The robot 22 is configured to be movable in each unit, with 1 being a unit. In this way, by arbitrarily changing the number of automatic assembly devices in this system 1 and the number of automatic assembly units in each automatic assembly device, a wide variety of products can be produced while reliably responding to increases and decreases in production volume. An automatic assembly system suitable for low-volume production will be provided.

Further, in this embodiment, one robot 22 is driven and controlled independently from other robots by a corresponding control mechanism 28. As a result,
Each robot 22 can be controlled at maximum assembly speed in its drive state, regardless of the operating state of the other robots 22, resulting in this automatic assembly system 1
The overall assembly time for one finished product can be set to the shortest possible time.

In particular, in this embodiment, each automatic assembly unit 1
0. ~10S are connected by buffer mechanisms 4, ~43 having a buffer function and communication conveyance paths 31, 3. As a result, as described above, each automatic assembly unit 10. ~10, each robot 22 can independently set its maximum assembly speed, regardless of the control state (assembly speed) of other robots 22. Therefore, one automatic assembly unit 1
0, even if an abnormality occurs, since this buffer mechanism 4 is provided, efficient assembly work can be continued without hindering the overall work efficiency.

In addition, in this embodiment, the conveyance path is a closed loop (
Since the jig tray T on which the assembly to be assembled by each robot 22 is placed is set to be endless), the jig tray T on which the assembly to be assembled by each robot 22 is placed can be easily used to start part assembly after the finished product is removed and the jig tray T is left empty. It will be transported to the point,
The overall system configuration will be simplified.

[Effects of the Invention] As detailed above, the automatic assembly system according to the first aspect of the present invention includes a first shuttle base having a first orbit, and a first shuttle base disposed near the first shuttle base. , 1st
a first article supplying mechanism on which the articles are placed in a state arranged on a plane; and a second article supplying mechanism disposed near the first shuttle base and holding the second articles on a tape. , a first shuttle carrying a first robot and a first assembly jig and running on the first orbit; a first control mechanism that allows the robot to sequentially access the first and second component supply mechanisms to assemble a predetermined assembly from the first and second components on the first assembly jig; a second shuttle base having a second orbit; and a third article supply mechanism disposed near the second shuttle base and carrying third articles arranged in a plane. and a fourth shuttle base disposed near the second shuttle base.
a fourth article supply mechanism holding the article on the tape;
A second shuttle is mounted with a robot and a second assembly jig and is configured to run on the second orbit, and the second shuttle is run on the orbit, and the second robot A second component feed mechanism that sequentially accesses the third and fourth component supply mechanisms and assembles the third and fourth components into the assembly assembled by the first robot on the second assembly jig. a buffer interposed between the control mechanism and the first and second shuttle bases, which transfers the parts assembled by the first robot to the second robot and adjusts the difference in assembly speed between the robots; It is characterized by having a mechanism.

Further, the automatic assembly system according to the second aspect of the present invention includes a first parts supply mechanism in which the first articles are placed in a state arranged on a plane, and a second article in which the second articles are held on a tape. The supply mechanism and these first
and a robot that picks up the first and second articles from the second article supply mechanism and performs assembly work, forming one set of assembly units, and multiple sets of these assembly units are sequentially connected and arranged adjacent to each other. between the assembled units,
It features a buffer mechanism that adjusts the difference in robot assembly speed between both assembly units.

Further, an automatic assembly system according to a third aspect of the present invention includes a shuttle base having a track, a plurality of component supply mechanisms disposed along the track on at least one side of the shuttle base, and a robot and an assembly jig. A plurality of shuttles are each mounted with a tool and are configured to travel on the orbits, and these shuttles are run on the orbits within their respective travel areas, and a plurality of robots are configured to travel on the orbits. a bullet control mechanism that accesses the parts supply mechanism and assembles a predetermined assembly on an assembly jig;
A buffer mechanism is provided between the travel areas of each of the robots to transfer parts assembled by one robot to another adjacent robot and to adjust the difference in assembly speed between the two robots. It is a feature.

Further, in the automatic assembly system according to the present invention, the track is comprised of a finite track having both ends.

Therefore, according to the present invention, an automatic assembly system is provided that is suitable for high-mix, low-volume production in which a plurality of robots run efficiently and can reliably respond to increases and decreases in production volume.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the configuration of an embodiment of the automatic assembly system according to the present invention; FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the second automatic assembly device in FIG. 1; FIG. A perspective view showing the structure of the automatic assembly unit in the automatic assembly device; FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the structure of the tape cassette in the first parts supply mechanism and the mounting table on which it is placed; FIG. A perspective view showing the configuration of a cart in the parts supply device and a mounting mechanism to which it is attached; FIG. 6 is a plan view showing the configuration of the automatic assembly unit of FIG. 1; FIGS. 7A to 7C are FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the control procedure for image reading in the control mechanism; FIGS. 9 and 10 are perspective views showing the configuration of the buffer mechanism. Figures and plan views; FIG. 11 is a plan view showing the buffer mechanism in detail; and FIG. 12 is a front view showing the buffer mechanism. In the figure, 1... automatic assembly system, 2+: 22... self? assembly equipment, 3. ;3■...Connection conveyance path, 4 (41~
43)...Buffer mechanism, 5 (5,~53)...Reversing mechanism, 10' (10+~tOS)...Automatic assembly unit, 12...Shuttle base, 16 (16a~16
β)...first parts supply mechanism, 18 (18a to 18j
)...Second parts supply mechanism, 20...Shuttle, 2
2... Robot, 24 assembly jig, 28... Control mechanism. Patent applicant Canon Inc.

Claims (4)

[Claims] (1) A first shuttle base having a first orbit, and a first article supply disposed near the first shuttle base and carrying first articles arranged in a plane. a second article supply mechanism disposed near the first shuttle base and holding a second article on a tape; a first robot; and a first assembly jig; a first shuttle configured to run on a first orbit; and a first robot that sequentially accesses the first and second parts supply mechanisms while the first shuttle runs on the orbit; , a first control mechanism for assembling a predetermined assembly from first and second parts on a first assembly jig; a second shuttle base having a second trajectory; 2
a third article supply mechanism disposed near the second shuttle base and carrying third articles arranged in a plane; and a third article supply mechanism disposed near the second shuttle base and carrying third articles arranged in a plane. a fourth article supply mechanism holding a second robot and a second assembly jig on a tape; a second shuttle mounted with a second robot and a second assembly jig and traveling on the second orbit; The second shuttle is run on the orbit, and the second robot sequentially accesses the third and fourth parts supply mechanisms to attach the assembly assembled by the first robot on the second assembly jig. , a second control mechanism adapted to assemble the third and fourth parts, and a second control mechanism interposed between the first and second shuttle bases, the first
An automatic assembly system characterized by comprising a buffer mechanism that transfers parts assembled by one robot to a second robot and adjusts the difference in assembly speed between each robot. (2) A first component supply mechanism that places first articles arranged on a plane, and a second article supply mechanism that holds second articles on a tape, traveling on a predetermined track. However, a robot that picks up the first and second articles from these first and second article supply mechanisms and performs assembly work constitutes one assembly unit, and multiple sets of these assembly units are sequentially connected. In addition, an automatic assembly system characterized in that a buffer mechanism is provided between adjacent assembly units to adjust the difference in robot assembly speed between the two assembly units. (3) A shuttle base having a track; a plurality of component supply mechanisms arranged along the track on at least one side of the shuttle base; a robot and an assembly jig mounted thereon; and running on the track. A plurality of shuttles are configured to run on the orbits within their own respective travel areas, and a plurality of robots access a plurality of corresponding component supply mechanisms to perform an assembly jig. a control mechanism for assembling a predetermined assembly on the robot; An automatic assembly system characterized by comprising a buffer mechanism for adjusting the difference in assembly speed. (4) The automatic assembly system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the track is composed of a finite track having both ends.