JPH07195001A - Coating robot - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To easily determine a moving locus without arranging any program by selecting the moving pattern of the coating gun in a coating robot and calculating the data on the turning point and end point of the moving locus only by inputting operating condition data. CONSTITUTION:The arm 12 of a coating robot is provided in a manipulator reciprocated by a motor 118 through a guide member, and a coating gun 70 is fixed at the tip. A paint in a tank 71 is injected and applied from the gun 70 by the pressure supplied from an air compressor 78 through valves 82 to 88. Meanwhile, the valves 82 to 88 and an indicator 128 are controlled by a controller 76 through the inputs from the rotary encoders 44, 58 and 72 to detect the turning angle of the robot arm 12 and a key board 126. In this case, the data on the turning point and end point of the moving course are calculated only by selecting the moving pattern and inputting the operating condition data.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a coating robot, and more particularly, to a coating robot having a mechanical robot arm that performs a movement similar to that of a human hand, and various coatings at various positions while moving along a predetermined trajectory. The present invention relates to a painting robot that operates.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a coating robot of this type has a traveling device disposed in a coating booth so as to be capable of translational movement. A painting gun is attached to the end of the articulated robot arm, and a predetermined painting process is performed by operating the traveling device, the painting gun and the articulated robot arm according to a predetermined work procedure by the control means.

When a predetermined coating process is performed by such a coating robot, it is necessary to perform a teaching process (hereinafter referred to as robot teaching) in which the position of the coating robot and the coating process at the position are stored as a procedure. In this robot teaching, the position information of the points where each coating process is performed by the coating gun is stored as orbital data in the order of performing the coating process, and the operating conditions such as the moving speed and I / O output according to the coating process at each point are stored. Is described by a program, and this program and orbital data are combined.

Therefore, in order to change the operating condition at each point, it is necessary to rewrite the program. Therefore, the program of the control means for controlling the traveling device, the coating gun and the articulated robot arm is changed to change various programs. It corresponded to the operating conditions.

[0005]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional coating robot, the characteristics of the coating material applied to the object to be coated depend on the ambient temperature, ambient humidity, etc.
In particular, since the viscosity slightly changes, there is a drawback that the coating state is different even if the control is performed according to the program under the same operating condition.

Therefore, in order to eliminate such a drawback, it is possible to change the program as appropriate, but generally, the work of changing the program requires specialized knowledge and takes a lot of time.

Therefore, the rewriting work of the program by the worker consumes time other than the normal work and is complicated.

The object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems.
Provided is a coating robot capable of inputting and changing a movement locus of a coating gun for simply and easily performing a coating processing operation without requiring specialized knowledge to perform a predetermined operation.

[0009]

To achieve the above object, the present invention provides a robot arm having a coating gun and a plurality of coating arms for advancing the coating gun in a predetermined direction while performing different folding operations. Operation pattern storage means for storing operation patterns, and operation conditions for sequentially selecting and inputting the operation patterns, including starting point data of the moving path of the coating gun corresponding to the selected operation pattern, and determining the moving path. Input means for sequentially inputting data, computing means for sequentially computing turning point data and ending point data of the movement locus based on the data inputted from the input means, and the adjacency computed by the computing means The determining means for determining whether or not the distance between the adjacent end point and the start point of the moving trajectory is the minimum value, and the distance between the adjacent end point and the start point is the minimum. If not, conversion means for converting the data of the turning point and the data of the end point of the next adjacent moving locus so that the distance between the adjacent end point and the starting point becomes the minimum value, and each point data on the moving trajectory. And a control means for controlling the robot arm so that the coating gun moves along a movement locus based on the point data stored in the data storage means and the data converted by the conversion means. It is configured to include and.

[0010]

The present invention comprises a robot arm provided with a coating gun and a storage means for storing a plurality of operation patterns for advancing the coating gun in a predetermined direction while performing different folding operations. This operation pattern is a right-angled movement pattern in which the coating gun is moved in a certain direction for a certain distance, then in a direction orthogonal to the certain direction for a certain distance, and is moved in the opposite direction, and the coating gun is zigzag. Zigzag movement pattern to be moved, and reciprocating movement pattern to make the coating gun reciprocate a predetermined number of times in a certain direction, and then move a predetermined distance in a direction orthogonal to the certain direction, and reciprocate a plurality of times in the certain direction or the opposite direction. Etc. The input means sequentially selects and inputs this operation pattern, and also sequentially inputs operation condition data for determining the movement path including start point data of the movement path of the coating gun corresponding to the selected operation pattern. It is a thing. The operating condition data includes, in addition to the starting point data, the traveling distance of the coating gun in a predetermined direction, the distance in the folding operation direction of the coating gun, the pitch which is the traveling direction distance between the folding operations, and the like. The calculation means sequentially calculates the data of the turning point and the data of the end point of the movement trajectory based on the data input from the input means. By selecting the movement pattern in advance and using the operation condition data, it is possible to uniquely determine the data of the turning point and the data of the end point of the movement trajectory. The determination means determines whether or not the distance between the adjacent end points and the start points of the adjacent movement loci calculated by the calculation means is the minimum value, and the conversion means determines that the distance between the adjacent end points and the start point is If it is not the minimum value, the data of the turning point and the data of the ending point of one of the adjacent movement loci are converted so that the distance between the adjacent ending point and the starting point becomes the minimum value. As a result, the distance between the adjacent end point and the starting point of the adjacent movement loci becomes the minimum value, and the coating gun can be moved at the shortest distance when moving from one movement locus to the adjacent movement locus. The data storage means stores each point data on the moving trajectory. Then, the control means controls the robot arm so that the coating gun moves along the movement trajectory based on the point data stored in the data storage means and the data converted by the conversion means.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the coating robot of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway perspective view of the coating robot 10. According to the figure, the painting robot 10 has a frame 112 disposed inside a casing 10A. The frame 112 has two guide members 114 on its upper part, which are arranged in parallel with each other. The guide member 114 is movably provided with a manipulator device 100 for painting.

The manipulator device 100 has an explosion-proof motor 118, and the explosion-proof motor 118 is provided.
The manipulator device 100 itself can be reciprocated in the extending direction of the guide member 16 by rotating the.

The manipulator device 100, which will be described in detail later, is a so-called airbag-type elastic contraction body (lavator, etc.) that acts as an actuator and expands and deforms by the supply of a pressurized fluid to generate a contraction force in the axial direction. The manipulator device has a robot arm 120 having a predetermined degree of freedom (in this embodiment, 8 sets and 4 degrees of freedom) using a plurality of sets each including at least two sets, and in consideration of the reciprocating motion of the motor 118. As a whole, 100 has five degrees of freedom. The amount of movement of the robot arm 120 in each direction of freedom can be detected by a rotary encoder provided in association with the rotation axis that constitutes the joint.

A control panel 124 is provided on the front surface of the casing 10A, and a keyboard 126 including a main switch for instructing driving and teaching of the coating robot 10 is provided on the control panel 124. There is.
Further, a display device 128 for displaying operation points and operation conditions of the coating robot 10 is arranged above the control panel 124. This display device 128 is
A display device having a screen such as an LED device or a CRT that displays only alphanumeric characters can be used.

As shown in FIG. 2, the manipulator device 100 has a base portion 14. The base 14 is the base 14.
The shaft 16 is rotatably supported by the top plate 18 via a shaft 16 fixed to the top and a bearing (not shown) provided on the top plate 18 in the room, and is rotatable in the direction of arrow A in FIG. The explosion-proof motor 118 is fixed to the top plate 18 via an attachment (not shown). Shaft 1
Reference numeral 6 penetrates the top plate 18, and a pulley 20 is attached to the tip portion thereof. A rotary encoder 22 for detecting the rotation angle of the shaft 16, that is, the position of the shaft 16 is attached to the shaft 16. The rotary encoder 22 is connected to the control device 76. Further, elastic contraction bodies 24 and 26 (only the elastic contraction body 24 on the front side in FIG. 2 is shown in FIG. 2) are arranged in the vicinity of the portion where the pulley 20 is arranged.

As the elastic contraction body, for example, Japanese Patent Publication No. 52-403
The airbag type disclosed in No. 78 can be applied. This airbag-type elastic contraction body has a tubular body made of rubber or a rubber-like elastic material.
Organic or inorganic high-strength fiber, for example, aromatic polyamide fiber, which is covered with a braided reinforcing structure and has openings at both ends sealed by a closing member, and is pressed into an internal cavity through a connection port provided in the closing member. When the fluid is supplied, it is expanded and deformed, and a contracting force is generated along the axial direction. One end of each of the elastic contraction bodies 24, 26 is connected to a bracket 28 fixed to the top plate 18, and the other end is connected to each end of the linear member 30. The intermediate portion of the linear member 30 is wound around the pulley 20.

Therefore, when the linear member 30 is moved by the expansion and contraction of the elastic contraction bodies 24 and 26, the pulley 20 and the base portion 14 are rotated along the direction of arrow A in FIG. The base portion 14 functions as a table on which all the members attached to the base portion 14 rotate by the expansion and contraction of the elastic contraction bodies 24 and 26. As the linear member 30, a rope made of synthetic resin or metal having flexibility and low elongation can be considered, but it is also possible to use a chain. In this case, instead of the pulley 20, You can use sprockets.

A bracket 32 is attached to the base portion 14, and the elastic contraction member 2 described above is attached to the bracket 32.
One ends of elastic contraction bodies 34 and 36 having the same configuration as that of Nos. 4 and 26 are connected. The other ends of the elastic contraction bodies 34 and 36 are respectively connected to the ends of the linear member 38, and the intermediate portion of the linear member 38 is wound around the outer periphery of a pulley 40 rotatably supported by the base 14. Has been. An end of an arm 42 is attached to the pulley 40. Therefore, the elastic contractors 34, 36
When the linear member 38 is moved by expansion and contraction of the pulley 40,
The arm 42 is rotated in the direction of arrow B in FIG.

The rotary shaft of the pulley 40 has a pulley 40
A rotary encoder 44 for detecting the rotation angle (position) of the arm 42 is attached. The rotary encoder 44 is connected to the control device 76.

A bracket 46 is attached to the arm 42, and elastic contractors 48, 5 are attached to the bracket 46.
One end of 0 is connected. The other ends of the elastic contraction bodies 48 and 50 are respectively connected to the ends of the linear member 52, and the intermediate portion of the linear member 52 is the outer circumference of a pulley 54 rotatably supported by the tip of the arm 42. Is wrapped around. An arm 56 is attached to the pulley 54. Therefore, when the linear member 52 is moved by the expansion and contraction of the elastic contraction bodies 48 and 50, the pulley 54 and the arm 56 are rotated in the direction of arrow C in FIG.

Further, the rotary shaft of the pulley 54 has a pulley 54
A rotary encoder 58 for detecting the rotation angle (position) of the arm 56 is attached. The rotary encoder 58 is connected to the control device 76.

A bracket 60 is attached to the arm 56, and elastic contraction members 62, 6 are attached to the bracket 60.
One end of 4 is connected. The other ends of the elastic contraction bodies 62 and 64 are respectively connected to the ends of the linear member 66, and the intermediate portion of the linear member 66 is the outer circumference of a pulley 68 rotatably supported by the tip of the arm 56. Is wrapped around. A painting gun 70 is attached to the pulley 68. Therefore, when the linear member 66 is moved by the expansion and contraction of the elastic contraction bodies 62 and 64, the pulley 68 and the coating gun 70 are rotated in the direction of arrow D in FIG.

The rotary shaft of the pulley 68 has a pulley 68.
A rotary encoder 72 for detecting the rotation angle (position) of the coating gun 70 is attached. The rotary encoder 72 is connected to the control device 76. The coating gun 70 has an injection device (not shown), and this injection device (not shown) is connected to the control device 76. Therefore, the injection device (not shown) is driven by the signal from the control device 76. The coating gun 70 performs a coating operation of spraying and applying the paint in the paint tank 71 by driving an injection device (not shown).

On the other hand, a pressurized fluid supply conduit 80 is connected to the air compressor 78 as the operating pressure source. The pressurized fluid supply pipeline 80 is branched into four in the middle, and each of the branched pipelines is a valve unit 82, 84, 8
6 and 88. The valve unit 88 includes four flow control valves (not shown). The four flow rate control valves are in communication with the inside of the elastic contraction body 62 or the elastic contraction body 64 via a pipe line 88A, and are for supplying a pressurized fluid to the elastic contraction body 62, respectively. For discharging the pressurized fluid, for supplying the pressurized fluid to the elastic contraction body 64,
It is for discharging the pressurized fluid from the elastic contraction body 64.

For example, the elastic contraction body 6 of the valve unit 88
Of the two flow control valves corresponding to 2, when the discharge valve is closed and the supply valve is opened, the pressurized fluid is introduced into the internal cavity of the elastic contraction body 62, and the elastic contraction body 62 is expanded and deformed. Then, a contracting force is generated along the axial direction. Further, when the discharge valve is opened and the supply valve is closed, the internal pressure of the elastic contraction body 62 is reduced and the contraction force generated is reduced. The valve unit 88 is connected to the control device 76, and opens and closes each flow control valve according to the pressure value instructed by the control device 76.

Further, each of the valve units 82, 84 and 86 is also provided with four flow control valves similarly to the valve unit 88. Each valve of the valve unit 82 has a conduit 8
2A, which communicates with the inside of the elastic contraction body 24 or the elastic contraction body 26, for supplying pressurized fluid to the elastic contraction body 24, for discharging pressurized fluid from the elastic contraction body 24, and elastic contraction, respectively. It is used for supplying the pressurized fluid to the body 26 and for discharging the pressurized fluid from the elastic contraction body 26. Valve unit 82
Is connected to the controller 76 and opens and closes each flow control valve according to the pressure value instructed by the controller 76.

Each valve of the valve unit 84 has a conduit 84.
It is in communication with the inside of the elastic contraction body 34 or the elastic contraction body 36 via A, for supplying pressurized fluid to the elastic contraction body 34, for discharging pressurized fluid from the elastic contraction body 34, and elastic contraction, respectively. It is used for supplying the pressurized fluid to the body 36 and for discharging the pressurized fluid from the elastic contraction body 36. The valve unit 84 is connected to the control device 76, and opens and closes each flow control valve according to the pressure value instructed by the control device 76.

Further, each valve of the valve unit 86 is provided with an elastic contraction body 48 or an elastic contraction body 5 via a conduit 86A.
0 for communicating pressurized fluid to the elastic contraction body 48, discharging pressurized fluid from the elastic contraction body 48, supplying pressurized fluid to the elastic contraction body 50, and elasticity. It is used for discharging the pressurized fluid from the contracting body 50. The valve unit 86 is connected to the control device 76,
According to the pressure value instructed from 6, each flow control valve is opened and closed.

The controller 76 controls the read-only memory (R
OM) 92, random access memory (RAM) 94,
A central processing unit (CPU) 90, an input / output port 96 including a DA converter, a data memory 95 for storing orbital data of the coating gun 70, and a bus 98 such as a data bus or a control bus connecting these components. Has been done. A keyboard 124 and a display device 128 are connected to the input / output port 96. In addition, this RAM9
4 stores a control program, a movement pattern, etc., which will be described later.

This movement pattern defines a movement pattern of the coating gun 70 with respect to a predetermined surface to be coated. In this embodiment, three types of movement patterns are defined as shown in FIG. In FIG. 4, “○” is a movement start point of the coating gun 70 in each movement pattern, “●” is a point for changing the movement direction of the coating gun 70 (hereinafter referred to as a turning point), and a straight line connecting each point is the coating gun. 70 movement routes are shown.

Each of the moving patterns is a pattern in which the coating gun 70 is gradually moved in the traveling direction (direction of arrow E in FIG. 4) while changing the moving direction of the coating gun 70 at the turning point. , The coating gun 70 is moved along a direction orthogonal to the traveling direction (hereinafter referred to as a folding direction), then along the traveling direction, and then along the folding direction in the opposite direction, and This is a pattern in which the movement along the traveling direction is repeated.
Further, the movement pattern II is a pattern that is moved obliquely with respect to the traveling direction and the folding direction in a so-called zigzag shape. Further, the movement pattern III is a pattern in which the coating gun 70 is moved three times on the line along the folding direction and then is moved along the traveling direction. These transfer patterns I, II, and III can correspond to rough coating, intermediate coating, and finish coating.

Although each movement pattern is visually shown in FIG. 4, each movement pattern actually stored in the data memory 95 stores coordinates of a start point, a turning point, and an end point.

Next, the structure of trajectory data required for actually operating the coating robot 10 will be described. As shown in FIG. 3, the trajectory data K includes a header portion H and a data portion D. This header section H is composed of a data information section and a pattern information section. The data information section stores an outline of the stored trajectory data K, and is composed of the name of the trajectory data K, the total number of points, the number of operation patterns, the number of repetitions of the trajectory K, and the like.

The pattern information section represents the division of the moving pattern at the time of painting, and is composed of the number of points for each pattern. This movement pattern is such that the coating gun is moved in a rectangular shape (movement pattern I) or a zigzag movement (movement pattern) with respect to a predetermined surface to be coated.
II), reciprocating within a predetermined range (movement pattern III
) Represents the locus in the case of painting. In addition,
A plurality of pattern information parts are usually provided in succession.

The data section D stores all the data for each point in succession in order, and the data Dn (n is a natural number) for each point is x for n points.
It is composed of coordinates, y coordinates, z coordinates, A coordinates, B coordinates, coating conditions C and operating conditions J.

The x-coordinate, the y-coordinate and the z-coordinate represent the three-dimensional space coordinates of the coating gun 70, and the A-coordinate and the B-coordinate represent the three-dimensional spraying angle of the coating gun 70 with respect to the object to be coated. The coating condition C is information for specifying the on / off state of the coating gun, the discharge amount, the atomizing pressure, and the like. Also,
The operating condition J is a digital-analog conversion (point-to-point conversion) for each point with respect to a peripheral device of the coating robot (not shown) such as the moving speed of the robot, the interpolation method and the speed of an additional control target axis such as a rotary table on which the object to be coated is placed It is data or the like that should be D / A converted and output.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described with reference to the flow charts of FIGS. First, with reference to FIG. 5, a trajectory data generation / teaching process for causing the painting robot 10 to perform a predetermined painting process will be described. Note that the coating process is conceptually composed of a plurality of process units (for example, a process of coating a single surface of an object to be coated is a single process unit). Hereinafter, each processing unit is referred to as a block. Also in the trajectory data generation / teaching process shown in FIG. 5, the trajectory data is generated and registered in block units, as will be described later. Further, the origin return of the robot arm 120 is performed prior to the generation / teaching process of the trajectory data shown in FIG. This origin return processing is processing for returning the robot arm 120 and the motor 118 to the mechanical origin position of the coating robot 10. By this processing, the painting robot 10 is positioned at the position when the power is turned on.

In step 200, the operator is requested to move the robot to the movement start point of the movement pattern, and the coordinates moved by the operator are fetched. As a result, the corresponding block to be coated with the movement pattern at the requested movement start point is designated. At step 202, the operator is requested to select the movement pattern I to III shown in FIG. 4 as the movement pattern of the coating gun 70, and the movement pattern selected by the operator is fetched.

Further, in step 204, the operator is made to input the movement condition for specifying the movement pattern. The movement conditions include the turning direction distance W, the pitch P, and the advancing direction distance D (or advancing direction height H), which are variables of the above-described moving pattern, in addition to the advancing direction and the moving speed of the coating gun 70 in the three-dimensional space. Etc. are included. If the operator can input and select data by operating the cursor on the screen by key operation, the input and selection work can be saved.

In the next step 206, step 200
On the basis of the coordinates of the movement start point captured in step 2, the movement pattern selected in step 202, and each movement condition input in step 204, the movement start point is selected along the input traveling direction. In the movement pattern, the coordinates of each turning point and the coordinates of the movement ending point when the coating gun 70 is moved by the distance D are calculated, and the trajectory data is automatically generated. In this way, the trajectory data corresponding to a single block is generated simply by the operator moving to the movement start point, selecting the movement pattern, and inputting the movement conditions. It is not necessary to input the coordinates of each turning point as the corresponding trajectory data, and the trajectory data can be easily generated in a short time. By inputting the operating condition J and the coating condition C at each coordinate point, that is, the turning point, it is possible to set in detail the coating process to be performed on the trajectory corresponding to the movement pattern.

In the next step 220, a test operation for moving the robot arm 120 and the coating gun 70 is performed based on the trajectory data generated above. The operator observes this test operation, judges whether or not there is a problem in the movement of the robot arm 120 and the coating gun 70 based on the generated trajectory data, and registers the generated trajectory data in the next step 222. Determine whether or not. When the operator determines that there is a problem, the trajectory data is canceled, so the determination in step 222 is negative, the process returns to step 200 without registering the generated trajectory data, and the above-described processing is performed again. On the other hand, when the operator determines that there is no problem, the operator inputs an instruction to register the trajectory data. As a result, the determination in step 222 is affirmed, and the trajectory data of a single block is registered in step 224.

Upon completion of this registration, the next step 20
In step 8, the next block is continuous, that is, it is determined whether or not there is data in the next block. This step 208
The determination is to determine whether or not the trajectory data is newly registered or added at the end, or the already existing trajectory data is updated (corrected). If the trajectory data is newly registered, etc., a negative determination is made in step 208, and it is determined in the next step 226 whether or not the registration of the trajectory data of all the blocks constituting the painting process is completed. When a negative determination is made in step 226, the process returns to step 200, trajectory data for the next block is generated, and this routine ends when the trajectory data of all blocks are registered. Therefore, for example, as shown in FIG. 7, the coating gun 70 is moved in accordance with the movement pattern I on the surface 150A of the object 150 to be coated, and the surface 150A is coated.
For B, it is possible to easily change the movement pattern for each block, for example, by moving the coating gun 70 according to the movement pattern II to perform coating.

By the way, when the processing of step 224 is once executed and the trajectory data of a single block is registered, when the next block continues, that is, at the time of update correction, an affirmative decision is made in step 208, and step 21
The processing after 0 is executed. The processing after step 210 will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 8, the trajectory Z1 (movement start point S1 and movement end point E1) in which the pitch P is corrected for the n-th movement pattern is registered.

First, in step 210, the coordinates of the movement start point of the trajectory data of the block next to the registered block,
That is, the trajectory Z2 related to the (n + 1) th movement pattern
The coordinates of the movement start point S2 of the orbit data are captured. In the next step 212, the traveling direction of the trajectory Z2 related to the registered (n + 1) th movement pattern (arrow F in FIG. 8).
The coordinate of the point which is line-symmetric with respect to the movement start point taken in (direction) is calculated. That is, since the coordinate of the point S2 has already been registered as the next movement start point, the coordinate of the coordinate point S2 ′ with the axis in the traveling direction (direction of arrow F in FIG. 8) passing through the center of the movement pattern as the axis of symmetry. Is calculated. Next step 2
In step 14, the movement start point S2 acquired in step 210 and the symmetry point S calculated in step 212
Each of the distances between 2 ′ and the movement end point E1 in the registered n-th movement pattern is calculated. In this case, since the trajectory data from the movement start point S1 to the movement end point E1 is registered as the trajectory data in the trajectory Z1 registered in step 224, as can be understood from the figure, the movement start point S2 and the movement The distance between the end point E1 and the movement end point E1 is almost zero, while the distance between the symmetry point S2 ′ and the movement end point E1 is almost zero.

At the next step 216, the calculated distances are compared to determine whether or not the movement start point S2 fetched at step 210 is shorter.
When the determination is affirmative, the process directly proceeds to step 226.
On the other hand, when the determination is negative, in step 218,
The point data of the trajectory data corresponding to the trajectory Z2 of the movement start point S2 of the (n + 1) th movement pattern captured in step 210 is converted and registered so as to be line symmetrical with respect to the traveling direction. Specifically, the coordinates of each turn-around point and the coordinates of the movement end point that form the trajectory data are converted into the coordinates of a point that is line-symmetric with respect to the traveling direction and registered. In the case of FIG. 8, each coordinate point corresponding to the trajectory Z2 ′ is registered.
When this registration is completed, the process returns to step 208, it is determined whether the next block is continuous, and the above process is repeatedly executed until the processes of all blocks are completed.

Thus, the point S2 is set as the next movement start point.
The coordinates are registered, and if the coating gun 70 is moved in accordance with this, it becomes necessary to move the coating gun 70 from the point E1 to the point S2 in a state where the coating by the coating gun 70 is not performed. By executing the processing, the coordinate points are converted so that the moving distance to the next block becomes the shortest, and it becomes unnecessary to move the coating gun 70 in vain. Therefore, the trajectory in which the coating processing is determined so that the coating processing can be performed in a short time. Data is obtained.

Next, the reproduction processing of the trajectory data K will be described with reference to FIG. First, when this routine is executed, in step 230, the final point number and the number of repetitions are read based on the trajectory data number input by the operator as a parameter of the reproduction process. This orbital number is a number given to the orbital data such as the keywords shown in FIG. 3 stored in the memory. Next Step 232
Then, the process moves to the first point, and in step 234, the painting operation is performed based on the operation condition. This process is repeatedly executed until all points are completed (steps 236 and 238). In this way, the interpolation operation is performed according to the trajectory data from the first point to the final point. This is repeated the specified number of times (step 240).

As described above, according to the present embodiment, the trajectory data suitable for various conditions and the like can be easily modified only by changing the movement pattern without modifying the program. If the orbital data is created for each, the coating process can be reproduced in various states with the same program.

Further, in this embodiment, it is possible to set the coating conditions for each pattern by associating each of the plurality of surfaces of the object to be coated with an independent coating pattern, and a fine coating robot that is different for each object. The operation is executed and the versatility of the painting robot is expanded. Furthermore, since all operating conditions related to painting are incorporated in the trajectory data, the program body for operating the painting robot only processes the data input / output of the operator and the input / output with other devices, thus reducing the CPU load. Reduce.

In the above embodiment, the trajectory data K for moving the automatically calculated coordinate points has been described. However, one or a plurality of trajectories (lines) moving between the two coordinate points in the trajectory data K are used. It is also possible to teach (add) the operation type described below having the operation point of.
The setting of this operation type will be described with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 9A, according to the above teaching, points Qa and Qb which are passing points on the trajectory data K are obtained.
Is defined, and the trajectory line Ka is defined. At this point Qa, the coating state, which is the direction of the nozzle of the coating gun, is set in the direction Ya. On this trajectory line Ka, for example, five motion types described below can be set.

The operation type A is for changing the direction of the nozzle of the coating gun, for example, in the middle of the trajectory line Ka. For example, when the motion type A is set,
As shown in FIG. 9B, the intermediate coordinate point Qc is obtained from the coordinates of the points Qa and Qb, and the obtained coating state from the point Qc to the point Qb is set to a direction Yb different from the direction Ya. It The direction Yb is automatically set by inputting or by inverting the direction Ya. By setting the operation type A, it is possible to determine a complicated coating state in which the coating direction is changed midway such that the route Ka1 is the direction Ya and the route Ka2 is the direction Yb in the trajectory line Ka. To set the operation type, the data (coordinates, etc.) of the intermediate coordinate points may be added to the trajectory data K, and the corresponding processing of the trajectory line Ka, which is a part of the route, is changed by the added trajectory data K. can do.

The operation type B is to change the route so that the coating position is offset by a predetermined distance in the middle of the trajectory line Ka.
For example, when the operation type B is set, as shown in FIG. 9C, the offset coordinate point Qc is obtained at the position intermediate the coordinates of the points Qa and Qb and separated by the distance X. To set the operation type, the data (coordinates, etc.) of the intermediate coordinate point may be added to the trajectory data K as in the above. It should be noted that the distance X may be set in advance or may be set in advance as an offset distance. By setting this operation type B, the paths Ka3, K offset by the distance X
The trajectory data has a4 as its trajectory.

In the operation type B, the movement paths from the point Qa to the point Qd and from the point Qd to the point Qb are not limited to straight lines. That is, as shown in FIG. 9D, in the operation type C, the paths to the obtained intermediate coordinate point Qd can be set to be curves Ka5 and Ka6. The curve in this case may be a curve generated by a predetermined function such as spline interpolation, or a process of simply fitting an arc having a predetermined radius may be performed. In this case, data indicating that an arc or the like has been used may be stored as a condition.

The number of intermediate coordinate points described above is not limited to one and may be a plurality of points. For example, the motion type D shown in FIG. 9E is a modification of the motion type B and has two offset coordinate points, and the motion type E shown in FIG. 9F is a modification of the motion type C. For example, it is a case where there are two offset coordinate points. This motion type D
Then, the offset coordinate points Qe and Qf are obtained, and the route K
a7, Ka8, and Ka9 are set. Further, in the motion type E, the offset coordinate points Qe and Qf are obtained, and the route K
aa, Kab, and Kac are set.

As described above, by setting the operation type, it is possible to easily change a part of the set predetermined movement pattern, and it is possible to set a wide variety of coating states.

The operation type setting described above can be applied to automatic moving point calculation. That is,
As the operation pattern, for example, a semicircle, a triangle, a trapezoid, or a hypotenuse trapezoid is prepared and can be selected. Therefore, when the operation pattern is selected and necessary parameters such as the pitch P and the movement amount are input after the start point is set, in the selection of the semicircle, the set start point shown in FIG. A coordinate point corresponding to Qb is automatically calculated, and in selecting a triangle, the set starting point shown in FIG. 9C is used as a point Qa, and coordinate points corresponding to points Qd and Qb are automatically calculated to obtain a trapezoid. Figure 9
Using the set starting point shown in (e) as the point Qa, coordinate points corresponding to the points Qe, Qf, and Qb are automatically calculated,
When the hypotenuse trapezoid is selected, the set starting point shown in FIG. 9D can be used as the point Qa to automatically calculate the coordinate points corresponding to the points Qe, Qf, and Qb.

In the above coating robot, when the operating condition J is constant in the coating process in one block, only the operating condition J at the movement start point or a predetermined turning point should be input as the reference point. . The operating condition J in this case may be stored in the pattern information section. By doing so, the data portion of the trajectory data K need only store the coordinate points. Therefore, the teaching time can be shortened, the handling of the trajectory data K can be simplified, and the memory can be saved.

Further, the movement pattern applied to the surface to be coated is not limited to one type, and a plurality of types of movement patterns can be used in combination. That is, since the number of points is stored in the pattern information section, a plurality of movement patterns are stored in the pattern information section, so that the movement patterns are stored in one trajectory data K in the taught order. Therefore, it is possible to set the trajectory data K so that one surface of the object to be coated is painted in a pattern in which a plurality of types of movement patterns are combined, and even when a three-dimensional surface is painted, All information can be included on a single trajectory data K.

Further, even if the position of the turning point is changed, for example, according to the user's need due to the complexity of the shape of the object to be coated, in the present coating robot, the coordinates of each turning point are changed. Is automatically calculated, the user can easily change the content of the coating process including the change of the position of the turning point without performing a complicated process such as a program change.

Further, since the trajectory data K stores the data relating to the position coordinates determined by the movement pattern, when a part of the trajectory data K is to be corrected, only the data relating to the corresponding position coordinates are corrected. do it. Therefore, it is easy to correct the trajectory data so that the movement is slightly different from the movement pattern.

Furthermore, when the end point position of the locus generated by one movement pattern is different from the start point position of the next movement pattern, the start point position of the next movement pattern and the end point position of the current movement pattern match. In addition, the distance W, the pitch P, and the traveling distance D (or the height H), which are variables of the movement pattern, can be automatically obtained.

The process of automatically obtaining the distance W, which is a variable of the movement pattern, can be applied to a similar pattern of the movement pattern, that is, the enlargement / reduction process of the movement pattern. That is, in this application, the start point position and the end point position are input, and the number of times of folding is input. As a result, the distance W, the pitch P, and the traveling distance D, which are variables of the movement pattern for painting the rectangular area formed by the start point position and the end point position with the predetermined movement pattern.
(Or height H) can be automatically obtained.

Since a plurality of movement patterns can be stored in the pattern information section, it is possible to correct, insert and delete each movement pattern stored in the trajectory data K. Therefore, it is possible to easily generate new trajectory data by correcting the trajectory data based on the trajectory data K that has already been created, so that the teaching time can be shortened.

This orbit data K can be partially or wholly copied from other orbit data K. Therefore,
If multiple objects with the same shape are placed at different positions, teach the trajectory data for one shape and set the start point coordinates only for the others, and copy all trajectory data easily. Can be created. In this case, by designating the offset amount described above, it is possible to operate the coating robot while offsetting by a fixed amount.

Further, the coordinates at the time of teaching may be input by reading the coordinates at the time when the robot hand is moved to a predetermined position while moving the robot hand, or by inputting numerical values with a keyboard or the like.

Further, as the operation of the above-mentioned painting robot, the highest position of all the points in the trajectory data is automatically judged when moving without painting such as initial movement or interruption of painting. After evacuating to the height (corresponding to the Z axis), shift to the moving operation. Therefore, it is possible to prevent a collision with the moving object to be coated, and at the time of teaching the robot, it is not necessary to teach the retracted position, and only the teaching in the painting state is required.

Further, the same object to be painted may be painted by a plurality of painting robots. In this case, the same operation can be performed only by changing the reference position for each coating robot.

[0070]

As described above, according to the present invention, the data of the turning point and the ending point of the movement locus can be obtained only by selecting the movement pattern and inputting the operation condition data.
The effect is that you can easily determine the trajectory of the coating gun without assembling or creating a program, and you can move the coating gun at the shortest distance when moving from one trajectory to the adjacent trajectory. can get.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partial cross-sectional perspective view showing an outline of a coating robot that is an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a manipulator device and a control device of the present embodiment.

FIG. 3 is an image diagram showing a configuration of orbital data on a memory.

4A to 4C are diagrams showing movement patterns.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a flow of online teaching.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a flow of reproducing orbital data.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a case where a movement pattern of a coating gun is changed for each block of a coating process.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram for explaining an outline of a process of changing trajectory data in line symmetry with respect to a traveling direction.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram for explaining motion types that can be set in one line on the trajectory of the coating robot of the embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 Painting Robot 24 Elastic Shrinkable Body 76 Control Device 82 Valve Unit 95 Data Memory 100 Manipulator Device 120 Robot Arm

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A robot arm provided with a coating gun, an operation pattern storage unit storing a plurality of operation patterns for advancing in a predetermined direction while performing different folding operations of the coating gun, and the operation pattern. Input means for sequentially inputting and sequentially inputting operation condition data for determining a movement locus of the coating gun and including starting point data of the movement locus of the coating gun corresponding to the selected movement pattern; The distance between the end point and the start point of the adjacent moving loci calculated by the calculating means is calculated by sequentially calculating the turning point data and the ending point data of the moving locus based on the input data. Judgment means to judge whether it is the minimum value or not, and when the distance between the adjacent end point and the start point is not the minimum value, the distance between the adjacent end point and the start point A conversion unit that converts the data of the turning point and the data of the end point of the next adjacent moving locus so as to have the minimum value, the data storage unit that stores the point data on the moving locus, and the data storage unit that stores the data. A control robot that controls the robot arm so that the coating gun moves along a movement trajectory based on the point data that has been converted and the data that has been converted by the conversion means.