JPH0724772A - Manipulator device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain a manipulator device which can minimize the diameter of a sprocket in the condition in which elastic expansion bodies are arranged in parallel to each other. CONSTITUTION:A pair of elastic expansion bodies 68A, 68B are arranged in parallel along an axis of a second arm. Ends of the elastic expansion bodies 68A, 68B are connected to terminals of a timing belt 82 whose intermediate section is wound around a drive pulley 84. The timing belt 82 is extended by force in the orthogonal direction to the axis of the second arm by an intermediate pulley 88. That is, if the timing belt 82 is extended by force by the intermediate pulley 88 so that it is positioned on an extended line of the axis of the elastic expansion bodies 68A, 68B, tensile force generated due to a difference in expansion amount of the pair of elastic expansion bodies 68A, 68B is converted into rotational force of the drive pulley 84 via the timing belt 82.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a manipulator device in which a driven member provided at the tip of an arm is rotatable and bendable.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As one of driving sources for driving a driven member provided at the tip of an arm of a manipulator device, there is one utilizing expansion and contraction motion of an elastic expander composed of a rubber tube. .

As conceptually shown in FIG. 8, this elastic expansion body 200 is designed to expand and contract in the radial direction by the inflow and outflow of air, and to relatively expand and contract in length. A chain 206 wound around a sprocket 204 pivotally supported on the tip of the arm 202 is connected to the end of the elastic expansion body 200, and the sprocket 204 is sprocket 204 depending on the relative expansion / contraction amount of the elastic expansion body 200. The driven member is rotated and bent by a gear mechanism (not shown).

The rotation angle θ of the sprocket 204 is represented by θ = 360 × ΔL / πD (ΔL: difference in expansion / contraction amount of elastic expansion body, D: diameter of sprocket).

That is, when the other design conditions are not taken into consideration, the smaller the sprocket diameter D, the larger the rotation angle θ.
Can be obtained.

However, when the elastic expansion bodies 200 are arranged in parallel, the expansion / contraction direction of the elastic expansion bodies 200, in other words, the extension line of the axis of the elastic expansion body 200 and the sprocket 2 are arranged.
It is necessary to set the diameter D of the sprocket 204 so that the tangent lines of 04 coincide with each other. On the other hand, the elastic expansion body 200 is
Since they expand and contract in the radial direction, it is necessary to provide a predetermined interval in order to prevent them from interfering with each other, and the diameter D of the sprocket 204 inevitably becomes large.

For this reason, as shown in FIG. 9, it is conceivable to arrange the elastic inflatable body 200 obliquely to reduce the diameter of the sprocket 208. However, the elastic inflatable body 200 protrudes from the arm 202. The external dimensions become large.

[0008]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In consideration of the above facts, an object of the present invention is to provide a manipulator device capable of maximizing the diameter of a sprocket with elastic expanders arranged in parallel.

[0009]

A manipulator device according to the present invention is a manipulator device in which a driven member is attached to the tip of a bendable / extendable arm, and the manipulator device is arranged at the tip of the arm on the axis thereof. A rotating member that transmits a rotating force; a pair of elastic expanders that are arranged parallel to each other along the axis of the arm and that expand and contract in the radial direction by the supply and discharge of fluid to expand and contract in relative length; A transmission member whose part is wound around the rotary member and whose ends are respectively connected to the ends of the elastic expansion body, and the transmission member which is arranged between the rotation member and the end of the elastic expansion body. A guide member that expands in a direction orthogonal to the axis of the arm.

[0010]

In the manipulator device of the above construction, the pair of elastic expanders are arranged in parallel along the axis of the arm.
The ends of the elastic expansion body are connected to the ends of the transmission member whose intermediate portion is wound around the rotary member.

The transmission member is expanded by the guide member in the direction orthogonal to the axis of the arm. That is,
With this guide member, if the transmission member is pushed and expanded so as to be positioned on the extension line of the axis of the elastic expansion body, the tensile force generated by the difference in the amount of expansion and contraction of the pair of elastic expansion bodies can be linearly transmitted to the transmission member. Becomes

Therefore, even if the diameter of the rotating member is small,
By providing the guide member for guiding the transmission member between the rotary member and the elastic expansion body, the elastic expansion bodies can be arranged in parallel, and the rotary member can be rotated at a large rotation angle.

[0013]

EXAMPLE A case where the manipulator apparatus according to the present invention is used as a painting robot will be described.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the coating robot 1
On the main body 12 of No. 0, a pedestal 14 which is swung by a turning motor (not shown) is attached. Mounting brackets 16 are provided on the upper surface of the gantry 14 so as to face each other.
The arm driving explosion-proof motor 18 and the second arm driving explosion-proof motor 20 are fixed.

A belt wheel 22 is fixed to the rotary shaft of the explosion-proof motor 18 for driving the first arm. A timing belt 24 is wound around the belt wheel 22 so that the rotational force is accurately transmitted to the belt wheel 26.
The belt wheel 26 is rotatably supported by a shaft 30 whose both ends are supported by a pair of brackets 28 extending from the frame 14. Further, the belt wheel 26 has the first arm 3
It is connected to 2 fulcrums. As a result, the first arm 32 causes the shaft 30 to rotate as the belt wheel 26 rotates.
It is designed to rotate around the axis of.

Further, a belt wheel 34 is attached to the shaft 30.
Is rotatably supported. A timing belt 38 is wound around the belt wheel 34 and a belt wheel 36 fixed to the rotating shaft of the explosion-proof motor 20 for driving the second arm. Further, the belt wheel 34 is connected to a belt wheel 37 pivotally supported by the shaft 30, and the belt wheel 34 and the belt wheel 37 rotate together.

On the other hand, the timing belt 39 wound around the belt wheel 37 is tensioned by intermediate belt wheels 40 and 42 which are rotatably supported by the central portion of the first arm 32, and is rotated by the belt wheel 44. It is wrapped around. As shown in FIG. 4, brackets 46 are fixed to both sides of the belt wheel 44, and are rotatably supported by a shaft 50 whose both ends are supported by the free end of the first arm 32. The bracket 46 is connected to the connecting portion 53 of the second arm 52 by the bolt 48, and the second arm 52 is configured to rotate integrally with the belt wheel 44 around the shaft 50. .

As shown in FIG. 1, the second arm 52 is composed of a pair of long plate-shaped plates 54 arranged facing each other, and a connecting portion 53 is fixed to one plate 54. The ends of the plate 54 (on the side of the first arm 32) are connected by a connecting plate 56. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 7, supports 58 and 60 are provided at both ends of the connecting plate 56. Shafts 62 and 64 are inserted into the supports 58 and 60, respectively, and brackets 66 and 76 are pivotally supported at both ends of the shaft 62. To the bracket 66, the closing portions 72 of the elastic expansion bodies 68A and 68B, which are arranged to face each other with the central axis of the second arm 52 as a symmetry line, are fixed. The elastic members 68A, 68B are attached to the bracket 76 pivotally supported by the shaft 64.
Elastic expanders 70A and 70B respectively arranged in parallel with
The closing part 74 is fixed.

Thus, the elastic expanders 68A, 68B,
All of 70A and 70B are arranged in parallel with the central axis of the second arm 52 so that they do not protrude from the second arm 52.

The elastic expanders 68A, 68B, 70A,
70B is a rubber tube, the outer peripheral surface of which is covered with high-tensile fibers, and the air holes 7 formed in the closing portions 72 and 74.
Air is supplied and discharged from 7. By supplying and discharging this air, the elastic expanders 68A, 68B, 70A, 7
OB expands or contracts to expand or contract its length. Further, the elastic expanders 68A, 68B, 70
When assembling A and 70B to the second arm 52,
By expanding by about 0%, assembling and then contracting by about 15%, the difference in expansion amount between the elastic expansion bodies 68A and 68B and between the elastic expansion bodies 70A and 70B is maximized. Is set to.

As shown in FIG. 7, a timing belt 82 is connected to the closing portions 78 of the elastic expanders 68A and 68B on the tip end side of the second arm 52. The timing belt 82 is wound around the drive pulley 84.
The drive pulley 84 is rotatably supported by a shaft 86 spanned between the plates 83 (see FIG. 1). A pair of intermediate pulleys 88 is pivotally supported by the plate 83 between the drive pulley 84 and the closing portion 78.
The intermediate pulley 88 pushes and spreads the timing belt 82 in a direction orthogonal to the axis L of the second arm 52. That is, the timing belt 82 is set between the intermediate pulley 88 and the closing portion 78 so as to be located on the extension line of the axes of the elastic expansion bodies 68A and 68B. Therefore, the tensile force of the timing belt 82 caused by the difference in expansion amount between the pair of elastic expanders 68A and 68B is transmitted to the drive pulley 84 via the intermediate pulley 88, and is converted into the rotational force of the drive pulley 84. To be converted.

By providing the intermediate pulley 88 in this way, the diameter of the drive pulley 84 can be reduced. That is, even when the elastic expanders 68A and 68B are arranged in parallel, it is not necessary to set the diameter of the drive pulley 84 to the distance M between the timing belts 82, and the rotation angle of the drive pulley 84 can be increased by the smaller diameter. .

The elastic expanders 70A and 70B are arranged on the front side of the paper with respect to the elastic expanders 68A and 68B.
Is driven by a mechanism similar to that described above, and a drive pulley 85 (see FIG. 6) provided at the other end of the shaft 86 is rotated.

Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the second arm 52
Encoders 90, 92 for detecting the rotation angle are provided at the rear end of the
Are arranged in pairs. Input shaft 94 of encoder 90
Are connected to the transmission shaft 98 by a coupling 96. This transmission shaft 98 is attached to the bracket 10
It is rotatably supported by a bearing 102 fixed to 0 so as not to shake.

The other end of the transmission shaft 98 is connected to the first universal joint 104. As shown in FIG. 6, the first universal joint 104 is connected to a second universal joint 106 arranged at the tip of the second arm 52 by an interlocking shaft 108. The second universal joint 106 is connected to the transmission shaft 114 that is axially supported by the bearing 112. Bevel gears 116 and 134 are fixed to the other end of the transmission shaft 114. This bevel gear 116,
The drive pulleys 84, 8 are rotatably supported by the shaft 86.
5 and the bevel gears 118 and 120 that rotate integrally with the gear 5, intersect and mesh with each other.

As described above, by providing the first universal joint 104 and the second universal joint 106 at both ends of the interlocking shaft 108, the encoders 90 and 92 for detecting the rotation angle and the rotation direction of the bevel gears 116 and 134 are provided as the first and second encoders 90 and 92, respectively. The two arms 52 can be arranged at the rear end. Therefore, as compared with the case where the encoder is attached to the tip of the second arm 52, the moment of inertia generated when the second arm 52 is activated is reduced, and the member strength of the arm can be suppressed to the necessary minimum. it can. The encoder 92 can detect the rotation angle and the rotation direction by the same mechanism as above.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 6, bevel gears 118 and 120 for rotation angle detection, which are rotatably supported by bearings, are provided on both surfaces of drive pulleys 84 and 85 which are rotatably supported near both ends of a shaft 86. And the driving bevel gears 122 and 124 are fixed via bearings. Also,
At the center of the shaft 86, a base 128 of the spray gun 126 is axially supported with a bearing interposed. A substantially cylindrical nozzle body 130 is rotatably mounted on the base body 128 via bearings, and a gear portion 132 engraved on the rear end peripheral portion of the nozzle body 130 includes a bevel gear 122, 1.
They are sandwiched between 24 and mesh with each other. A supply pipe for supplying paint from a paint tank (not shown) is connected to the nozzle body 130.

Next, the operation of the manipulator apparatus according to this embodiment will be described. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the main body 12
When the turning motor arranged in the above position is driven, the gantry 14 turns, and the first arm 32 and the second arm 52 turn together with the gantry 14.

Next, the explosion-proof motor 18 for driving the first arm is driven to rotate the belt wheel 26 via the timing belt 24, so that the first arm 3 is rotated around the shaft 30.
2 rotates, in other words, the first arm 32 as the upper arm moves up and down. In addition, the second arm driving explosion-proof motor 2
0 drive the belt wheel 3 via the timing belt 38.
When the belt wheels 44 and 37 are rotated and the belt wheel 44 is rotated via the timing belt 39 wound around the belt wheel 37, the second arm 52 is rotated around the shaft 50.
Rotates, in other words, the second arm 5 as the lower arm.
2 bends and stretches. In this way, the first arm 32 functions as an upper arm portion extending from the shoulder joint, and the second arm 52 functions as a lower arm portion extending from the elbow joint.

Next, a case where the nozzle body 130 corresponding to a so-called wrist is swung or bent around the axis of the second arm 52 will be described.

As shown in FIG. 7, the elastic expansion body 68A is
Air is supplied from a compressor (not shown), and air is discharged from the other elastic expansion body 68B. Due to the supply and discharge of the air, the elastic expansion body 68A expands and the elastic expansion body 68B contracts, causing a difference in expansion and contraction. Therefore, the timing belt 82 moves in the arrow A direction via the intermediate pulley 88, and rotates the drive pulley 84 in the arrow B direction. Further, the elastic expansion bodies 70A, 70B arranged to face the pair of elastic expansion bodies 68A, 68B are similarly expanded and contracted, and the drive pulley 85 is rotated in the same direction as the drive pulley 84.

As a result, the bevel gears 122 and 124, which rotate integrally with the drive pulleys 84 and 85, rotate in the same direction, so that the gear portion 132 meshing therewith does not rotate,
The nozzle body 130 rotates around the axis of the shaft 86 together with the base 128.

On the other hand, when the expansion and contraction directions of the elastic expanders 68A and 68B and the elastic expanders 70A and 70B are adjusted so that the drive pulley 84 and the drive pulley 85 rotate in opposite directions, the bevel gear 122 and the bevel gear 124 are separated from each other. The rotation direction of is the opposite direction. Therefore, the bevel gears 122, 124
The gear portion 132 of the nozzle body 130, which is meshed with and sandwiched by, swivels around the axis of the base 128 of the spray gun 126.

Further, as shown in FIG. 6, the spray gun 1
The rotation angle and the rotation direction of 26 (whether to rotate in the direction of arrow C or in the direction of arrow D) are controlled by the bevel gear 118 rotating integrally with the drive pulley 84 and the bevel gear 120 rotating integrally with the drive pulley 85. 116, 134
Is transmitted to each.

The rotation angles and directions of the bevel gears 116 and 134 are such that the first universal joint 104 is provided at both ends.
Is input to the encoders 90 and 92 via an interlocking shaft 108 to which the second universal joint 106 is connected.

A control circuit (not shown) is connected to the encoders 90 and 92, and a spray gun 126 is provided.
By the combination of the rotation angle and the direction of rotation,
The rotation angle of the spray gun 126 and the rotation in the arrow C direction or the arrow D direction are determined. The spray gun 126 is driven and controlled by a control device connected to the controller circuit.

As described above, in the manipulator apparatus according to this embodiment, the diameter of the drive pulleys 84 and 85 can be reduced by providing the pair of intermediate pulleys 88, so that the spray gun 126 is driven at a large angle. be able to.

Further, since the encoders 90 and 92 are arranged at the rear end of the second arm 52, the moment of inertia generated when the second arm 52 is activated becomes small. As a result, the member strength of the first arm 32 and the second arm 52 can be suppressed to the necessary minimum. In addition, this allows the output of the drive source to be small.

In this embodiment, the driving force of the elastic expansion body is transmitted to the driving pulley via the timing belt.
A chain or belt may be used instead of the timing belt. Further, the intermediate pulley is sufficient as long as it can spread the timing belt, and a cylindrical rod may be provided upright from the plate 83.

[0040]

Since the present invention is constructed as described above, the diameter of the sprocket can be reduced and the operating angle of the nozzle body can be increased.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view including a partial cross-sectional view of a manipulator apparatus.

FIG. 2 is a side view including a partial cross-sectional view of the manipulator apparatus.

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a fulcrum portion of a first arm of the manipulator device.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing joint parts of a first arm and a second arm.

FIG. 5 is a partial cross-sectional view showing an encoder connection mechanism provided at the rear end of the second arm.

FIG. 6 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a drive system of a spray gun provided at the tip of a second arm.

FIG. 7 is a front view showing a driving force transmission mechanism using an elastic expansion body.

FIG. 8 is a conceptual diagram showing a driving force transmission mechanism using a conventional elastic expander.

FIG. 9 is a conceptual diagram showing a driving force transmission mechanism using a conventional elastic expander.

[Explanation of symbols]

 68A elastic expansion body 68B elastic expansion body 70A elastic expansion body 70B elastic expansion body 82 timing belt (transmission member) 84 drive pulley (rotating member) 85 drive pulley (rotating member) 88 intermediate pulley (guide member)

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A manipulator device in which a driven member is attached to the tip of a bendable / extendable arm, the rotary member being provided at the tip on the axis of the arm, for transmitting a rotational force to the driven member, and the arm of the arm. A pair of elastic expanders, which are arranged parallel to each other along the axis and expand and contract in the radial direction by the supply and discharge of fluid to relatively expand and contract in length, and the intermediate part is wrapped around the rotary member and its end is A transmission member that is respectively connected to the end of the elastic expansion body, and a guide that is disposed between the rotating member and the end of the elastic expansion body and that spreads the transmission member in a direction orthogonal to the axis of the arm. A manipulator device comprising: a member;