JPH07328981A - Cable holding device for work robot - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a cable holding device for a work robot preventing for the disconnection of cables and capable of protecting a connector of a cable connection section from breakage. CONSTITUTION:The cable holding device for a work robot is provided with a cable processing tool 14 fitted on the robot arm 3 of a welding robot l and processing cables 11 at the lower end section, a spring 15 fitted to the cable processing tool 14 and vertically movably holding the cable processing tool 14, and a limit switch 16 connected to the robot control board 2 of the welding robot 1, detecting the load applied to the cables 11, and stopping the operation of the welding robot 1 via the robot control board 2 respectively.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a cable holding device for a work robot used for various works.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a conventional work robot, for example, there is one shown in FIG. This work robot is a welding robot 51 controlled by a robot control panel (not shown), and a welding gun 53 is attached to a tip wrist of an arm 52 of the welding robot 51. Then, the welding gun 53 includes a drainage cable 54, a water supply cable 55, an air supply cable 56, and a welding cable 5.
7 are connected to each other, and these cables 5
The other ends of 4, 55, 56, 57 are connected to a compression pump, a current supply device, etc., which are not shown.

Moreover, in such a welding robot 51, the drain cable 54 and the like are moved to the arm 5 during the welding operation.
Conventionally, various cable holding devices (not shown) are mounted on the arm 52 to perform cable treatment in order to prevent the wire from being wound around the wrist portion of the second wire and being broken, or the connector of the cable connecting portion being damaged.

[0004]

However, in the above-described conventional cable holding device, the relay metal fitting is fixed to the support cylinder attached to the robot arm, and the connecting material is held by the relay metal fitting. However, no matter how well you handle cables, when you work with a tool such as a welding gun or a handling jig at the tip of the robot arm, hook the cable on something else or use the robot arm. There were drawbacks such as the cable being wrapped around the wrist and causing a wire breakage, and the connector etc. of the extremely expensive cable connecting portion being damaged. Further, since the welding robot 51 makes various movements according to several kinds of programs, it is difficult to perform satisfactory cable treatment on all movements by the conventional cable holding device.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to prevent disconnection of cables,
Another object of the present invention is to provide a cable holding device for a work robot capable of protecting the connector of the cable connecting portion from damage.

[0006]

In order to solve the problems of the above-mentioned prior art, in the present invention, there is provided a cable processing tool which is attached to a robot arm of a work robot and which processes cables at a lower end thereof. A cushioning member attached to the cable treatment tool and holding the cable treatment tool so as to be movable up and down, and connected to a control device of the working robot,
And a detection unit that stops the operation of the work robot via the control device by detecting a load applied to the cables.

Further, in another aspect of the present invention, a cylindrical body movably suspended by a robot arm of a work robot, and a cylindrical body movably held vertically via a buffer member are held at the lower end. A cable processing tool for processing the cables, and a detection means connected to the control device of the work robot and stopping the operation of the work robot via the control device by detecting a load applied to the cables. Each has.

[0008]

In the cable holding device for a working robot according to the present invention, when a load is applied to the cables, the cable processing tool is pulled against the urging force of the cushioning member, causing a disconnection of the cables or a cable connecting portion. The detection means is activated before the connector is damaged, and the detection signal of the detection means is sent to the control device of the work robot to stop the operation of the work robot. It is possible to inform the operator of this, and the operator can check the condition of the cables and return the work robot to the condition where the load is not applied.

Further, in another cable holding device for a working robot according to the present invention, the cable processing tool is made to have various functions against the biasing force of the buffer member by the cylindrical body movably suspended by the robot arm. Since it can be pulled in any direction, it can perform the same operation as the above-mentioned invention and can cope with any movement of the work robot.

[0010]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described in detail below based on the illustrated embodiments.

1 and 2 show an embodiment of a cable holding device for a work robot according to the present invention. In the figure, 1 is a welding robot for a work robot, and 2 is a robot control panel (control device) for controlling the welding robot 1.
Is. This welding robot 1 has a robot arm 3 having a wrist portion 3a formed at its tip, and a welding gun 5 having a transformer 4 is attached to the wrist portion 3a of the robot arm 3.

The welding gun 5 as described above has a fixed gun arm 6 and a movable gun arm 7 arranged on the front surface of the transformer 4, and welding electrodes 8 and 9 are provided at the tips of the gun arms 6 and 7, respectively. It is provided. The movable gun arm 7 is configured to slide in the front-rear direction by a piston rod (not shown) that expands and contracts from the operation cylinder 10 on the back side. The welding gun 5 is configured to perform predetermined spot welding by sliding the movable gun arm 7 forward to sandwich a work to be welded (not shown) between the welding electrodes 8 and 9.

On the other hand, the welding gun 5 has drainage, water supply,
One end of each cable 11 representing the whole of the air supply and welding cables is connected at a predetermined position, and the cables 11 are held in a bundled state by a cable protector 12 of a cable holding device in the middle thereof. Has been done. The protector 12 is provided with an inverted L-shaped stay 13 which is erected on the robot arm 3, a cable treatment tool 14 which is attached to the tip of a horizontal plane portion 13a of the stay 13, and treats the cables 11, and the cable treatment. A spring 15 as a cushioning member attached to the tool 14 for holding the cable processing tool 14 so as to be movable up and down;
The horizontal plane portion 13a of No. 3 is provided with a limit switch 16 of a detecting means arranged in association with the cable processing tool 14.

As shown in FIG. 2, the cable processing tool 14 has a lower portion bent into a hook shape so as to form a J shape as a whole, and an upper portion thereof is disposed so as to penetrate the horizontal surface portion 13a of the stay 13. . Moreover, a stopper portion 14a having a larger diameter than other portions is formed at the upper end of the cable processing tool 14, and the stopper portion 14a and the horizontal surface portion 13 of the stay 13 are formed.
A spring 15 as a cushioning member is arranged between a and a. Cables 11 are passed through the lower portion of the cable processing tool 14 and placed, and are bundled together by a binding band 17 for processing. Therefore, when the cable 11 is loaded, the cable processing tool 14 is pulled downward against the urging force of the spring 15, and the stay 1
The horizontal plane portion 13a of No. 3 is configured so as not to be impacted.

The limit switch 16 is for detecting a load applied to the cables 11 and is constructed so as to be operated when the cable processing tool 14 is lowered by a predetermined amount. That is, limit switch 1
6 is set to switch on before the disconnection of the cables 11 and the damage of the connector. Adjustment of the load applied to the cables 11 is performed by selecting and installing the most suitable spring from several types of springs. The load of normal operation is not detected and the limit switch 16 malfunctions. It prevents the operation.

Therefore, one end of a switch cable 18 is connected to the limit switch 16, and the other end of the switch cable 18 is connected to the robot control panel 2 via a relay box 19 provided in the robot arm 3. ing. Moreover, when the limit switch 16 is switched on, the detection signal is sent to the robot control panel 2, and the robot control panel 2 stops the operation of the welding robot 1 based on the detection signal.

In the cable protector 12 of this embodiment,
When a load is applied to the cables 11 during the operation of the welding robot 1, the cable processing tool 14 is pulled. Along with this, when the cable processing tool 14 is lowered by a predetermined amount against the biasing force of the spring 15, the limit switch 16 detects this state and operates, and the detection signal is sent to the robot control panel 2
Send to. Then, the robot control panel 2 holds and controls the welding robot 1 based on the detection signal from the limit switch 16 to stop its operation. Therefore, the welding robot 1 is in an abnormal state, and the worker can know this. For this reason, if the worker checks the condition of the cables 11 and restores the condition in which the load is not applied, the welding robot 1 is returned to the condition in which the original welding work is possible.

If the cable protector 12 of this embodiment is attached to the welding robot 1, the load applied to the cables 11 is detected by the limit switch 16 via the cable processing tool 14, and the welding robot 1 is stopped by the robot control panel 2. Therefore, the disconnection of the cables 11 and the damage of the connector can be reliably prevented. Moreover, the degree of load applied to the cables 11 can be dealt with only by changing the specifications of the springs 15, and it can be used for everything from light portable robots (carbon dioxide welding, etc.) to heavy portable robots (spot welding, handling robots, etc.). It can be applied to a work robot.

3 to 5 show another embodiment of a cable holding device for a working robot according to another embodiment of the present invention. The cable protector 20 in the figure is a tubular body suspended from a stay 21 attached to the robot arm 3 similar to the above invention, and a flexible suspending member 22 such as a chain or a flexible wire at the tip of the stay 21. 23
A cable processing tool 24 for processing the cables 11 that is attached to the cylindrical body 23 so as to be movable up and down except for the lower end.
And disposed inside the tubular body 23, the cable processing tool 24
A compression spring 25 as a cushioning member for holding the
The lower limit of the outer peripheral surface of 3 is provided with a limit switch 26 of a detecting means attached in association with the cable processing tool 24. The tubular body 23 is movably attached to the stay 21 by the hanging member 22 so that it can handle the cable processing tool 24 even if the cable processing tool 24 is pulled in any direction.

The cylindrical body 23 has an upper lid 27 with upper and lower openings.
And a lower lid 28, respectively, and a through hole 29 through which the cable processing tool 24 is inserted is formed in the lower lid 28. Further, the notch 23 is formed on the outer peripheral wall of the tubular body 23.
a is formed along the vertical direction. On the other hand, the cable processing tool 24 is formed into a J shape by bending the lower portion into a hook shape as in the above invention, and the upper end portion 24a is a circle slidably arranged in the tubular body 23. It is connected to the lower surface of the plate-shaped dog plate 30. At the peripheral edge of the dog plate 30,
An L-shaped projection 30a is formed outside the tubular body 23 through the cutout portion 23a, and when the projection 30a is located in the lower portion of the tubular body 23, the tip portion of the L-shaped projection 30a acts as the limit switch 26. It is adapted to be engaged and struck to switch on.

The compression spring 25 is arranged in the cylindrical body 23 between the dog plate 30 and the lower lid 28. Then, the cables 11 are placed and placed under the cable processing tool 24, and the band 17 for bundling is used.
Are bundled together and processed. Therefore, when the cables 11 are loaded, the cable processing tool 24 is configured to be pulled downward against the urging force of the spring 25 so as not to impact the lower lid 28 of the tubular body 23. .

Further, the limit switch 26 is for detecting the load applied to the cables 11 as in the case of the above-mentioned invention, and the cable processing tool 24 and the dog plate 30 are moved to the lower part of the cylindrical body 23, and the projection 30a. Is configured to operate by tapping on it. Therefore, one end of the switch cable 31 is connected to the limit switch 26, and the other end of the switch cable 31 is connected to the robot control panel 2 via the relay box 19. The tubular body 23 may be suspended from the stay 21 by using a flexible joint or a ball joint instead of the suspension member 22. Other configurations are
This is almost the same as the embodiment of the invention.

In the cable protector 20 of this embodiment,
When a load is applied to the cables 11 during the operation of the welding robot 1, the cable processing tool 24 is pulled. Along with this, the cable processing tool 24 and the dog plate 30 move down against the urging force of the spring 25, and the dog plate 3
The protrusion 30a of 0 hits the limit switch 26, and the limit switch 26 operates to send a detection signal to the robot control panel 2. After that, the same operation as that of the above-described embodiment of the invention is performed.

In the cable protector 20 of this embodiment, the cylindrical member 23 is suspended by the suspending member 22 so as to be displaceable on the stay 21. Therefore, if this is attached to the welding robot 1, the same as the above invention. On the basis of the detection signal from the limit switch 26, the welding robot 1 is controlled by being held and its operation can be stopped to prevent disconnection of the cables 11 and the like.
It is possible to deal with loads in all directions.

FIG. 6 shows another embodiment of the present invention.
The cable protector 33 is configured by using an air cylinder 32 instead of the tubular body 23 and the compression spring 25 that configure the cable protector 20 of the above-described embodiment. In the cylinder housing 32a of the air cylinder 32, a piston (not shown) and a piston rod 34 are slidably arranged, and the lower end portion of the piston rod 34 is a bundling unit for bundling the cables 11 as a unit. The band 35 is attached. Then, cables 1
1 is held by the piston rod 34 via a binding band 35.

A commonly used limit switch (strong magnetic field switch) 36 is attached to the outer peripheral surface of the lower portion of the cylinder housing 32a. The limit switch 36 is a piston or a piston rod in the cylinder housing 32a. When the position of the magnet (permanent magnet) set in 34 coincides with the position of the magnet, a change in the magnetic field or current in the switch occurs to detect the position. Therefore, one end of a switch cable 37 is connected to the limit switch 36, and the other end of the switch cable 37 is connected to the robot control panel 2 via the relay box 19.

Air is supplied to the inside of the cylinder housing 32a through an air hose 38 and an air regulator 39.
Is connected to the return side of the piston rod 34 (or piston). Further, the air cylinder 32 is displaceably attached to the lower surface of the stay 41 by the hanging member 40. Other configurations and operations are similar to those of the above embodiment.

According to the cable protector 33 of this embodiment, the air pressure supplied to the air cylinder 32 can be freely controlled by the control device in place of the spring adjustment performed in the above-described embodiments of the two inventions. It can be easily applied to a robot for use.

The embodiments of the present invention have been described above.
The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications and changes can be made based on the technical idea of the present invention.

For example, although the cable protectors 12, 20, and 33 are applied to the welding robot 1 in the above-mentioned embodiments, they may be applied to other work robots in which the robot arm 3 is provided with a handling jig or the like. You can

[0031]

As described above, the cable holding device for a work robot according to the present invention is attached to the robot arm of the work robot, and has a cable processing tool for processing cables at its lower end, and the cable processing tool. Attached to a buffer member that holds the cable processing tool so that it can move up and down, and a control device for the work robot, and the work robot is connected via the control device by detecting a load applied to the cables. Since it is equipped with a detection means for stopping the operation of each, it is possible to notify the operator that the work robot is in an abnormal state, to release the load on the cables, and to disconnect the cables and It is possible to reliably prevent damage to the connector of the cable connecting portion, and it is possible to secure various operations of the work robot.

Further, another cable holding device for a working robot according to the present invention is a cylindrical body which is movably suspended by a robot arm of the working robot, and is vertically moved via a cushioning member in the cylindrical body. The work robot is movably held and connected to a cable processing tool for processing cables at the lower end and a control device for the work robot, and the work robot is connected via the control device by detecting a load applied to the cables. Since each of them is provided with a detection means for stopping the operation of the above, it is possible to obtain the same effect as that of the above-mentioned invention, and it is also possible to cope with loads in all directions on the cables, and various working robots. Can be applied.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall perspective view conceptually showing a state in which a cable holding device according to an embodiment of the present invention is attached to a welding robot.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view conceptually showing a main part of the cable holding device.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view conceptually showing a cable holding device for a welding robot according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a front view conceptually showing a main part of the cable holding device in FIG.

5 is an exploded perspective view showing a main part of the cable holding device in FIG. 4. FIG.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view conceptually showing a main part of a cable holding device of another embodiment in FIG.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view conceptually showing a state in which a conventional cable holding device is attached to a welding robot.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Welding robot 2 Robot control panel 3 Robot arm 11 Cables 12, 20, 33 Cable protector 13, 21, 41 Stay 14, 24 Cable processing tool 15 Spring 16, 26, 36 Limit switch 17, 35 Bundling band 18, 31 , 37 Cable for switch 22, 40 Suspension member 23 Cylindrical body 25 Compression spring 30 Dog plate 32 Air cylinder 34 Piston rod 38 Air hose 39 Air regulator

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A cable processing tool which is attached to a robot arm of a work robot and which processes cables at its lower end, and a buffer member which is attached to the cable processing tool and holds the cable processing tool so that it can move up and down. , A work connected to a control device of the work robot, the detection device stopping the operation of the work robot via the control device by detecting a load applied to the cables and the like. Robot robot cable holding device. 2. A cylindrical body suspended from a robot arm of a work robot in a displaceable manner, and a cable treatment for holding cables at the lower end thereof so as to be movable up and down via a cushioning member. A tool and a detection unit that is connected to the control device of the work robot and that stops the operation of the work robot via the control device by detecting a load applied to the cables. Cable holding device for working robots. 3. The tubular body and the cushioning member are configured by using an air cylinder.
The cable holding device for the work robot described in.