JPH0778017A - Method and device for checking interference between bodies in motion - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To check the interference between the bodies in motion in a short time. CONSTITUTION:This device consists of a data input device 21 where graphics of a robot models and a work models are inputted, a simulation arithmetic unit 22 which teaches the robot and perform simulation, a data storage device 23 which stores graphics of plural robot models, graphics of plural work models, plural operation programs, and decision results of the simulation arithmetic unit 22, a batch interference check arithmetic unit 24 checks interference between a robot model and a work model at a time for each of selected combinations of robot models, work models, and operation programs, and a simulation display device 25 which displays a state wherein the interference is caused. Consequently, an interference check on respective combinations of the robot models, work models, and instruction programs can be made an bloc in a short time.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for checking interference between moving objects, and more particularly to a method and apparatus for checking interference between moving objects applied to an off-line robot teaching system.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In order to systemize an industrial robot, it is important to efficiently perform offline robot teaching. As an interference check method applied to such a teaching system, there is an intersection calculation method which is a typical method of the prior art. This method attempts to determine the presence or absence of interference by solving the equations of the surface or ridge of the target object and finding their intersections (so-called detailed check). However, this method has a problem that the amount of calculation increases due to the complicated shape of the object, and it takes time to determine the interference. For this reason, in recent years, in order to perform high-speed interference check, the shape of a complicated robot or work is approximated to a simple figure (for example, a rectangular parallelepiped) to perform the interference check to determine the interference (a so-called rough check). ). In addition, as a coarser check at a more detailed level than that, a method of determining interference based on the geometrical positional relationship indicated by the inner product value of the surface normal vector and the point vector of convex polyhedra was used. (See Figure 8). However, if a strict interference check is required, the rough check inevitably has a problem in terms of accuracy. Therefore, a technique has been developed in which the detailed check is applied only to the portion determined to have interference in the rough check (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 1-17305). In this detailed check, for example, an intersection of a straight line including the ridge of the robot and an infinite plane including the work surface is obtained by the above-described intersection calculation method, and it is determined whether the intersection is included in the work surface. This determination is performed as follows. That is, as shown in FIG. 9, after obtaining the direction vector AN from the arbitrary vertex A of the work surface S1 to the intersection point N, the half line LL parallel to the vector AN starting from the intersection point N is defined. Half line LL is work surface S1
The number of intersections with the ridge line SL1 is counted (2 counts up when passing through the apex, 1 counts up otherwise). When the count value is an odd number, the intersection point N exists within the work surface S1 (the work surface S1 intersects with the ridge line L1 of the robot. When the count value is an even number, the intersection point N is the work surface S1.
1 does not exist (work surface S1 and robot ridge line L1
Does not intersect). If there is no intersection between each target work surface S1 and the entire ridge line L1 of the robot, it is determined that the work and the robot do not interfere, and if there is even one intersection, it is determined that they interfere. The applicant of the present invention, based on the interference between a straight line including a ridgeline of one of the first solids input with data and an infinite plane including the surface of the other solid, in the method for checking interference of the solids. A method for checking interference between two solids, which comprises performing interference check based on a total angle between vectors from the interference point to each vertex forming the surface of the other solid, and We are developing the device (Japanese Patent Application No. 4-1).
No. 30814). In this conventional technique, the interference check can be performed with high accuracy and high speed regardless of the relative positional relationship between the solid bodies. Further, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 64-48106, in a robot simulation interference check method for performing local interference check of a robot and an obstacle, one or more sides of the robot and the obstacle are designated,
If the plane formed by one side of the designated robot by simulation and the side of the designated obstacle have an intersection,
There is known a conventional technique that recognizes that there is interference. In both of the above-mentioned conventional techniques, the actual interference check work is performed by performing a simulation on a personal computer.
For example, a robot model and a work model are displayed on the display screen of a robot teaching system that performs offline simulation using a workstation or the like, and the robot motion is being taught to the displayed pair of robot model and work model. Also, during the operation simulation after teaching, the worker checked the interference while visually checking the above display screen. When interference occurs, the teaching programs of the robot model and work model that have already been taught are changed to prevent the interference.

[0003]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional interference check work, the operation of the robot model and the work model simulated on the display screen is visually observed to execute the interactive operation with the robot teaching system. Since the interference check is performed by doing so, the worker must constantly monitor the display screen during the simulation, and there is a problem that the interference check work takes a long time. When the shape of the robot model or the work model is complicated, it takes a long time to draw both models on the display screen, and it takes a longer time for the interference check work. In particular, when performing interference check on multiple robot models and work models, the number of combinations of robot models and work models increases, and it is necessary to perform the above-mentioned interference check work for each combination. The problem that the check work takes a long time becomes remarkable. In order to solve the problems in the prior art, the present invention improves a method for checking interference between moving objects and its apparatus, and a method for checking interference between moving objects capable of performing interference check work in a short time. And to provide a device.

[0004]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention relates to a case in which two or more objects whose solid shape data are known relatively move in accordance with a motion program relating to a series of motion loci taught in advance. In the interference checking method for extracting the interference state between the objects, the operation of each object is continuously simulated offline according to the above operation program to determine the presence or absence of interference between the objects in the above operation. , A method and apparatus for checking interference between moving objects, characterized by storing this and at least data regarding all positions where interference has occurred in the operation program when interference occurs . Furthermore, a plurality of combinations of a group of motion objects and their motion programs are created, and the judgment of presence / absence of the interference, the storage thereof, and the storage of the data regarding the interference position are collectively performed for the plurality of combinations. An interference check method and an apparatus therefor. An example of the moving object is a work and a robot that moves relative to the work. Furthermore, a plurality of works can be cited as an example of the moving object. Furthermore, it is possible that the moving objects are multiple robots. Further, in addition to the data on all positions where interference has occurred in the operation program, it is also possible to store the data about the part of the object where interference has occurred corresponding to the position where interference has occurred. As an example of the data relating to the position where the interference occurs in the operation program, data representing the start point between the teaching points where the interference occurs in the operation program can be used.

[0005]

According to the present invention, when extracting the interference state between the objects in the case where two or more objects whose solid shape data are known relatively move in accordance with the operation program regarding a series of operation loci taught in advance. , Simultaneously performing offline simulation to determine the presence or absence of interference between objects in the above series of movements, and store the result,
In the event of interference, at least data relating to all positions of interference in the operating program is stored.
Therefore, the operator can engage in other work during the simulation, and as a result, the operator only needs to directly check the part where the interference has occurred, so that the work efficiency is improved. Further, when a plurality of combinations of the moving object group and the moving programs thereof are created, the presence / absence of the interference is determined and the storage and the data regarding the interference position are collectively stored for the plurality of combinations. As a result, when a large number of combinations of the moving object group and the moving program thereof are created, the checking is performed collectively by the operator, so that the efficiency of the interference checking can be improved. If the data on all the positions of the interference in the operation program and the data on the part of the object having the interference corresponding to the position of the interference are stored, it is possible to immediately know the part of the interference. Therefore, the work efficiency of the operator is further improved.
If the data indicating the start point between the teaching points where the interference occurs in the operation program is adopted as the data regarding the position where the interference occurs in the operation program, the data to be handled will be easy for the operator to understand and the burden on the operator will be reduced. It

[0006]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings for the understanding of the present invention. The following embodiments are examples of embodying the present invention and are not intended to limit the technical scope of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a collective interference checking device 1 for performing off-line robot simulation according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a simulation operation device 22 provided in the collective interference checking device 1. 3 is a block diagram showing the schematic configuration of FIG. 3, FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation procedure of the collective interference checking device 1, FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing a display screen of the collective interference checking device 1, and FIG. 5 is displayed on the display screen. FIG. 6 is an explanatory view showing a table of interference check results, and FIG. 6 is a table showing position data and the like where interference occurs. Considering the application of the collective interference checking device 1 to the offline robot teaching system 20, FIG. 1 shows a hardware configuration around the interference checking device 1. The system 20 includes a data input device 21 such as a mouse and a keyboard for inputting a three-dimensional model of the work model 11 which is a work target of the robot model 10, and a simulation operation device 22 including a CPU for teaching and simulating the robot. And the figures of the plurality of robot models 10,
A data storage device 23 that stores the figures of a plurality of work models 11, a plurality of operation programs, and the determination results of the simulation operation device 22, and the selected robot model 10, work model 11, and operation programs are combined into a plurality of sets, Based on the collective interference check calculation device 24 that collectively performs the interference check of the robot model 10 and the work model 11 for each of a plurality of combinations, and the position data that causes the interference stored in the data storage device 23, The combination includes a simulation display device 25 that displays a state where interference occurs between the robot model 10 and the work model 11. The general operation procedure of the system 20 is as follows with reference to FIG.

First, the operator uses the three-dimensional data input device 21 to draw the graphic data of the work model 11, the tip position of the end effector of the robot model 10, the teaching data such as the work command code at each teaching point, and the adjacent teaching points. An operation program including passage data of the end effector is input. In the simulation arithmetic unit 22, the motion teaching unit 26 and the motion simulation unit 25 can communicate with the collective interference check arithmetic unit 24 composed of a multiprocessor. When the collective interference check calculation device 24 determines that there is interference, the operator corrects the teaching data and the simulation display device 25 performs screen processing, for example. Then, the generated teaching data is format-converted by the data transfer unit 28 of the arithmetic processing unit 22 and then transferred to the robot control panel (not shown).
A work procedure of the collective interference checking device 1 incorporated in such a system 20 will be described below in the order of steps S1, S2, ... With reference to FIGS. As shown in FIG. 3, the operator operates the data input device 21 to input the names of the robot model 10 and the work model 11 to be simulated (S).
1). At this time, the graphic data of the selected robot model 10 and work model 11 stored in the data storage device 23 is developed inside the simulation calculation device 22, and as shown in FIG.
Is drawn on the display screen. In this state, the operator operates the input device 21 to specify the position of the tip of the end effector of the robot model 10 to indicate a plurality of teaching points, and the work command code at each teaching point is input. (S2). Next, the simulation computing device 24 creates a teaching program as an operation program based on the data designated in step S2 (S3). Then, a plurality of teaching programs for the arbitrarily selected robot model 10 and work model 11 are created. After the completion of the plurality of teaching programs, the operator inputs the robot model name, the work model name, the teaching program name, and the calculation result of the interference check, which the operator wants to perform the interference check with the data input device 21, as shown in FIG. Input the output file name to be stored (S5). When the interference check target is selected in step S5, the interference check computing device 24 starts the interference check for each combination of the selected robot model 10, work model 11 and teaching program, and sequentially specifies all combinations. The interference check processing is performed by automatically performing the interference check calculation over (S6).

An example of the principle of determining whether the intersection point N is included in the work surface S1 in this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 (a) and 7 (b). Vectors NA, NB, NC and ND are taken from the intersection point N toward the vertices A, B, C and D of the work surface S1. Then, the angles θ1, θ2, ... Between the respective vectors are added in the forward direction. When the intersection point N is not included in the work surface S1, the sum is 0 degrees, and θ can be determined as not interfering with the ridge line L1 of the robot 10 and the work surface S1 (FIG. 7).
(A)). When included, the sum is 360 degrees, and it can be determined that there is interference (FIG. 7B). When the interference check processing in step S6 is completed for each combination, the result is displayed in the table of FIG. 4 displayed on the screen of the display device 25 as “with interference” or “without interference”, and each output is output. The data of the files LIST1, 2, 3, ... Are stored in the data storage device 23 (S7). On the other hand, when the processing is in progress, “processing” is displayed in the table of FIG. While the interference check process is being performed, the operator does not need to perform any operation / monitoring, and can perform other work away from the system 20. Next, after the interference check processing in step S7 is completed, the process proceeds to step S4, and the teaching program in which interference occurs is corrected as follows. At this time, the operator calls the interference check output list 30 shown in FIG. 6 from the data storage device 23 and displays it on the screen of the display device 25. In the interference check output list 30, the teaching point number indicates the starting point number between the teaching points where the robot model 10 and the work model 11 are interfering with each other, and the robot part name and the work part name do not interfere with each other. The names of the parts of the robot and the work that are occurring are shown. When such an interference check output list is displayed on the screen of the display device 25, the operator selects the teaching program corresponding to the displayed output file name, for example, LIST1, and inputs the teaching point number by the data input device 21. Then, as shown in FIG. 4, the robot model 10 and the work model 11 are drawn on the screen in a state where interference has occurred at the input teaching point number. Then, the operator visually changes the teaching program while observing the screen so that interference does not occur, stores the corrected teaching program in the data storage device 23, and ends the processing of the collective interference checking device 1. .

As described above, according to the present embodiment, with respect to a plurality of arbitrarily selected combinations of the robot model 10, the work model 11, and the teaching program, the occurrence of the interference between the robot and the work is collectively and automatically performed. It is possible to check, and during the interference check process, the operator is not restricted by the interference check work, and the interference check work is saved. It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment and can be modified in various ways.
Although the batch check device 1 is applied to the off-line robot teaching system 20 in the above embodiment, the communication line function may be applied to a robot simulator, a three-dimensional CAD, or the like. Further, the target of the interference check is not limited to the combination of the robot and the work, but it is also possible to check the interference between two or more other moving objects such as a plurality of works or a plurality of robots. Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to the case where a plurality of combinations of the moving object group and the moving program thereof are created as in the above-described embodiment, the presence / absence of interference is determined and the storage of data regarding the interference position is collectively processed for the plurality of combinations. It is also possible to judge the presence / absence of interference and store the data on the interference position for a single combination of the moving object group and its moving program. Further, not only when the state where the interference is generated is displayed on the screen of the display device 25 as in the above-described embodiment, the data regarding all the positions where the interference is generated in the operation program is stored and the stored data is stored. It is also possible to modify the operation program by using so that interference does not occur.

[0010]

Since the method and apparatus for checking interference between moving objects according to the present invention are configured as described above, when applied to an off-line robot teaching system, all positions where interference occurs. It is possible to memorize the data related to, and use the stored data for the correction of the operation program, so that the interference check work can be saved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a collective interference check device 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a simulation calculation device 22 of the collective checking device 1.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an operation procedure of the collective interference checking device 1.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing a display screen of the simulation display device 25.

FIG. 5 is a chart for displaying the interference determination result.

FIG. 6 is a chart for displaying teaching point numbers and position data in which interference occurs.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing the principle of a detailed check.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing the principle of rough check.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing the principle of a conventional detailed check.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Collective interference check device 6 ... Collective calculation circuit (corresponding to collective calculation means) 8 ... Interference position storage unit (corresponding to interference position storage means) 10 ... Robot model (example of moving object) 11 ... Work model (of moving object) 21) Data input device (corresponding to input means) 22 ... Simulation calculation device (corresponding to simulation calculation section) 23 ... Data storage device (corresponding to shape storage means, operation program storage means, interference position storage means) 24 ... Collective Interference check calculation device (corresponding to collective calculation means) 25 ... Simulation display device

Claims (14)

[Claims] 1. An interference check method for extracting an interference state between the objects when two or more objects having known three-dimensional shape data relatively move according to a motion program relating to a series of motion loci taught in advance. The motion of each object is continuously simulated off-line in accordance with the above series of motion programs to determine the presence or absence of interference between the objects in the above series of motions, which is stored, and at least when the interference occurs, A method for checking interference between moving objects, characterized by storing data regarding all positions where interference occurs in an operation program. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of combinations of the moving object group and the moving program thereof are created, and the presence / absence of the interference, the storage thereof, and the storage of the data regarding the interference position are collectively performed for the plurality of combinations. Interference check method between the moving objects of. 3. The method for checking interference between moving objects according to claim 1, wherein the moving object is a work and a robot that moves relative to the work. 4. The moving object is a plurality of works.
Alternatively, the method for checking interference between moving objects according to claim 2. 5. The method for checking interference between moving objects according to claim 1, wherein the moving objects are a plurality of robots. 6. The method according to claim 1, wherein, in addition to the data on all the positions where the interference has occurred in the operation program, the data about the part of the object where the interference occurs corresponding to the position where the interference occurs is stored. An interference check method between moving objects according to claim 3, claim 4 or claim 5. 7. The data relating to the position where the interference occurs in the operation program is the data representing the start point between the teaching points where the interference occurs in the operation program. The method for checking interference between moving objects according to claim 4, claim 5, or claim 6. 8. A shape storage means for storing three-dimensional shape data of two or more objects that relatively move, an operation program storage means for storing an operation program related to a series of operation loci of the object, and the object to be displayed. And a simulation calculation unit for performing a simulation operation off-line, and an interference calculation unit for calculating interference between the objects when the object stored in the shape storage unit is simulated according to the operation program stored in the operation program storage unit. In the interference check device between moving objects, the interference calculation unit continuously performs the simulation operation of the object according to a series of operation programs, and determines whether there is interference between the objects in the series of simulation operations. When interference occurs with the presence / absence storage means for judging and storing At least interference checking apparatus between operating objects characterized by comprising comprises a interference position storage means for storing data relating to all the positions occurring in the interference in the operation program. 9. A collective calculation means for creating a plurality of combinations of a group of motion objects and a motion program thereof, and collectively determining the presence / absence of the interference, storing the combination and storing data relating to the interference position for the plurality of combinations. The interference check device between moving objects according to claim 1. 10. The interference check device between moving objects according to claim 8 or 9, wherein the moving object is a work and a robot that moves relative to the work. 11. The interference checking apparatus between moving objects according to claim 8, wherein the moving objects are a plurality of works. 12. The interference check device between moving objects according to claim 8, wherein the moving objects are a plurality of robots. 13. The interference position storage means stores, in addition to the data on all the positions where the interference has occurred in the operation program, the data on the part of the object where the interference has occurred corresponding to the position where the interference has occurred. , Claim 9, claim 1
0. The interference check device between moving objects according to claim 11 or claim 12. 14. The data relating to the position where the interference occurs in the operation program is the data representing the start point between the teaching points where the interference occurs in the operation program, claim 9, claim 10, claim 10. The interference check device between moving objects according to claim 11, claim 12, or claim 13.