JPH078476B2 - Robot hand exchange device - Google Patents

Description

Description: TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a robot hand exchanging device, and more particularly to a robot hand exchanging device configured to be automatically attachable to and detachable from the robot, for example, a hand for gripping a work. At the same time, in particular, the present invention relates to a robot hand exchanging device capable of reliably and accurately attaching the hand to the robot even when the hand is relatively heavy.

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, in a factory, in order to efficiently produce various products in large quantities, robot devices that automatically perform various operations such as working, carrying, and assembling are widely used. Such a robot device generally performs a single work, but in many cases, various kinds of different products are produced in the listing. For this reason, there has been a demand for so-called multi-functionalization of the robot, in which a single robot apparatus performs various different operations.

Therefore, a hand unit for performing work assembling work, processing work, etc. is configured to be attachable to and detachable from the robot main body, and the hand unit is replaced with a desired hand unit according to different types of work, and each work is performed. A robot hand exchanging device that can be performed by a single robot device is adopted.

By the way, in a relatively large and heavy hand such as a hand that grips the seat for assembling the seat to the body of an automobile, a considerably large load is applied to the connecting portion with the robot body. Therefore, it has been extremely difficult to actually incorporate the robot hand changing device. Therefore, only the comparatively lightweight hand can use the exchange mechanism, and the inconvenience that the function of the robot device is limited is exposed.

Furthermore, since the conducting wire, the optical fiber and the conduit for supplying the medium for driving the hand and the tool are exposed to the outside, an external force acts on the conducting wire and the conduit especially when the robot device is driven. It is pointed out that the respective conductors, optical fibers, conduits, etc. are easily damaged.

The present invention has been made in order to overcome the above-mentioned inconvenience, and the first connecting member is attached to the robot body side, while the second connecting member is attached to the robot hand side. By attaching the engaging means to one of the coupling members and rotating the engaging means with respect to the other coupling member, the first and second coupling members are brought into pressure contact with each other to connect the hand driving medium. The conductive wire, optical fiber, or conduit for supplying the driving medium is not exposed to the outside by the use of the driving medium, and even a relatively heavy hand can be firmly and accurately attached to the robot body. Done,
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide an extremely versatile robot hand exchange device.

To achieve the above object, the present invention provides a first coupling member mounted on the arm side of a robot, a second coupling member mounted on the hand side of the robot, and the first and second coupling members.
A hand changing device for a robot, comprising: a means for supplying a hand driving medium to a hand side via a connecting member; and a positioning pin for positioning the first and second connecting members with respect to each other, wherein the first and second Each of the coupling members is formed in a substantially tubular shape having a hollow portion, the first engagement member is externally fitted to the first coupling member, and a plurality of second coupling members are provided on the outer periphery of the second coupling member. An engaging member is disposed, a pinion portion is formed on the outer periphery of the first engaging member, and a rack member connected to a driving means meshes with the pinion portion, and the first engaging member operates under the action of the driving means. The first coupling member and the second coupling member are detachably coupled by rotating the coupling member.

A preferred embodiment of the robot hand exchanging device according to the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 and 2, reference numeral 10 indicates a main body of the robot hand changing device according to the present invention. In this case, the main body part 10 includes a first connecting member 12 mounted on the robot main body side, an engaging member (first engaging member) 14 rotatably fitted on the first connecting member 12, and a hand side. A second coupling member 16 mounted and coupled to the first coupling member 12 via the engagement member 14.

A flange portion 18 is formed on the outer peripheral one end side of the first coupling member 12 having a substantially cylindrical shape, and a plurality of bolt insertion hole portions 20 are bored in the flange portion 18 so as to be oriented in the axial direction. .
The first connecting member 12 is provided along the outer peripheral portion of the first connecting member 12.
A pair of parallel housing parts 22a and 22b are formed to bulge so as to extend in a direction orthogonal to the axial direction of the twelve. Further, a cylindrical portion 24 is formed at the ends of the housing portions 22a and 22b, and a large diameter portion 26 having a larger diameter is formed at the end of the cylindrical portion 24 (see FIG. 2). Therefore, the cylinder mechanisms 28a and 28b are provided in the housing portions 22a and 22b.

As shown in FIG. 3, a chamber 30 is provided at each end of the housing 22a.
a and 30b are defined, and a piston member 32 is provided in the chambers 30a and 30b.
The a and 32b fit together. In this case, the piston members 32a, 3
2b is fixed to both ends of the rod member 34, and a rack 36 is formed on the outer peripheral portion of the rod member 34 so as to extend in the axial direction. Further, the chambers 30a and 30b are provided at both ends of the housing 22a.
Lids 38a, 38b are fixed so as to close the pipes, one end of each of the fluid pipes 40a, 40b is connected to each of the lids 38a, 38b, and the other end of each of the pipes 40a, 40b is It is connected to a pressure fluid supply source (not shown).

On the other hand, the casing 22b has a rod member 34a in which a rack 36a is engraved, which is displaceably fitted in the casing 22b (see FIG. 2), and both ends of the casing 22b are attached to the casing 22b. Fluid conduits 40c and 40d are connected to the fixed lids 38c and 38, respectively. Then, the racks 36, 36a of the rod members 34, 34a mesh with the engaging member 14.

The engaging member 14 has a cylindrical shape, and a pinion portion 42 that meshes with the racks 36 and 36a is formed at one end of the outer periphery of the engaging member 14 (see FIG. 3). A stepped hole is provided in the center of the engaging member 14.
44 are bored, and claw portions 46a to 46h are provided at equal intervals on the large diameter portion side of the stepped hole portion 44 so as to bulge radially inward. On the inner side surfaces of the claws 46a to 46h, the claws 46 to 46 are oriented in the tightening rotation direction of the engaging member 4 (direction of arrow A).
Locking surfaces 48a to 48h inclined so as to cut inward of 46h
Are formed (see FIG. 4). Therefore, the first coupling member 12
While the bearings 47a and 47b are provided on the cylindrical portion 24 and the large diameter portion 26, respectively, the engaging member 14 is rotatably fitted over the first coupling member 12, and the pinion portion 42 is attached to each rack 36, It meshes with 36a.

Furthermore, a stepped hole portion 50 is formed in the central portion of the first coupling member 12 on the large diameter portion 26 side, and a disc 52 is fitted and fixed to the stepped hole portion 50. In this case, the disk 52 includes a manifold 56 including a plurality of fluid ports 54 and a plurality of optical fibers 57.
In addition, it is integrally formed with a holding plate 60 having a contact terminal 58. In addition, positioning pin members 62a and 62b are hinged to the front surface of the first coupling member 12 on the large diameter portion 26 side (first
See figure).

On the other hand, at the outer circumferential one end of the cylindrical second coupling member 16, the claw portions 64a to 64h, which are the second engaging members corresponding to the claw portions 46a to 46h of the engaging member 14, are spaced at equal intervals, respectively, in the radial direction. It bulges outward. Locking surfaces 66a to 66h are formed on the claws 64a to 64h so as to correspond to the locking surfaces 48a to 48h of the claws 46a to 64h. In this case, the diameter of the virtual circle connecting the outer peripheral surfaces of the claw portions 64a to 64h is selected to be smaller than the diameter of the large diameter portion of the stepped hole portion 44 of the engaging member 14. In addition, the claws 64c and 64g have a second
Holes 67a and 67b are bored in the axial direction of the coupling member 16 and the pin member 62 of the first coupling member 12 is provided in the holes 67a and 67b.
a and 62b are fitted to each other so that the first connecting member 12 and the second connecting member 16
Relative positioning of.

Further, a disc 70 is fixed to the central portion of the second coupling member 16 via a stepped hole portion 68. The disc 70 is a manifold having a plurality of fluid ports 72, like the disc 52 described above.
74, a plurality of optical fibers 75, and a holding plate 78 having a connecting terminal 76 are integrally formed. The discs 70 and 52
Means that when the respective coupling members 12 and 16 are connected, they abut and interlock the respective fluid ports 72 and 54, and the respective optical fibers 57 and 75 and the connection terminals 76 and 58 can be connected. Becomes

In such a configuration, the first coupling member 12 is attached to the arm 80 of the robot by inserting bolts or the like (not shown) through the plurality of holes 20 formed in the flange portion 18, while the second coupling member 16 is For example, it is attached to a hand 82 for gripping a seat of an automobile. Therefore, the manifold 74 and the holding plate 78 fixed to the second coupling member 16 have the necessary number of fluid conduits 84 and optical fibers for driving and controlling the sheet gripping hand 82.
75 and conductor 86 are connected. On the other hand, the first coupling member
On the 12 side, at least the same number of conduits 84, optical fibers 75, and conductors 86 as the conduits 88, optical fibers 57, and conductors 90 are connected to the manifold 56 and the holding plate 60. 57 and the lead wire 90 are the first connecting members
It is housed in 12 and connected from the arm 80 to the robot body side not shown.

The robot hand exchanging device according to the present invention is basically constructed as described above. Next, its operation and effect will be described.

Therefore, a work of mounting the sheet gripping hand 82 on the arm 80 of the robot will be described.

First, as shown in FIG. 1, when the first coupling member 12 and the second coupling member 16 are opposed to each other and relatively displaced relatively, the claw portions 46a to 46h of the engaging member 14 and the second coupling member are arranged. 16 claws 64
The second coupling member 16 is loosely fitted in the stepped hole portion 44 because a to 64h are at different angular positions. Therefore, the pin members 62a and 62b screwed to the first connecting member 12 are the second connecting members.
The coupling members 12 and 16 are positioned by fitting into the hole portions 67a and 67b of 16 and the discs 52 and 70 are brought into contact to connect the respective manifolds 56 and 74 and the holding plates 60 and 78. . Therefore, the conduit 84 and the conduit 88 corresponding to the conduit 84 communicate with each other, and the optical fiber 57 and the optical fiber 75 corresponding to the optical fiber 57 are connected.
And the conductor wire corresponding to the conductor wire 86 and the conductor wire 86
90 leads to connect.

Next, as shown in FIG. 3, the cylinder mechanisms 28a and 28b are driven. That is, in the housing portion 22a, when a predetermined fluid is supplied from the conduit 40a into the chamber 30a, the piston member 32a
Is pressed in the direction of arrow B, and the rod member 34 integrally connected to the piston member 32a is displaced in the direction of arrow B.
Therefore, the pinion portion 42 that meshes with the rack 36 formed on the rod member 34 rotates in the direction of arrow A, and the pinion portion 42 is rotated.
The engaging member 14 forming 42 similarly rotates in the direction of arrow A. Further, via the engaging member 14, the claw portions 46a to 4a
6h rotates in the direction of arrow A, and the locking surfaces 48a to 48h formed on the inner side surfaces of the claws 46a to 46h are locking surfaces 66a formed on the claws 64a to 64h of the second coupling member 16. Abut 66h. In this case, the locking surfaces 48a to 48h are the engaging members 14
Of the locking surfaces 66a to 66h while being inclined toward the second coupling member 16 side in the tightening rotation direction (arrow A direction).
Are inclined corresponding to the locking surfaces 48a to 48h (see FIG. 3). Therefore, when the engaging member 14 is further rotated in the direction of arrow A, the locking surfaces 48a to 48h and 66a to 66h of the husbands are firmly pressed against each other by the wedge action. At that time, the cylinder mechanism 28b provided in the housing portion 22b is also driven in the same manner as the cylinder mechanism 28a described above, and the pressure fluid is supplied from the conduit 40d into the housing portion 22b so that the rod member 34a moves in the direction of arrow C. Because of the displacement, the pinion portion 42 meshing with the rack 36a of the rod member 34 rotates in the direction of arrow A in combination with the displacement operation of the rod member 34 described above. After all, the fixing action of the first coupling member 12 and the second coupling member 16 by the engagement member 14 can be performed more firmly.

In this way, after the sheet gripping hand 82 is mounted on the arm 80, pressure oil or pressure air or the like is supplied to the conduit 84 side via the conduit 88 to move the cylinder or the like of the sheet gripping hand 82. To drive. Further, an optical signal is sent to the optical fiber 75 via the optical fiber 57, and a conductive wire 86 is supplied via the conductive wire 90.
An electric signal is sent to drive the motor and the like of the sheet gripping hand 82 to grip the sheet 92 by the sheet gripping hand 82, as shown in FIG.

In this case, according to the present invention, it is possible to suitably attach the sheet gripping hand 82 having a relatively large diameter and weight to the arm 80. That is, the robot-side first coupling member
12 and the hand side second coupling member 16 include a plurality of claw portions 64a to 64h provided on the outer peripheral portion of the second coupling member 16 and an engagement member 14 rotatably fitted on the first coupling member 12. It is fixed via the claw portions 46a to 46h. Moreover, the claw portions 64a to 64
Sloping locking surfaces 66a to 66h and 48a to 48h are formed on h and 46a to 46h. Therefore, the load of the sheet gripping hand 82 is not partially applied to the main body portion 10, and moreover, due to the wedge effect of the respective engaging surfaces 48a to 48h and 66a to 66h, the second connecting member 16 is formed. First coupling member 12
It is firmly connected without causing rattling. Therefore, the heavy sheet gripping hand 82, which was not applicable in the past, can be reliably and accurately mounted on the arm 80. Furthermore, since the engagement member 14 is rotated by the two cylinder mechanisms 28a and 28b, the first coupling member 12 and the second coupling member 16 can be coupled more firmly.

Furthermore, in the robot hand exchanging device according to the present invention, the conduit 84 for driving the sheet gripping hand 82, the optical fiber 75 and the conducting wire 86 are not exposed to the outside. That is, when the first coupling member 12 and the second coupling member 16 are coupled, the discs 52 and 70 provided respectively come into contact with each other so that the manifolds 56 and 74 communicate with each other and the optical fibers 57 and 75 are connected to each other. In addition, the connecting terminals 58 and 76 are electrically connected. Accordingly, the sheet gripping hand 82 is attached to the disc 52 on the first coupling member 12 side.
If the same number of conduits 84, optical fibers 75, and conductors 86 as necessary for the sheet, the optical fibers 57, and the conductors 90 are provided, the drive medium can be easily supplied to the sheet gripping hand 82. You can do it. As a result, it is possible to avoid the inconvenience that the conduit, the optical fiber and the conducting wire exposed to the outside are damaged by an external force as in the conventional case.

Next, when removing the sheet gripping hand 82 from the arm 80 side, the operation reverse to the above-described procedure may be performed.

First, the conduits that form the cylinder mechanisms 28a and 28b with the second coupling member 16 side placed on, for example, a hand placement table or the like.
A pressure fluid is supplied from 40b and 40c into the housing portions 22a and 22b.
The pressure fluid supplied into the chamber 30b of the housing portion 22a presses the piston member 32b in the direction of arrow C, and the piston member 32b
The rod member 34 is integrally displaced in the direction of the arrow C to move the rack.
The pinion portion 42 rotates in the direction of arrow D via 36. On the other hand, the rod member 3 via the pressure fluid supplied from the conduit 40d.
4a is displaced in the direction of arrow B, and the pinion portion 42 meshing with the rack 36a is similarly rotated in the direction of arrow D. Therefore, the engaging portion 14 forming the pinion portion 42 rotates in the direction of arrow D,
The claws 46a to 46h are separated from the claws 64a to 64h of the second coupling member 16 and the wedge action by the respective locking surfaces 48a to 48h and 66a to 66h is released. Therefore, the respective claw portions 46a to 46h and 64 are
Cylinder mechanism when a to 64h reach different angular positions
When the driving of 28a, 28b is stopped and the first coupling member 12 and the second coupling member 16 are displaced relative to each other, the second coupling member
16 disengages from the stepped hole portion 44. Eventually, the arm 80 and the sheet gripping hand 82 are separated. Then, similar to the steps described above, a desired hand may be attached to the arm 80 and the next work may be performed.

As described above, according to the present invention, the joining member on the robot body side and the joining member on the hand side are firmly fixed to each other via the engaging member having the tapered surface that is fitted onto one joining member. Therefore, even a relatively large and heavy hand can be reliably attached to the robot body side, and various different hands can be easily attached to be used as a robot hand with extremely general versatility. I can. Furthermore, since the pipe for the drive medium, the optical fiber, and the conductor are not exposed to the outside, the pipe, the optical fiber, and the conductor are prevented from being damaged, and various work by the hand is effectively performed. The advantage that it becomes possible is obtained.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiments, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and various improvements and design changes can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. Of course.

[Brief description of drawings]

1 is a partially omitted perspective view showing a separated state of a robot hand exchanging device according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a partially omitted vertical sectional view showing a coupled state of the present invention device, and FIG. 3 is FIG. III-III line sectional view of FIG. 4, FIG. 4 is a schematic explanatory view of a connecting action of the device of the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing an outline of a sheet gripping hand attached to a robot by the device of the present invention. 10 ... Main body, 12 ... Coupling member 14 ... Engaging member, 16 ... Coupling member 22a, 22b ... Case part 28a, 28b ... Cylinder mechanism 34, 34a ... Rod member, 36, 36a ... … Rack 40a-40d …… Pipeline, 42 …… Pinion part 46a–46h …… Claw part, 48a–48h …… Locking surface 56 …… Manifold 62a, 62b …… Pin member, 64a–64h …… Claw part 66a to 66h …… Locking surface, 67a, 67b …… Hole 74 …… Manifold, 80 …… Arm 82 …… Sheet gripping hand

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A first coupling member mounted on the arm side of a robot, a second coupling member mounted on the hand side of a robot, and a hand on the hand side via the first and second coupling members. A robot hand exchanging device having means for supplying a driving medium and a positioning pin for positioning the first and second coupling members with respect to each other, wherein the first and second coupling members each have a hollow portion. The first engaging member is externally fitted to the first connecting member, and a plurality of second engaging members are arranged on the outer periphery of the second connecting member. A pinion portion is formed on the outer periphery of the first engaging member, and a rack member connected to the driving means meshes with the pinion portion, and the first engaging member is rotated under the action of the driving means to rotate the first engaging member. First coupling member and second coupling member A hand exchange device for a robot, characterized in that it is detachably connected. 2. The device according to claim 1, wherein the first engaging member bulges radially inward at an end projecting outwardly from the first coupling member, and at least one first engaging member. Forming a first protruding portion including one tapered surface, while the second engaging member bulges outward in the radial direction at the outer peripheral end of the second coupling member and corresponds to the first tapered surface. A second projection portion including one or more second tapered surfaces, and an end portion of a second coupling member including the second projection portion is inserted into the inside of the first engagement member so that the driving means operates. A robot hand exchanging device, wherein the tapered surfaces are brought into pressure contact with each other by rotating the first engaging member. 3. The device according to claim 1, wherein first and second plates each include a manifold, an optical fiber, and a wire connecting terminal at the ends of the first and second connecting members, respectively. When the body is mounted and the first coupling member and the second coupling member are coupled to each other, the respective plate bodies are brought into contact with each other to connect the manifolds, the optical fibers and the terminals to each other, and thereby the first and second coupling members. A robot hand exchanging device configured to supply a hand driving medium to the hand side through the hollow part of the robot.