JPH0985661A - Multi-function panel used for robot - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve operability and understandability by coloring the teaching device of an industrial robot. SOLUTION: A multifunction panel 16 is composed by combining a transparent touch panel 17 on a color liquid crystal display 18. The touch panel 17 is composed of a plurality of touch keys arranged in a matrix-shape, and supplys a signal to show an inputted key through a touch panel I/F13 to CPU 10, which displays the function of each key of the touch panel 17 through a graphic controller 14 with the color liquid crystal display 18. According to key input, CPU 10 transmites a signal for carrying out control motion corresponding to the function through a communication I/F19 to a robot control board. CPU 10 carrys out controls for making the display color of unavailable operation input key light, carrying out error display in conspicuous color in the case of the occurrence of the error, and making the color of the motion key for motion being near a limit light, and thus an operater's identification is made easy.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an improvement in a display device for monitoring and controlling the operation of an industrial robot, and more particularly to a multi-function panel used in a robot that enables selection of many kinds of functions.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, the control of an industrial robot has been performed by the structure shown in FIG. The control panel 2 has a display unit 3 for monitoring the operating state of the industrial robot 1.
And an input operation unit 4 for performing various input operations. Also connected to the control panel 2 is a teaching device 5 that performs teaching simply while holding it by hand. The teaching device 5 is configured to be small and lightweight, and has a display unit 6 at a position away from the control panel 2.
It is provided to teach the operation of the industrial robot 1 by using the input operation section 7 and the input operation section 7. The display section 3 of the control panel 2 is, for example, a color cathode ray tube (abbreviated as “color C”).
Various control information and monitoring information are displayed by using "RT"). At the time of teaching for instructing the industrial robot 1 to perform a detailed operation, it is necessary to remove the portable teaching device 5 from the control panel 2 and perform an input operation near the industrial robot 1 while watching the actual operation. is there. Therefore, the display unit 6 used in the teaching device 5 is a flat display panel such as a monochrome display of monochrome display or a plasma display, and the input operation unit 7 is also configured by a mechanical key matrix or the like separately from the display unit 6. There is. The function of each key of the input operation unit 7 is
It is determined in advance, and the function display is performed by preprinting on the surface of the teaching device 5 or attaching a label or the like.

An example of the prior art that generally discloses a combination of a control panel of an industrial robot and a teaching device for teaching is Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 61-127006.
and so on.

[0004]

Since the display unit 6 of the conventional teaching device 5 as shown in FIG. 9 uses a monochromatic display device, for example, a black and white liquid crystal, it is possible to identify characters by displaying them. Is possible, but it is impossible to distinguish by changing colors. The colors and display characters of the keys and switches of the input operation unit 7 are predetermined and cannot be changed during operation. However, the teaching device 5
Is used during teaching of the industrial robot 1, and improvement of operability is demanded in order to focus attention on the operation of the industrial robot.

An object of the present invention is to provide a multi-function panel used for a robot which can effectively control and monitor the robot by effectively utilizing a limited space.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is a multifunctional panel for monitoring and controlling the operation of an industrial robot, the image display means having a display screen capable of color display, and the image display means. A plurality of transparent operation input means installed on the display screen for manually controlling the operation of the robot, and an image display means are provided in correspondence with the areas where the operation input means in use are provided. The color display showing the function of is displayed, and the image display for robot control or motion monitoring is displayed in the area where the operation input means is not provided or in the area where the operation input means is not in use. It is a multi-function panel used for a robot characterized by including control means for controlling to perform. According to the present invention, an apparatus for monitoring and controlling the operation of an industrial robot is provided with an image display unit having a display screen capable of color display, and a plurality of transparent devices installed on the display screen of the image display unit. Since the operation input means is provided, the space can be effectively used. The control means controls the image display means so as to perform color display indicating the function of the operation input means in correspondence with the area where the operation input means is provided. In the area where the operation input means is not provided, or in the area where the operation input means is provided and is not in use, it is controlled to display an image for robot control or motion monitoring. Effectively using the display screen of the display means, color display of functions for input operation,
The operation status can be displayed. By displaying in color, the operation input and the monitoring of the operation state can be performed easily and quickly.

Further, the control means of the present invention is characterized by controlling the image display means so that the invalid operation input means is displayed in a light color as compared with the effective operation input means. According to the present invention, whether the operation input means is valid or invalid,
Since the function of the operation input means is displayed in shades of color to be displayed in color, it is possible to quickly identify whether the operation input means is valid or invalid and to improve operability.

Further, the control means of the present invention uses a preset color as a prominent color for the image display means when an error occurs in the operation of the robot, and uses at least a partial area of the image being displayed. Is controlled so that an error is displayed by replacing. According to the present invention,
When an error occurs, the error is displayed using a color that is set in advance as a prominent color, so that the display that is easy for the operator to understand can be performed.

Further, the control means of the present invention changes the color of the color display representing the function of the operation input means to a predetermined color for each operation mode according to a plurality of predetermined operation modes of the robot. It is characterized by controlling. According to the present invention, when the robot has a plurality of operation modes, the color of the color display indicating the function of the operation input means is changed to a predetermined color according to each operation mode. It can be easily done with color, and it is possible to prevent operational mistakes and enhance safety.

Further, the control means of the present invention is configured such that, when the robot is manually operated, the color of the color display showing the function of each operation input means is changed as the operation by the function approaches the limit of a predetermined operation range. It is characterized by controlling. According to the present invention, the color display showing the function of the operation input means is controlled so that the color changes as the operation by the function approaches the limit of the predetermined operation range, so that the operator should continue the operation. Can be avoided, and inoperability can be avoided.

Further, the control means of the present invention controls, when monitoring and controlling the operations of a plurality of robots, changing the color of the color display corresponding to the function of the operation input means for each robot. It is characterized by doing. According to the present invention, when monitoring and controlling the operation of a plurality of robots,
It is possible to easily recognize which robot is selected by changing the color. It is possible to prevent a situation in which a robot that is not the operation target is input with an operation and causes a malfunction.

[0012]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 shows a schematic electrical configuration of a robot teaching apparatus including a multifunction panel according to an embodiment of the present invention. Central processing unit (hereinafter abbreviated as "CPU") 10, read-only memory (hereinafter abbreviated as "ROM") 11, and read / write memory (hereinafter "RA")
The abbreviation "M") 12 operates according to a program preset in the ROM 11 and constitutes a control means. C
A touch panel interface (hereinafter abbreviated as “touch panel I / F”) 13, a graphic controller 14, and the like are connected to the PU 10. The graphic controller 14 temporarily stores the image for display in the RAM 15, and then the touch panel 17 that constitutes the multifunction panel 16.
The state of image display by the color liquid crystal display 18 provided on the back side of the is controlled. The touch panel 17 is configured by arranging transparent switches in a matrix on the display screen of the color liquid crystal display 18, and data representing a position input by touching the touch panel 17 with a fingertip or the like is transmitted via the touch panel I / F 13. Is input to the CPU 10. The CPU 10 transmits the operation data to the robot control panel via a communication interface (hereinafter, abbreviated as “communication I / F 19”) according to the input instruction.

FIG. 2 shows an example of a display screen 20 by the color liquid crystal display 18 of the multi-function panel 16 of FIG. The display screen 20 includes a common area 21, a selection area 22, a message area 23, a status display area 24, an auxiliary data area 25, a teaching related area 26, a check operation related area 27, an operation mode related area 28, an axis operation area 29,
It is divided into a data display area 30 and a check area 31. Of these, auxiliary data area 25, teaching-related area 26, operation mode-related area 28, axis operation area 29
The check area 31 is valid in the teaching mode but invalid in the repeat mode. Therefore, when the operation mode is the repeat mode, the displayed color is lightened.

FIG. 3 shows an operation for lightening the color of the color display corresponding to the invalid key as described above. The operation is started from step a1 and it is determined whether or not the mode is changed between the teach mode and the repeat mode in step a2. When there is a change, the process proceeds to step a3, and it is determined whether the teach mode is set. When it is determined that the teach mode is set, the process proceeds to step a4, and it is determined whether or not the teach lock is in the ON state. When it is determined that the teach lock is in the ON state, the process proceeds to step a5, and the display color of the above teaching related key is displayed in a dark color. If it is determined in step a3 that the repeat mode is set, or if it is determined in step a4 that the teach lock is OFF, step a6
Then, the display color of the teaching related key is displayed in a light color to make it clear that it is invalid. When it is determined in step a2 that the mode has not been changed, and when step a5 or step a6 ends, the operation ends in step a7. In addition, ON / OFF of the teach lock is switched by a teach lock switch described later.

FIG. 4 shows another embodiment of the present invention.
The operation of changing the display color of the keys in the axis operation area 29 of FIG. 2 according to the axis operation mode of the robot is shown. A 6-axis articulated robot or the like has three operation modes of “each axis”, “base”, and “tool” and can be selected. The operation is started from step b1, and it is determined in step b2 whether or not the teach mode is set. If it is the teach mode, move to step b3 to turn on the teach lock.
It is determined whether or not the state. When it is determined to be the ON state, the process proceeds to step b4, and it is determined whether or not the operation mode key is pressed. When it is determined that the operation mode key is pressed, it is determined in step b5 whether the new operation mode is "each axis". When it is determined to be "each axis", the color of the axis key is displayed in green in step b6. When it is determined in step b5 that the new operation mode is not "each axis", it is determined in step b7 whether the new operation mode is "base". "base"
When it is determined that the color of the axis key is displayed in red in step b8. When it is determined in step b7 that the new operation mode is not "base", the axis key color is displayed in blue in step b9. Step b2, Step b3
When the conditions are not satisfied in step b4 or when the operation in step b6, step b8, or step b9 ends, the entire operation ends in step b8. Green, red, and blue are merely examples and can be changed as appropriate.

FIG. 5 shows the operation of another embodiment of the present invention. In the present embodiment, in the manual operation, the color of the corresponding axis key is changed as the arm of the robot approaches the operation end. That is, the operation is started from step c1, and it is determined in step c2 whether the teaching mode is set or not. When it is determined that the teach mode is set, the process proceeds to step c3, and it is determined whether or not the teach lock is ON. When it is judged to be ON,
At step c4, the axis number 1 is set to the variable i.

Next, in step c5, it is determined whether or not the current position of the i-th axis is on the + side of the operating midpoint. When it is determined to be the + side, it is determined in step c6 whether the remaining operation range is 20% or less. When it is determined that the ratio is not less than 20%, the process proceeds to step c7, and the display color of the + side axis key of the i-th axis is displayed with the display color set to 1. When it is determined in step c6 that the remaining operation range is 20% or less, it is determined in step c8 whether it is 10% or less. When it is determined that the display color is not 10% or less, the display color is set to 2 in step c9. When it is determined in step c8 that it is 10% or less, the process proceeds to step c10, and it is determined whether it is 5% or less. When it is determined that the display color is not 5% or less, the display color is changed to 3 in step c11. Step c
When it is determined in step 10 that it is 5% or less, it is determined in step c12 whether it is 1% or less. When it is determined that the value is not less than 1%, the display color is changed to 4 in step c13. When it is determined in step c12 that it is 1% or less, the display color is set to 5 in step c14. When step c7, step c9, step c11, step c13, or step c14 is completed, the process moves to step c15, and it is determined whether or not all the axes have been checked. When there are unchecked axes, the process moves to step c16 and the variable i is incremented by 1. After incrementing the variable i by 1, the process returns to step c5. If it is determined in step c15 that all axes have been checked, or if it is determined in step c2 that the teach mode is not in effect, or if it is determined in step c3 that the teach lock is not ON, the operation ends in step c17.

FIG. 6 shows a partial operation when it is determined in step c5 of FIG. 4 that the current position of the i-th axis is not on the + side, that is, on the-side of the midpoint of operation. From step c5 of FIG. 5, the process moves to the beginning of step c20, and it is determined whether the remaining operation range is 20% or less. When the remaining operating range remains over 20%, step c2
At 1, the display color of the axis key on the minus side of the i-th axis is set to 1.
When it is determined in step c20 that the operating range is 20% or less, it is determined in step c22 whether it is 10% or less. When it is determined that the value is not less than 10%, the display color is set to 2. When it is determined in step c22 that the amount is 10% or less, the process proceeds to step c24, where 5
Judge whether it is less than or equal to%. If it is determined that it is not less than 5%, then the process proceeds to step c25, and the display color is set to 3
To When it is determined in step c24 that it is 5% or less, the process proceeds to step c26, and it is determined whether it is 1% or less. If it is determined that it is not less than 1%, then the process proceeds to step c27, and the display color is set to 4. When it is determined in step c26 that it is 1% or less, the display color is set to 5 in step c27. Upon completion of step c21, step c23, step c25, step c27 or step c28, the process moves to step c15 shown in FIG.
Check the remaining axes. 2 to distinguish colors
The values of 0%, 10%, 5% and 1% can be changed to other values. Display colors 1 to 5 use different colors.

FIG. 7 shows an external structure of the teaching device shown in FIG. The teaching device 35 has the multi-function panel 16 installed near its center, and the emergency stop button 36 and the teach lock switch 37 arranged above it. Multi-function panel 1
A pair of deadman keys 38 and 39 are provided on both sides of the unit 6. When performing teaching using the teaching device 35, it is necessary to release at least one of the deadman keys 38 and 39 to release the brake of the industrial robot. In FIG. 6, although the surface of the touch panel 17 has a lattice shape, the switches of the touch panel 17 are transparent and the display screen 20 is displayed as it is.

FIG. 8 shows a display screen 40 as still another embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, an unexpected abnormality is detected in the operation of the robot, and the error display 41
However, it is performed in a prominent color such as red.

In the above embodiment, the multi-function panel 16 is mounted on the teaching device 35, but it may be mounted on the display part of the control panel of the robot. Although a color liquid crystal display is used as an image display means, plasma display, electroluminescence, etc.
Other display devices can also be used.

[0022]

As described above, according to the present invention, since the display for monitoring and controlling the operation of the industrial robot is performed by the color image, it is possible to perform the manual operation while watching the robot arm. The display contents can be grasped at a glance, and the operability can be improved. Since a plurality of transparent operation input means are arranged on the display screen of the image display means capable of color display and the function of each operation input means is also displayed in color, the function of the operation input means can be identified at a glance. It will be easy.

Further, according to the present invention, it is possible to discriminate between valid and invalid ones of the operation input means by the shades of color, so that the operator can easily identify only the valid operation input means. It can be operated.

Further, according to the present invention, when an error such as an unexpected abnormality occurs in the operation of the robot, the error display is easily made by using a preset color as a prominent color, so that the operator can quickly You can encourage them to respond.

Further, according to the present invention, when the robot has a plurality of operation modes, the color of the color display showing the function of the operation input means is changed according to each operation mode, so that the operation mode can be easily recognized. It is possible to prevent erroneous operation.

Further, according to the present invention, since the color of the color display changes as the operation by the function of the operation input means of the robot approaches the limit of the predetermined operation range, an unreasonable operation approaching the limit of the operation is avoided. be able to.

Further, according to the present invention, when a plurality of robots are controlled, color display is performed in a different color for each controlled robot, which robot can be operated at a glance. Can recognize what is,
It is possible to prevent erroneous operation.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic electrical configuration of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view showing a display screen of the multi-function panel 16 in the embodiment of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an operation of performing the screen display of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an operation according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing still another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a partial operation branched from the flowchart of FIG.

FIG. 7 is a front view showing a display screen of a multi-function panel according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a front view showing a display screen according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a front view showing a configuration of a conventional robot controller.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 CPU 11 ROM 12 RAM 13 Touch panel I / F 14 Graphic controller 16 Multi-function panel 17 Touch panel 18 Color liquid crystal display 20, 40 Display screen 21 Common area 22 Selection area 29 Axis operation area 31 Check area 35 Teaching device 37 Teach lock switch 38,39 Dead Mankey

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Shogo Hasegawa 1-1 Kawasaki-cho, Akashi-shi, Hyogo Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd. Akashi factory (72) Inventor Yoshiaki Nakachi 1-1 Kawasaki-cho, Akashi-shi, Hyogo Kawasaki Heavy industry Akashi factory

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A multi-function panel for monitoring and controlling the operation of an industrial robot, comprising: an image display means having a display screen capable of color display; and a robot installed on the display screen of the image display means. A plurality of transparent operation input means for manually controlling the operation of and the image display means are displayed in color corresponding to the area where each operation input means in use is provided. A control means for controlling to display an image for robot control or motion monitoring in an area where the operation input means is not provided or an area where the operation input means is provided and which is not in use. A multi-function panel used for a robot characterized by including. 2. The robot according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the image display unit to display the invalid operation input unit in a light color as compared with the valid operation input unit. Multi-function panel used for. 3. The control means replaces at least a partial area of an image being displayed with a preset color as a prominent color for the image display means when an error occurs in the operation of the robot. The multi-function panel used for the robot according to claim 1, wherein the multi-function panel is controlled so as to display an error. 4. The control means controls the color of the color display representing the function of the operation input means to a predetermined color for each operation mode according to a plurality of predetermined operation modes of the robot. A multi-function panel used in the robot according to claim 1, wherein the multi-function panel is used in a robot. 5. The control means controls, when a robot is manually operated, a color display indicating the function of each operation input means so that the color changes as the operation by the function approaches a limit of a predetermined operation range. A multi-function panel used in the robot according to claim 1, wherein the multi-function panel is used in a robot. 6. The control means controls, when monitoring and controlling the operation of a plurality of robots, changing the color of color display corresponding to the function of the operation input means for each robot. A multi-function panel used for the robot according to any one of claims 1 to 3.