JPS6293098A - Welding robot device suitable for job shop type production - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To conform to the welding operation of multikind products by smoothing the set-up in changing by connecting the piping and wiring between a jig frame and the base frame which is connected to a sequence controller by a multiconnecter. CONSTITUTION:A jig frame A is combined by placing it on the fixed position on the base frame B which is set up at the prescribed position for an articulated welding robot. The position of the welding robot of the articulated robot is controlled by leading the electric wire 63 which is drawn from the solenoid valve 52 being provided on the base frame B to a general purpose sequence controller. The plug 31 of the multiconnecter of the air pressure cylinder tube 22-29 which are provided on the jig frame A and the socket 62 of the multiconnecter of the tube 61 of the solenoid valve 52 which is provided on the base frame B are connected. In this way the position of the jig on the jig frame A is kept at the prescribed position and the welding is performed automatically by the robot control box.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention relates to a welding robot device, and particularly to a welding robot device suitable for high-mix, low-volume production.

(Prior Art) Traditionally, welding robot devices have been configured to include an articulated robot equipped with a movable arm equipped with a welding torch, and a robot control box that provides control signals to the articulated robot and welding transformer. A sequence controller provides a command signal to the robot control box via an interface according to the program and sensor output provided in the jig structure, and also provides a drive signal to the control mechanism in the jig structure, and a sequence controller that provides a welding torch and a target. A welding transformer that supplies welding current between the workpiece and the jig structure to be installed at a predetermined position with respect to the articulated robot, that is, the workpiece under the control of the sequence controller described above. An actuator and jig for clamping the object to the jig or releasing the clamped state between the workpiece and the jig, and 4! for driving and controlling the actuator. A device is known that is composed of a jig structure and a jig structure.

(Problem to be solved by the invention) By the way, welding robots configured as described above are currently very expensive, so even small companies, even those that mainly engage in welding work, Even if a company plans to introduce a welding robot, such companies generally have small production lots, so the balance between capital investment costs and added value prevents the introduction of welding robots. There are many things.

Nowadays, whether it is an assembly robot or a welding robot, intelligent sensors are still in an immature state, and unless the workpiece is precisely placed in a predetermined position, it is impossible to make the robot perform the desired work. In addition, in order to make good use of welding robots, welding must be performed with the workpiece firmly fixed (clamped) to a jig used to maintain the positional accuracy of the workpiece. It is necessary to ensure that this is carried out.

In order to make effective use of welding robots, it is necessary to install dedicated jigs and actuators such as hydraulic and pneumatic cylinders, solenoids, motors, etc. for each workpiece, depending on the workpiece. A sensor for confirming the operation of the actuator, a sensor for detecting the previous process of the workpiece and the presence of the workpiece at the current time,
In addition, a jig structure including the control mechanism for the actuator described above must be prepared.

By the way, when an actuator with a configuration that is driven using air energy is adopted as the above-mentioned actuator, a solenoid valve is necessarily used as a control mechanism for its operation. In order to operate a system that utilizes the above-mentioned solenoid valves and actuators well, it is necessary to provide an air filter to supply clean air to the above-mentioned solenoid valves and actuators, a pressure regulating valve to maintain the appropriate pressure, and an oil mist. It is necessary to have a three-piece set consisting of a lubricator.

In addition, a sequence circuit is required to control the operation order of the actuators provided in the jig structure described above, but in recent years, a sequence circuit has been developed to control the operation using CP[I. However, general-purpose sequence controllers that also allow variable sequence control settings have become widely used. .

In order to construct an automated welding device using a welding robot, it is necessary to prepare an individual jig structure consisting of each component as described above for each workpiece to be welded. Each component is expensive, so if the number of identical workpieces is not large, the cost will be high.Conventionally, when welding in small production lots, it is necessary to use a hand to clamp the workpiece and jig together. Clamping means are often employed.

However, there is no guarantee that the welding robot will not malfunction, so a worker near the welding robot must perform operations such as setting and clamping the workpiece onto the jig, as well as undoing the jig and workpiece after processing is completed. Manually performing various operations such as clamping and removing workpieces is a very dangerous method in the unlikely event that the welding robot malfunctions. The advent of automatic welding equipment was required.

(Means for Solving the Problems) The present invention provides an articulated robot having a movable arm provided with welding arms 1 and 1, and a robot control box that provides control signals to the articulated robot, welding transformer, etc. and a sequence controller that provides a command signal to the robot control box via the interface according to the set program and sensor output provided in the jig, and also provides a drive signal to the control mechanism section of the jig structure, and a welding Under the control of the welding transformer that supplies welding current between the torch and the workpiece, and the aforementioned sequence controller, the workpiece is clamped to the jig, and the clamping state of the workpiece and the jig is controlled. A welding robot device comprising an actuator and a jig for releasing the actuator, a mechanism for driving and controlling the actuator, and a jig structure to be installed at a predetermined position with respect to the articulated robot. The jig structure described above includes an actuator and a jig that clamp the workpiece to the jig and release the clamped state between the workpiece and the jig under the control of the sequence controller described above. A jig mount such as the one provided therein, an engaging portion that can place and connect the above-mentioned jig mount in a predetermined relative positional relationship, and drive an actuator provided on the above-described jig mount. It is equipped with a control mechanism, and
Simple piping and wiring between the jig pedestal and the foundation pedestal is made by using a two-part foundation pedestal that is installed at a predetermined position with respect to the multi-joint welding robot described above. The connection is made using a multi-connector to provide a welding robot device suitable for high-mix, low-volume production.

(Example) Hereinafter, specific contents of the welding robot apparatus suitable for high-mix low-volume production of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. Furthermore, a bottom plate 3 is fixed to the lower surface of the frame 1.

A jig 4 for placing a workpiece and clevises 9 and 10 are erected on the upper surface of the base plate 2, and brackets 5 and 6 are fixed to the lower surface of the base plate 2.

A pneumatic cylinder ESI is fixed to the bracket 5, and a reference pin 11 is provided on the pneumatic cylinder ESI. Further, a cylindrical body 12 is provided on the rod of the pneumatic cylinder ES2 fixed to the bracket 6, and this cylindrical body 1
A guide pin 13 is arranged in parallel on one side of 2.

Trunnion 1 attached to the brackets 5 and 6 mentioned above
Pneumatic cylinders ES3 and ES4 are pivotally mounted to 6.17. This pneumatic cylinder ES3. ES4 rod 4
A clamp rod 18.19 is pivotally attached to the knuckle 14.15 provided at the tip of the clamp rod 18.19, and the intermediate portion of the clamp rod 18.19 is attached to the clevis 9, 10.
is rotatably connected to.

A clamp disk 20 is fixed to the clamp rod 19, and a holding pin 21 is provided at the tip. A large window hole 7 is opened near the center of a bottom plate 3 provided on the lower surface of the frame 1. Guide holes 8, 8, 8.8 are provided at the four corners of the bottom plate 3. This guide hole 8, 8, 8,
The position of 8 is standardized so that it is common to all other jig frames A, A, A, . . . .

Each of the above-mentioned pneumatic cylinders ES1. ES2. E
S3゜Tubes 22 to 29, one end of which is connected to the upper and lower ports of ES4, are bundled into a bundle 30 and attached to the bottom plate 3.
The other ends of each of the tubes 22 to 29 are inserted into the rear ends of the barbs 31a, 31a, etc., which are erected in a honeycomb shape on the plug 31 of the multi-connector, and are tightly connected. Retained.

32-39 are pneumatic cylinders ESI, ES2. ES3. E
This is a proximity sensor attached to the cylindrical wall of S4, and these proximity sensors 3z to 39 have a built-in reed switch, and the reed switch in each proximity sensor 32 to 39 is installed in the piston in each pneumatic cylinder ESI to ES4. The opening and closing are controlled by the magnetic force of a ring-shaped permanent magnet.

Signals generated by opening and closing the reed switches in the proximity sensors 32 to 39 described above are used as control signals for advancing the steps of the welding operation. The electric wires 44 to 51 connected to the proximity sensors 32 to 39 are also bundled 40 into a bundle at the bottom and then protruded from the window hole 7 of the bottom plate 3, and the lower end of each electric wire is connected to the connector pin of the plug 41 of the multi-outlet. It is connected to the rear ends of 41a, 41a, 41d, .

FIG. 2 shows the jig mount Δ, which was explained with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a front cross-sectional view of a jig structure constructed by combining a pedestal A and a base pedestal B. FIG.

A large number of electromagnetic valves 52.
52. A manifold 53 in which... are placed in parallel is provided.
A pipe 55 is connected to this, and the other end of this pipe 55 is connected to a lubricator 57 provided on a side frame 56 of the foundation frame B.

There are guide pins 58, 58° at the top of the four corners of the foundation frame B.
... are installed upright, but these guide pins 58, 58
By fitting the guide holes 8, 8, 8.8 provided in the bottom plate 2 of the jig pedestal A described above, the foundation pedestal B and the jig pedestal A are in a predetermined connection relationship. It is combined with

The above-mentioned electromagnetic valve 52.5 provided on the foundation mount B
Pipe joints 59, 59, screwed onto the boat at the top of 2...
... are connected to tubes 61, 61, respectively, and the tips of the tubes 61, 61, ... are bundled together in the socket 62 of the air multi-connector, and each of the above-mentioned Tube 61.61...
is connected to the barb of socket 62.

The plug 31 of the multi-connector is connected to the tubes 22 to 29 connected to the pneumatic cylinders ESI to ES4 of the jig mount A, and the tubes 61, 61 and 61 are connected to the electromagnetic valves 52, 52, and so on. When the clamp ring of the plug 31 is turned while pressing against the socket 62 to which the plug 31 is connected, the plug 31 and the socket 62 are connected.

Electric wires 63, 63, . . . drawn out from both sides of the electromagnetic valves 52, 52, .

Also, a multi-outlet socket 64 is attached to the tip of the electric wire connected to the sequence controller SCL.
is connected to a multi-outlet plug 41 connected to the aforementioned proximity sensors 32 to 39.

The lubricator 57, which is connected to the air supply port 54 of the manifold 53 and the other end of the pipe 55, is connected to the air filter 66 with a pressure regulating valve 65 in between.
It is fixed to the frame 56 of the foundation frame B as a point set,
The air filter 66 and the air hose 67 are connected by a coupler 68 with one touch.

FIG. 3 shows a jig mount A that is to be individually installed for each of many different objects to be welded in the welding robot device of the present invention suitable for high-mix, low-volume production.

This is a perspective view schematically showing the commonly used components, except for A..., and the articulated robot MJR shown in the center of FIG. 3 is a robot control box RC.
[Welding torch 69 according to the program entered in 3.
This multi-jointed robot MJR moves according to a commanded trajectory while changing its posture, and this multi-jointed robot MJR has five axes of motion: rotation of the torso, forward and backward rotation of the arms, upper and lower rotation of the wrists, and rotation of the wrists up and down. Each axis of motion is driven by five independent servo motors, and rotation control of the servo motors is performed by the robot control box RCB. Further, a control electric wire 70 for a welding transformer WT is also introduced into the robot control box RCB.

Control of the jig structure side is performed by a program written into a general-purpose sequence controller SCL. Further, a wiring 71 is connected to the sequence controller SCL via an interface ITF provided in the robot control box RCB, so as to notify the welding robot MJR of whether or not the jig assembly is ready for acceptance.

The sequence controller SCL consists of a programmer, a basic module, and an input/output module, and the input/output module is an expansion module that can be increased or decreased. The programmer consists of command keys, numeric keys, and operation keys, and the program is initially configured according to the sequence logic circuit.

This programmer is equipped with a cassette terminal, so if you record the program you have typed on a cassette tape, if you want to reuse the same program in the future, you can use the recorded cassette tape to complete the program input within a few minutes. do.

Now, what is the welding work for welding objects using the welding robot device of the present invention, which is suitable for high-mix, low-volume production?

Prior to the start of the process, first, jig frames A, A...
・Select the jig mount A that is equipped with a jig corresponding to the target workpiece, and set the jig mount A in a predetermined positional relationship with respect to the articulated robot MJR. By connecting and fixing it to the base frame B, and also connecting the pipes, electric wires, etc. described above through their respective connectors, a jig structure required for welding work on the object to be welded is constructed.

Each jig mount A is provided with an operation panel (not shown), and the electric wires coming out from the operation panel are connected to the interface ITF from the sequence controller SCL.
It is connected to the robot control box RCB via.

Then, a program corresponding to the jig 4 stored in the robot control box RCB or the like is retrieved based on the output signal from the operation panel. The control box of a normal welding robot has a storage capacity of 2000 steps, and usually 50 to 60 steps are required to accomplish a welding job with one jig 4, so one robot control box This means that 30 to 40 programs can be assembled with RCB. That is, 30~
This allows the welding work that must be done in conjunction with 40 types of jigs 4, 4, etc. to be completed. Therefore, if this is implemented in the present invention, it will be possible to place 30 to 40 jig frames with different jigs 4 on one base frame B.

As an example, the guide hole 8 of the jig mount A shown in FIG.
, 8, 8, 8.8 are provided on the base frame B.
, 58... to connect the pneumatic cylinder tube 22 to
29 multi-connector plug 31 and electromagnetic valve 52.
When the tubes 61 of 52... and the sockets 62 of the multi-connectors of 61... are connected, the state as shown in FIG. 2 is obtained. Plugs 41 and S of the multi-outlet of the proximity switches 32 to 39 provided in the pneumatic cylinders ESI to ES4
Connect Q to the socket 64 of the multi-outlet connected to CL, coupler 68 for the air filter 66 and air hose 67
In this case, the earth cord 72 from the welding transformer υT is connected to the base pedestal in advance. When the power switches of the robot control box RCB, welding transformer υT, operation box, etc. are turned on, the jig part on the jig mount A maintains its original position, that is, the pneumatic cylinder ESI.

The rod of ES 2 protrudes, and the reference pin 11 and cylindrical body 12
and the guide ζ (the pin 13 protrudes from the jig 4). The object to be welded in the illustrated embodiment consists of three parts: a plate-shaped piece 73 divided into two parts, an annular piece 74, and a pipe 75. The dish-shaped object 73 is fitted into the reference pin 11, the annular object 74 is fitted into the cylindrical body 12, and the pipe 75 is fitted into the guide pin 13 and placed on the jig 4, and the start button is pressed. In this case, the electromagnetic valve corresponding to the pneumatic cylinder ES3.ES4 is energized, and the pneumatic cylinder ES3.ES4 is activated.
compressed air is supplied to the Pneumatic cylinder ES3. ES4
The rods 42 and 43 protrude outward, the clamp rod 18 strongly clamps the dish-shaped object 73, and the other clamp rod 19 strongly clamps the annular object 74 and the pipe 75 to the jig 4. In this case, the annular member 74 is covered with the clamp disk 20 to prevent welding spatter from adhering to the inside of the annular member 74.

In order to prevent the pipe 75 from collapsing, strong pressure is applied from above using the holding pin 21. A clamp completion signal is sent to each pneumatic cylinder ESI, 1Es2. ES3. E.S.
The signal is transmitted to the sequence controller SCL by the proximity sensors 32 to 39 provided at 4. Sequence control 1 - roller SCL holds this clamp disk at the same time.

Welding 4I on robot control box RCH! Sends MI completion signal. Supply operating current to the servo motors from the robot control box RCB. An encoder is built into the servo motor to detect the rotation angle of the motor, and the detected signal is fed back to the robot control box RCB to operate the articulated robot MJR while checking whether it is according to the program. let Articulated robot M
When the welding torch 69 attached to JR's wrist reaches a predetermined position on the object to be welded.

Welding transformer IdT from robot control box RC[]
At the same time as issuing an energization command to the welding torch 69, an operation is also performed to supply carbon dioxide gas from a gas hose (not shown) to the welding torch 69.

The tip of the welding torch 69 performs the welding operation while accurately moving the abutting portion of each of the three parts to be welded according to the commands from the robot control box RCB according to the program. When completed, the arm of the articulated robot MJR moves back greatly and the welding torch 69
stops at a fixed position away from the jig 4 6 At the same time, a welding completion command is sent from the robot control box RCB to the sequence controller SCH, and the sequence controller SCL unclamps the electromagnetic valves 52, 52... Convey commands as follows. Solenoid valve 52
．． Pneumatic cylinder ES3. The rods 42, 43 of the ES4 are recessed into the cylinder and the clamping rods 18.
19 is opened, and the reference pin 11, cylindrical body 12, guide pin 13, etc. are retracted by the pneumatic cylinders ESI and ES2, and each actuator enters the state shown in FIG.

This state is transmitted to the sequence controller SCL by the proximity sensors 32 to 39, and the unclamped state is confirmed. Further, a command is given from the sequence controller SCL to an actuator (not shown) to perform an operation of discharging the workpiece. When the workpiece to be welded disappears from the top of the jig 4 (confirmed by a sensor not shown), the pneumatic cylinder ESI,
Air is sent to the boat below ES2, and the reference pin 11,
The cylindrical body 12, guide pin 13, etc. protrude and return to their original positions. The above is one cycle of work for the object to be welded in this embodiment, and when the production of a predetermined quantity is completed by repeating this process, this jig mount A is removed from the base mount B,
The jig mount A, which is equipped with a jig 4 for another object to be welded, is placed on the base mount B, and the welding operation for the other object to be welded is performed.

(Effects) As is clear from the above detailed explanation, there is an articulated robot equipped with a movable arm equipped with a welding torch according to the present invention, and a robot that provides control signals to the aforementioned articulated robot and welding transformer. A sequence controller that provides a command signal to the robot control box via an interface according to a set program and a sensor output provided in the jig structure, and also provides a drive signal to the control mechanism in the jig structure. A welding transformer supplies welding current between the welding torch and the workpiece, and the workpiece is clamped to the jig and the workpiece is clamped to the jig under the control of the sequence controller described above. It is equipped with an actuator and jig for releasing the clamped state, a mechanism for driving and controlling the actuator, etc., and a jig structure to be installed at a predetermined position with respect to the articulated robot is small. In a welding robot device, a workpiece to be welded is clamped to a jig under the control of the sequence controller described above as the jig structure.

A jig mount that is equipped with an actuator and a jig that release the clamped state between the workpiece and the jig, and the above-mentioned jig mount are placed in a predetermined relative positional relationship and combined or separated. and a mechanism for driving and controlling the actuator provided on the jig mount, as well as being installed at a predetermined position with respect to the multi-joint welding robot. It is suitable for high-mix, low-volume production by using a two-part foundation pedestal, and connecting piping and wiring between the jig pedestal and the foundation pedestal using multi-connectors. Since it is a welding robot device, 1. In the welding robot device of the present invention, which is suitable for high-mix, low-volume production, the jig structure for setting the work to be welded at a predetermined position with respect to the articulated robot is controlled by a sequence controller. , a jig mount including an actuator and a jig for clamping the workpiece to the jig and releasing the clamp state between the workpiece and the jig, and the jig mount described above in a predetermined manner. The above-mentioned multi-articulated welding robot is equipped with an engaging portion that can be mounted and connected or separated in a relative positional relationship, and a mechanism that drives and controls the actuator provided on the jig mount. It consists of two parts: a base frame that is to be installed at a predetermined position, and a dedicated jig frame is prepared for each object to be welded. Since the jig frame dedicated to the workpiece is connected to the base frame and used as the jig structure, the jig structure used for welding work on the workpiece can be constructed at low cost. The entire system that can perform welding work can be constructed at low cost,
In addition, it is easy to replace the jig mount, which is replaced every time a different workpiece is to be welded, and the multi-connector makes it extremely easy to change the piping and wiring at the time of replacement. Since the welding work is carried out automatically, the safety of the workers is ensured, and the present invention can satisfactorily solve all the problems of the conventional welding process described above.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Figure 1 is a front sectional view of the jig mount, Figure 2 is a front sectional view of the jig mount and foundation pedestal combined, and Figure 3 is the multi-jointed part of the jig mount excluding the component parts. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a welding robot device. MJR...Articulated robot, RCB...Robot control box, SCL...Sequence controller, A...
... Jig mount, B... Foundation mount, WT... Welding transformer, ESI to ES4... Pneumatic cylinder, 1... Frame of jig mount A, 2... Base plate, 3 ...Bottom plate, 4...
・Jig, 8...Guide hole, 22-29...Tube, 31...Multi-connector plug, 32-39...
・Pneumatic cylinder ESI, ES2. [ES3. Proximity sensors attached to the cylinder wall of ES4, 44-51...
f! ! line, 52...electromagnetic valve, 53...manifold, 41...multi-outlet plug, 54...
- Air supply port on the front of manifold 53, 55... Pipe, 56... Side frame of foundation mount B, 57... Lubricator, 58... Guide pin, 62... Air multi-connector socket, 63...Electric wire. 65...Pressure regulating valve, 66...Air filter, 67
...Air hose, 68...Coupler, 69...Welding torch, 70...Control wire for welding transformer VT. Patent applicant: Shonai Press Industry Co., Ltd. PAMO

Claims (1)

[Claims] An articulated robot equipped with a movable arm equipped with a welding torch, a robot control box that provides control signals to the aforementioned articulated robot and welding transformer, and a set program and sensor output provided in the jig structure. A sequence controller that provides a command signal to the robot control box described above via an interface and a drive signal to the control mechanism section of the jig structure, and a welding transformer that supplies welding current between the welding torch and the workpiece. Under the control of the sequence controller described above, the actuator and jig that clamp the workpiece to the jig or release the clamped state between the workpiece and the jig and the actuator are drive-controlled. In a welding robot apparatus that is equipped with a mechanism and a jig structure to be installed at a predetermined position with respect to the above-mentioned articulated robot, the above-described jig structure is under the control of the above-described sequence controller. In addition, a jig mount including an actuator and a jig for clamping the workpiece to the jig and releasing the clamped state between the workpiece and the jig, and the jig stand described above are installed in a specified manner. The device is equipped with an engaging portion that can be mounted and coupled or separated depending on the relative positional relationship of The base frame is installed in a predetermined position relative to the robot, and the base frame is made up of two parts. Welding robot device suitable for high-mix, low-volume production using connectors