KR100680394B1 - Robot - Google Patents

Abstract

<Problem> It aims at providing the robot which ensures the long vertical stroke of a hand part, and the movement speed of a hand part can be speeded up, avoiding the enlargement and weight of the whole apparatus.

<Solution> The first frame 3 which supports the hand part 2 so that up-and-down movement is provided, and the 2nd frame 4 which supports this 1st frame 3 so that up-and-down movement is provided, In the 1st frame 3, the 1st ball screw 5 which moves the hand part 2 up and down, and the 1st frame 3 with respect to the 2nd frame 4 are moved up and down The second ball screw 6 is also arranged in parallel in the vertical direction, and is integral with the first ball screw 5 and the first gear and the second ball screw 6 which rotate. The motor 9 which is directly or indirectly connected to the rotating second gear is received.

Description

Robot {ROBOT}

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is a side view which shows an example of the slide mechanism which comprises the robot which concerns on this invention.

2 is a plan view showing the structure of a gear train in a gear box.

3 is a side view of the robot including the slide mechanism shown in FIG. 1.

Fig. 4 shows another embodiment of the present invention and shows an example of another multistage slide mechanism provided with another frame or the like.

It is a side view which shows an example of the slide mechanism which comprises the conventional robot.

<Explanation of symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

1: work

2: Hand part

3: first frame

4: second frame

5: first ball screw

6: second ball screw

7: first gear

8: second gear

9: motor

21: mediation gear

The present invention relates to a robot. More specifically, the present invention relates to an improvement in the structure of a robot having a hand portion for holding a work.

As a means for carrying out or conveying the glass substrate for liquid crystal panels etc. (this is called a workpiece | work) to a workpiece storage cassette, the conveyance robot which has a hand part which hold | maintains a workpiece | work is used.

As such a robot, the guide part 102 of the up-down direction is provided in the fixed frame 101 which consists of fixed pillars conventionally, as shown in FIG. 5, and according to this guide 102, the hand part 103 is carried out. Is moved up and down (symbol A in the drawing represents the overall height of the device). As a structure for moving the hand part 103 up and down, although it is different from what is shown in FIG. 5, for example, the servo motor integrated in the fixed frame drives a pulley and a belt via a reducer, and moves a hand part by this. And the like (see Patent Document 1).

<Patent Document 1> Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-123675

However, in such a configuration, when a large stroke in the up and down direction (indicated by symbol S in Fig. 5) is required, the robot 102 must be extended up and down, and the fixed frame 101 is not increased as much. It becomes impossible. By doing so, the overall height A of the apparatus is inevitably increased, and since a stable support is also required, there is a problem that the robot becomes large and heavy.

Moreover, in the case of the structure which moves the hand part 103 up and down according to one guide 102 in this way, when the workpiece is going to move up and down quickly, there is no choice but to raise and lower the hand part 103 by that speed. In other words, the structure itself has a relatively narrow limit of stroke speed, and the high speed operation may shorten the life of components and the like.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a robot which ensures a long vertical stroke of the hand portion while avoiding the increase in size and weight of the entire apparatus, and also enables the movement speed of the hand portion to be increased.

In order to achieve this object, the invention described in claim 1 is a robot having a hand portion for holding a work, comprising: a first frame supporting the hand portion to be movable up and down, and a first frame supporting the first frame to be movable up and down; The 1st ball screw which has a 2nd frame and moves a hand part up and down in the 1st frame, and the 2nd ball screw which moves a 1st frame up and down with respect to a 2nd frame in an up-down direction In addition, the motor is arranged in parallel to each other and is directly or indirectly connected to the first gear that rotates integrally with the first ball screw and the second gear that rotates integrally with the second ball screw. It is characterized by that.

When a motor is driven, the gear train connected to this motor rotates, and a 1st ball screw and a 2nd ball screw rotate with this. The rotating first ball screw relatively moves the hand part relative to the first frame. The rotating second ball screw relatively moves the first frame with respect to the second frame. As a result, the hand portion can be moved up and down at a speed that matches each relative speed, and can be moved up and down at a normal double speed if both relative speeds are the same. Also, if the motor is rotated in reverse, the hand portion can naturally move in the reverse direction.

The invention according to claim 2 is, in the robot according to claim 1, another vertically movable frame interposed between the first frame and the second frame, and another ball screw and a gear for relatively moving the other frame up and down. And a motor.

The invention according to claim 3 is, in the robot according to claim 1 or 2, the first and second gears, an intermediate gear meshed with any one of these first and second gears, and the intermediate gear. The physics is that the pinion installed in the motor and the motor are arranged at the upper end of the first frame.

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION Hereinafter, the structure of this invention is demonstrated in detail based on embodiment shown to drawing.

1 to 3 show one embodiment of the present invention. The robot which concerns on this invention has the hand part 2 which hold | maintains the workpiece | work 1, and the robot which concerns on this embodiment is the 1st frame which supports the hand part 2 so that up-and-down movement ( 3) and a second frame 4 for supporting the first frame 3 in such a manner as to be movable up and down, and in the first frame 3, an agent for moving the hand part 2 up and down. The ball screw 5 of 1 and the 2nd ball screw 6 which vertically moves the 1st frame 3 with respect to the 2nd frame 4 are also arranged in parallel in the up-down direction, and the 1st Motor which is directly or indirectly connected to the first gear 7 and the second gear 8 which rotates integrally with the ball screw 5 and the second gear 8 that rotates integrally with the second ball screw 6. It is said that we store (9).

More specifically, in this embodiment, the motor 9 and the gear lubrication heat (gears 7 and 8, pinion 9a, intermediate gear 21, etc.) are gearbox 22 (these are made of these). It is stored in a "drive mechanism."

The workpiece | work 1 handled by the robot concerning this embodiment is a thin flat plate-like thing like the glass substrate for liquid crystal panels (refer FIG. 3), and a robot does not show such a workpiece | work 1 like this. The cassettes are put in and out of the substrate storage cassette. However, such a plate-shaped object is only an example of a conveyance object, and of course, the workpiece | work 1 other than a plate-shaped object can also be handled.

The hand part 2 is for conveying while holding the above-mentioned work 1, and although not shown in this application, it is a shape like a fork in which several support bars are parallel, for example, and the work 1 is lowered Lift it from the side and hold it (see Fig. 3). The first arm 10 and the second arm 11 are interposed between the hand portion 2 and the first frame 3 (see FIG. 3). The first arm 10 and the second arm 11 move the hand part 2 in parallel or change its direction, and the second arm 11 has a first frame 3. ) Is rotatably provided, and the first arm 10 is pivotally provided at the distal end of the second arm 11. The hand part 2 mentioned above is provided in the front-end | tip part of this 2nd arm 11 so that rotation is possible (refer FIG. 3). In addition, only one conveyance arm which consists of these hand part 2, the 1st arm 10, and the 2nd arm 11 may be provided, and may be provided in multiple numbers as needed. For example, the robot shown in FIG. 3 is provided with two sets of conveyance arms, and can convey two workpieces 1 simultaneously.

The 2nd frame 4 is a member which functions as a support | pillar, so to speak, and is fixed on the frame 27 provided so that rotation with respect to the pedestal 12 of the robot is possible (refer FIG. 3). The second frame 4 is provided with a guide 13 composed of, for example, two upper and lower guide members (see FIG. 1). This guide 13 supports the guide part 16 which extends up and down provided in the 1st frame 3, and guides this 1st frame 3 to an up-down direction. The second frame 4 is provided with a nut member (hereinafter referred to as a "second nut member") 15 in which the second ball screw 6 is screwed in. Although not shown in particular, between this 2nd nut member 15 and the 2nd ball screw 6, several steel balls are interposed. By interposing these steel balls, the point contact between the second nut member 15 and the second ball screw 6 becomes point contact, and the friction at the time of rotation of the ball screw 6 becomes extremely small. Such a ball screw mechanism can be rotated even with a small rotational force, and it is very suitable as a conveying device which has high precision and precision is required at the time of conveyance, such that an error can be eliminated by adjustment by a nut.

The 1st frame 3 is a member supported by the 2nd frame 4 mentioned above and being able to move up and down (refer FIG. 1). More specifically, the guide part 16 provided in the side part 13 is supported by the guide 13 of the 2nd frame 4 as mentioned above, and can move only up and down. Moreover, the guide part 17 extended up and down similarly is provided in the surface (surface of the side in which the hand part 2 exists) opposite to this guide part 16. As shown in FIG. This guide part 17 guides only in the up-down direction, supporting the guide member 18 engaged with this guide part 17 (refer FIG. 1). The guide member 18 is provided in the support body 28 of the 2nd arm 11, when the 1st arm 10 and the 2nd arm 11 are interposed like the present embodiment. (If the first arm 10 or the second arm 11 is not provided directly on the hand part 2), the transfer arm (hand part 2, first arm 10, first) 2 arm 11) is movable only up and down.

Moreover, in the 1st frame 3, the 1st ball screw 5 and the 2nd ball screw 6 are arrange | positioned in parallel in the state which made the axial direction perpendicular to both. Moreover, in order to rotate the 1st ball screw 5 and the 2nd ball screw 6, the motor 9 is accommodated in this 1st frame 3 (refer FIG. 1).

The 1st ball screw 5 is a screw which functions as a feed mechanism for moving the hand part 2 relatively up and down with respect to the 1st frame 3, and has a bearing (in the 1st frame 3). 19) is supported in a rotatable state (see Fig. 1). The 1st gear 7 is provided in the vicinity of the upper end of this 1st ball screw 5, and is integrated (refer FIG. 2). The rotation of the motor 9 is transmitted to the first ball screw 5 via this first gear 7. Moreover, the nut member (henceforth "first nut member") 14 is in the engaged state in the middle of the 1st ball screw 5. Similarly to the second nut member 15 described above, a plurality of steel balls are interposed between the first nut member 14 and the first ball screw 5. The friction at the time of rotation of the ball screw 5 is extremely small. Similarly to the guide member 18, the 1st nut member 14 is a 2nd arm when the 1st arm 10 and the 2nd arm 11 are interposed like the present embodiment. It is provided in the support body 28 of (11), and when it does not have the 1st arm 10 or the 2nd arm 11, it is provided in the hand part 2 directly. When the 1st ball screw 5 rotates, the 1st nut member 14 moves up and down, and consists of a conveyance arm (hand part 2, the 1st arm 10, and the 2nd arm 11). ) Is moved up and down (see FIGS. 1 and 3).

The second ball screw 6 is a screw that functions as a transfer mechanism for moving the first frame 3 up and down, and is supported in the first frame 3 in a rotatable state by a bearing 20 or the like. (See FIG. 1). The 2nd gear 8 is attached and integrated in the vicinity of the upper end of this 2nd ball screw 6 (refer FIG. 2). The rotation of the motor 9 is transmitted to the second ball screw 6 via this second gear 8. Moreover, in the middle of the 2nd ball screw 6, the 2nd nut member 15 is in the engaged state as mentioned above. Since the second nut member 15 is fixed on the second frame 4, when the second ball screw 6 rotates, the first frame 3 is rotated on the second ball screw 6. Move up and down with). In addition, in this embodiment, when the 1st ball screw 5 is the same thing as the 2nd ball screw 6, and the 1st ball screw 5 is a right screw, it is a 2nd ball screw (6) is also a right screw. Thus, it is advantageous in that the cost of using the same screw for both can be reduced.

The motor 9 is directly or indirectly connected to the first gear 7 and the second gear 8, and the first ball screw 5 and the second through the gears 7 and 8. Is to rotate the ball screw (6). For example, in the present embodiment, the standby gear 21a and the small gear 21b transmit power using the intermediary gear 21 integrated coaxially (see FIG. 2). That is, the intermediate gear 21 is installed in the gearbox 22, the pinion 9a of the motor 9 is meshed with the standby gear 21a of the intermediate gear 21, and the small gear 21b is further removed. It meshes with the 1st gear 7 (refer FIG. 2). The second gear 8 meshes only with the first gear. In such a gear train, power is transmitted like the motor 9 → pinion 9a → intermediate gear 21 → the first gear 7 → the second gear 8. Here, since the 1st gear 7 and the 2nd gear 8 are directly engaged, the 1st ball screw 5 and the 2nd ball screw 6 in this embodiment always reverse each other. It will rotate. In addition, in FIG. 2, when the 1st ball screw 5 and the 2nd ball screw 6 are right screws, the hand part 2 and the 1st frame 3 raise together. The rotation direction of each member in is shown by the arrow.

Moreover, as shown, the exhaust means 29 which consists of an exhaust fan, the filter which collects dust etc. is provided (refer FIG. 1, FIG. 4). Since the exhaust means 29 of this embodiment is built in the bottom part of the 1st frame 3 extending perpendicularly as shown, in addition to being a device which is located directly under a straight structure, and effectively collecting dust, It is also a dust collector that does not take up unnecessary space.

As described above, in the robot of the present embodiment, two axes (the first ball screw 5 and the second ball screw 6) are rotated simultaneously and in the opposite direction by one driving means (motor 9). Since the structure which makes it make it make it possible to carry out the lifting operation of the 1st frame 3, and the relative lifting operation of the hand part 2 can always be performed simultaneously. That is, in the robot of this embodiment which has a structure in which two stage slide mechanisms operate simultaneously, the hand part 2 can raise and lower (up and down movement) at the normal double speed, and also the hand part 2 Also, the usual double length can be ensured with respect to the absolute stroke (denoted by symbol S in FIG. 1). In this way, by dividing the frame and providing the divided number of slide mechanisms together, for example, even when a long stroke is required, the frame does not need to be simply extended, and the device can be made smaller and lighter. Available in

In addition, since the guide (guide part 17) is provided in the member (relatively the 1st frame 3 in this embodiment) to move relatively, and the guide position may not be on the frame which has a support post, The advantage is that the guide can be extended to a position lower than the upper surface of the frame. That is, in the conventional apparatus, since the guide is provided only in the support frame, the hand portion may not be lowered to a sufficiently low position, but according to the robot of this embodiment, the hand portion 2 can be lowered to a sufficiently low position ( 1, 5). As a result, since the workpiece | work 1 can be conveyed to the position lower than before, the cassette for workpiece accommodation can be extended to a lower position, and the storage amount can be increased.

In addition, the gear box 22 (these are referred to as "drive mechanisms") containing the motor 9 and the gear lubrication heat (gears 7 and 8, pinion 9a, intermediate gear 21, etc.) Since it is arrange | positioned at the upper end part of the frame 3, when carrying out repair work of a robot (especially a drive mechanism), when the 1st frame 3 is moved to a low position, the position of a drive mechanism will perform repair work for an operator. There is an advantage that it becomes easy to do it. In particular, in the case where the first frame 3 is at the lowest position, the first frame 3 does not drop further (fall) any more during the operation, so that the maintenance work can be performed safely as much. In addition, since the lower end side of the first frame 3 becomes an empty space, it is possible to provide an exhaust means 29 made of an exhaust fan or the like in the space, and by providing such an exhaust means 29 in a clean environment. It can be set as the structure suitable for conveyance of glass substrates, such as a liquid crystal in which work is requested | required.

In addition, although embodiment mentioned above is an example of the preferable embodiment of this invention, it is not limited to this, A various deformation | transformation is possible in the range which does not deviate from the summary of this invention. For example, in this embodiment, the hand part (the mechanism which the 1st frame 3 moves up and down with respect to the 2nd frame 4, and the 1st frame 3 with respect to the 2nd slide mechanism (ie While two slide mechanisms, which are referred to as mechanisms for relatively moving up and down, 2) were installed, both slide mechanisms were simultaneously operated by one driving means (motor 9), but this is merely an example. It can also be set as the slide mechanism of a stage. That is, like the robot shown in FIG. 4, the 3rd frame 23 which can move up and down between the 1st frame 3 and the 2nd frame 4 is provided, and this is made into the 3rd It can also be moved up and down relatively by the slide mechanism which consists of a ball screw 24, the 3rd nut member 25, the gear which is not shown in figure, the separate motor 26, etc. (refer FIG. 4). If the frame is further divided in this way, and the slide mechanism is provided so much, it is possible to obtain a further stroke length while suppressing the overall height A of the device during reduction.

In addition, in this embodiment, the gearbox 22 which consists of the motor 9 and the gear lubrication heat (gear 7, 8, pinion 9a, intermediate gear 21, etc.) (these are called "driving mechanisms") The first gear 7, the second gear 8, the intermediate gear 21, the motor 9, the pinion 9a of the motor 9, and the like are installed in the gear box 22. It may be arranged, for example, on the upper end of the first frame 3 without being stored in the container. Even if it is arrange | positioned at the upper end of the 1st frame 3 without accommodating in the gearbox 22, when carrying out maintenance work of a robot (especially a drive mechanism), when the 1st frame 3 is moved to a low position, it will drive. There is an advantage that the position of the mechanism becomes easy to perform maintenance work for the worker. In particular, in the case where the first frame 3 is at the lowest position, the first frame 3 does not drop further (fall) any more during the operation, so that the maintenance work can be performed safely as much. In addition, since the lower end side of the first frame 3 becomes an empty space, it is possible to install an exhaust means 29 made of an exhaust fan or the like in the space, and by providing such an exhaust means 29 in a clean environment. It can be set as the structure suitable for conveyance of glass substrates, such as a liquid crystal in which work is requested | required.

In addition, in the three-stage robot as shown in FIG. 4, in order to ensure the maximum stroke, the guide part 30 is arrange | positioned over the full length of the 2nd frame (fixed frame) 4, and 3rd The guide member 31 of the frame 23 may be guided (see FIG. 4). In addition, if it is not necessary to ensure a stroke enough to use the entire length of the second frame (fixed frame) 4, the drive unit is provided under the second frame (fixed frame) 4, which becomes an empty space. You can also place it. However, the arrangement position of the drive unit such as the motor 26 is not limited to this, and may be arranged, for example, on the upper end side of the second frame 4. In this case, a maintenance operation moves the 1st frame 3 and the 2nd frame 4 to the lowest position with the lowest maximum height, and installs it in the upper side of the 3rd frame (intermediate frame) 23. One cover or the like can be opened, and at the same time as the gear box 22 of the first frame 3, the frame does not accidentally fall during the operation, and thus the maintenance work can be safely performed as much. Moreover, of course, an exhaust mechanism etc. can be provided in a lower end.

Moreover, in the robot shown in FIG. 4, since the 3rd frame 23 is surrounding the 2nd frame 4, the frame of a large closed cross section can be obtained with the minimum space, and The rigidity of the frame 3 (intermediate frame) 23 can be large. In addition, if the increase of space by adding the 3rd frame 23 is made to fit the guide part (equivalent to 16 of FIG. 1) to the 2nd frame 4, a 3rd frame Since the thickness of the guide (23) ends without adding the thickness of the guide as it is, the size can be reduced.

In addition, although the third frame 23 may be substantially hollow, it does not have a driving force transmission mechanism such as to limit the arrangement space, so that the second frame 4 and the second frame 4 may be used to secure desired rigidity as necessary. In order not to interfere, an appropriate rigid structure can be easily configured.

Since the second frame 4 does not have a driving force transmission mechanism such as limiting the arrangement space in the case of the two-stage type, the hand part 2 or the first The rigidity which can fully support the load of the upper end parts, such as the frame 3 of 1, can be easily ensured.

According to the robot of Claim 1, a hand is provided by the 1st frame interposed between a hand part and a 2nd frame, and each drive device called a motor, each ball screw, and a gear accommodated in this 1st frame. Two stages of operation can be performed with respect to the negative. Therefore, if the length of the upper and lower strokes of the hand portion needs to be large, the relative stroke length of the hand portion and the relative stroke length of the first frame may be increased by about 1/2, respectively. There is no work. In other words, since only the support frame had to be increased in the related art, according to the present invention, since the support (that is, the second frame) only needs to be increased by about half of the required extension distance, the support (second frame) is conventionally used. You don't have to be as high as you can. In other words, since the height of the device is lower than that of the conventional robot, the vertical stroke of the hand portion can be made larger than that of the conventional robot. Therefore, the stroke can be extended while balancing the whole apparatus, and it becomes easy to ensure the long vertical stroke length of a hand part, avoiding the enlargement and weight of the apparatus as a whole.

In addition, since the hand portion moves up and down at a speed of about twice as usual, it is advantageous in moving the workpiece at high speed. In addition, in each moving mechanism, it is sufficient to drive at the same speed as in the prior art, so that a large load is not given to each moving mechanism for speeding up.

In addition, in the robot according to the present invention, since each ball screw and the motor are connected via a gear, and the two ball screws can be driven by a single motor (single motor), an increase in the motor And increase in current consumption can be suppressed.

In addition, since each operation mechanism is comprised by the ball screw, operation | movement with high precision is possible compared with the conventional robot of a belt drive type, for example, and positioning accuracy is also high. Also, in terms of durability and reliability, it is advantageous compared to a belt driven type that may be stretched or peeled off.

According to the robot according to claim 2, the stroke length can be obtained by suppressing the height of the entire apparatus at the time of shrinking each frame by the amount of further increasing the frame.

According to the robot according to claim 3, since the gearbox (transmission) provided at the end of the frame and the driving force transmission mechanism by the ball screw are constituted, the driving force in a narrow space as compared with the case of the configuration by the belt, pinion rack, etc. The delivery mechanism can be arranged. Moreover, there is no object like the obstacle of arrangement | positioning of structural material in the middle part of a frame, and the space for providing a structural material for obtaining sufficient rigidity can be ensured. In addition, as compared with robots of the same height (stroke) as a whole, a smaller space configuration can be achieved.
In addition, the structural requirements and member numbers of the claims described below exemplarily illustrate the present invention, and the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto, and it is natural to extend to the same or equivalent areas as the claims. .

Claims (7)

A robot having a hand portion 2 for holding a work, comprising: a first frame 3 for supporting the hand portion so as to be movable up and down and a second for supporting the first frame so as to be movable up and down And a first ball screw (5) for moving the hand portion up and down in the first frame, and a first frame for moving the first frame up and down with respect to the second frame. The first gear 7 and the second ball screw, which are arranged in parallel with each other in the vertical direction and are rotated integrally with the first ball screw and the second ball screw, respectively. And a first motor (9) connected directly or indirectly to the second gear (8). The method of claim 1, A third frame 23 that is movable up and down between the first frame 3 and the second frame 4, and a third ball screw that relatively moves the third frame up and down ( 24) and a second motor (26). The method according to claim 1 or 2, The intermediate gear 21 which meshes with either of the said 1st, 2nd gears 7 and 8, the pinion 9a provided in the said 1st motor which meshes with this intermediate gear, and the said 1st motor The robot which is arrange | positioned at the upper end part of a said 1st frame. The method of claim 3, wherein A robot, characterized in that an exhaust means (29) is provided at the bottom of said first frame (3). The method of claim 1, The first motor and the second ball screw are simultaneously rotated in the reverse direction by the first motor, and the hand part and the second frame move relative to the first frame in a reverse direction. Robot. The method of claim 5, The second frame is a robot, characterized in that it is provided so as to pivot about the pedestal. The method of claim 5, Two upper and lower guides 13 are provided in the second frame, and the two upper and lower guides support the guided portion 16 extending vertically and provided in the first frame. The robot which guides the frame of 1 to an up-down direction.

Images