KR102629559B1 - Parallel electric gripper for robot mounting - Google Patents

Abstract

A parallel electric gripper for robot mounting is disclosed. The parallel electric gripper for mounting a robot includes a drive unit provided with a worm on a rotation axis and providing driving force; A pair of worm gears are disposed opposite each other on both sides of the worm and rotate in engagement with the worm; A pair of spur gears are disposed opposite each other on both sides of the worm gear and rotate in engagement with the worm gear; A bar-shaped guide rail disposed horizontally above the spur gear; A pair of guide blocks provided with a rack on one side that engages with the gear of the spur gear to move horizontally on the guide rail by rotation of the spur gear, and fingers for gripping the gripping object are installed on one side; and a housing for installing and covering the driving unit, the worm gear, the spur gear, the guide rail, and the guide block.

Description

Parallel electric gripper for robot mounting {PARALLEL ELECTRIC GRIPPER FOR ROBOT MOUNTING}

The present invention relates to a parallel electric gripper for robot mounting. More specifically, the driving mechanism can be simplified to minimize component parts and reduce volume and weight, and the worm, worm gear, and spur gear are directly engaged and rotated. This relates to a parallel electric gripper for robot mounting that improves gripping force, enables precise gripping, and improves mechanical durability.

The use of robots to handle materials, processed products, and finished products is becoming common in almost all industrial fields, including semiconductor manufacturing facilities, assembly processes for automobile parts, and machine tools. And the application of industrial robots is expanding to more precise work areas due to the development of vision technology.

Generally, in automated factories, assembly of precision parts, or processes for assembling and manufacturing vehicle parts, there is a gripper mounted on a robot as an end effector to grip parts during the transfer or assembly and manufacturing of various parts.

Meanwhile, 'Robot Gripper and Operating Method (Korea Registered Patent 10-2134071)' has been proposed in the past.

Such a conventional robot gripper is configured to grip an object while the gripper body moves in parallel on the gripper rail.

However, in the case of a conventional robot gripper, the linker is rotated by receiving the rotational force of the motor, so that the first and second gripper body parts move in a straight line to grip the object to be gripped. Precise gripping is difficult, and compared to the meshing structure of gears, The problem is that the gripping force is relatively weak.

In addition, the gripper installed as an end effector of the robot needs to reduce the weight as much as possible in consideration of the load of heavy objects. Due to the nature of the drive system principle, the conventional robot gripper has the problem of increasing the volume of the robot gripper and thus increasing the weight. there is.

In addition, a loss of driving force may occur in the process where the driving force provided from the driving unit is transmitted to the fingers that grip the object to be grasped, and there is a problem that vibration and noise are inevitably generated due to the complex structure.

Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop a gripper that can simplify the driving mechanism, minimize the number of components, and reduce the volume and weight.

Republic of Korea registered patent 10-2134071

The purpose of the present invention is to solve these problems. By simplifying the drive mechanism, the component parts can be minimized and the volume and weight can be reduced, and the worm, worm gear, and spur gear are directly meshed and rotated to increase the gripping force. The goal is to provide a parallel electric gripper for robot mounting that can provide improved, precise gripping and improved mechanical durability.

A parallel electric gripper for robot mounting according to an embodiment of the technical idea of the present invention for achieving the above object includes a drive unit provided with a worm on a rotation axis and providing driving force; A pair of worm gears are disposed opposite each other on both sides of the worm and rotate in engagement with the worm; A pair of spur gears are disposed opposite each other on both sides of the worm gear and rotate in engagement with the worm gear; A bar-shaped guide rail disposed horizontally above the spur gear; A pair of guide blocks provided with a rack on one side that engages with the gear of the spur gear to move horizontally on the guide rail by rotation of the spur gear, and fingers for gripping the gripping object are installed on one side; and a housing for installing and covering the driving unit, the worm gear, the spur gear, the guide rail, and the guide block.

In addition, the worm gear may further have contact grooves formed at the pitch points of each gear in order to increase the contact area when the gear engages with the worm.

Additionally, the spur gear may be disposed above the worm gear.

Additionally, the spur gear may be arranged in a diagonal direction so as to deviate outward from the vertical line of the central axis of the worm gear.

In addition, the worm, the worm gear, the spur gear, and the rack have different parts in contact with each other to minimize gear wear and improve durability, so that the rack and the spur gear are installed in the center portion of the gear of the spur gear. The spur gear and the worm gear may be in contact with an outer gear portion of the spur gear, and the worm gear and the worm may be configured to contact a central portion of the gear of the worm gear.

In addition, the guide block is provided with a tool mounting hole for mounting the finger, and the tool mounting hole includes a front mounting hole formed on the front of the guide block; And it may include a side mounting hole formed on the side of the guide block.

In addition, the parallel electric gripper for mounting the robot may further include a tension unit for eliminating backlash between the spur gear and the rack by causing the guide blocks on both sides to exert a force pulling each other in an inward direction.

In addition, the tension part includes a fixing part whose both ends are fixed to the outside of the guide block on both sides; and an elastic part that connects the fixing parts and provides elasticity.

In addition, the parallel electric gripper for mounting the robot further includes an encoder unit for obtaining rotational position information of the worm gear, and the encoder unit includes a gear member disposed at a position adjacent to the worm gear and rotating in engagement with the worm gear; And an absolute encoder that obtains rotation information of the gear member.

Additionally, the camera unit may consist of a single camera installed on one side of the housing or a stereo camera installed on one side and the other side of the housing.

The parallel electric gripper for robot mounting according to the present invention can minimize component parts and reduce volume and weight by simplifying the drive mechanism, and the worm, worm gear, and spur gear are directly engaged and rotated to improve gripping force. It enables precise gripping and has the effect of improving mechanical durability.

1 to 2 are perspective views of a parallel electric gripper for mounting a robot according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 3 is a perspective view of a parallel electric gripper for mounting a robot according to an embodiment of the present invention with the cover of the housing removed.
Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view of the main part of the worm and worm gear.
Figures 5 and 6 are diagrams showing the operation state before and after operation of the parallel electric gripper for mounting a robot according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 7 is a cross-sectional view of the main part of a parallel electric gripper for robot mounting according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figures 8 and 9 are exemplary views taken through a camera unit of a parallel electric gripper for mounting a robot according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In order to fully understand the present invention, its operational advantages, and the objectives achieved by practicing the present invention, reference should be made to the accompanying drawings and the contents described in the drawings illustrating preferred embodiments of the present invention.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail by explaining preferred embodiments of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings. The same reference numerals in each drawing indicate the same member.

The parallel electric gripper for robot mounting of the present invention can minimize component parts and reduce volume and weight by simplifying the drive mechanism, and the worm, worm gear, and spur gear are directly engaged and rotated to improve gripping force and provide precise precision. This relates to a parallel electric gripper for robot mounting that is capable of gripping and can improve mechanical durability.

1 to 2 are a perspective view of a parallel electric gripper for mounting on a robot according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a parallel electric gripper for mounting on a robot according to an embodiment of the present invention with the cover of the housing removed. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the main part of the worm and the worm gear, Figures 5 and 6 are diagrams showing the operating state before and after operation of the parallel electric gripper for mounting a robot according to an embodiment of the present invention, and Figure 7 is an operation state diagram according to an embodiment of the present invention. This is a cross-sectional view of the main part of the parallel electric gripper for robot mounting according to the present invention, and Figures 8 and 9 are exemplary views taken through the camera unit of the parallel electric gripper for robot mounting according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to Figures 1 to 9, the parallel electric gripper (hereinafter referred to as 'gripper') for robot mounting according to an embodiment of the present invention 10 largely consists of a driving part 100, a worm gear 200, and a spur gear 300. ), a guide rail 400, a guide block 500, and a housing 300.

The parallel electric gripper 10 for robot mounting according to the present invention is a part that is mounted as an end effector of a typical robot (e.g., an articulated robot) and performs the role of gripping to move the gripping object within a set position.

First, the drive unit 100 is a part that is provided with a worm 120 on a rotation axis and provides driving force. It may be formed in the form of the worm 120 being fastened to the rotation axis of the motor 110, which provides normal rotation force. .

For example, the worm 120 having a hollow interior may be fastened to the rotation shaft of the motor 110, or the outer peripheral surface of the rotation shaft of the motor 110 may be threaded to form an integrated structure.

That is, the worm 120 is provided on the rotation axis of the motor 110, so that gear rotation can be performed by the rotational force of the motor 110.

The driving unit 100 may be installed to be seated within the motor receiving unit 310 of the housing 300, which will be described later.

Next, a pair of worm gears 200 are arranged oppositely on both sides of the worm 120 and rotate in engagement with the worm 120.

The worm gear 200 is made of a normal spur gear shape, and as shown in the drawing, the two axes are aligned with each other so that the direction of the rotation axis is positioned at right angles to the rotation axis of the worm 120 so as to engage with the worm 120. It can be installed perpendicularly.

Meanwhile, in order to increase the contact area of the worm gear 200 when the gear engages with the worm 120, a contact groove 210 may be further formed at the pitch point of each gear.

That is, the contact groove 210 is a worm gear where a pitch point portion that is in contact with the gear portion of the worm 20 and a pitch point portion that is in contact with the gear portion of the spur gear 300, which will be described later, meet. It is in the form of a groove in the portion (200), and is intended to increase the mutual contact area between the worm (120) and the spur gear (300).

Through this, by increasing the contact area, wear of the contact area can be minimized and clearance can be minimized, improving the durability of the gear and suppressing noise and vibration.

Next, a pair of spur gears 300 are arranged oppositely on both sides of the worm gear 200 and rotate in engagement with the worm gear 200.

The spur gear 300 is a commonly known type of gear, and is a cylindrical gear whose tooth rows are straight and parallel to the axis.

The spur gear 300 is installed so that its rotation axis is positioned parallel to the same direction as the worm gear 200, and is in contact with the worm gear 200, so that it rotates in synchronization with the rotation of the worm gear 200. It can be.

At this time, it is preferable that the spur gear 300 is placed above the worm gear 200.

Additionally, as shown in the drawing, the spur gear 300 may be arranged in a diagonal direction so as to deviate outward from the vertical line of the central axis of the worm gear 200 when viewed from the front.

This is to provide a space above the worm gear 200, that is, between the spur gears 300 on both sides, and to provide a space for the guide block 500, which will be described later, to move horizontally. In this space, This is so that the gripping object is positioned and gripped.

Next, the guide rail 400 has a bar shape disposed horizontally on the upper side of the spur gear 300 and is a part for guiding the guide block 500, which will be described later, to move horizontally.

The guide rail 400 is basically arranged horizontally to correspond to an area extending from the position of the spur gears 300 on both sides, and basically consists of a first rail 410 in the form of a box-shaped block, and the first rail 410 is basically a box-shaped block. The front of the rail 410 includes a second rail 420 in the form of a bar that protrudes from the first rail 410 by a set thickness and is horizontally arranged.

Next, the guide block 500 is provided with a rack 522 that engages with the gear of the spur gear 300 on one side to move horizontally on the guide rail 400 by rotation of the spur gear 300, This is a part where fingers (530, 530') for gripping the gripping object are installed on one side.

A pair of guide blocks 500 may be provided on both sides of the guide rail 400.

The guide block 500 surrounds the first block 510 and the first block 510, the longitudinal cross-section of which is formed in a 'ㄷ' shape so as to be coupled to the first rail 410, and the first rail 410. It may include a second block 520 whose longitudinal cross-section extends to surround one side has a 'L' shape.

At this time, the first block 510 may be fastened to the second block 520 to form one body.

Meanwhile, the guide block 500 is provided with a tool mounting hole 521 for mounting the fingers 530 and 530', and the tool mounting hole 521 is a front mounting hole formed on the front of the guide block 500. It may include a hole 521a and a side mounting hole 521b formed on the side of the guide block 500.

That is, the guide block 500 is provided with a front mounting hole 521a and a side mounting hole 521b, so that the fingers 530, 530' can be mounted on the front or side depending on the shape and purpose of the fingers 530, 530'. It can be installed selectively.

Meanwhile, the fingers 530, 530' are parts that directly grip the object to be gripped, and an example of being installed in the front mounting hole 521a and the side mounting hole 521b of the guide block 500 is shown in the drawing, but the fingers 530 and 530' are parts that directly grip the object to be gripped. It may have various shapes and structures depending on its form, and is not limited to the embodiment shown in the drawings.

Meanwhile, as shown in FIG. 7, the worm 120, the worm gear 200, the spur gear 300, and the rack 522 are in contact with each other according to the corresponding gear arrangement and structure to exert force. In order to minimize gear wear and improve durability by varying the concentrated portion, the rack 522 and the spur gear 300 are in contact with the central gear portion of the spur gear 300 (part A), The spur gear 300 and the worm gear 200 are in contact with the gear outer portion of the spur gear 300 (part B), and the worm gear 200 and the worm 120 are gears of the worm gear 200. It can be configured to contact the central part (part C).

Accordingly, the worm 120, the worm gear 200, the spur gear 300, and the rack 522 have different areas where the force is concentrated when each gear engages, thereby minimizing wear of the gear portion, thereby improving durability. can be improved.

This can be achieved according to the corresponding gear arrangement and arrangement of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 7.

Next, the housing 600 is a part for installing and covering the driving unit 100, the worm gear 200, the spur gear 300, the guide rail 400, and the guide block 500.

That is, the housing 600 provides a space for the driving unit 100, the worm gear 200, and the spur gear 300 to be installed, and the worm gear 200 and the spur gear 300 are axially coupled. It is a part that acts as a medium for fastening to the end of the arm of the robot (not shown).

For reference, the guide rail 400 and the guide block 500 may be installed on the top of the housing 600.

The housing 600 basically includes a base 610 that provides a space for installing the driving unit 100, the worm gear 200, and the spur gear 300, and an open portion on the front of the base 610. A cover 620 that closes, a motor receiving part 630 that can accommodate the motor 110 on the lower side of the base 610, and a flange installed on the lower side of the base 610 to support the lower side of the motor 110. It may include (640).

That is, the base 610 provides a space sealed by the cover 620, and in the sealed space, the worm 120, the worm gear 200, the spur gear 300, and the encoder unit (described later) 800 may be installed, and the motor 110 may be installed so that a portion is exposed while being seated on the upper part of the flange 640.

For example, the motor receiving portion 630 is open and exposed on both sides, and both sides of the main body of the motor 110 may be partially exposed, and the worm 120, the worm gear 200, and the spur gear 300 may be installed in a sealed space inside the housing 600 so that only the guide rail 400 and the guide block 500 are exposed to the outside.

Meanwhile, the parallel electric gripper 10 for robot mounting of the present invention causes the guide blocks 500 on both sides to exert an inward pulling force on each other, thereby reducing the backlash against the spur gear 300 and the rack 522. It may further include a tension part 700 for removing.

The tension unit 700 may include a fixing part 710 whose both ends are fixed to the outside of the guide block 500 on both sides, and an elastic part 720 that connects the fixing parts 710 and provides elasticity. there is.

Typically, backlash is a gap intentionally created in the direction of movement in mechanical devices such as screws and gear wheels that move in mesh with each other. This gap is the minimum clearance that allows the screw and gear wheels to move freely with minimal frictional resistance. am.

In other words, it is essential to form backlash when manufacturing gears, but this backlash has the disadvantage of causing shock, vibration, and noise.

Meanwhile, in the gripper 10 of the present invention, the tension part 700 is a part configured to solve the disadvantages caused by backlash.

Meanwhile, the tension unit 700, that is, the elastic unit 720, may be formed in the form of a coil spring or a shock absorber including a coil spring, for example, but is limited to any form as long as it has elasticity and can provide restoring force. It can be applied without it.

That is, when the guide block 500 moves horizontally and the gap widens, the tension part 700 extends in length in the straight direction, and when the guide block 500 moves horizontally and the gap narrows, the length increases. As it is compressed, it is restored to its initial position, and due to the restoring force, the gear portion of the rack 522 can be brought into closer contact by increasing the contact area with the gear groove of the spur gear 300.

In addition, the guide blocks 500 arranged on both sides can be maintained in a state of being pulled toward the inner center, improving mutual fastening and eliminating backlash, thereby reducing shock, vibration, and noise. do.

Meanwhile, the gripper 10 may further include an encoder unit 800 for obtaining rotational position information of the worm gear 200.

The encoder unit 800 includes a gear member 810 that is disposed adjacent to the worm gear 200 and rotates in engagement with the worm gear 200, and an absolute encoder 820 that obtains rotation information of the gear member 810. may include.

The gear member 810 has a gear formed on its outer peripheral surface, and can be installed in an adjacent position to rotate in engagement with the worm gear 200.

The absolute encoder 820 is a typical absolute encoder that can always maintain an absolute position value regardless of the power state. It scans an optically binary encoded position code on a rotating disk and does not supply power. It has the feature of allowing you to check the current location information immediately after turning on the power, even if the location movement occurs while the device is not in use.

At this time, the absolute encoder 820 may be shaft-coupled to the rotation axis of the worm gear 200.

In this way, the absolute encoder 820 can acquire position information by rotating the internal gear of the absolute encoder 820 while rotating the shaft together when the gear member 810 rotates according to the rotation of the worm gear 200. .

Meanwhile, the gripper 10 is installed on one side of the housing 600 and may further include a camera unit 900 for capturing an image of the gripping object.

The camera unit 900 can check whether the gripper 10 is normally gripping the object through the captured image.

At this time, the camera unit 900 may be composed of a single camera 910 installed on one side of the housing 600 or a stereo camera 920 installed on one side and the other side of the housing 600.

In other words, it is possible to measure absolute position using the principle of stereo vision (trigonometry) for information captured and measured by two cameras.

The parallel electric gripper 10 for robot mounting according to various embodiments of the present invention described above is a method in which the guide block 500 moves horizontally through a worm and worm gear method, and the worm 120 of the drive unit 100 is driven. As the worm gear 200 rotates, the guide block 500 is operated to move horizontally, but even if the power is cut off, the worm gear 200 can remain stationary due to the characteristics of the worm and the worm gear, and accordingly, the gripping force for gripping the object to be gripped is maintained. This feature can be maintained at all times, preventing overload of the motor 110.

The parallel electric gripper for robot mounting according to the technical idea of the present invention can minimize component parts and reduce volume and weight by simplifying the drive mechanism, and the worm, worm gear, and spur gear are directly engaged and rotated. This has the effect of improving gripping force, enabling precise gripping, and improving mechanical durability.

As described above, the optimal embodiment has been disclosed in the drawings and specification. Although specific terms are used here, they are used only for the purpose of describing the present invention and are not used to limit the meaning or limit the scope of the present invention described in the claims. Therefore, those skilled in the art will understand that various modifications and other equivalent embodiments are possible therefrom. Therefore, the true technical protection scope of the present invention should be determined by the technical spirit of the attached patent claims.

10: Gripper 100: Drive part
110: motor 120: worm
200: worm gear 210: contact groove
300: spur gear 400: guide rail
410: 1st rail 420: 2nd rail
500: Guide block 510: First block
520: Second block 521: Tool mounting hole
521a: Front mounting hole 521b: Side mounting hole
522: Rack 530, 530': Finger
600: Housing 610: Base
620: Cover 630: Motor receiving part
640: Flange 700: Tension part
710: fixing part 720: elastic part
800: Encoder unit 810: Gear member
820: absolute encoder 900: camera unit
910: Single camera 920: Stereo camera

Claims (10)

A driving unit provided with a worm on a rotating shaft and providing driving force;
A pair of worm gears are disposed opposite each other on both sides of the worm and rotate in engagement with the worm;
A pair of spur gears are disposed opposite each other on both sides of the worm gear and rotate in engagement with the worm gear;
A bar-shaped guide rail disposed horizontally above the spur gear;
A pair of guide blocks provided with a rack on one side that engages with the gear of the spur gear to move horizontally on the guide rail by rotation of the spur gear, and fingers for gripping the gripping object are installed on one side; and
A parallel electric gripper for mounting a robot, comprising a housing for installing and covering the driving unit, the worm gear, the spur gear, the guide rail, and the guide block. According to clause 1,
The worm gear is,
A parallel electric gripper for robot mounting, characterized in that contact grooves are further formed at the pitch points of each gear in order to increase the contact area when the gear engages with the worm. According to clause 1,
The spur gear is,
A parallel electric gripper for robot mounting, characterized in that it is disposed above the worm gear. According to clause 3,
The spur gear is,
A parallel electric gripper for robot mounting, characterized in that it is arranged in a diagonal direction deviated outward from the vertical line of the central axis of the worm gear. According to clause 1,
The worm, the worm gear, the spur gear, and the rack,
By varying the parts in contact with each other, we can minimize gear wear and improve durability.
The rack and the spur gear are in contact with the central portion of the gear of the spur gear, the spur gear and the worm gear are in contact with the gear outer portion of the spur gear, and the worm gear and the worm are in contact with the central portion of the gear of the worm gear. A parallel electric gripper for robot mounting, characterized in that it is configured so as to be possible. According to clause 1,
The guide block is,
A tool mounting hole is provided for mounting the finger,
The tool mounting hole is,
A front mounting hole formed on the front of the guide block; and
A parallel electric gripper for mounting a robot, comprising a side mounting hole formed on a side of the guide block. According to clause 1,
The parallel electric gripper for mounting the robot,
A parallel electric gripper for mounting a robot, characterized in that it further includes a tension portion for eliminating backlash between the spur gear and the rack by causing the guide blocks on both sides to exert a mutually pulling force in the inward direction. According to clause 7,
The tension part is,
A fixing part whose ends are fixed to the outside of the guide block on both sides; and
A parallel electric gripper for robot mounting, comprising an elastic part that connects the fixing parts and provides elasticity. According to clause 1,
The parallel electric gripper for mounting the robot,
Further comprising an encoder unit for obtaining rotational position information of the worm gear,
The encoder unit,
a gear member disposed adjacent to the worm gear and rotating in engagement with the worm gear; and
An absolute encoder for obtaining rotation information of the gear member. A parallel electric gripper for mounting on a robot, comprising: According to clause 1,
The parallel electric gripper for mounting the robot,
A parallel electric gripper for robot mounting, which is installed on one side of the housing and further includes a camera unit for capturing an image of the gripping object.

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