TWI715434B - The robot arm for adjusting the receiving position - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to the robot arm capable of adjusting the receiving position. The invention is driven by the first pivoting mechanism and the second pivoting mechanism, so that after the connecting rod and the first strip are rotated, the receiving member provided on the second strip can receive the receiving object. The invention achieves the function of receiving and receiving objects with fewer rotating mechanisms, and greatly reduces maintenance costs and time, and only through the rotation of the connecting rod to drive the receiving unit, effectively reducing the required rotation space during rotation and improving space utilization. At the same time, due to fewer components that need to cooperate with each other, the overall operating efficiency has increased significantly. The control unit controls the relative position between the first and second strips, so that the position of the receiving part can be adjusted. No matter how long it is used continuously, the position is not easy to produce deviations, which effectively reduces the risk of items falling due to the receiving position deviation.

Description

Robot arm that can adjust the receiving position

The present invention relates to a mechanical arm, especially a mechanical arm with a small turning radius and capable of adjusting the receiving position.

According to general manufacturing plants, in order to improve work efficiency and stability, most of them use robotic arms to supplement operations, such as using robotic arms to pick up, move, and place items. Especially for fabs or panel plants, mechanical The arm is an indispensable device.

Please refer to Taiwan Patent Certificate No. I561353 "Substrate Transfer Device", which discloses: The substrate transfer device according to the present invention is exposed on the outside of the sliding member and is connected to the other end of the first arm through the other end of the second arm. The arm drive unit rotates in the forward and reverse directions. Therefore, even in a dead center state where the virtual straight line connecting both ends of the first arm overlaps and is parallel to the virtual straight line connecting both ends of the second arm, the first arm and the second arm are easily deployed. Only the first arm and the second arm are used to easily slide the sliding member provided with the manipulator, and the structure is simple, so the cost can be effectively reduced.

Although this patent has the aforementioned advantages, however, as can be seen from Figure 1 of the patent specification, the substrate handling device is a multi-axis robotic arm with up to six rotating shafts, which results in the overall mechanical The more complex the structure, not only increases the risk of failure, but also consumes a lot of cost or time in maintenance. In addition, due to the complexity of the structure, when the substrate handling device is in operation, the components must be coordinated and cooperated with each other to make the overall Work efficiency is considerably restricted, which in turn causes overall work efficiency to drop.

Not only that, the substrate handling device also does not have a correction function. Once used for a long time, the positions of the forks (that is, the first manipulator 151 and the second manipulator 155 of the patent specification) are likely to shift. In this state It is easy to cause the object to be accepted to fall and cause losses to the manufacturer during the undertaking process. For this reason, the inventor believes that there is a need for improvement.

In view of the deficiencies described in the prior art, the inventors of the present invention propose a solution, which relates to a mechanical arm that can adjust the receiving position, including: a mechanical arm body.

A connecting rod: the connecting rod has two opposite first and second ends. The first end is pivoted horizontally with the robot body by a first pivoting mechanism, so that the connecting rod can be The end is the shaft for horizontal rotation.

A receiving unit includes: a first bar body: the other end of the connecting rod is horizontally pivotally connected with the first bar body by a second pivoting mechanism, so that the first bar body can use the other end as an axis Rotate horizontally.

A second bar: the second bar is arranged on one side of the long side of the first bar, and the side of the second bar facing the object to be received is defined as the front side.

A first traverse mechanism: the first traverse mechanism is dynamically connected to the second bar, so as to drive the second bar to move laterally along the long side of the first bar.

A receiving piece: the receiving piece is arranged on the second bar, the receiving piece is exposed relative to the front side of the second bar, and the receiving piece is used for receiving the object to be accepted.

A control unit: the control unit is respectively connected to the first pivoting mechanism, the second pivoting mechanism, and the first traverse mechanism, and the control unit can control the first pivoting mechanism and the second pivoting The mechanism rotates, and the control unit can be used to control the operation of the first traverse mechanism, so as to adjust the relative position of the receiving member and the first bar.

It can be seen from the above structure that the present invention greatly reduces the number of shafts without affecting the receiving function. As a result, the overall mechanical structure is greatly simplified, which not only reduces the risk of mechanical failure, but also can be used in maintenance or maintenance. It saves a lot of cost, and at the same time, with the structural design of the present invention, the required turning radius of the robot arm is smaller when it is actuated, so that more machines and more flexible configurations of the robot arm can be added, and space utilization can be effectively improved. In addition, due to the reduction in the number of components, the problem of coordination, coordination, and control of each component when in operation is also greatly reduced, so that the overall work efficiency can be greatly improved. Moreover, the operation of the first traverse mechanism is controlled by the control unit, so that the position of the receiving member is not easily shifted with the increase of use time, and further, it is possible to freely control the angular position of the fetching and placing objects in a customized manner. In this way, Reduce the risk of falling objects to be accepted during the acceptance process.

1: Robot body

11: Connector

12: The second traverse mechanism

13: Lifting mechanism

2: connecting rod

3: control unit

4: Undertake unit

41: The first body

42: The second body

43: The first traverse mechanism

44: Acceptance

5: The first pivoting mechanism

6: The second pivoting mechanism

7: The first position detector

8: Siren

9: Level detector

0: Second position detector

0A: Vibration detection unit

Fig. 1 is a schematic top view and a schematic view of the top action of the present invention; Fig. 2 is a schematic view of the top action of the present invention; Fig. 3 is a schematic view of the top action of the present invention; Fig. 4 is a schematic side view of the action of the present invention; The block diagram of the connection of the components of the present invention.

The following is a further explanation of the advantages, features, requirements, and specific implementation aspects of the present invention with the aid of various figures.

Please refer to FIG. 1. The present invention relates to a robotic arm that can adjust the bearing position, including: a robotic arm body 1: Please refer to FIG. 1 in conjunction with FIGS. 4 and 5. The robotic arm body 1 can be implemented as : The robotic arm body 1 includes a connecting piece 11 and a second traverse mechanism 12 that is motively connected to the connecting piece 11. The second traverse mechanism 12 can drive the connecting piece 11 to move forward and backward. In the following description, when the robot arm is in motion, the side facing the object A to be received is defined as the front. In this way, the present invention can drive the connecting member 11 to move forward or backward through the second traverse mechanism 12. To adjust the distance to the object A to be accepted. In addition, all items that need to be transported by the robotic arm of the present invention are the object A to be accepted in this specification. Therefore, the object A to be accepted is, for example, but not limited to These are glass panels, wafers, and wafer boxes (Foup), and the drawings in the manual are presented with the example that the object A to be accepted is a glass panel.

In addition, in order to prevent the height of the robotic arm from being unable to match the object A to be accepted, so that the object A to be accepted cannot be received, the robotic arm body 1 can also be implemented as follows: the robotic arm body 1 includes the connecting member 11 and A lifting mechanism 13 directly/indirectly power-connected to the connecting member 11, and the lifting mechanism 13 can drive the connecting member 11 to move vertically so as to adjust the height of the article that the robotic arm can accept. It is worth mentioning that the above-mentioned direct/indirect means that when the robot arm body 1 has both the lifting mechanism 13 and the second traverse mechanism 12, the lifting mechanism 13 may be directly power connected to the connecting member 11, and The second traverse mechanism 12 is dynamically connected to the lifting mechanism 13 to form a state in which the second traverse mechanism 12 is indirectly power connected to the connecting member 11; in the same way, the second traverse mechanism 12 is directly power connected to the connecting member 11 11, and the lifting mechanism 13 is power connected to the second traverse mechanism 12 to form the lifting mechanism 13 indirectly power connected to the connecting member 11.

A connecting rod 2: Please refer to FIG. 1 and FIG. 5. The connecting rod 2 has two opposite first and second ends. The first end is formed by a first pivoting mechanism 5 and the robot body 1 It is pivoted horizontally to allow the connecting rod 2 to rotate horizontally with the first end as an axis, thereby forming a state where the second end rotates toward or away from the object A to be accepted. Taking the aforementioned embodiment of the robotic arm body 1 as an example, the first end of the connecting rod 2 is preferably pivotally connected to the connecting member 11 through the first pivoting mechanism 5, and the first pivoting mechanism 5 is relatively The best system is arranged inside the connecting piece.

A receiving unit 4 includes: a first bar 41: the other end of the connecting rod 2 is horizontally pivoted with the first bar 41 by a second pivoting mechanism 6, so that the first bar 41 can be The other end is a shaft for horizontal rotation. Among them, it is worth one It is mentioned that when the connecting rod 2 rotates with the first end as the axis, the second pivoting mechanism 6 preferably drives the first bar 41 to rotate at the same time, and makes the front side of the first bar 41 rotate. Parallel to the front side of the to-be-supported object A, in addition, it is worth mentioning that the first pivoting mechanism 5 and the second pivoting mechanism 6 of the present invention can be components that rotate independently, or can be linked by gears. The mechanism enables the first pivoting mechanism 5 and the second pivoting mechanism 6 to form a linkage to rotate simultaneously.

A second bar 42: Please refer to FIG. 1, the second bar 42 is arranged on one side of the long side of the first bar 41, and the second bar 42 faces the side of the object A to be received Defined as the front side.

A first traverse mechanism 43: Please refer to FIG. 1 in conjunction with FIG. 5. The first traverse mechanism 43 is dynamically connected to the second bar 42 for driving the second bar 42 along the first bar 41 The long side moves laterally to one side.

A receiving member 44: Please refer to FIG. 1. The receiving member 44 is disposed on the second bar 42. The receiving member 44 is exposed relative to the front side of the second bar 42. The receiving member 44 is used for receiving The to-be-undertaken A. Anything that can be used to accept the object A to be accepted is the accepting part referred to in this manual. The accepting part 44 can be selected from one of the following groups: plural forks, plates, and forks, which can be used for different purposes Adjustments are required. For example, when used for receiving glass panels, the receiving member 44 is preferably a plurality of forks, and when used for receiving a wafer cassette, the receiving member 44 is preferably a plate body. In addition, in order to prevent the object A from sliding off the receiving member 44 during the receiving process, a non-slip unit is preferably laid on the top surface of the receiving member 44, and the non-slip unit may be a cushion body with a higher friction coefficient. However, it has a surface with a plurality of particles. When the present invention is used in the semiconductor field, the anti-slip unit can also be a protruding column for insertion on the bottom surface of the wafer box. In addition to the positioning function, it also has anti-slip The function is limited by the display mode of the diagram, so the anti-slip unit is not shown in the diagram. Taking this specification as an example, when the present invention is used for receiving glass panels, the anti-slip unit is preferably a sucker, by Vacuum way to suck steadily Hold the glass panel to ensure stability during transportation. In addition, a detector is preferably provided inside the receiving member 44 for detecting whether there is an object on the surface of the receiving member 44 and transmitting the detection result to the control unit 3.

A control unit 3: Please refer to FIG. 5, the control unit 3 is respectively connected to the first pivoting mechanism 5, the second pivoting mechanism 6, and the first traverse mechanism 43, and the control unit 3 can be used for The first pivoting mechanism 5 and the second pivoting mechanism 6 are controlled to rotate, and the control unit 3 can be used to control the action of the first traverse mechanism 43 for adjusting the receiving member 44 and the first bar The relative position of 41. In addition, it is worth mentioning that the control unit 3 is preferably connected to the lifting mechanism 13 and the second traverse mechanism 12 respectively to control their actions. As mentioned above, when the first pivoting mechanism 5 and the second pivoting mechanism 6 are implemented as independent actions, the control unit 3 controls their actions respectively. If the first pivoting mechanism 5 and the second pivoting mechanism 6 When implemented as a linkage, the control unit 3 can control one of them. Taking this specification as an example, the control unit 3 preferably controls the rotation of the first pivot mechanism 5 to drive the second pivot The rotating mechanism 6 rotates.

The following describes the operation of the present invention through FIG. 1. First, when the robot arm is rotated from FIG. 1 to FIG. 2, the control unit 3 will control the first pivoting mechanism 5 and the second pivoting mechanism 6 to rotate, so that the receiving member 44 gradually moves toward the waiting The receiving object A moves. In addition, the front side of the first strip 41 and the second strip 42 are respectively kept parallel to the object A to be received during the rotation. Then, the robot arm is rotated from FIG. 2 to the state shown in FIG. 3. The first pivoting mechanism 5 will drive the connecting rod 2 to rotate to the end of the rotation path. Similarly, the second pivoting mechanism 6 will also drive the first pivoting mechanism. The bar 41 rotates (at this time, the connecting rod 2, the first bar 41 and the second bar 42 are all displaced on the XY plane), so that the front side of the second bar 42 is parallel to the object A to be received, and the bearing The piece 44 is in a state that can accept the object A to be accepted, and it is worth mentioning that in the process of turning FIG. 1 into FIG. 2, or in the process of turning FIG. 2 into FIG. 3, the control unit 3 will also Control the first traverse mechanism 43 Actuates to make the second bar 42 move along the first bar 41 to determine the position of the receiving member 44. Taking the receiving member 44 as the implementation state of the plurality of forks as an example, each can be determined in this way The position of the forks makes it difficult for the positions of the forks to shift with the use time of the robotic arm. Finally, according to the foregoing steps and so on, actions such as taking out and placing the object A to be accepted can be completed. In addition, the present invention mainly uses the rotation of the pivoting mechanisms 5 and 6 to allow the receiving unit 4 to move forwards and backwards. In this way, the second traverse mechanism does not need to be provided in actual implementation; However, if it is considered that the receiving unit 4 may have insufficient forward and backward movement, the second traverse mechanism 12 can be provided to make up for the movement.

It can be seen from the above that the present invention has the following advantages:

1. The position of the receiving member 44 is not easy to shift:

In the present invention, the control unit 3 controls the operation of the first traverse mechanism 43 to adjust the position of the receiving member 44. In this way, the position of the receiving member 44 is not easily shifted with the use time of the mechanical arm. This reduces the problem of the object A to be accepted falling due to the offset described in the prior art.

2. Convenient maintenance:

Since the present invention utilizes the first pivoting mechanism 5 and the second pivoting mechanism 6, it is possible to achieve the purpose of receiving the object A to be received with the least number of shafts. Compared with the multi-axis robotic arm described in the prior art, the present invention greatly reduces the number of rotating shafts, thereby reducing the complexity of the overall structure. As a result, the risk of failure will be greatly reduced, and maintenance time and cost will also be reduced.

3. Improve overall work efficiency:

As stated in the prior art, when the multi-axis mechanical arm is in motion, the various components must be coordinated and controlled, resulting in poor overall work efficiency. The present invention solves this problem and achieves the purpose of receiving the object A with the least number of rotating shafts. As a result, the number of components that must be coordinated, coordinated, and controlled is greatly reduced, so that the overall work efficiency can be greatly improved.

4. Reduce the turning radius:

The present invention mainly drives the receiving unit 4 through the rotation of the connecting rod 2, so that the radius of rotation of the present invention is limited to the length of the connecting rod 2. Compared with the conventional technology, the overall radius of rotation can be effectively reduced, thereby When the present invention is used in a workshop or installed in an organization, it can not only effectively reduce the overall occupied volume, but also can deploy a maximum number of machines and equipment in a limited space, and indeed improve the utilization rate of the workshop space.

Please refer to FIG. 5 in conjunction with FIG. 1. The present invention also provides the function of automatically adjusting the position of the receiving member 44 to accept the object A. Once the position of the object A to be accepted is shifted, or caused by other factors When the position of the receiving member 44 receiving the object A is shifted, the present invention can automatically correct it, so as to avoid the risk of the object A falling due to the poor receiving position. For this reason, the present invention can be implemented as follows: a first position detector 7 of the control unit 3 is further provided with information, and the first position detector 7 can detect that the receiving member 44 receives the object A to be received Position to obtain a position detection result. When the position detection result does not meet the preset value, the control unit 3 controls the first traverse mechanism 43 to act according to the position detection result for adjusting the receiving member 44 and The relative position of the first bar 41, the control action described here, can be automatic control or manual control.

Moreover, it is worth mentioning that the control unit 3 can control the first traverse mechanism 43 to react immediately, so as to adjust the relative position of the receiving member 44 and the first bar 41 in time, or it can be in the lower position. The relative position of the receiving member 44 and the first bar 41 is adjusted when the object A to be received is received once. In addition, when the control unit 3 determines that the position detection result is far beyond or far below the preset value, an alarm 8 is activated to alert the relevant staff to proceed immediately.

For the above embodiment, please refer to FIG. 5 in conjunction with FIG. 1. After the control unit 3 adjusts the relative position, when the position detection result still fails to meet the preset value, in order to avoid the waiting process When the object A falls, the control unit 3 preferably activates the alarm 8 to alert the relevant staff to deal with it immediately. Therefore, the present invention can be further implemented as follows: an alarm 8 connected to the control unit is provided, and when the position detection result of two consecutive times fails to meet the preset value, the control unit 3 controls the first The pivoting mechanism 5, the second pivoting mechanism 6, and the first traverse mechanism 43 stop operating, and at the same time control the alarm 8 to operate. In addition, the above-mentioned control of each component to stop action can be a response to stop action immediately when it is judged that the two consecutive position detection results do not meet the preset value, or it can stop action after accepting the object A to be accepted, and , The above two consecutive times can also be three consecutive times, four consecutive times, etc., depending on the needs of the site.

There are many reasons why the object A to be received falls during the receiving process. One of the factors is that the horizontal position of the receiving member 44 is displaced, that is, it is in a tilted state. In order to avoid this tilted state causing the object A to fall The risk is to stop and repair immediately when the receiving member 44 is in a tilted state. Therefore, please refer to FIG. 5 in conjunction with FIG. 1. The present invention can be further implemented as follows: a message is connected to the control unit 3 The level detector 9 can detect the inclination of the receiving member 44 to obtain a level detection result. When the level detection result exceeds a level preset value, the control unit 3 The alarm 8 is controlled to operate.

According to the above embodiment, the earthquake is also one of the factors that cause the object to be received to fall. In order to reduce the loss caused by the earthquake, the action of the mechanical arm should be stopped immediately when the earthquake comes. For this reason, please refer to Figure 5 and Figure 1. It is shown that the present invention can be further implemented as: the control unit 3 can be connected to a vibration detection unit 0A for information, and the vibration detection unit 0A can detect the vibration state of the robot arm to obtain a vibration detection value. When the detection value exceeds a threshold, if the receiving member 44 is in the state of receiving the object A to be received, first control the first pivoting mechanism 5, the second pivoting mechanism 6, and the first traverse mechanism 43 To control the first pivoting mechanism 5, the second pivoting mechanism 6, and the first traverse mechanism 43 to stop after placing the object A to be received; if the receiving member 44 is not receiving When the object A is in the state, the first pivoting mechanism 5 and the second pivoting are controlled The mechanism 6 and the first traverse mechanism 43 stop operating. In this way, the present invention can effectively prevent the object A from falling when an earthquake comes.

In addition, in order to avoid the dilemma that the receiving member 44 still cannot accept the object A due to the replacement of the object A or other factors causing the connecting rod 2 to rotate to the end of the rotation path, the present invention may also provide automatic Adjust the function of the end of the rotation path to solve the above-mentioned problem. Please refer to FIG. 5 in conjunction with FIG. 1. The present invention can be implemented as follows: a second position detector 0 connected to the control unit 3 is provided with information, and the second position detector 0 can detect the receiving unit 4 A relative position detection result is obtained from the relative position of the object A to be supported. The control unit 3 can determine the rotation amount of the connecting rod 2 according to the relative position detection result, and control the first The pivoting mechanism 5 is activated. In addition, the control unit 3 can also operate by controlling the second traverse mechanism 12 without the above method to adjust the bearing member 44 and the object A to be received when the connecting rod 2 rotates to the end of the rotation path. The relative position between.

In summary, this case complies with the requirements of the Patent Law, and a patent application was filed in accordance with the law. The above description only lists the preferred embodiments of the invention. The scope of rights in this case is still mainly listed in the claims.

A: Things to be undertaken

1: Robot body

11: Connector

2: connecting rod

4: Undertake unit

41: The first body

42: The second body

44: Acceptance

5: The first pivoting mechanism

6: The second pivoting mechanism

Claims (10)

A mechanical arm capable of adjusting the bearing position, comprising: a mechanical arm body; a connecting rod: having two opposite first and second ends, the first end being formed by a first pivoting mechanism and the mechanical arm body The connecting rod is pivoted horizontally to allow the connecting rod to rotate horizontally with the first end as an axis; a receiving unit: comprising: a first bar: the other end of the connecting rod is connected to the second pivoting mechanism by a second pivoting mechanism A body forms a horizontal pivot connection for horizontal rotation of the first body with the other end as an axis; a second body: set on one side of the long side of the first body, and the first body The side of the two strips facing the object to be received is defined as the front side; a first transverse movement mechanism: the second strip is dynamically connected to drive the second strip to laterally along the long side of the first strip Move; a receiving member: set on the second bar, the receiving member is exposed relative to the front side of the second bar, and the receiving member is used to receive the object to be received; a control unit: information respectively connected to the first A pivot mechanism, the second pivot mechanism, and the first traverse mechanism, the control unit can be used to control the first pivot mechanism and the second pivot mechanism to rotate, and the control unit can be used to control the The operation of the first traverse mechanism is used to adjust the relative position of the receiving member and the first bar. The mechanical arm capable of adjusting the receiving position according to claim 1, wherein the main body of the mechanical arm includes a connecting member and a second traverse mechanism directly/indirectly power connected to the connecting member, and the second traverse mechanism can be used for The connecting piece is driven to move back and forth, and the first pivoting mechanism is arranged in the connecting piece. The mechanical arm capable of adjusting the bearing position as described in claim 1, wherein the main body of the mechanical arm includes a connecting piece and an elevating mechanism directly/indirectly connected to the connecting piece by power, and the elevating mechanism can drive the connecting piece vertically And the first pivoting mechanism is arranged in the connecting piece. The robot arm capable of adjusting the receiving position as described in claim 2 or 3, wherein a first position detector of the control unit is connected with information, and the first position detector can detect the receiving of the receiving component The position of the object to be supported obtains a position detection result. When the position detection result does not meet the preset value, the control unit controls the operation of the first traverse mechanism according to the position detection result to adjust the acceptance The relative position of the piece and the first body. The robot arm that can adjust the receiving position as described in claim 4, in which an information is connected to the alarm of the control unit, when the position detection results of two consecutive times do not meet the preset value, the control The unit controls the first pivoting mechanism, the second pivoting mechanism, and the first traverse mechanism to stop operating, and at the same time controls the alarm to operate. The robot arm capable of adjusting the bearing position as described in claim 5, wherein a level detector of the control unit is connected to the information, and the level detector can detect the inclination of the bearing member to obtain a horizontal detector According to the measurement result, when the level detection result exceeds a level preset value, the control unit controls the alarm to act. The robot arm capable of adjusting the bearing position as described in claim 6, wherein the control unit can be connected to a vibration detection unit for information, and the vibration detection unit can detect the vibration state of the robot arm to obtain a vibration detection unit. Measured value, when the vibration detection value exceeds a threshold, if the receiving member is in the state of receiving the object to be received, first control the first pivoting mechanism, the second pivoting mechanism, and the first traverse mechanism Action for controlling the first pivoting mechanism and the second pivoting mechanism after placing the object to be accepted The pivoting mechanism and the first traverse mechanism stop working; if the receiving member is in a state of not receiving the object to be borne, the first pivoting mechanism, the second pivoting mechanism, and the first horizontal The moving mechanism stops working. The robot arm capable of adjusting the receiving position as described in claim 7, wherein a second position detecting unit of the control unit is connected with information, and the second position detecting unit can detect the receiving unit and the waiting unit. The relative position of the supporting object is obtained to obtain a relative position detection result. The control unit can determine the rotation amount of the link according to the relative position detection result, and control the operation of the first pivoting mechanism according to the rotation amount. The mechanical arm capable of adjusting the receiving position according to claim 8, wherein the receiving member can be selected from one of the following groups: plural forks, plate bodies, and fork bodies. The mechanical arm capable of adjusting the receiving position as described in claim 9, wherein a non-slip unit is laid on the top surface of the receiving member.

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