US20140217076A1 - Robot system and method for controlling the robot system - Google Patents
Robot system and method for controlling the robot system Download PDFInfo
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- US20140217076A1 US20140217076A1 US14/258,017 US201414258017A US2014217076A1 US 20140217076 A1 US20140217076 A1 US 20140217076A1 US 201414258017 A US201414258017 A US 201414258017A US 2014217076 A1 US2014217076 A1 US 2014217076A1
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- United States
- Prior art keywords
- laser emitter
- arbitrarily
- robot
- laser
- work path
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Classifications
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- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B23—MACHINE TOOLS; METAL-WORKING NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- B23K—SOLDERING OR UNSOLDERING; WELDING; CLADDING OR PLATING BY SOLDERING OR WELDING; CUTTING BY APPLYING HEAT LOCALLY, e.g. FLAME CUTTING; WORKING BY LASER BEAM
- B23K26/00—Working by laser beam, e.g. welding, cutting or boring
- B23K26/08—Devices involving relative movement between laser beam and workpiece
- B23K26/0869—Devices involving movement of the laser head in at least one axial direction
- B23K26/0876—Devices involving movement of the laser head in at least one axial direction in at least two axial directions
- B23K26/0884—Devices involving movement of the laser head in at least one axial direction in at least two axial directions in at least in three axial directions, e.g. manipulators, robots
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B23—MACHINE TOOLS; METAL-WORKING NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- B23K—SOLDERING OR UNSOLDERING; WELDING; CLADDING OR PLATING BY SOLDERING OR WELDING; CUTTING BY APPLYING HEAT LOCALLY, e.g. FLAME CUTTING; WORKING BY LASER BEAM
- B23K26/00—Working by laser beam, e.g. welding, cutting or boring
- B23K26/08—Devices involving relative movement between laser beam and workpiece
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B23—MACHINE TOOLS; METAL-WORKING NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- B23K—SOLDERING OR UNSOLDERING; WELDING; CLADDING OR PLATING BY SOLDERING OR WELDING; CUTTING BY APPLYING HEAT LOCALLY, e.g. FLAME CUTTING; WORKING BY LASER BEAM
- B23K26/00—Working by laser beam, e.g. welding, cutting or boring
- B23K26/08—Devices involving relative movement between laser beam and workpiece
- B23K26/082—Scanning systems, i.e. devices involving movement of the laser beam relative to the laser head
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B25—HAND TOOLS; PORTABLE POWER-DRIVEN TOOLS; MANIPULATORS
- B25J—MANIPULATORS; CHAMBERS PROVIDED WITH MANIPULATION DEVICES
- B25J9/00—Programme-controlled manipulators
- B25J9/16—Programme controls
- B25J9/1656—Programme controls characterised by programming, planning systems for manipulators
- B25J9/1664—Programme controls characterised by programming, planning systems for manipulators characterised by motion, path, trajectory planning
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- Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
- Y10—TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC
- Y10S—TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
- Y10S901/00—Robots
- Y10S901/30—End effector
- Y10S901/41—Tool
Definitions
- the robot control apparatus 2 is provided with a servo simulation portion 26 presuming a current state of the end portion of the robot 1 (current position and posture of the laser scanner 4 ) on the basis of an operation instruction transmitted from the servo control portion 25 to each servomotor and a focus calculation portion 27 calculating a focal position (welding position) on the basis of the current position and posture of the end portion of the robot 1 presumed by the servo simulation portion 26 .
- a focus calculation portion 27 calculating a focal position (welding position) on the basis of the current position and posture of the end portion of the robot 1 presumed by the servo simulation portion 26 .
- 500 in the coordinate is set to 50 mm in the work area 200 , for example, the size is specified as “50” mm.
- a welding locus drawn in the preparation area 62 b of 500 squares is automatically scaled in an area of 50 mm square.
- the robot system 100 determines whether or not the position L Wk of the welding point is located in the welding range A 2 on the basis of the laser scanner coordinate system ⁇ L ⁇ as viewed from the laser scanner 4 different from the robot coordinate system ⁇ R ⁇ when determining whether or not the welding point Wk is located in the welding range A 2 to which a laser beam can be emitted.
Abstract
A robot system includes a robot, a controller, and a laser emitter which is configured to emit a laser beam to a target workpiece and which is configured to be moved by the robot. The controller is configured to control the laser emitter to emit the laser beam based on information regarding an arbitrarily-shaped work path and movement information of the laser emitter. The controller is configured to determine whether or not a reference position of the arbitrarily-shaped work path on the target workpiece is located in a predetermined range of the laser emitter while the laser emitter is moving. The controller is further configured to control the laser emitter to emit the laser beam to the arbitrarily-shaped work path if the reference position is located in the predetermined range.
Description
- The present application is a continuation application of the U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/369,301 filed Feb. 9, 2012, which claims priority to Japanese Patent Application No. 2011-086135 filed Apr. 8, 2011. The contents of these applications are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.
- 1. Field of the Invention
- The present invention relates to a robot system and method for controlling the robot system.
- 2. Description of the Background Art
- A robot system including a laser emitting portion capable of emitting a laser beam is known in general. Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2008-43971 discloses a robot system including a laser emitting apparatus (laser emitting portion) capable of emitting a laser beam to a target workpiece. This robot system is formed to emit a laser beam to an arbitrarily-shaped work locus in a state where the laser emitting apparatus is positioned (stopped) at a prescribed position.
- According to one aspect of the present invention, a robot system includes a robot, a controller, and a laser emitter which is configured to emit a laser beam to a target workpiece and which is configured to be moved by the robot. The controller is configured to control the laser emitter to emit the laser beam based on information regarding an arbitrarily-shaped work path and movement information of the laser emitter. The controller is configured to determine whether or not a reference position of the arbitrarily-shaped work path on the target workpiece is located in a predetermined range of the laser emitter while the laser emitter is moving. The controller is further configured to control the laser emitter to emit the laser beam to the arbitrarily-shaped work path if the reference position is located in the predetermined range.
- According to another aspect of the present invention, a method for controlling a robot system includes determining whether or not a reference position of an arbitrarily-shaped work path on a target workpiece is located in a predetermined range of a laser emitter of the robot system while the laser emitter is moving. The laser emitter is controlled to emit a laser beam to the target workpiece based on information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped work path and movement information of the laser emitter if the reference position is located in the predetermined range.
- The foregoing and other objects, features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the present invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
-
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the overall structure of a robot system according to an embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a robot control apparatus of the robot system according to the embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing the structure of a laser scanner of the robot system according to the embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 4 is a diagram for illustrating a procedure for drawing a straight line welding locus with an arbitrary shape preparation tool of the robot system according to the embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 5 is a diagram for illustrating a procedure for drawing a circular arc welding locus with the arbitrary shape preparation tool of the robot system according to the embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 6 is a diagram for illustrating a procedure for drawing an ellipse welding locus with the arbitrary shape preparation tool of the robot system according to the embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a state where an arbitrarily-shaped welding locus has been drawn with the arbitrary shape preparation tool of the robot system according to the embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a laser welding condition file screen of the robot system according to the embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 9 is a diagram for illustrating an operation procedure for teaching a reference position and a reference direction of the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus in the robot system according to the embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 10 is a flowchart for illustrating processing for welding by a focus calculation portion of the robot system according to the embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a welding start range of the robot system according to the embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a state where a first reference point is in the welding start range of the robot system according to the embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a welding range of the robot system according to the embodiment of the present invention; and -
FIG. 14 is a diagram showing a state where a welding point is located in the welding range of the robot system according to the embodiment of the present invention. - An embodiment of the present invention is now described with reference to the drawings.
- First, the structure of a
robot system 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention is described with reference toFIGS. 1 to 3 . - The
robot system 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention is a robot system for remote laser welding emitting a laser beam from a position spaced (position spaced about 500 mm, for example) from a target workpiece to perform laser welding. Therobot system 100 includes arobot 1, arobot control apparatus 2 controlling therobot 1, and a pendant (programming pendant) 3 to teach operations of therobot 1, as shown inFIG. 1 . Therobot system 100 according to this embodiment further includes alaser scanner 4 emitting a laser beam, mounted on therobot 1 and alaser oscillator 5 supplying a laser beam to thelaser scanner 4. Thependant 3 is an example of the “teaching apparatus” in the present invention, and thelaser scanner 4 is an example of the “laser emitting portion” in the present invention. - The
robot 1 is a multi-joint type robot having a plurality of joints. Therobot 1 includes a plurality of servomotors (not shown) to drive each joint, and thelaser scanner 4 mounted on an end portion of the robot can be moved by each servomotor. - The
robot control apparatus 2 is connected to therobot 1 through arobot instruction cable 10 to be capable of communication, as shown inFIG. 1 . Therobot control apparatus 2 is also connected to thependant 3 through acable 11 to be capable of communication. Therobot control apparatus 2 is also connected to thelaser scanner 4 through ascanner instruction cable 12 to be capable of communication. Therobot control apparatus 2 includes a communication portion 21 transmitting a signal to and receiving a signal from thependant 3, a data storage portion 22 storing operation programs, welding information regarding laser welding (information regarding a welding speed and a welding locus), etc., and a command interpretation portion 23 retrieving the operation programs, the welding information, etc. stored in the data storage portion 22 to interpret the information, as shown inFIG. 2 . - The
robot control apparatus 2 further includes a robot locus calculation portion 24 calculating a movement locus of therobot 1 at every prescribed control cycle on the basis of the interpretation of the command interpretation portion 23 and a servo control portion 25 controlling each servomotor provided in therobot 1 on the basis of the calculation result by the robot locus calculation portion 24. Therobot control apparatus 2 is provided with a servo simulation portion 26 presuming a current state of the end portion of the robot 1 (current position and posture of the laser scanner 4) on the basis of an operation instruction transmitted from the servo control portion 25 to each servomotor and a focus calculation portion 27 calculating a focal position (welding position) on the basis of the current position and posture of the end portion of therobot 1 presumed by the servo simulation portion 26. There is a slight time lag between the timing to transmit the operation instruction from the servo control portion 25 and the timing to operate therobot 1 on the basis of the operation instruction. Consequently, the servo simulation portion 26 presumes the current position and posture of thelaser scanner 4 in consideration of the time lag. Processing for welding performed by the focus calculation portion 27 will be described later. The focus calculation portion 27 is an example of the “control portion” in the present invention. - The
pendant 3 is provided to prepare the operation programs of therobot 1 and the welding information regarding laser welding (information regarding a welding speed and a welding locus). Thependant 3 has adisplay portion 31 and anoperation portion 32 including a plurality of operation buttons, as shown inFIG. 1 . A user can input prescribed information by operating theoperation portion 32, viewing display on thedisplay portion 31. The user can teach the operations of therobot 1 to therobot control apparatus 2 by operating thependant 3. Thependant 3 according to this embodiment is provided with a device slot (card slot) 33 allowing amemory card 110 including a compact flash (registered trademark), for example, to be read. Thus, thependant 3 can capture information related to robot control prepared by an external device such as a PC (personal computer) 6 through thememory card 110. Thependant 3 is provided with a USB (universal serial bus)terminal 34 allowing USB connection. The PC 6 is provided with a device slot (card slot) 61 a allowing thememory card 110 to be attached and aUSB terminal 61 b. In other words, the robot control apparatus 2 (data storage portion 22) accepts information regarding a welding locus prepared by thePC 6 through theUSB terminal 34 by inserting a USB memory (not shown) into theUSB terminal 34 of thependant 3 after storing the information regarding a welding locus in the USB memory attached to theUSB terminal 61 b. Alternatively, the information regarding a welding locus prepared by the PC 6 may be accepted through theUSB terminal 34 by connecting the PC 6 and theUSB terminal 34 to each other with a USB cable and transmitting the information regarding a welding locus to thependant 3 through theUSB terminal 34. ThePC 6 is examples of the “work locus preparation device”, the “external device”, and the “external information terminal device” in the present invention. Thedevice slot 33 is examples of the “acceptance portion” and the “recording medium read portion” in the present invention, and theUSB terminal 34 is an example of the “acceptance portion” in the present invention. Thememory card 110 is an example of the “portable recording medium” in the present invention. - The
laser scanner 4 has a function of emitting a laser beam output from thelaser oscillator 5 to the target workpiece. The laser beam output from thelaser oscillator 5 is supplied to thelaser scanner 4 through afiber 13. As shown inFIG. 3 , anoptical system 41 constituted by a lens, etc., agalvanometer mirror 42 includingmirrors motors mirrors laser scanner 4. The laser beam supplied from thelaser oscillator 5 to thelaser scanner 4 is condensed by theoptical system 41, and thereafter the direction of the laser beam is changed by thegalvanometer mirror 42, so that the laser beam is emitted to the target workpiece. Thelaser scanner 4 is formed to emit a laser beam to a prescribed position along a welding locus by driving themirrors laser scanner 4 according to this embodiment can emit a laser beam within a range of 200 mm square in a state spaced 500 mm from the target workpiece. Thus, the specification of thelaser scanner 4 such as a laser focal distance is previously known, and hence it is presumed that a distance from thelaser scanner 4 to the target workpiece is the laser focal distance at the time of preparation of a welding locus described later. Furthermore, the distance from thelaser scanner 4 to the target workpiece is maintained at the laser focal distance when teaching the operations of therobot 1 or performing laser welding. Thelaser scanner 4 also includes an adjustment mechanism of theoptical system 41 omitted inFIG. 3 , and hence thelaser scanner 4 can dynamically change the laser focal distance. Thus, therobot system 100 can perform laser welding, changing the distance from thelaser scanner 4 to the target workpiece. Thegalvanometer mirror 42 including themirrors - Next, a procedure for preparing information regarding an arbitrarily-shaped welding locus with the
PC 6 is described with reference toFIGS. 4 to 7 . - An arbitrary shape preparation tool, which is software (application program) previously installed on the
PC 6, is run, whereby an arbitrary shapepreparation tool screen 62 is displayed on a display portion 61 (seeFIG. 1 ) of thePC 6, as shown inFIGS. 4 to 7 . The user can select a desired line type from aline type item 62 a of the arbitrary shapepreparation tool screen 62. Specifically, the arbitrary shapepreparation tool screen 62 is formed such that a desired line type can be selected from a straight line, a circular arc, and an ellipse through a graphical user interface (GUI), and the user can prepare the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus by arbitrarily combining different line types, which are a straight line, a circular arc, and an ellipse. - When a straight line is drawn, for example, the straight line is drawn by specifying a starting point and an end point in a
preparation area 62 b with a pointer 62 c after selecting a straight line from theline type item 62 a, as shown inFIG. 4 . The starting point and the end point are displayed in different colors to be capable of identification. When the prepared straight line is selected with the pointer 62 c, the coordinates of the starting point and the end point are displayed on the arbitrary shapepreparation tool screen 62. Thus, the user can numerically confirm the positions of the starting point and the end point. The user can also specify the starting point and the end point by directly inputting coordinates numerically. The coordinates of the current position of the pointer 62 c are also displayed on the lower side of thepreparation area 62 b. Thepreparation area 62 b is of 500 squares in terms of coordinate value in an XY plane in which a vertex positioned at the bottom of the left side is an origin. In an example shown inFIG. 4 , the pointer 62 c is located in the center of thepreparation area 62 b, and hence the coordinates of the current position of the pointer are displayed as (250, 250). - When a circular arc is drawn, the circular arc is drawn by specifying a center point and a size in the
preparation area 62 b with the pointer 62 c after selecting a circular arc from theline type item 62 a, as shown inFIG. 5 . When a circular arc is selected, values of the coordinates of the specified center point, a start angle of a locus, a rotation angle from a starting point, and a radius are displayed on the arbitrary shapepreparation tool screen 62. The user can arbitrarily set a starting point and an end point of the circular arc by inputting a start angle and a rotation angle. The user can also directly input the coordinates of the center point and a radius numerically. A start angle is positive in a counterclockwise direction relative to the X-axis of thepreparation area 62 b inFIG. 5 . - When an ellipse is drawn, the ellipse is drawn by specifying a center point and a size in the
preparation area 62 b with the pointer 62 c after selecting an ellipse from theline type item 62 a, as shown inFIG. 6 . When an ellipse is selected, values of the coordinates of the specified center point, a start angle of a locus, a rotation angle from a starting point, and an X-axis diameter, and a Y-axis diameter are displayed on the arbitrary shapepreparation tool screen 62. The user can arbitrarily set a starting point and an end point of the ellipse by inputting a start angle and a rotation angle, similarly to the case of a circular arc. The user can also directly input the coordinates of the center point, an X-axis diameter, and a Y-axis diameter numerically. A start angle is positive in a counterclockwise direction relative to the X-axis of thepreparation area 62 b inFIG. 6 . - The user can arbitrarily combine a straight line, a circular arc, and an ellipse drawn in the aforementioned manners in the
preparation area 62 b to prepare the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus, as shown inFIG. 7 . Then, information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus prepared with the arbitrary shape preparation tool is stored as a file in thememory card 110 attached to thedevice slot 61 a of thePC 6, in thePC 6, or in the USB memory (not shown) attached to theUSB terminal 61 b of thePC 6. Thus, the information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus is prepared with thePC 6. - Next, a preparation procedure prior to welding is described with reference to
FIGS. 1 and 4 to 9. - First, the information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus prepared with the
PC 6 is loaded onto therobot control apparatus 2. Specifically, thememory card 110 storing the information regarding the welding locus is inserted into thedevice slot 33 of thependant 3 to load the information onto the data storage portion 22. Alternatively, the information regarding the welding locus stored in thePC 6 or the USB memory may be loaded onto the data storage portion 22 through theUSB terminal 34 with the USB cable or the USB memory. - The operations of the
robot 1 are taught to therobot control apparatus 2 while therobot 1 is moved with thependant 3. A section where welding is performed (welding section) is set with thependant 3. The welding section is set by specifying a size on a laser weldingcondition file screen 311 described later and teaching a first reference point B1 and a second reference point B2 described later. - Welding information regarding laser welding (information regarding a welding speed and a welding locus) is set. Specifically, when laser welding is performed on the basis of the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus prepared by the
PC 6, “arbitrary shape” is selected as an interpolation type on the laser weldingcondition file screen 311 displayed on the display portion 31 (seeFIG. 1 ) of thependant 3, as shown inFIG. 8 . The “interpolation type” denotes one of control parameters for specifying how an operation locus of the end portion of therobot 1 should be when the end portion of therobot 1 is moved between a plurality of positions taught to the robot 1 (taught points). “Straight line” (not shown) and “circular arc” (not shown) in addition to “arbitrary shape” can be specified as the interpolation type. “Straight line” is often specified as the interpolation type when a complicated welding locus as in this embodiment is not employed. - A value of laser output and a welding speed are set on the laser welding
condition file screen 311. According to this embodiment, multiple pieces of the information (file) regarding the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus prepared by thePC 6 can be loaded onto the data storage portion 22 to be stored, and a desired welding locus is selected by specifying a file number (FILE No. inFIG. 8 ). Furthermore, the length of a side in a case where thepreparation area 62 b (seeFIGS. 4 to 7 ) having an area of 500 squares (direction X, direction Y) in the coordinate is reflected in a work area 200 (seeFIG. 9 ) of the target workpiece is specified. If 500 in the coordinate is set to 50 mm in thework area 200, for example, the size is specified as “50” mm. In this case, a welding locus drawn in thepreparation area 62 b of 500 squares is automatically scaled in an area of 50 mm square. - A reference position and a reference direction of the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus prepared with the
PC 6 are taught to therobot control apparatus 2 while therobot 1 is moved with thependant 3. Specifically, as shown inFIG. 9 , the user moves therobot 1 to emit a laser beam for teaching from thelaser scanner 4, and teaches the first reference point B1 serving as the reference position to therobot control apparatus 2 at a desired position while confirming the position of the laser beam on thework area 200. Thus, a position RB1 of the first reference point B1 as viewed from a robot coordinate system {R} fixed to a setting portion of therobot 1 is taught. The first reference point B1 serving as the reference position is a point where an origin in thepreparation area 62 b (vertex positioned at the bottom of the left side of thepreparation area 62 b) is located when thepreparation area 62 b (seeFIGS. 4 to 7 ) is reflected in thework area 200. Similarly to the case of the first reference point B1, the user moves therobot 1 to emit a laser beam for teaching from thelaser scanner 4, and teaches the second reference point B2 to therobot control apparatus 2 while confirming the position of the laser beam on thework area 200. Thus, a position RB2 of the second reference point B2 as viewed from the robot coordinate system {R} is taught. Furthermore, a direction from the first reference point B1 toward the second reference point B2 is taught as the reference direction of the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus. The direction from the first reference point B1 toward the second reference point B2 serving as the reference direction is a direction X in thepreparation area 62 b in a case where thepreparation area 62 b (seeFIGS. 4 to 7 ) is reflected in thework area 200. Thus, a positional relation between the XY plane of thepreparation area 62 b and the robot coordinate system {R} is set, whereby the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus prepared with thePC 6 is positioned in thework area 200. The robot coordinate system {R} is an example of the “first coordinate system” in the present invention. - Next, the processing for welding by the focus calculation portion 27 performed when the
robot system 100 according to this embodiment performs laser welding is described with reference toFIGS. 8 to 14 . - At a step S1 in
FIG. 10 , the focus calculation portion 27 acquires a position LB1 of the first reference point B1 (seeFIG. 9 ) as viewed from a laser scanner coordinate system {L} fixed to thelaser scanner 4. Specifically, the focus calculation portion 27 acquires the position LB1 of the first reference point B1 as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L} on the basis of a current position and posture R LT of thelaser scanner 4 as viewed from the robot coordinate system {R} presumed by the servo simulation portion 26 and the taught position RB1 of the first reference point B1 as viewed from the robot coordinate system {R}. The laser scanner coordinate system {L} is an example of the “second coordinate system” in the present invention. - An expression for obtaining the position LB1 of the first reference point B1 as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L} is shown as the following expression (1).
-
L B1(X)B1 ,Y B1)=(R L T)1·R B1 (1) - In the aforementioned expression (1), LB1 represents the position of the first reference point B1 as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L}, XB1 represents the X-coordinate of the position LB1 of the first reference point B1 as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L}, YB1 represents the Y-coordinate of the position LB1 of the first reference point B1 as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L}, R LT represents the current position and posture of the
laser scanner 4 as viewed from the robot coordinate system {R} presumed by the servo simulation portion 26, and RB1 represents the position of the first reference point B1 as viewed from the robot coordinate system {R}. (R LT)−1 denotes inverse transform of R LT, and represents the current position and posture of the origin of the robot coordinate system {R} as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L}. - The focus calculation portion 27 determines whether or not the position LB1 of the first reference point B1 is in a welding start range A1 (see
FIGS. 11 and 12 ) at a step S2. The user sets values of an X-axis diameter d1 and a Y-axis diameter d2 of a circle or an ellipse centered around the origin of the laser scanner coordinate system {L} to determine the welding start range A1, as shown inFIG. 11 . The user can freely set the X-axis diameter d1 and the Y-axis diameter d2. However, if too large diameters are set as the X-axis diameter d1 and the Y-axis diameter d2, a laser beam is emitted to a great distance from thelaser scanner 4, and hence a maximum settable value of each diameter is set to 200 mm. In this embodiment, the X-axis diameter d1 and the Y-axis diameter d2 both are set to 180 mm, for example. The welding start range A1 is moved in the direction X in association with movement of thelaser scanner 4 along the direction X by therobot 1. The welding start range A1 is an example of the “prescribed range of the laser emitting portion” in the present invention. - Next, an expression for determining whether or not the position LB1 of the first reference point B1 is in the welding start range A1 is shown as the following expression (2-5). The expressions (2-1) to (2-4) are for describing a procedure for calculating the expression (2-5).
- First, an X-coordinate and a Y-coordinate located in the welding start range A1 shown in
FIG. 11 are defined by the following expressions (2-1) and (2-2). -
X≦d1/2×cos(α) (2-1) -
Y≦d2/2×sin(α) (2-2) - These expressions are transformed to obtain the following expressions (2-3) and (2-4).
-
4X 2 /d12≦cos2(α) (2-3) -
4Y 2 /d22≦sin2(α) (2-4) - Then, the expression (2-5) to be satisfactory in a case where the position LB1 of the first reference point B1 is located in the welding start range A1 is obtained from the aforementioned expressions (2-3) and (2-4).
-
4(X B1 2 /d12 +Y B1 2 /d22)≦1 (2-5) - In the aforementioned expression (2-5), XB1 represents the X-coordinate of the position LB1 of the first reference point B1 as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L}, YB1 represents the Y-coordinate of the position LB1 of the first reference point B1 as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L}, d1 represents the X-axis diameter of the welding start range A1, and d2 represents the Y-axis diameter of the welding start range A1.
- The focus calculation portion 27 repeats this determination until the position LB1 of the first reference point B1 enters the welding start range A1. As shown in
FIG. 12 , the focus calculation portion 27 acquires the number of control cycles N in the welding section on the basis of the welding information (information regarding a welding speed and a welding locus) at a step S3 when the position LB1 of the first reference point B1 enters the welding start range A1. Specifically, the focus calculation portion 27 calculates the number of control cycles N on the basis of locus information of welding D, a welding speed V, and a control cycle of therobot 1 Δt. The locus information of welding D is based on the welding information (information regarding a welding speed and a welding locus) set with thependant 3, and is information regarding the shape of a welding locus including the size (length) of a locus, the direction of a locus, etc. The welding speed V is a welding speed set on the laser weldingcondition file screen 311 shown inFIG. 8 . At this stage, “0 (zero)” is assigned to a variable k described later for initialization. - Next, an expression for acquiring the number of control cycles N in the welding section is shown as the following expression (3).
-
N=D/(V×Δt) (3) - In the aforementioned expression (3), N represents the number of control cycles in the welding section (integer of at least 0), D represents the locus information of welding (length of a welding locus in this case), V represents the welding speed, and Δt represents the control cycle. If the right side of the expression (3) cannot be divided, N is set to a value obtained by discarding all digits to the right of the decimal point of D/(V×Δt).
- Thereafter, the focus calculation portion 27 acquires a welding start point RWs as viewed from the robot coordinate system {R} on the basis of the position RB1 of the first reference point B1 as viewed from the robot coordinate system {R} and the reference direction (direction from the first reference point B1 toward the second reference point B2) at a step S4. Then, the focus calculation portion 27 acquires a position RWk of a welding point as viewed from the robot coordinate system {R} in the control cycle at k-th time in the welding section at a step S5. Here, k is an integer (where 0≦k≦N).
- Next, an expression for acquiring the position RWk of the welding point as viewed from the robot coordinate system {R} in the control cycle at k-th time is shown as the following expression (4).
-
R Wk= R Ws+D(k/N) (4) - In the aforementioned expression (4), RWk represents the position of the welding point as viewed from the robot coordinate system {R} in the control cycle at k-th time, RWs represents the welding start point as viewed from the robot coordinate system {R}, D represents the locus information of welding (length of a welding locus in this case), and N represents the number of control cycles in the welding section.
- At a step S6, the focus calculation portion 27 acquires a position LWk of the welding point as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L} in the control cycle at k-th time. Specifically, the focus calculation portion 27 calculates the position LWk of the welding point as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L} in the control cycle at k-th time on the basis of the current position and posture R LT of the
laser scanner 4 as viewed from the robot coordinate system {R} presumed by the servo simulation portion 26 and the position RWk of the welding point as viewed from the robot coordinate system {R} in the control cycle at k-th time. - Next, an expression for acquiring the position LWk of the welding point as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L} in the control cycle at k-th time is shown as the following expression (5).
-
L Wk(X k ,Y k)=(R L T)−1·R Wk (5) - In the aforementioned expression (5), LWk represents the position of the welding point as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L} in the control cycle at k-th time, Xk represents the X-coordinate of the welding point as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L} in the control cycle at k-th time, Yk represents the Y-coordinate of the welding point as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L} in the control cycle at k-th time, R LT represents the current position and posture of the
laser scanner 4 as viewed from the robot coordinate system {R} presumed by the servo simulation portion 26, RWk represents the position of the welding point as viewed from the robot coordinate system {R} in the control cycle at k-th time, and k represents an integer (where 0≦k≦N). (R LT)−1 denotes inverse transform of R LT, and represents the current position and posture of the origin of the robot coordinate system {R} as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L}. - At a step S7, the focus calculation portion 27 determines whether or not the position LWk of the welding point as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L} in the control cycle at k-th time is in a welding range A2 (see
FIGS. 13 and 14 ). The user sets values of an X-axis diameter d3 and a Y-axis diameter d4 of a circle or an ellipse centered around the origin of the laser scanner coordinate system {L} to determine the welding range A2, as shown inFIG. 13 . The user can freely set the X-axis diameter d3 and the Y-axis diameter d4. However, similarly to the X-axis diameter d1 and the Y-axis diameter d2 of the welding start range A1, if too large diameters are set as the X-axis diameter d3 and the Y-axis diameter d4, a laser beam is emitted to a great distance from thelaser scanner 4, and hence a maximum settable value of each diameter is set to 200 mm. In this embodiment, the X-axis diameter d3 and the Y-axis diameter d4 both are set to 200 mm, for example. In other words, the welding range A2 is set to be larger than the welding start range A1 (the X-axis diameter and the Y-axis diameter both are 180 mm) of thelaser scanner 4. The welding range A2 is moved in the direction X in association with the movement of thelaser scanner 4 along the direction X by therobot 1. The welding range A2 is an example of the “working range to which the laser beam can be emitted” in the present invention. - Next, an expression for determining whether or not the position LWk of the welding point as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L} in the control cycle at k-th time is in the welding range A2 is shown as the following expression (6). The expression (6) is calculated through a procedure similar to the case of the aforementioned expression (2-5).
-
4(X k 2 /d32 +Y k 2 /d42)≦1 (6) - In the aforementioned expression (6), Xk represents the X-coordinate of the welding point as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L} in the control cycle at k-th time, Yk represents the Y-coordinate of the welding point as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L} in the control cycle at k-th time, d3 represents the X-axis diameter of the welding range A2, and d4 represents the Y-axis diameter of the welding range A2.
- At a step S8, the focus calculation portion 27 controls the
laser scanner 4 to emit a laser beam to the welding point Wk in the control cycle at k-th time if the position LWk of the welding point as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L} in the control cycle at k-th time is in the welding range A2, as shown inFIGS. 13 and 14 . On the other hand, the focus calculation portion 27 advances to a step S9 without emitting a laser beam if the position LWk of the welding point as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L} in the control cycle at k-th time is not in the welding range A2. Thus, thelaser scanner 4 can be inhibited from emitting a laser beam to an improper position. If the position LWk of the welding point as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L} in the control cycle at k-th time does not enter the welding range A2 and welding cannot be properly performed on a desired welding locus, a relation between a movement locus (movement path) of thelaser scanner 4 moved by therobot 1 and the welding information (information regarding a welding speed and a welding locus) is improper, and hence proper welding can be performed by resetting the relation between this movement locus and the welding information. - At the step S9, the focus calculation portion 27 determines whether or not k is equal to N, and terminates the processing for welding if k is equal to N. If k is not equal to N(k<N), the focus calculation portion 27 increments k at a step S10 to repeat the steps S5 to S10 until k becomes equal to N. In the
robot system 100 according to this embodiment, whether or not to emit a laser beam from the current position and posture R LT of thelaser scanner 4 is determined at every control cycle Δt of therobot 1, and hence the movement speed of thelaser scanner 4 does not depend on the welding speed V, dissimilarly to a case where the position and posture of thelaser scanner 4 at the start of laser beam emission and the position and posture of thelaser scanner 4 at the end of laser beam emission are previously set. - Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the position of the
laser scanner 4 may be simply adjusted by the operations of therobot 1 such that the position LWk of the welding point as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L} in the control cycle at k-th time is located in the welding range A2, and a movement locus of thelaser scanner 4 and the welding locus may not be matched. Furthermore, in therobot system 100 according to this embodiment, whether or not the position LWk of the welding point as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L} in the control cycle at k-th time is located in the welding range A2 is determined, whereby therobot system 100 can correspond to the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus regardless of whether or not thelaser scanner 4 is moving. - According to this embodiment, as hereinabove described, the
robot system 100 is provided with the focus calculation portion 27 controlling thelaser scanner 4 to emit a laser beam on the basis of the information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus and the current position and posture R LT of thelaser scanner 4, whereby the focus calculation portion 27 can control thelaser scanner 4 to emit the laser beam in consideration of the movement state of thelaser scanner 4, and hence the laser beam can be properly emitted to the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus in response to the movement of thelaser scanner 4 even when thelaser scanner 4 in motion emits the laser beam. Consequently, welding corresponding to the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus can be performed. - According to this embodiment, as hereinabove described, the focus calculation portion 27 is so formed as to control the
laser scanner 4 to emit a laser beam on the basis of the information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus prepared with thePC 6 and the current position and posture R LT of thelaser scanner 4. Thus, the information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus can be easily prepared with thePC 6, which is an external device, and welding corresponding to the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus can be performed. - According to this embodiment, as hereinabove described, the
device slot 33 accepting the information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus prepared with thePC 6 through thememory card 110 is provided on thependant 3. The information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus prepared by thePC 6 can be acquired through thedevice slot 33 on the basis of the operation of thependant 3 through thefile screen 311. Furthermore, the focus calculation portion 27 is so formed as to control thelaser scanner 4 to emit a laser beam on the basis of the information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus accepted by thedevice slot 33 and the current position and posture R LT of thelaser scanner 4. Thus, the information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus prepared with thePC 6 can be easily accepted by thedevice slot 33 through thememory card 110, and hence welding corresponding to the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus prepared with thePC 6, which is an external device, can be easily performed. - According to this embodiment, as hereinabove described, the focus calculation portion 27 is so formed as to acquire the welding point Wk corresponding to the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus on the basis of the information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus and the first reference point B1 and the reference direction (direction from the first reference point B1 toward the second reference point B2) taught by the
pendant 3, and control thelaser scanner 4 to emit a laser beam to the acquired welding point Wk. Thus, the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus prepared by thePC 6, which is an external device, can be easily reflected in thework area 200 of the target workpiece with the first reference point B1 and the reference direction, and hence welding corresponding to the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus prepared with thePC 6, which is an external device, can be easily performed. - According to this embodiment, as hereinabove described, the
robot system 100 is formed to correspond to an arbitrary shape prepared by arbitrarily combining the different line types, which are a straight line, a circular arc, and an ellipse. Thus, the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus can be prepared by arbitrarily combining the three line types, which are a straight line, a circular arc, and an ellipse, and hence therobot system 100 having a high degree of freedom for a welding locus can be provided. - According to this embodiment, as hereinabove described, the focus calculation portion 27 is so formed as to determine whether or not the welding point Wk corresponding to the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus is located in the welding range A2 to which the
laser scanner 4 can emit a laser beam regardless of whether or not thelaser scanner 4 is moving, and control thelaser scanner 4 to emit a laser beam if the welding point Wk is located in the welding range A2. Thus, a laser beam is not emitted if the welding point Wk is not located in the welding range A2, and hence thelaser scanner 4 can be inhibited from emitting a laser beam to an improper position by emitting the laser beam despite the welding point Wk to which the laser beam cannot be emitted from the current position and posture R LT of thelaser scanner 4. - According to this embodiment, as hereinabove described, the
laser scanner 4 includes thegalvanometer mirror 42 actuatable for emitting a laser beam to the target workpiece while changing the direction of the laser beam, and the focus calculation portion 27 is so formed as to control thelaser scanner 4 to emit a laser beam to a plurality of welding points Wk along the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus while actuating thegalvanometer mirror 42 regardless of whether or not thelaser scanner 4 is moving. Thus, the focus of the laser beam can follow the welding locus to perform welding while thegalvanometer mirror 42 controls the emitting direction of the laser beam, regardless of whether or not thelaser scanner 4 is in motion by therobot 1. Furthermore, thelaser scanner 4 may not always be moved to follow the welding locus, and hence useless time in a machining operation can be minimized. - According to this embodiment, as hereinabove described, the focus calculation portion 27 is so formed as to determine whether or not the first reference point B1 serving as the reference position of the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus is located in the welding start range A1 of the
laser scanner 4, and start determining whether or not the welding point Wk is located in the welding range A2 of thelaser scanner 4 if the first reference point B1 is in the welding start range A1. Thus, the focus calculation portion 27 starts determining whether or not the welding point Wk is located in the welding range A2 of thelaser scanner 4 when thelaser scanner 4 gets so close to the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus that the first reference point B1 enters the welding start range A1 of thelaser scanner 4, and hence an unnecessary control operation for determining whether or not the welding point Wk is in the welding range A2 despite the fact that thelaser scanner 4 is located a great distance from the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus can be inhibited to reduce the load on the focus calculation portion 27. - According to this embodiment, as hereinabove described, the welding start range A1 (the X-axis diameter and the Y-axis diameter both are 180 mm) of the
laser scanner 4 is set to be smaller than the welding range A2 (the X-axis diameter and the Y-axis diameter both are 200 mm) to which a laser beam can be emitted. Thus, the welding start range A1 having an area smaller than that of the welding range A2 can be employed to move thelaser scanner 4 until the first reference point B1 previously enters the welding start range A1. Therefore, the welding range A2 having a relatively large area can be employed to reliably capture the plurality of welding points Wk continuously when welding is actually performed, and hence welding corresponding to the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus can be reliably performed. - According to this embodiment, as hereinabove described, the
robot system 100 determines whether or not the position LWk of the welding point is located in the welding range A2 on the basis of the laser scanner coordinate system {L} as viewed from thelaser scanner 4 different from the robot coordinate system {R} when determining whether or not the welding point Wk is located in the welding range A2 to which a laser beam can be emitted. At this time, the focus calculation portion 27 transforms the position RWk of the welding point and the current position R LT of thelaser scanner 4 both as viewed from the robot coordinate system {R} into the position LWk of the welding point and the current position (R LT)−1 of thelaser scanner 4 both as viewed from the laser scanner coordinate system {L}, and thereafter determines whether or not the position LWk of the welding point into which the position RWk of the welding point is transformed is located in the welding range A2. Thus, therobot system 100 can determine whether or not the position LWk of the welding point is located in the welding range A2 on the basis of the position of thelaser scanner 4 in motion, and hence the focus calculation portion 27 can easily perform control processing based on operations of thelaser scanner 4. - According to this embodiment, as hereinabove described, the focus calculation portion 27 is so formed as to move the welding range A2 to which a laser beam can be emitted by moving the
laser scanner 4 by therobot 1 and sequentially determine whether or not the plurality of welding points Wk are located in the welding range A2. Thus, thelaser scanner 4 may not be moved to follow the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus exactly during welding, and hence useless time in a machining operation can be minimized due to the simplified movement of thelaser scanner 4. - According to this embodiment, as hereinabove described, the reference direction of the arbitrarily-shaped work locus is defined by the direction from the first reference point B1 toward the second reference point B2 (direction X), and the focus calculation portion 27 is so formed as to move the welding start range A1 of the
laser scanner 4 by moving thelaser scanner 4 along the reference direction (direction X) by therobot 1 and determine whether or not the first reference point B1 is located in the welding start range A1. Thus, therobot system 100 can reliably determine whether or not to start welding by simply moving thelaser scanner 4 along the reference direction previously defined, and hence useless time in a machining operation can be minimized due to the simplified movement of thelaser scanner 4. - Although the present invention has been described and illustrated in detail, it is clearly understood that the same is by way of illustration and example only and is not to be taken by way of limitation, the spirit and scope of the present invention being limited only by the terms of the appended claims.
- For example, while the robot system performing remote laser welding by emitting a laser beam is shown as an example of the robot system in the present invention in the aforementioned embodiment, the present invention is not restricted to this. The present invention may alternatively be applied to a robot system performing work such as cutting of a target workpiece by a laser beam, for example, other than welding.
- While the device slot (acceptance portion) allowing the memory card to be read and the USB terminal (acceptance portion) are provided on the
pendant 3 serving as the teaching apparatus in the present invention in the aforementioned embodiment, the present invention is not restricted to this. In the present invention, the acceptance portion may be provided on the robot control apparatus other than the teaching apparatus, for example. - While the device slot allowing the memory card to be read and the USB terminal are shown as examples of the acceptance portion in the present invention in the aforementioned embodiment, the present invention is not restricted to this. In the present invention, an acceptance portion allowing a portable recording medium other than the memory card and the USB memory, for example, to be read may be employed, or an acceptance portion corresponding to connection such as LAN connection (including wired and wireless connection), other than USB connection may be employed. Furthermore, the information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped work locus may be transmitted from the PC (external information terminal) to the pendant (teaching apparatus) or the robot control apparatus through the Internet if the PC (external information terminal) and the pendant (teaching apparatus) or the robot control apparatus can be connected to the Internet. In this case, an Internet connection portion of the pendant (teaching apparatus) or the robot control apparatus functions as the acceptance portion.
- While the robot system is formed to be capable of corresponding to the arbitrary shape prepared by combining the three different line types, which are a straight line, a circular arc, and an ellipse in the aforementioned embodiment, the present invention is not restricted to this. In the present invention, the robot system may be formed to be capable of corresponding to an arbitrary shape prepared by combining line types such as a sine curve and a cosine curve, for example, other than a straight line, a circular arc, and an ellipse.
- While the PC is shown as an example of the external device in the present invention in the aforementioned embodiment, the present invention is not restricted to this. In the present invention, an external device (external information terminal) such as a portable telephone terminal or a personal digital assistance (PDA), for example, other than the PC may be employed. Furthermore, while the external device and the pendant (teaching apparatus) are provided separately from each other in the aforementioned embodiment, the present invention is not restricted to this, but both may be integrated. In other words, the function of the pendant (teaching apparatus) may be integrated in the PC or the like, which is an external device, and the PC may be connected to the robot control apparatus. Alternatively, the pendant may be formed to be capable of preparing the arbitrarily-shaped welding locus thereon.
- While the processing performed by the focus calculation portion serving as the control portion is described with the flow-driven flowchart in which processing is performed in order along the lines of a processing flow for convenience of description in the aforementioned embodiment, the present invention is not restricted to this. In the present invention, the processing performed by the control portion may be event-driven processing performed on a one-event basis. In this case, the processing performed by the control portion may be completely event-driven processing or a combination of event-driven processing and flow-driven processing.
Claims (21)
1. A robot system comprising:
a robot;
a laser emitter configured to emit a laser beam to a target workpiece and configured to be moved by the robot; and
a controller configured to control the laser emitter to emit the laser beam based on information regarding an arbitrarily-shaped work path and movement information of the laser emitter and configured to determine whether or not a reference position of the arbitrarily-shaped work path on the target workpiece is located in a predetermined range of the laser emitter while the laser emitter is moving, the controller being configured to control the laser emitter to emit the laser beam to the arbitrarily-shaped work path if the reference position is located in the predetermined range.
2. The robot system according to claim 1 , wherein
the controller is configured to control the laser emitter to emit the laser beam based on the information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped work path prepared with a work path preparation device and the movement information of the laser emitter.
3. The robot system according to claim 2 , further comprising a teaching apparatus to teach an operation of the robot, wherein
the controller is configured to control the laser emitter to emit the laser beam based on the information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped work path prepared with the teaching apparatus serving as the work path preparation device and the movement information of the laser emitter.
4. The robot system according to claim 2 , further comprising a teaching apparatus to teach an operation of the robot, wherein
the controller is configured to control the laser emitter to emit the laser beam based on the information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped work path prepared with an external device serving as the work path preparation device, different from the teaching apparatus and the movement information of the laser emitter.
5. The robot system according to claim 4 , further comprising an acceptor accepting the information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped work path prepared with the external device, wherein
the controller is configured to control the laser emitter to emit the laser beam based on the information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped work path accepted by the acceptor and the movement information of the laser emitter.
6. The robot system according to claim 5 , wherein
the acceptor includes a recording medium reader capable of accepting the information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped work path prepared with the external device through a portable recording medium.
7. The robot system according to claim 5 , wherein
the acceptor is provided on the teaching apparatus, and
the information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped work path can be acquired through the acceptor based on an operation of the teaching apparatus.
8. The robot system according to claim 4 , wherein
the teaching apparatus teaches a reference position and a reference direction of the arbitrarily-shaped work path prepared with the external device, and
the controller is configured to acquire information regarding a position to be worked corresponding to the arbitrarily-shaped work path based on the information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped work path and the reference position and the reference direction taught by the teaching apparatus, and control the laser emitter to emit the laser beam to the position to be worked which is acquired by the controller.
9. The robot system according to claim 4 , wherein
the external device includes an external information terminal.
10. The robot system according to claim 1 , wherein
a shape of the arbitrarily-shaped work path includes a shape obtained by combining different types of lines.
11. The robot system according to claim 1 , wherein
the controller is configured to determine whether or not a position to be worked corresponding to the arbitrarily-shaped work path is located in a working range to which the laser beam can be emitted from the laser emitter regardless of whether or not the laser emitter is moving, and control the laser emitter to emit the laser beam if the position to be worked is located in the working range.
12. The robot system according to claim 11 , wherein,
the laser emitter includes a mirror member actuatable for emitting the laser beam to the target workpiece while changing a direction of the laser beam, and
the controller is configured to control the laser emitter to emit the laser beam to the position to be worked along the arbitrarily-shaped work path while changing the direction of the laser beam by actuating the mirror member regardless of whether or not the laser emitter is moving.
13. The robot system according to claim 11 , wherein
the controller is configured to determine whether or not a reference position of the arbitrarily-shaped work path is located in a prescribed range of the laser emitter when the laser emitter is moving, and start determining whether or not the position to be worked is located in the working range if the reference position is in the prescribed range.
14. The robot system according to claim 13 , wherein
the prescribed range of the laser emitter is set to be smaller than the working range to which the laser beam can be emitted.
15. The robot system according to claim 11 , wherein
the laser emitter is configured to be moved by the robot based on a first coordinate system based on the robot, and
the controller is configured to determine whether or not the position to be worked is located in the working range based on a second coordinate system based on the laser emitter different from the first coordinate system regardless of whether or not the laser emitter is moving, and control the laser emitter to emit the laser beam if the position to be worked is located in the working range.
16. The robot system according to claim 15 , wherein
the movement information of the laser emitter includes information regarding a current position of the laser emitter, and
the controller is configured to transform the information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped work path and the information regarding the current position of the laser emitter both defined based on the first coordinate system into the information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped work path and the information regarding the current position of the laser emitter both defined based on the second coordinate system based on the current position of the laser emitter, and thereafter determine whether or not the position to be worked is located in the working range using the information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped work path and the information regarding the current position of the laser emitter both defined based on the second coordinate system, and control the laser emitter to emit the laser beam if the position to be worked is located in the working range.
17. The robot system according to claim 11 , wherein
the controller is configured to move the working range to which the laser beam can be emitted by moving the laser emitter by the robot, and determine whether or not the position to be worked is located in the working range.
18. The robot system according to claim 13 , wherein
the reference position of the arbitrarily-shaped work path includes a first reference point related to a working start position and a second reference point related to a working end position,
a reference direction of the arbitrarily-shaped work path is defined by a direction from the first reference point toward the second reference point, and
the controller is configured to move the prescribed range of the laser emitter by moving the laser emitter along the reference direction by the robot, and determine whether or not the reference position is located in the prescribed range.
19. The robot system according to claim 1 , wherein
the movement information of the laser emitter includes information regarding a current position of the laser emitter,
the laser emitter includes a mirror member actuatable for emitting the laser beam to the target workpiece while changing a direction of the laser beam, and
the controller is configured to control the laser emitter to emit the laser beam to a position to be worked along the arbitrarily-shaped work path while changing the direction of the laser beam by actuating the mirror member based on the information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped work path and the information regarding the current position of the laser emitter in motion.
20. The robot system according to claim 5 , wherein
the acceptor is provided on the teaching apparatus,
the external device and the teaching apparatus are formed to be capable of communicating with each other, and
the information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped work path can be transmitted from the external device to the teaching apparatus provided with the acceptor to be acquired by the teaching apparatus.
21. A method for controlling a robot system, comprising:
determining whether or not a reference position of an arbitrarily-shaped work path on a target workpiece is located in a predetermined range of a laser emitter of the robot system while the laser emitter is moving; and
controlling the laser emitter to emit a laser beam to the target workpiece based on information regarding the arbitrarily-shaped work path and movement information of the laser emitter if the reference position is located in the predetermined range.
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Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
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EP2508307A1 (en) | 2012-10-10 |
US20120255938A1 (en) | 2012-10-11 |
US8742290B2 (en) | 2014-06-03 |
JP2012218029A (en) | 2012-11-12 |
JP5459255B2 (en) | 2014-04-02 |
CN102728952B (en) | 2015-03-04 |
CN102728952A (en) | 2012-10-17 |
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