US-12617089-B2 - Teaching program generation device

Abstract

To generate a correct path for a robot to perform a certain action while avoiding interference. The teaching program generation device generates a teaching program for teaching a robot a predetermined action, based on information about the robot and its surroundings. The device includes an acquisition unit that acquires, from a robot controller that controls driving of the robot, information to be used for the robot to perform the predetermined action while avoiding interference, and a teaching program generation unit that generates a movement path for the robot to perform the predetermined action while avoiding interference, based on the information.

Inventors

• Makoto IKEGUCHI

Assignees

• DAIHEN CORPORATION

Dates

Publication Date

20260505

Application Date

20231024

Priority Date

20230531

Claims (3)

1. 1 . A portable terminal comprising: a camera configured to capture an image of a robot, to which a marker is attached, and surroundings of the robot; a processor configured to: acquire, from a robot controller that controls driving of the robot, information indicating a type of the robot and information indicating a type of a tool replaceably attached to the robot; based on the image captured by the camera, the information indicating the type of the robot, and the information indicating the type of the tool replaceably attached to the robot, calculate positional relationships, on a three-dimensional coordinate system that is based on the marker, between the robot and one or more objects present in the surroundings of the robot; and based on a result of the calculation, generate a program that causes the robot to perform a predetermined action to avoid interference between the robot and the one or more objects; a communication interface configured to send the program to the robot controller; a recording medium that stores respective three-dimensional models of multiple types of robots and respective three-dimensional models of multiple types of tools that can be replaceably attached to the robot; and a display configured to: read out, from the recording medium, a three-dimensional model of the robot, based on the type of the robot, and a three-dimensional model of the tool based on the type of the tool; and display the three-dimensional model of the robot and the three-dimensional model of the tool that are read out, wherein the display is configured to change, based on the information indicating the type of the robot and the information indicating the type of the tool replaceably attached to the robot, a graphical user interface that allows input of one or more operation instructions from an operator to make the robot execute the predetermined action.
2. 2 . The portable terminal according to claim 1 , wherein the information indicating the type of the tool replaceably attached to the robot includes information about one or more of a shape, a size, and an inertia of the tool replaceably attached to the robot.
3. 3 . The portable terminal according to claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to acquire information about at least one of an orientation and a position of the robot when the robot starts the predetermined action.

Description

BACKGROUND Field The present invention relates to a teaching program generation device. Description of Related Art In the field of factory automation, processing is performed to prepare, in advance, programs that describe the content of a specific action for a robot to execute. This process is known as teaching. The robot moves and repeats the specified action in accordance with the program prepared in advance through teaching. Patent Publication JP-A-2021-65939, for example, describes a method that generates a path for a robot to move while avoiding obstacles. SUMMARY In the conventional process of teaching, the information about a tool attached to a robot (e.g., information about one of the shape, size, and inertia of the tool) is not used as information for generating a path for the robot, to which the tool is attached, to perform a specific action while avoiding interference. Therefore, when the tool on the robot is replaced with another tool, it is impossible to take the shape, size, or inertia of the tool, which differ from tool to tool, into consideration and generate a path for the robot to perform a specific action while avoiding interference. Moreover, in the conventional teaching, accurate information of the initial orientation or initial position of the robot when the robot starts a specific action is not used as information for generating a path for the robot to perform the predetermined action while avoiding interference. Therefore, it is not possible to take into consideration the accurate information of the initial orientation or initial position of the robot when generating a path for the robot to perform the specified action while avoiding interference. In another conventional method of creating a teaching program, an image of the robot and objects present in the surrounding environment is captured, the distances between the robot and the objects present in the surrounding environment are measured, the positional relationships between the robot and the objects present in the surrounding environment are calculated based on the captured image and measured distances, and based on the calculation results, the teaching program for teaching the robot to implement an action is created. In this method, the operator has to input initial setting values (for example, initial position or initial orientation of the robot when starting an action thereof, or the type of the tool attached to the robot). This meant that, if the position or orientation of the robot has changed or the tool has been replaced at the start of creation of a teaching program for teaching the robot a predetermined action, the initial setting values or information input by the operator are not necessarily accurate. Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to solve this problem and to allow for generation of a correct path for a robot to perform a certain action while avoiding interference. To achieve the above object, the teaching program generation device according to the present invention, which generates a teaching program for teaching a robot a predetermined action based on information about the robot and surroundings thereof, includes: an acquisition unit that acquires, from a robot controller that controls driving of the robot, information to be used for the robot to perform the predetermined action while avoiding interference; and a teaching program generation unit that generates a movement path for the robot to perform the predetermined action while avoiding interference, based on the information. By acquiring the information to be used for the robot to perform a predetermined action while avoiding interference from a robot controller, it is possible to generate a correct path for the robot to perform a certain action while avoiding interference. The information about the robot and its surroundings may be, for example, images of the robot and its surroundings, or may be point cloud data of the robot and its surroundings. The information acquired from the robot controller may include, for example, information about any of the shape, size, and inertia of a tool replaceably attached to the robot. With such information, it is possible to take into consideration the shape, size, or inertia of the tool, which differ from tool to tool, in generating a path for the robot to perform a specific action while avoiding interference, when the tool on the robot is replaced with another. The information acquired from the robot controller may include, for example, information about the orientation or position of the robot when the robot starts the predetermined action. With such information, it is possible to take into consideration the accurate information of the initial orientation or position of the robot when the robot starts the specified action in generating a path for the robot to perform the action while avoiding interference. The information acquired from the robot controller may include, for example, information indicating th