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US-20260124773-A1 - MANIPULATOR AND ROBOT COMPRISING THE SAME

US20260124773A1US 20260124773 A1US20260124773 A1US 20260124773A1US-20260124773-A1

Abstract

Embodiments of present disclosure relate to a manipulator. The manipulator includes a set of axles coupled in series, a last axle in the set of axles including a housing, extending in a first direction and coupled with a previous axle in the set of axles; a first cavity, extending through the housing; and a second cavity, arranged inside the housing and adapted to accommodate a first harness from the previous axle; and a connector, arranged on a first side of the housing, and adapted to connect the first harness with a second harness. The second harness routes through the first cavity to a second side of the housing, to be coupled to a tool coupled with an output part of the last axle.

Inventors

  • Jonas Haulin
  • Kangjian Wang
  • Ziwei Gao

Assignees

  • ABB SCHWEIZ AG

Dates

Publication Date
20260507
Application Date
20251219

Claims (13)

  1. 1 . A manipulator comprising: a set of axles coupled in series, a last axle in the set of axles comprising: a housing, extending in a first direction and coupled with a previous axle in the set of axles; a first cavity, extending through the housing; and a second cavity, arranged inside the housing and adapted to accommodate a first harness from the previous axle; and a connector, arranged on a first side of the housing, and adapted to connect the first harness with a second harness, wherein the second harness routes through the first cavity to a second side of the housing, to be coupled to a tool coupled with an output part of the last axle.
  2. 2 . The manipulator according to claim 1 , wherein the first cavity comprises: a first opening, arranged on the first side of the housing adjacent to the connector; and a second opening, arranged on the second side of the housing adjacent to the output part.
  3. 3 . The manipulator according to claim 2 , wherein the housing is a ground side of the last axle, and the last axle further comprises: the output part, coupled with the ground side, and configured to hold the tool and rotate relative to the ground side.
  4. 4 . The manipulator according to claim 3 , wherein the output part is a flange and comprises: a central hole, extending centrally in the first direction; or a lateral hole, arranged at a side of the flange and extending in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction.
  5. 5 . The manipulator according to claim 4 , wherein the second opening is aligned with the central hole.
  6. 6 . The manipulator according to claim 4 , wherein the second opening communicates with the central hole or the lateral hole.
  7. 7 . The manipulator according to claim 1 , wherein: the first cavity is cylindrical and arranged centrally in the housing.
  8. 8 . The manipulator according to claim 1 , wherein the connector is arranged at the first side of the housing adjacent to a moving portion of the previous axle.
  9. 9 . The manipulator according to claim 1 , wherein the size of the first cavity is configured to allow a connector coupled with the tool to pass through the first cavity.
  10. 10 . The manipulator according to claim 1 , wherein the connector is an electric connector or a pneumatic connector.
  11. 11 . The manipulator according to claim 1 , wherein the last axle comprises at least one the connector, each arranged on the same side or different sides of the housing.
  12. 12 . The manipulator according to claim 1 , wherein the first harness is routed internally in all previous axles in the set of axles.
  13. 13 . A robot comprising the manipulator according to claim 1 .

Description

FIELD Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to the field of robot, and more particularly, to a manipulator and a robot comprising the same. BACKGROUND A harness is required in most of robot applications. The harness can be used to for example control the motion of a tool in the robot application. The routing of the harness has an important impact on the range of motion of the manipulator and the volume of the manipulator. In general, the routing of the harness can be classified in three types: external routing, internal routing, and the combination thereof. The external routing occupies additional space around the manipulator. In general, internal routing provides good protection to the harness and less interference to the environment. However, conventional internal routing requires a bigger internal space, resulting in a large volume of the manipulator. Moreover, the internal harness may create motion limitation to the manipulator, resulting in less motion range. The conventional combination of the internal routing and external routing still has defects similar as those of independent internal routing and external routing. Thus, there is a need for a new approach for overcoming at least partly the defects mentioned above. SUMMARY In view of the foregoing problems, various example embodiments of the present disclosure provide a manipulator and a robot. In a first aspect, example embodiments of the present disclosure provide a manipulator. The manipulator comprises: a set of axles coupled in series, a last axle in the set of axles comprising: a housing, extending in a first direction and coupled with a previous axle in the set of axles; a first cavity, extending through the housing; and a second cavity, arranged inside the housing and adapted to accommodate a first harness from the previous axle; and a connector, arranged on a first side of the housing, and adapted to connect the first harness with a second harness, wherein the second harness routes through the first cavity to a second side of the housing, to be coupled to a tool coupled with an output part of the last axle. With such an arrangement, a manipulator with compact volume can be provided, and a flexible motion range setting can be provided for the last axle of the manipulator. Moreover, it is easy for a user to assemble the harness as desired. In some embodiments, the first cavity comprises a first opening, which is arranged on the first side of the housing adjacent to the connector, and a second opening, which is arranged on the second side of the housing adjacent to the output part. With such an arrangement, the second harness can be routed through the cavity via the first opening and the second opening, such that the second harness can be easily connected to the tool coupled with the last axle. In some embodiments, the housing is a ground side of the last axle, and the last axle further comprises the output part, which is coupled with the ground side and configured to hold the tool and rotate relative to the ground side. With such an arrangement, the second harness can be routed from the connector arranged at a side of the housing through the first cavity to reach the tool coupled at the output part, allowing flexible setting of the second harness. In some embodiments, the output part is a flange and comprises a central hole, which is extending centrally in the first direction, or a lateral hole, which is arranged at a side of the flange and extending in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction. With such an arrangement, the second harness can be routed through the first cavity via the central hole or the lateral hole arranged at the flange, allowing for a compact construction of the last axle. In some embodiments, the second opening is aligned with the central hole. With such an arrangement, a user can easily assemble the second harness. In some embodiments, the second opening communicates with the central hole or the lateral hole. With such an arrangement, the second harness can be routed via the second opening and the central hole or the lateral hole to reach the tool, thus enabling a compact construction and a flexible routing. In some embodiments, the first cavity is cylindrical and arranged centrally in the housing. With such an arrangement, the first cavity is easy to be fabricated, and facilitates the operation of harness routing. In some embodiments, the connector is arranged at the first side of the housing adjacent to a moving portion of the previous axle. With such an arrangement, the length of the first harness exposed outside the manipulator is very short, thereby reducing the occupation of external space. In some embodiments, the size of the first cavity is configured to allow a connector coupled with the tool to pass through the first cavity. With such an arrangement, the second harness together with a connector can be easily routed through the second cavity, thereby facilitating user assembly. I