Electric heating – Metal heating – By arc
Patent
1991-03-18
1992-08-18
Albritton, C. L.
Electric heating
Metal heating
By arc
B23K 2608
Patent
active
051401290
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to a multi-articulated arm type industrial robot intended for application to industrial welding, cutting and surface-treatment of workpieces, such as metallic plates, by an emission of a laser beam introduced from a laser beam source.
RELATED ART
Various types of multi-articulated arm type industrial laser robots have been proposed and applied to practical purposes. The applicant of the present patent application has proposed, in International Patent Application No. PCT/JP90/00104, an improvement in such a conventional industrial laser robot, wherein a laser beam can be maintained at a high energy level. FIG. 4 shows an example of such an improved industrial laser robot. As shown in FIG. 4, the improved industrial robot is a multi-articulated arm type industrial laser robot provided with at least two articulated robot arms 44 and 46 (an upper arm 44 capable of implementing a W-axis swing motion, and a lower arm 46 capable of implementing a U-axis swing motion, referred to herein as "a first robot arm" and "a second robot arm", respectively) held directly or through a swivel body 42 on a robot base 41, a robot wrist 48 held on the extremity of the articulated first robot arm 44 and the second robot arm 46 to emit a laser beam, and a laser beam passage means 50 which includes a hollow ball-spline shaft 54 having one end connected to the joint of the first robot arm 44 and the second robot arm 46 the laser beam passae means further includes, ball-spline nut combined with the ball-spline shaft 54, capable of stretching and contracting in response to the swing motions of the first and the second robot arms 44 and 46 relative to each other. The laser beam passage means 50 extends outside the arms 44 and is 46, and capable of guiding a laser beam guided thereto by a laser beam conduit 62 from outside the robot unit to the robot wrist by using the least necessary number of built-in laser beam reflecting mirrors.
This improved multi-articulated industrial laser robot, however, has the problem in some cases of, the energy of the laser beam not being effectively used, because the laser beam passage means 50 is connected to the joints of the robot unit by optical passage connectors 58 and 60. The mode of swing motion of the laser beam passage means 50 following the motions of the first robot arm 44 and the second robot arm 46 is conducted by the help of rotary arm joint mechanisms incorporated in the joints. It is possible that when the laser beam reaches the robot wrist 48, the laser beam is emitted along a passage at an angle to a predetermined passage due to the deflection of the axes of passages (optical axes) of the laser beam and the dislocation of the laser beam from the centers of the reflecting mirrors of the optical passage connector 58 caused by the rotational runout, tilt and dislocation of the joints attributable to various causes, including assembly errors remaining in the joints and an insufficient accuracy of rotary bearings incorporated into the joints. The laser beam is reflected by the laser beam reflecting mirrors based on the relationship between the angle of incidence and the angle of reflection. That is, although the laser beam emitting head of the robot wrist 48, in general, is provided with a condenser lens or the like, the laser beam may be unable to strike the condenser lens at a correct angle of incidence and at a correct position on the condenser lens due to the deflection or dislocation of the optical passages caused by the components for directing the laser beam to the condenser lens being such-that the condenser lens is unable to condense the laser beam to a spot having a predetermined diameter. Consequently, the energy of the spot of the laser beam on the workpiece cannot be increased to a level necessary for welding, cutting or surface treatment, such as burring, thereby adversely affecting the laser beam machining accuracy
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an industrial laser
REFERENCES:
patent: 4539462 (1985-09-01), Plankenhorn
patent: 4563567 (1986-01-01), Geffroy et al.
patent: 4694139 (1987-09-01), Roder
Ito Susumu
Terada Akihiro
Torii Nobutoshi
Albritton C. L.
Fanuc Ltd.
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