Electricity: motive power systems – Positional servo systems – Program- or pattern-controlled systems
Patent
1990-02-20
1992-04-14
Ip, Paul
Electricity: motive power systems
Positional servo systems
Program- or pattern-controlled systems
318628, 3185681, 901 25, 901 21, 74 96, 742163, G05B 1101, B25J 1800
Patent
active
051051362
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to a structure of a shaft supporter utilizing a gear box for reducing the drive rotations of a drive motor, and supporting an end portion of an elongated screw shaft, such as a ball screw shaft, for a vertical operation of a part of an industrial robot, the ball screw shaft being rotated by the drive motor.
BACKGROUND ART
An industrial robot is used as a manipulator for carrying out a handling operation such as gripping, transferring, or positioning a work piece by an end effector such as a robot hand equipped at an end of a robot arm, in accordance with a programmed command or a teaching command. A movable element such as the robot arm is sometimes positioned at a constant level with regard to the attachment thereof to the robot, and the movable element itself is driven by the drive motor. On the other hand, a robot having the following operational function is in use, in which a vertically movable element itself is moved vertically by an operational mechanism for a vertical motion having a vertically extended ball screw shaft, so that a tip end of the movable element is moved vertically toward or away from a work piece.
FIG. 5 is a perspective and schematic view of a supporter for supporting a vertically extended shaft such as the above-mentioned ball screw shaft, but does not show the vertically extended shaft. The supporter comprises a base 1 for the vertically extended shaft, two shafts 2 and a supporting member 3 projecting upward from a plate 1a of the base 1, and an upper plate 4 mounted on the tops of the shafts 2 and the supporting member 3. Furthermore, the base 1 comprises a gear box 5 at one end thereof. A lower end of a ball screw shaft, not shown, is rotatably journaled at a substantially central position of the plate 1a of the base 1, and an upper end thereof is journaled by a bearing on the upper plate 4. In general, the gear box 5 is molded as one body with the base 1 to reduce the number of steps required for assembling such a supporter for supporting a vertically extended shaft, and the above-mentioned shafts 2 and supporting member 3 are welded to the base 1 to form a one-body type supporter.
A drive motor (not shown) for driving the above-mentioned ball screwshaft is attached to the gear box protruding from the above-mentioned one body type supporter to facilitate the maintenance thereof after attachment, and rotates the ball screw shaft via a reduction mechanism, i.e., gears housed in the gear box 5, and not shown belts and pulleys provided in the above-mentioned base 1.
The above-mentioned supporter, however, is not compact because the gear box 5 thereof protrudes outward, and in particular, it is difficult to adapt same to a robot having an elongated body along the axis of a ball screw shaft.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, an object of the invention is to provide a compact shaft supporter structure without a protrusion.
In view of the above object, the present invention provides a structure of a shaft supporter for supporting both ends of an elongated screw shaft driven by a drive motor in an industrial robot, characterized by comprising an acceptable plate as a base plate, a detachable gear box fitted over the acceptable plate, journaling one end of the elongated screw shaft, attaching the drive motor thereon in parallel with the elongated screw shaft, and housing gears for transmitting the rotation of the drive motor to the elongated screw shaft, an elongated supporting member installed on the acceptable plate in parallel with the prolonged screw shaft, and a holder plate for journaling the other end of the elongated screw shaft and attached to an end of the supporting member.
The elongated screw shaft is journaled by a gear box positioned over an acceptable plate, and furthermore, a drive motor is attached in parallel with the elongated screw shaft so that a compact shaft supporter structure can be obtained to reduce a projecting area thereof on a plane perpendicular to a longitudinal direction of the elongated screw
REFERENCES:
patent: 3481499 (1969-12-01), Pierson et al.
patent: 4289441 (1981-09-01), Inaba et al.
patent: 4690010 (1987-09-01), Matsumoto et al.
patent: 4738576 (1988-04-01), Eberle et al.
Hamura Masayuki
Ito Susumu
Tanaka Akira
Torii Nobutoshi
Fanuc Ltd.
Ip Paul
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