Visual sensor coordinate system setting jig and setting method

Optics: measuring and testing – By alignment in lateral direction – With light detector

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Details

348 95, 36457101, G01B 1103

Patent

active

055701906

DESCRIPTION:

BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a coordinate system setting jig for a visual sensor used in detecting the position and attitude of an object in controlling an automatic machine such as a robot, for example, and also to a sensor coordinate system setting method using the jig.
2. Description of the Related Art
A visual sensor, which includes a camera having a CCD element array and the like and an image processing device for storing and analyzing an image picked up by means of the camera, is often used for the control of an automatic machine, such as a robot, or other similar applications. Conventionally known is a system arranged as follows. For example, in performing welding, transportation, and other operations for the workpiece by using the robot, a deviation of a workpiece as an object of operation, from its reference position or reference attitude is detected by means of one or a plurality of visual sensors, the data indicative of such deviation is transmitted as correction data for the robot position or attitude to a robot controller, and the position or attitude is corrected in accordance with the correction data as the robot executes a taught operation.
Such a system must be arranged so that a coordinate system (camera coordinate system, more specifically CCD pixel array, for example) on which the image data for the object of operation recognized by each visual sensor is based and a coordinate system (usually work coordinate system) set in the robot can be integrated, and position data (pixel value data) detected based on the former coordinate system by the individual visual sensors can be converted into data (work coordinate system data) represented by the latter coordinate system.
Usually, therefore, a sensor coordinate system, which can be recognized in common by the visual sensors and the robot controller, is established so that the pixel value data detected by the visual sensors are temporarily converted into data on the sensor coordinate system, and the resulting data are further converted into data on the workpiece coordinate system on which actual robot drive control is based. (In some cases, the sensor coordinate system may be made to be identical with the work coordinate system.)
As can be inferred from the above example of application to the control of the robot, in constructing a system intended for utilizing for various purposes the object position information detected by the visual sensors, it is usually necessary for such detected information to be arranged for the conversion into objective data. More specifically, the information, such as the pixel value data, which can only be recognized directly by the visual sensors, need to be arranged so that they can be converted into the information or the data which can be represented by an objective coordinate system. In the description to follow, the objective coordinate system will be referred to generally as the sensor coordinate system without regard to the application.
In order to convert the pixel value data into the data represented by the predetermined sensor coordinate system, it is sufficient to have the sensor coordinate system recognized by the visual sensors in any way, utilizing the CPU, image processor, memories, etc. included in the visual sensor so that the correlation between the sensor coordinate system and the pixel value can be stored in the visual sensor. After this coordinate system is established once, the data represented on the sensor coordinate system can be obtained with respect to the object recognized by the visual sensor, in accordance with the aforesaid correspondence relationship stored in the visual sensor, unless the sensor coordinate system is changed. Even in case the sensor coordinate system is changed, the sensor coordinate system set in the visual sensor can be changed by utilizing a conversion program as long as the relationship between new and old sensor coordinate systems is known.
Conventionally, in a common method for setting such sensor coord

REFERENCES:
patent: 5329469 (1994-07-01), Wantanabe

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