WELDING APPARATUS AND WELDING METHOD

• US 20130026148A1
• Filed: 08/02/2012
• Published: 01/31/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 02/18/2010
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: AOYAMA, Kazuo, OODAKE, Tatsuya, SATO, Shinsaku, IWAKAWA, Mitsuo
• Application Number:
  US13/564,867
• Publication Number:
  US 20130026148A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 219/124.33
• CPC Class Codes: B23K 37/00 Auxiliary devices or processes, not specially adapted to a procedure covered by only one of the preceding main groups eye-shields for welders worn on the operator's body or carried in the hand A61F9/00 , i.e. A61F9/02; applicable to metal-working machines other than soldering, welding, or flame-cutting machines B23Q; laser protective screens B23K26/706; protective shields for other welding methods F16P1/06
• CPC Class Codes: B23K 9/235 Preliminary treatment
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/4086 Coordinate conversions; Other special calculations
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/33259 Conversion of measuring robot coordinates to workpiece coordinates
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/37116 Shape sensor leads tool, in front of tool
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/45104 Lasrobot, welding robot
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/50353 Tool, probe inclination, orientation to surface, posture, attitude

Abstract

A welding apparatus of an embodiment includes: a welding torch and a shape sensor attached to a welding robot; a shape data extraction unit extracting, from measured data measured by the shape sensor, shape data representing an outline of an object to be welded; a transformation data calculation unit calculating, based on a position and a posture of the shape sensor, coordinate transformation data for correcting the shape data; a shape data correction unit correcting the shape data based on the coordinate transformation data; an angle calculation unit calculating, based on the corrected shape data, an inclination angle of a groove of the object to be welded; and a welding position and posture determination unit determining, based on the inclination angle of the groove, a position and a posture of the welding torch.

Claims

1. A welding apparatus, comprising:

a welding torch and a shape sensor attached to a welding robot;

a shape data extraction unit extracting, from measured data measured by the shape sensor, shape data representing an outline of an object to be welded;

a transformation data calculation unit calculating, based on a position and a posture of the shape sensor, coordinate transformation data for correcting the shape data;

a shape data correction unit correcting the shape data based on the coordinate transformation data;

a point of change extraction unit extracting points of change in the corrected shape data;

a groove surface extraction unit extracting a groove surface based on the extracted points of change;

an angle calculation unit calculating an inclination angle of the extracted groove surface; and

a welding position and posture determination unit determining, based on a width of a bead, a position of the welding torch and a posture of the welding torch with respect to the inclination angle of the groove.

2. The welding apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising

a position and posture data generation unit generating, based on three-dimensional shape data of the object to be welded and the shape sensor, position and posture data representing a position and a posture of the shape sensor, which prevents an interference between the object to be welded and the shape sensor.

3. The welding apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the shape sensor has an illumination device and an imaging device.

4. The welding apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a slider device having a plurality of shafts; and

a control device controlling the slider device based on the determined welding position and posture,

wherein the welding robot is mounted on any one of the plurality of shafts.

7. The welding apparatus according to claim 4, wherein

the plurality of shafts include a shaft in a first linear direction, a shaft in a second direction different from the first linear direction, and a rotation shaft.

5. A welding method, comprising:

controlling a position and a posture of a shape sensor with respect to an object to be welded, based on position and posture data;

extracting shape data representing an outline of the object to be welded, from measured data measured by the shape sensor whose position and posture are controlled based on the position and posture data;

calculating coordinate transformation data for correcting the shape data, based on the position and posture data;

correcting the shape data using the coordinate transformation data;

extracting a plurality of points of change in shape, from the corrected shape data;

extracting a plurality of points of change in shape corresponding to end portions of a bead, from the corrected shape data;

calculating a width of the bead and an inclination angle of a groove surface, based on the corrected shape data and the plurality of points of change in shape;

determining welding conditions, and a position of the welding torch and a posture of the welding torch with respect to the inclination angle of the groove surface, based on the width of the bead; and

performing welding based on the welding conditions, and the position and the posture of the welding torch.

6. The welding method according to claim 5, further comprising:

determining third position and posture data representing positions and postures of the shape sensor and the welding torch of the welding apparatus, on a vertical plane of a weld line and at an angle passing through a center of an angle between a pair of groove surfaces, by using three-dimensional shape data of the object to be welded;

confirming presence/absence of an interference between the welding apparatus and the object to be welded, when the shape sensor and the welding torch are disposed to correspond to the third position and posture data; and

determining, when the presence of the interference is confirmed, position and posture data representing positions and postures of the shape sensor and the welding torch, which prevents the interference between the welding apparatus and the object to be welded.