Dual-system component-based industrial robot controller

• US 9,114,529 B2
• Filed: 03/04/2013
• Issued: 08/25/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/08/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Estun Automation Co. Ltd., Nanjing Estun Robotics Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Estun Automation Co. Ltd., Nanjing Estun Robotics Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Wu, Bo, Wang, Jiegao, Wang, Jihu, Yu, Jijun
• Primary Examiner(s): Sample, Jonathan L
• Application Number:
  US14/116,453
• Publication Number:
  US 20140074294A1
• Time in Patent Office: 904 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 9/161 Hardware, e.g. neural networks, fuzzy logic, interfaces, processor
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/414 Structure of the control system, e.g. common controller or multiprocessor systems, interface to servo, programmable interface controller

Abstract

A dual system component-based industrial robot controller having a standard operating system, a real-time operating system, a route management module, a soft bus, a driver management module, a motion control module, a PLC module, an IO module, a teach pendent interface module and a protocol stack module. The controller employs a component-based structure and the components are operated respectively under a non real-time standard operating system and a real-time operating system, and supports distributed processing. The communications and function calls among the components are carried out by the route management module and the soft bus. The components in communication are managed through the route management module. The driver management module provides communications among other modules with a consistent interface which accords to the DS402 standard, and a servo driver that accords to this interface standard can be readily integrated into the controller. A user can develop function module components and add the same to the system, and the open-type interface of the controller enables the controller to connect hardware without limitations.

Claims

1. A dual system component-based industrial robot controller of the present invention comprises:

a standard operating system, a real-time operating system, a route management module, a soft bus, a driver management module, a motion control module, a PLC module, an IO module, a teach pendent interface module and a protocol stack module, wherein

the standard operating system and the real-time operating system being a base platform for the operation of all of the component modules, the teach pendent interface module, the protocol stack module and the IO module being operated under the standard operating system, while the PLC module, the motion control module, the driver management module and the route management module being operated under the real-time operating system;

the soft bus being a customized Ethernet protocol which launches requests and communications among the modules using net addresses and function IDs, the route management module and the soft bus working together to connect other real-time and non real-time operated modules;

the route management module being employed to perform message routing and control authority judgement between different function modules and maintain a public data source of the system, wherein function modules comprising the driver management module, the motion control module, the PLC module, the IO module, the teach pendent interface module and the protocol stack module each having an interface that accords with the rules of the soft bus protocol, when interactions of the modules being required, the data being passed to the soft bus via the interfaces and finally arriving at the route management module, the route management module conducting an analysis on such requests and replies, and after judgement, corresponding data area being operated and the route management module sending orders or replies to the related modules;

the driver management module (bus management module) managing a fieldbus, a low level thereof being various fieldbus board cards or drivers of the protocol stack, the driver management module abstracting over the various fieldbus board cards or the drivers of the protocol stack, and providing therein a memory area for mapping the data abstracted from the buses, when access of other function modules to the devices connected to the fieldbus being required, the driver management module providing an identical abstract interface for the access and passing therein the access to the correct driver;

the motion control module performing trajectory planning and control of the robot, the motion control module being executed periodically, during each period, the motion control module reading the position data of the axes of the robot and calculating a new position command data with trajectory planning algorithm and updating the data, the data being maintained by the route management module and finally passed to the driver management module from which the data being passed to the corresponding hardware;

the IO module and the motion control module being operated at the same level primarily for maintaining IO data of the system and providing high level programs with common existing access to the IO data in the system;

when the high level programs having access to the IO, they being passed to the route management module via the IO module, and then passed to driver management module by the route management module, and finally sent to the corresponding hardware via the driver;

the teach pendent interface module, the protocol stack module and the PLC module being operated at the same level and being the high level programs of the IO module and the motion control module, the PLC module being operated under the real-time system, while the teach pendent interface module, the protocol stack module being operated under non the real-time system.