# US 11,440,200 B2 · Monitoring method > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 11,440,200 B2 - Document ID: US11440200B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 16/766,858 - Filed: 2018-09-10 - Published: 2020-09-24 - Granted: 2022-09-13 - Earliest claimed: 2017-11-24 - Assignees: Kawasaki Jukogyo Kabushiki Kaisha - Applicants: Kawasaki Jukogyo Kabushiki Kaisha - Inventors: Masaya Yoshida; Hiroyuki Okada; Atsushi Nakaya - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11440200B2 ## CPC - B25J 11/0095: {Manipulators transporting wafers} - B25J 9/12: electric - B25J 9/1674: {characterised by safety, monitoring, diagnostic} - G01M 99/005: {Testing of complete machines, e.g. washing-machines or mobile phones (testing of machine parts G01M13/00; testing of electric apparatus or components G01R31/50)} - G01M 99/008: {by doing functionality tests} - Y02P 90/02: Total factory control, e.g. smart factories, flexible manufacturing systems [FMS] or integrated manufacturing systems [IMS] - B25J: MANIPULATORS; CHAMBERS PROVIDED WITH MANIPULATION DEVICES ({manipulators specially adapted for use in surgery A61B34/70; manipulators used in cleaning hollow articles B08B9/04}; manipulators associated with rolling mills B21B39/20; manipulators associated with forging machines B21J13/10; {manipulators associated with picking-up and placing mechanisms B23P19/007}; means for holding wheels or parts thereof B60B30/00; {vehicles with ground-engaging propulsion means, e.g. walking members B62D57/02, B62D57/032; devices for picking-up and depositing articles or materials between conveyors B65G47/90, B65G47/91; manipulators with gripping or holding means for transferring packages B65H67/065}; cranes B66C; {manipulators used in the protection or supervision of pipe-line installations F17D5/00; walking equipment adapted for nuclear steam-generators F22B37/006}; manipulators specially adapted for, or associated with, nuclear reactors G21C; {apparatus used for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor H10P72/50}) - G01M: TESTING STATIC OR DYNAMIC BALANCE OF MACHINES OR STRUCTURES; TESTING OF STRUCTURES OR APPARATUS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR - Y02P: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES IN THE PRODUCTION OR PROCESSING OF GOODS ## Abstract A method of monitoring a robot including a plurality of actuators and configured to perform a predetermined process operation, the method including: a preliminary operation step of causing the robot to perform the predetermined process operation one or more times and detecting, in each of a plurality of process phases, assigned monitoring parameters for the actuators operating in the process phase; a ranking step of deriving a load level based on a predetermined load evaluation procedure for each of the monitoring parameters detected in the preliminary operation step and ranking all of the detected monitoring parameters in decreasing order of the load level; and a normal operation step of monitoring primarily a monitoring parameter highly ranked in the ranking step, wherein the monitoring is performed for the actuator that operates in the process phase in which the highly ranked monitoring parameter was detected. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method of monitoring a robot including a plurality of actuators and configured to perform a predetermined process operation, wherein at least one of the actuators is set as a monitoring target, at least one type of monitoring parameter related to operation of the actuator is assigned to the or each actuator set as the monitoring target, the predetermined process operation includes a plurality of process phases which are performed sequentially in time, and the at least one actuator set as the monitoring target operates in each of the process phases, the method comprising: a preliminary operation step of causing the robot to perform the predetermined process operation one or more times and detecting, in each of the process phases, the or each assigned monitoring parameter for the or each actuator operating as the monitoring target in the process phase; a ranking step of deriving a load level based on a predetermined load evaluation procedure for each of the monitoring parameters detected in the preliminary operation step and ranking all of the detected monitoring parameters in decreasing order of the load level; and a normal operation step of monitoring primarily a monitoring parameter highly ranked in the ranking step, wherein the monitoring is performed for the actuator that operates in the process phase in which the highly ranked monitoring parameter was detected. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the actuators are motors mounted on at least one joint shaft of the robot. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein in the normal operation step, only the monitoring parameter highly ranked in the ranking step is monitored for the actuator that operates in the process phase in which the highly ranked monitoring parameter was detected. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein at least one of position deviation, speed deviation, acceleration deviation, and current value which are related to the operation of the actuator is assigned as the monitoring parameter. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the monitoring parameters are assigned to each actuator. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the process phases are defined by dividing the predetermined process operation so that each process phase corresponds to a work or motion performed by the robot. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein once the ranking step is completed, a notification of completion of the ranking step is provided. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein a warning is given when the load level of the actuator under monitoring in the normal operation step exceeds a predetermined threshold. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, wherein the robot is a transfer robot configured to perform the predetermined process operation in a manufacturing site. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The method according to claim 9, wherein the manufacturing site is a semiconductor manufacturing site, and the robot is a transfer robot configured to transfer semiconductor wafers.