Back to results
US 4,518,308 AGranted
Manipulator apparatus
AssigneeAcrobe Technology Inc.
InventorsBohdan Grzybowski, Mark T. Horbal
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Loading patent…
Loading patent…
AssigneeAcrobe Technology Inc.
InventorsBohdan Grzybowski, Mark T. Horbal
Estimating the term…
A manipulator apparatus comprises an elongated member having a number of arm sections interconnected by rotary actuators and supported by a vertical member rotatably mounted on a console. The other end of the elongated member terminates in a terminal motion actuator adapted to support an article handling member. Each rotary actuator comprises a stepping motor coupled to a harmonic drive device, wherein control pulses fed into the stepping motor will initiate motion which is reduced by the harmonic drive device and then imparted to the respective arm section. The vertical member is similarly controlled. The terminal motion actuator comprises a stepping motor rotatably supported by a rotary actuator comprising a combination of a stepping motor and a harmonic drive device. The terminal motion actuator has mounting means for supporting article handling members. The vertical member is rotatably supported in such manner that free play is totally eliminated. A control arrangement comprises a computer having hardware and software and interconnected with a CRT screen and a control panel. The computer is connected by a cable to bus means which intercouple a plurality of axes controlling devices, modulator connector devices, and data input devices. The computer has an address system to control the operation of the devices which have respective addresses. Each axis controlling device includes a microstep indexer interconnecting the axis controlling device with a motor driver which is connected to a respective stepping motor. The modular connector devices are connected to a plurality of modules which are associated with a particular type of external equipment which cooperates with the operation of the manipulator apparatus.
Manipulator apparatus comprising a plurality of elongated members serially interconnected by motion joints and defining a manipulator arm terminating in a terminal motion actuator having mounting means adapted to receive an article handling member, a motion actuator associated with each motion joint, each of said motion actuators having a power unit responsive to control pulses and a motion reducing unit for reducing the motion output of said power unit, the power unit and the motion reducing unit of each motion actuator being spaced from each other and mounted on opposite sides of the respective motion joint, means for demountably supporting said power and motion reducing units on said respective motion joint, and a movement coupling means for coupling together the respective power and motion reducing units, each of said power units comprising a DC stepping motor and each of said motion reducing units comprising a harmonic drive device, said terminal motion actuator having a terminal power unit responsive to control pulse for actuating said mounting means.
A manipulator apparatus comprising a base means for rotatably supporting an upright elongated member on said base, an upper arm section, first means for rotatably supporting one end of said upper arm section on the end of said upright member, a lower arm section, second means for rotatably supporting one end of said lower arm section from the other end of said upper arm section, and third means, secured to the other end of said lower arm section, for rotatably and pivotally supporting a mounting means, said mounting means being adapted to support various article handling members, each of said first, second and third means comprising a trunnion assembly, a power unit mounted on one side of said trunnion assembly, a motion reducing unit mounted on the opposite side of said trunnion assembly, and coupling means passing through said trunnion assembly and coaxially coupling together said power and motion reducing units.
Manipulator apparatus comprising a plurality of elongated members serially interconnected by motion joints and defining a manipulator arm teminating in a terminal motion actuator having mounting means adapted to receive an article handling member, a motion actuator associated with each motion joint, each of said motion actuators having a power unit responsive to control pulses and a motion reducing unit for reducing the motion output of said power unit, the power unit and the motion reducing unit of each motion actuator being spaced from each other across the respective motion joint, and a movement coupling means for coupling together the respective power and motion reducing units, each of said power units comprising a DC stepping motor and each of said motion reducing units comprising a harmonic drive device, said terminal motion actuator having a terminal power unit responsive to control pulses for actuating said mounting means, said trunnion assembly comprising a pair of spaced trunnion arms, means for securing a respective power unit to one arm and the respective motion reducing unit to the other arm, a hollow power shaft supported between said arms, and a coupling shaft passing through said power shaft and coupling said power unit to said motion reducing unit, means for connecting said motion reducing unit to said power shaft, and means for connecting one end of said second elongated member to said power shaft, whereby the rotational movement of said power unit is reduced by said motion reducing unit and applied to said power shaft to rotate said second elongated member in a vertical plane, wherein the other end of said second elongated member terminates in a trunnion assembly, said trunnion assembly having a pair of spaced trunnion arms, means for securing a respective power unit to one arm and a respective motion reducing unit to the other arm, a hollow power shaft supported between said arms, a coupling shaft passing through said power shaft and coupling said power unit to said motion reducing unit, and means for securing one end of a third of said elongated members to said power shaft, whereby the rotational movement of said power unit is reduced by said motion reducing unit and applied to said power shaft to rotate said third elongated member in a vertical plane, and wherein the other end of said third elongated member terminates in a trunnion assembly, said trunnion assembly having a pair of spaced trunnion arms, means for securing a respective power unit to one arm and a respective motion reducing unit to the other arm, a hollow power shaft supported between said arms, a coupling shaft passing through said power shaft and coupling said power unit to said motion reducing unit, and means for securing one end of said terminal power unit to said power shaft, whereby the rotational movement of said power unit is reduced by said motion reducing unit and applied to said power shaft to rotate said terminal power unit in a vertical plane.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.