Control apparatus for a multiple-axis machine tool

In a control apparatus of a multiaxis machine tool having a plurality of movable components each shiftable by a respective linear drive along a respective translation axis or rotatable by a respective rotary drive about a respective rotation axis, said control apparatus including numerical control means for supplying, in accordance with predetermined parts programs, electrically encoded reference positions for the movable components along the translation axes and about the rotation axes, said control apparatus also including pick-up means for sensing actual positions of the movable components along the translation axes and about the rotation axes and for generating electrical signals encoding the sensed actual positions, said control apparatus further incuding position control means operatively connectable to said numerical control means for generating control signals for modifying rates of linear motion of said components along said translation axes and rates of rotation of said components about said rotation axes, the improvement comprising:

• (a) memory means, including a plurality of transfer memories operativley connected to the numerical control means, for receiving therefrom and temporarily memorizing the electrically encoded reference positions;
• (b) storage means operatively connected to the pick-up means for receiving therefrom and temporarily storing the electrical signals encoding the actual positions of the movable machine tool components, the position control means being operatively connectable to said numerical control means via said memory means and to said storage means for generating the control signals in response to said reference positions, in response to the actual positions encoded in said electrical signals and in accordance with predetermined motion parameters;
• (c) a plurality of substantially similar processors included in said position control means, said transfer memories being equal in number to said processors and operatively connected to respective ones thereof;
• and
• (d) coupling means for operatively connecting to said numerical control means and to said storage means a variable number of said processors equal at most to the total number of said translation axes and said rotation axes and for enabling detection by said numerical control means of the number of processors connected by said coupling means and for further enabling communication, to each one of the connected processors by said numerical control means, of the identity of each of said components and said axes to be controlled by said one of the connected processors, said storage means being accessible in its entirety by each of the connected processors.

A control apparatus for a multi-axis machine tool having a plurality of movable components each shiftable by a respective linear drive along a respective translation axis or rotatable by a respective rotary drive about a respective rotation axis, said control apparatus comprising:

• numerical control means for supplying, in accordance with predetermined parts programs, electrically encoded reference positions for the movable components along the translation axes and about the rotation axes;
• memory means, including a plurality of transfer memories operatively connected to said numerical control means, for receiving therefrom and temporarily memorizing said electrically encoded reference positions;
• pick-up means for sensing actual positions of the movable components along the translation axes and about the rotation axes and for generating electrical signals encoding the sensed actual positions;
• storage means operatively connected to said pick-up means for receiving therefrom and temporarily storing said electrical signals;
• position control means operatively connectable to said numerical control means via said memory means and to said storage means for generating, in response to said reference positions received from said numerical control means via said memory means, in response to the actual positions encoded in said electrical signals and in accordance with predetermined motion parameters, control signals for modifying rates of linear motion of said components along said translation axes and rates of rotation of said components about said rotation axes, said position control means including a plurality of substantially similar processors, said transfer memories being equal in number to said processors and operatively connected to respective ones thereof;
• first coupling means including a central bus system for operatively connecting to said numerical control means a variable number of said processors equal at most to the total number of said translation axes and said rotation axes and for enabling detection by said numerical control means of the number of processors connected by said coupling means and for further enabling communication, to each one of the connected processors by said numerical control means, of the identity of each of said components and said axes to be controlled by said one of the connected processors;
• second coupling means including a local bus system for enabling access by each one of the connected processors to all of said storage means, said second coupling means further including a plurality of bus arbiters at least equal in number to the connected processors for controlling access of the connected processors to said local bus system;
• third coupling means including a separate line system for operatively linking said pick-up means to said storage means to enable continuous supply of said electrical signals from said pick-up means to said storage means independently of said local bus system;
• and
• fourth coupling means including another separate line system for operatively connecting said position control means to drives for said components to enable continuous supply of said control signals from said position control means to said drives independently of said central bus system and said local bus system.