Canon Kabushiki Kaisha

Shuuichi Sato

Kentaro Nakamura

Mahito Negishi

Hideyuki Nishida

Haruhiko Horiguchi

Takayuki Ogawara

Yoshiharu Irei

Shoji Sasaki

Akira Yajima

Takao Yokomatsu

Isamu Okuma

Yoshiyuki Beniya

Haruyasu Ishikawa

Hidetada Asano

Yu Takahashi

Yuichi Someya

Kohei Oyu

Michinao Takagi

Satoshi Mashiko

A robot includes at least two joints having a first joint and a second joint. The first joint is provided with a first drive source, and the second joint is provided with a second drive source. A motor drive substrate for driving the first drive source and a motor drive substrate for driving the second drive source are differentiated in size.

Robot, control method of robot, article manufacturing method using robot, and recording medium storing control program

A sensor includes a structure and a detector. The detector is arranged to detect a deformation of the structure. The structure has at least four elastic sections. The at least four elastic sections are discretely disposed in an imaginary plane.

Sensor, device, system, and manufacturing method for product

Force sensors capable of measuring only forces in xyz coordinate axis directions are installed in fingertips, respectively, and forces and moment forces acting on a robot hand are calculated based on positional information about each fingertip. This structure eliminates the need for using large force sensors to thereby enable downsizing of each fingertip, and enables detection of loads and moment forces acting on the robot hand.

Robot hand, robot apparatus, and control method for robot hand

A driving device includes a driving unit disposed on a fixed member, a supporting member, an output member, an elastic member configured to couple the supporting member and the output member, a first scale, a first sensor configured to detect the rotation angle of the output shaft of the driving unit with the first scale, a second scale, and a second sensor configured to detect the relative displacement between the supporting member and the output member with the second scale. One of the first scale and the first sensor is disposed on the fixed member. The other of the first scale and the first sensor and one of the second scale and the second sensor are disposed on the supporting member. The other of the second scale and the second sensor is disposed on the output member.

Driving device and detecting device

A sensor includes a first support portion, a second support portion, an incremental encoder, a magnetic-flux generating source, and a magnetoelectric transducer. The incremental encoder includes a scale supported by the first support portion and a head supported by the second support portion. The magnetic-flux generating source is supported by one of the first support portion and the second support portion. The magnetoelectric transducer is supported by another of the first support portion and the second support portion.

Sensor and robot

An object of the present invention is to sense forces from a fine external force to a large external force with high precision, and enable high-precision control. A multi-joint robot arm has a first sensor arranged in an end portion, and second sensors arranged in joints, respectively. The first sensor and the second sensor have different detectable ranges from each other for a detectable force. A controlling apparatus selects which sensing result of a sensor should be used between sensing results of the first sensorand the second sensor, and controls a robot arm by using the selected sensing result of the sensor.

Robot apparatus, method for controlling robot, program, and recording medium

The present invention provides a force sensor correcting method which is simple and capable of performing correction, with the force sensor remaining mounted at the end of an arm without an exchange of an end effector. In the present invention, a force sensorof one robothas already been corrected, and a force sensorof the other robotis an object to be corrected. First, handsof a pair of robotsare made to abut on each other (abutting step). A detected signal of the corrected force sensorof the one robot, generated by execution of the abutting step, is converted into a measured value indicating a force or a moment (measurement step). Based on the measured value obtained in the measurement step, a value indicating a force or a moment acting on the handof the other robotdue to a reaction generated by the abutting step is obtained (calculation step). The conversion data is updated such that a detected signal, outputted by the force sensoras the object to be corrected of the other robotin the abutting step, is converted into an identical value to the value indicating the force or the moment obtained in the calculation step (correction step).

Force sensor correcting method

The present invention provides a magnetic force sensor that can precisely detect and correct variations in a magnetic field generated by a magnetic flux generating source. Therefore, a displacement magneto-electric transducer, which detects a change in the magnetic field caused by an external force, and a fixed magneto-electric transducer, where the change in the magnetic field caused by the external force does not occur, are provided to face end sides of magnetic poles of the magnetic flux generating source. The fixed magneto-electric transducer detects a variation of the magnetic field caused by, for example, changes with time and environmental variations such as a temperature rise in the interior of the sensor. On the basis of a detection amount thereof, an operational section performs a correction operation, so that a sensitivity coefficient or an offset of the displacement magneto-electric transducer is corrected.

Magnetic force sensor

A slip ring includes an exterior, a plurality of brushes, a plurality of rings, a brush fixing member that causes the plurality of brushes to contact the plurality of rings and supports the plurality of brushes, and a rotating shaft inserted into the plurality of rings and supports the plurality of rings. The slip ring also includes a reference signal generation unit configured to generate a reference signal, and a detection unit configured to detect a signal, wherein a circuit is formed by the reference signal generation unit, a first brush, which is at least one of the plurality of brushes, a first ring that contacts the first brush, and the detection unit, and wherein a state of contact of the first brush and the first ring is detected based on the signal detected by the detection unit.

Slip ring and slip ring electrical system

A force sensor that detects external force includes a sheath, a pressure member configured to be provided on the sheath, a sensor unit configured to detect force applied to the pressure member, and a slip ring unit configured to supply power or transmit signals through a contact between a brush and a ring. The sensor unit and the slip ring unit are stored in the sheath, and power is supplied or signals are transmitted between the slip ring unit and the sensor unit.

Force sensor and robot arm including force sensor

Magnetic force sensor including a magneto-electric transducer

There is provided a magnetic force sensor including: an action unit elastically supported by a supporting member; a magnetic-flux generating source including two or more magnets which are disposed so that a polarity of each of the magnetic-pole faces of the magnets is opposite to a polarity of a corresponding one of the magnetic-pole faces of the adjacent magnets in a particular direction; first magnetoelectric transducers that are individually provided at positions, the positions being positions at which the first magnetoelectric transducers oppose the magnetic-pole faces of the magnets in the action unit; and a second magnetoelectric transducer provided between the first magnetoelectric transducers. Vertical-direction components of a force are detected on the basis of outputs of the first magnetoelectric transducers, and a horizontal-direction component of the force is detected on the basis of an output of the second magnetoelectric transducer.

Magnetic force sensor sensing magnetic flux to calculate forces

A magnetic force sensor includes: an action portion on which an external force acts; a sensing unit converting a force working on the action portion into an electric signal; and an outer frame having an elastic body elastically supporting the action portion and storing the sensing unit therein. The sensing unit includes a magnetic flux generation source connected with the action portion and a magnetoelectric transducer fixed on the outer frame and the magnetic flux generation source has a magnetic body therewith that controls flow of magnetic fluxes generated by the magnetic flux generation source.

In a piezoelectric vibration type force sensor according to the present invention, vibration is restricted by a friction force between a piezoelectric body and a restricting member, and hence a range of sensing forces can be expanded compared with a case in which the vibration is restricted directly from a direction that is the same as an vibration direction. A conventional structure, in which a lead wire is soldered directly for electrically connecting the piezoelectric body to an external control circuit, causes a restriction of the vibration due to a solder attached to the piezoelectric body, resulting in narrowing the sensing range. Using the piezoelectric vibration type force sensor, the range of sensing forces can be expanded by making a state in which conducting portions of the piezoelectric body and the restricting member are not fixed but contact with each other for keeping electric conductivity.

Growing community of inventors

Kawasaki, Japan

Shuuichi Sato