Abstract: A method of creating the curved surface of a body including steps of generating a plurality of intermediate sections and finding a section curve in each of the intermediate sections, in accordance with predetermined rules, from section data specifying given sections of the body and from data specifying sections curves in respective ones of the given sections, and generating the curved surface of the body from a collection of intermediate section curves in the general intermediate sections.

Abstract: An apparatus for feeding workpieces to a workpiece gripping position of a hand of an industrial robot, especially a workpiece feeder used for a limited axis robot, comprising a conveyor which is mounted on a table and has a plurality of pallets, the workpieces placed on the pallets moved intermittently to a predetermined area of the robot, characterized in that the table has a window, that each of the pallets comprises a lower plate having a central opening and an upper plate mounted on the lower plate, and that there is provided a lifting means movable vertically through the window in the table and the central opening in the lower plate, causing the upper plate to move and to lift the workpiece placed on the upper plate up to a workpiece gripping position of a hand of the robot.

Abstract: A system for preparing numerical control information wherein data necessary for machining is divided into several items and then entered, item-by-item, in accordance with certain rules, in an apparatus for preparing numerical control information. The apparatus responds by executing predetermined arithmetic and editing operations to prepare the numerical control information. To input the data, language and graphics readily understandable by one who can prepare or comprehend an ordinary blueprint are displayed on a display screen provided on the apparatus, the display using ordinary characters and symbols to request that the operator enter the required data. The operator responds to the request by using ordinary numerals, characters and symbols to enter the required data in the apparatus for preparing the numerical control information.

Abstract: A double hand applicable to an industrial robot comprises two hand units (2, 3) comprising at least two pairs, one each, of fingers (2-1 and 2-2, 3-1 and 3-2) and plate members (2-3, 3-3) of a pressing unit (4) disposed in parallel along the center axis of the fingers. The hand units (2, 3) are connected through a pressing mechanism (4) to constitute a double hand in a manner that the respective gripping center axis of the two hand units are in alignment, the respective plate members (2-3, 3-3) of the pressing unit are disposed opposite to each other and the opening sides of the respective pairs of fingers of the two hand units are directed in opposite directions to each other.

Abstract: A data input device equipped with a keyboard including a plurality of keys at least some of which are assigned both a letter of the alphabet and a numerical value, which keys are operated to generate signals representing data that comprises a letter of the alphabet and numerical values immediately following the letter. The initial operation of one of the keys produces the data indicated by the letter of the alphabet assigned to that key, and subsequent operation of the keys produces the data indicated by the numerical values assigned to the keys that have been operated.

Abstract: A double-hand unit adapted to be secured to the wrist part of an industrial robot and to be used for gripping shaft works or the like is disclosed. The double-hand unit comprises two hand units (2, 3) comprising at least two pairs of fingers (2-1, 2-2 and 3-1, 3-2), respectively, and being disposed in a back-to-back relationship with the respective opening sides of the fingers directed in opposite directions with each other. The driving mechanisms for operating the associated fingers of the hand units (2, 3) are disposed one over the other along a plane including the fingers.

Abstract: A power source for control equipment which is designed so that even if one or more independent power sources (700) are added to a main power source (600), the power source arrangement, as viewed from the control equipment supplied with power therefrom, can always be regarded as if one power source were connected thereto. The operative state of control circuit power sources (601, 701) provided in the main power source (600) and the additional power source (700) is detected by control circuit power source abnormality detecting circuits (603, 703), and the operative state of driving power sources (602, 702) provided in the main power source (600) and the additional power source (700) is detected by driving power source abnormality detecting circuits (604, 704).

Abstract: A system for restoring a numerically controlled machine tool to its former condition after a power interruption, the numerical control system being of the type in which a position sensor senses the current position of a movable member or of a drive motor of the machine tool and generates a current position signal in accordance with said current position, the movable member being positioned on the basis of a commanded position signal and the current position signal. The positional control information which prevails immediately prior to an interruption in the electric power which is applied to the machine tool and to the numerical control device is stored in a non-volatile memory before the power interruption occurs.

Abstract: A numerical control system for executing numerical control processing on the basis of a command program, and for actuating a machine in accordance with the results of the processing steps to machine a workpiece in the manner specified by the instructions in the command program. There are prepared a plurality of system variables, the values of which represent a variety of operational conditions of the machine or of a numerical control device. A user macro, having at least an identification and an instruction that employs the system variables, is stored beforehand in a memory. The command program is programmed to include a user macro call instruction. A prescribed user macro is read out from the memory by means of the user macro call instruction, thereby to allow processing in accordance with the user macro. For example, it is possible to execute processing upon reading out input/output interface signals, clock time and a variety of machine positions.

Abstract: A robot hand of an industrial robot used as a manipulating device of a bar-like workpiece having a pair of gripping members attached to a base member and arranged so as to be slid toward and away from one another so that an appropriate distance between the pair of gripping members is established depending on the difference of lengths of workpieces to be gripped by the gripping members of the robot hand.

Abstract: A numerical control method and apparatus for controlling the movement of a movable member by setting entry forbidden areas which the movable member is forbidden to enter. Entry forbidden information relating to the boundaries of the entry forbidden areas is created and stored in memory, the current position of the movable member is monitored, the entry forbidden information is used to determine whether the current position of the movable member has entered a forbidden area, and the movement of the movable member is halted when the current position thereof has entered an entry forbidden area.

Abstract: An industrial robot, mountable on a machine tool for carrying a workpiece to a spindle of the machine tool, and having an arm, one end of which is equipped with a wrist having a gripping device for gripping a workpiece. The robot further includes a main body having first and second rods with perpendicular spanning plates movably mounted on the machine tool rotatably connected to the second rod, first driving means provided on the main body for moving the arm axially of the spindle on the machine tool, and second driving means for allowing movement axially of the spindle for rotating the arm in a plane perpendicular to the axis of the spindle, with the other end of the arm serving as the center of rotation about the first rod.

Abstract: A hand (34) of an industrial robot for gripping a workpiece (14) and the like comprising: a hand base plate member (36) connected to a wrist portion (32); a plurality of pairs of opening and closing gripping fingers (38a and 38b, 38d) arranged on the palm face (36a) of the hand base plate member (36), and; an actuator (48 or 48') being arranged for each pair of the opening and closing fingers (38a and 38b, 38c and 38d) to actuate the fingers. The hand (34) is capable of securely and stably holding a workpiece having a heavy weight and/or an angular shape, or other complicated shape.

Abstract: A numerical control unit which includes a main bus connected to (a main processor) operates, according to an execution program stored in a main memory, on data from the memory or a tape reader, and applies the results of the operation to axis-control circuits in order to perform predetermined numerical control. The main memory and buffer circuits (4a to 4c in FIG. 1) are connected to the main bus. This minimizes the electrical load on the main processor. Peripheral buses are provided for each of the buffer circuits, and peripheral hardware and the axis-control circuits of individual package units are each connected to the peripheral buses.

Abstract: A numerical control apparatus for a machine tool (4) comprises a transmitting circuit (43) for transmitting each block of machining information to an abnormal operation monitoring apparatus (6), which comprises a receiving circuit (61) for receiving each of said blocks of machining information and a decoding circuit (63) for decoding the content of said received blocks of machining information, thereby, as the machining proceeds by each one block, data indicating the content of said block and a signal indicating the termination of execution of the machining operation defined in said block are supplied from said numerical control apparatus (4) to said abnormal operation monitoring apparatus (6) and said content of each block of machining information is decoded in said abnormal operation monitoring apparatus (6).

Abstract: A system for operating an induction motor at variable speeds, which is particularly effective when an induction motor is to rotate at a very low speed of several r.p.m. or less. The system produces polyphase sinusoidal signals of a frequency which corresponds to the difference between a command speed and the actual speed of the induction motor, the number of phases of the sinusoidal signals being equal to the number of phases at which the induction motor operates, a sinusoidal carrier wave having a constant frequency of from 50 to 400 Hz and a constant amplitude, and polyphase induction motor drive signals formed by modulating the carrier wave by the polyphase sinusoidal signals. The induction motor drive signals are amplified up to a prescribed value and then applied to the induction motor to energize the stator for each respective input phase so that the rotor of the induction motor will be caused to rotate at a very low speed.

Abstract: An industrial robot having a robot hand attached to a robot arm, a rotary motion unit supporting therein the robot arm, a vertical motion unit on which the rotary motion unit is disposed, and a vertical hollow structure extending through the vertical and rotary motion units and defining therein a vertically extending wiring and piping space.

Abstract: The direction of pick feed is determined by a feed-direction signal produced based on the result of decision by a phase decision circuit and the direction of pick feed inputted from an input unit, and the pick feed is effected by a contour trace. In the case of tracing a hemispherical model, the pick feed can be achieved in a plane parallel to the X-Y plane. The feed-direction signal indicates whether the direction of tangential velocity is to be +90.degree. or -90.degree. with respect to the normal direction. A velocity arithmetic circuit inverts the polarity of its output, a tangential-direction velocity signal, depending on the binary value of the feed-direction signal. Motors are driven by the outputs from amplifiers selected by a gate circuit, by which, in the case of tracing the hemispherical model, the pick feed plane is made to correspond to that in the case of a contour trace, wherein the pick feed can be effected in a plane parallel to the X-Y plane.

Abstract: During machining of a workpiece, the feed of the wire electrode and the discharge for the machining are stopped and the wire electrode is moved in a direction perpendicular to the machining path until it contacts the wall of the workpiece. The size of the spark gap is then detected from the position where the wire electrode contacts the workpiece. A desired offset value is calculated from the detected size of the spark gap and the known wire diameter. The machining path is corrected so that the center of the wire electrode lies at a position offset by the desired offset value relative to a desired profile.

Abstract: An industrial robot, having a manipulative robot hand for mounted on a vertically movable portion thereof moved by a vertical drive, provided with a load reducing pneumatic cylinder for applying a constant upward force to the vertically movable portion during the vertical movement of the portion and an air storage tank or tanks directly connected to the pneumatic cylinder for continuously supplying air under a desired fixed pressure. The upward force contributes to reducing a load applied to the vertical drive. The air storage tank or tanks contributes to ensuring mechanical rigidity of the industrial robot.