Patents by Inventor Tetsuaki Kato

Tetsuaki Kato has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 10046378
    Abstract: A bending robot takes out a workpiece stored on a stacker while contacting its end face with a storage reference flat plane of the stacker, and then supplies it to a bending machine. The bending robot includes a main body movable parallel to the storage reference flat plane, an arm portion supported by the main body and capable of positioning above the stacker, and a distance sensor provided in the arm portion for measuring a distance to the workpiece stored on the stacker in a contactless manner. According to the bending robot, bending can be done with high efficiency.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 28, 2016
    Date of Patent: August 14, 2018
    Assignee: AMADA HOLDING CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Tetsuaki Kato, Atsushi Yamagishi, Daiya Uchida
  • Publication number: 20180015619
    Abstract: A bending robot takes out a workpiece stored on a stacker while contacting its end face with a storage reference flat plane of the stacker, and then supplies it to a bending machine. The bending robot includes a main body movable parallel to the storage reference flat plane, an arm portion supported by the main body and capable of positioning above the stacker, and a distance sensor provided in the arm portion for measuring a distance to the workpiece stored on the stacker in a contactless manner. According to the bending robot, bending can be done with high efficiency.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 28, 2016
    Publication date: January 18, 2018
    Applicant: AMADA HOLDINGS CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Tetsuaki KATO, Atsushi YAMAGISHI, Daiya UCHIDA
  • Patent number: 9802286
    Abstract: A robot control system provided in a machining system including a robot and a machine tool. The robot control system includes a robot controller controlling the robot, a portable teach pendant connected to the robot controller, and a communication network adapted to connect the robot controller to a machine tool controller controlling the machine tool. The teach pendant includes a display section configured to display information relating to the robot and the machine tool. The robot controller includes a processing section configured to obtain information relating to the machine tool from the machine tool controller through the communication network, make the display section of the teach pendant display a machine tool-related screen in accordance with a given screen program, and make the machine tool-related screen of the display section of the teach pendant display the information, as obtained, relating to the machine tool.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 28, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 31, 2017
    Assignee: FANUC LTD
    Inventors: Hiroji Nishi, Tetsuaki Kato
  • Patent number: 9616570
    Abstract: A robot controller making a robot execute tasks including several work units in a parallel manner for several workpieces, in accordance with several operation programs for individually commanding the work units. The robot controller includes an information collecting section collecting state information showing, in real time, a state of an environment of the robot; a program selecting section selecting a first executable program satisfying a task starting condition, from operation programs ready to be executed for workpieces, based on the state information; a processing section processing, for execution, the first executable program; and a program-completion judging section judging whether the processing section has completed a processing of the first executable program.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 6, 2006
    Date of Patent: April 11, 2017
    Assignee: FANUC LTD
    Inventors: Ryo Nihei, Tetsuaki Kato, Hiroji Nishi
  • Patent number: 9579707
    Abstract: A work processing apparatus upwardly turns a wrist of a vertical articulated robot to retract a hand that is holding a work to a position where the hand and work do not interfere with a press brake. In this state, an engaging projection arranged at a front end of an upper arm or at the wrist is inserted into an engaging hole of a lower die of the press brake and the vertical articulated robot is operated to move the lower die along a groove of a die holder.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 7, 2013
    Date of Patent: February 28, 2017
    Assignee: AMADA COMPANY, LIMITED
    Inventors: Tetsuaki Kato, Atsushi Yamagishi, Daiya Uchida
  • Patent number: 9241100
    Abstract: A portable device has a display, a display processor displays a magnification image on a screen of the display, and an input device. The portable device further has a display-area shift processor that shifts the magnification-image-display area in accordance to an input operation administered to the input device, and a position sensor that detects an angle of inclination of the body. Then, The display processor changes the magnification-image-display area to an image area that is inclined by an angle corresponding to the angle of inclination, and the display-area shift processor changes shift directions of the magnification-image-display area from vertical and lateral directions of the original image to directions that are perpendicular to each other and correspond to inclined vertical and lateral directions rotated by the angle of inclination.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 4, 2014
    Date of Patent: January 19, 2016
    Assignee: RICOH IMAGING COMPANY, LTD.
    Inventor: Tetsuaki Kato
  • Publication number: 20150209852
    Abstract: A work processing apparatus upwardly turns a wrist of a vertical articulated robot to retract a hand that is holding a work to a position where the hand and work do not interfere with a press brake. In this state, an engaging projection arranged at a front end of an upper arm or at the wrist is inserted into an engaging hole of a lower die of the press brake and the vertical articulated robot is operated to move the lower die along a groove of a die holder.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 7, 2013
    Publication date: July 30, 2015
    Applicant: AMADA COMPANY, LIMITED
    Inventors: Tetsuaki Kato, Atsushi Yamagishi, Daiya Uchida
  • Publication number: 20150156409
    Abstract: A portable device has a display, a display processor displays a magnification image on a screen of the display, and an input device. The portable device further has a display-area shift processor that shifts the magnification-image-display area in accordance to an input operation administered to the input device, and a position sensor that detects an angle of inclination of the body. Then, The display processor changes the magnification-image-display area to an image area that is inclined by an angle corresponding to the angle of inclination, and the display-area shift processor changes shift directions of the magnification-image-display area from vertical and lateral directions of the original image to directions that are perpendicular to each other and correspond to inclined vertical and lateral directions rotated by the angle of inclination.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 4, 2014
    Publication date: June 4, 2015
    Applicant: PENTAX RICOH IMAGING COMPANY, LTD.
    Inventor: Tetsuaki KATO
  • Patent number: 8931968
    Abstract: A portable device has a display, a display processor displays a magnification image on a screen of the display, and an input device. The portable device further has a display-area shift processor that shifts the magnification-image-display area in accordance to an input operation administered to the input device, and a position sensor that detects an angle of inclination of the body. Then, The display processor changes the magnification-image-display area to an image area that is inclined by an angle corresponding to the angle of inclination, and the display-area shift processor changes shift directions of the magnification-image-display area from vertical and lateral directions of the original image to directions that are perpendicular to each other and correspond to inclined vertical and lateral directions rotated by the angle of inclination.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 1, 2012
    Date of Patent: January 13, 2015
    Assignee: Pentax Ricoh Imaging Company, Ltd.
    Inventor: Tetsuaki Kato
  • Patent number: 8873881
    Abstract: A dust detection system, comprising a receiver, a dust extraction block, a memory and an image correction block, is provided. The receiver receives an image signal. The dust extraction block generates a dust image signal on the basis of the image signal. The memory stores an intrinsic-flaw image signal corresponding to an intrinsic-flaw image including sub-images of dust that the dust extraction block extracts in initializing. The image correction block generates a corrected dust-image signal on the basis of the intrinsic-flaw image signal and a normal dust-image signal. The normal dust-image signal corresponds to a normal dust image including sub-image of dust that the dust extraction block extracts after initializing. The corrected dust image is the normal dust image that sub-images of dust in the intrinsic-flaw image are deleted from.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 21, 2009
    Date of Patent: October 28, 2014
    Assignee: Pentax Ricoh Imaging Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Tetsuaki Kato, Naoto Kawanami, Satoru Horita
  • Patent number: 8860854
    Abstract: A camera a has an image sensor; an exposure controller that conducts a main exposure and a dark exposure, in order, when a long-exposure shooting is carried out; an image signal processor that processes image-pixel signals that are generated by the main exposure and are read from the image sensor; and a noise reduction processor that reduces dark current components in the image-pixel signals on the basis of dark current components in the dark exposure. The exposure controller operates the image sensor for heating between the main exposure and the dark exposure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 3, 2012
    Date of Patent: October 14, 2014
    Assignee: Pentax Ricoh Imaging Company, Ltd.
    Inventor: Tetsuaki Kato
  • Patent number: 8600555
    Abstract: A taught point correcting device for correcting a taught point in an operation program of a robot. The device includes a judging section judging whether position data of any of a plurality of different taught points, previously taught and included in an operation program, has been corrected or not; and a data correcting section correcting, when the judging section judges that position data of a first taught point among the different taught points has been corrected, position data of a correlative taught point having a relative positional relationship with the first taught point, in accordance with a taught-point rule previously prescribing the relative positional relationship between the different taught points. The device may also include a storing section storing the taught-point rule. The taught-point rule may include a rule prescribing a distance between any two taught points among the different taught points.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 5, 2011
    Date of Patent: December 3, 2013
    Assignee: FANUC Ltd
    Inventors: Ryo Nihei, Tetsuaki Kato, Hiroji Nishi
  • Publication number: 20130033625
    Abstract: A camera a has an image sensor; an exposure controller that conducts a main exposure and a dark exposure, in order, when a long-exposure shooting is carried out; an image signal processor that processes image-pixel signals that are generated by the main exposure and are read from the image sensor; and a noise reduction processor that reduces dark current components in the image-pixel signals on the basis of dark current components in the dark exposure. The exposure controller operates the image sensor for heating between the main exposure and the dark exposure.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 3, 2012
    Publication date: February 7, 2013
    Applicant: PENTAX RICOH IMAGING COMPANY, LTD.
    Inventor: Tetsuaki KATO
  • Patent number: 8355817
    Abstract: A robot system including a robot arm driven by a servo motor; and a robot controller controlling an operation of the robot arm. The robot system further comprises a first detection section detecting a rotation amount of the servo motor; a second detection section attached to a tip portion of the robot arm, and detecting a velocity or acceleration of the tip portion of the robot arm; a computation section computing the velocity or acceleration of the tip portion of the robot arm based on values detected by the first detection section, and computing a deviation between this computed velocity or acceleration and the velocity or acceleration detected by the second detection section; and an emergency stop section for bringing the servo motor to an emergency stop when a magnitude of the deviation computed by the computation section is greater than a reference value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 11, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 15, 2013
    Assignee: FANUC Corporation
    Inventors: Ryo Nihei, Tetsuaki Kato, Takeaki Aramaki, Tomoyuki Yamamoto
  • Patent number: 8271131
    Abstract: A robot with a learning control function is disclosed. The robot includes a robot mechanism unit, a learning control unit for obtaining data on positional deviation of the robot mechanism unit upon execution of a task program and executing a learning control for calculating a learning correction amount in order to decrease the positional deviation of the robot mechanism unit below a certain value, a normal control unit for executing a learning operation of the robot mechanism unit in order to obtain the data during the learning control and executing an actual operation of the robot mechanism unit based on the learning correction amount calculated by the learning control unit after executing the learning control, and an anti-exception processing unit for executing an anti-exception process in the case where an exception process occurs during the learning operation or the actual operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 17, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 18, 2012
    Assignee: Fanuc Corporation
    Inventors: Tetsuaki Kato, Masakazu Ichinose, Soichi Arita, Kiyonori Inaba, Hajime Suzuki
  • Patent number: 8271134
    Abstract: A robot having a learning control function is disclosed. The robot includes a robot mechanism unit with a sensor on a part to be positionally controlled and a control unit for controlling the operation of the robot mechanism unit. The control unit includes a normal control unit for controlling the operation of the robot mechanism unit, and a learning control unit for operating the robot mechanism unit according to a task program and carrying out the learning to calculate the learning correction amount in order that position of the part of the robot mechanism unit to be controlled which is detected by the sensor approaches a target trajectory or a target position assigned for the normal control unit. The learning control unit calculates the maximum speed override that can be set with in the learning operation, and carries out the learning to calculate the learning correction amount while increasing the speed override a plurality of times until the maximum speed override is reached.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 17, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 18, 2012
    Assignee: Fanuc Corporation
    Inventors: Tetsuaki Kato, Masakazu Ichinose, Kiyonori Inaba
  • Patent number: 8145356
    Abstract: A robot includes a traveling rail supported by struts, and a robot body attached to a slider that slides on the traveling rail. A robot controller includes a speed calculation device for calculating moving speeds of the robot hand portion on the coordinate axes of a rectangular coordinate system set for the robot controller; a comparator device for comparing the moving speeds on the coordinate axes calculated by the speed calculation device with threshold values on the coordinate axes of the rectangular coordinate system, respectively; and a halting device for halting the robot in case at least any one of the moving speeds is higher than the corresponding threshold value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 14, 2008
    Date of Patent: March 27, 2012
    Assignee: Fanuc Ltd
    Inventors: Ryo Nihei, Tetsuaki Kato, Takeaki Aramaki, Tomoyuki Yamamoto
  • Patent number: 8054027
    Abstract: A robot control unit (30) comprises: a setting means (40) for setting operating ranges of each shaft and a working tool of the robot (20); a storage means (33) for storing an inertial running distance of the robot decided by at least one of the operating speed of the robot and the weight of the working tool; and an arriving range calculation means (36) for calculating an arriving range to which the robot arrives according to the operating range, which has been set by the setting means, and the inertial running distance stored by the storage means. Due to the foregoing, while consideration is being given to the inertial running distance of a robot, the arriving range of the robot is made. Further, a display means (41) for displaying the arriving range may be provided. In the case where each shaft of the robot and the working tool deviate from the operating range, a stopping means (34) for stopping the robot may be provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 5, 2008
    Date of Patent: November 8, 2011
    Assignee: FANUC Ltd
    Inventors: Ryo Nihei, Tetsuaki Kato, Takeaki Aramaki, Tomoyuki Yamamoto
  • Publication number: 20110257785
    Abstract: A robot system including a robot arm driven by a servo motor; and a robot controller controlling an operation of the robot arm. The robot system further comprises a first detection section detecting a rotation amount of the servo motor; a second detection section attached to a tip portion of the robot arm, and detecting a velocity or acceleration of the tip portion of the robot arm; a computation section computing the velocity or acceleration of the tip portion of the robot arm based on values detected by the first detection section, and computing a deviation between this computed velocity or acceleration and the velocity or acceleration detected by the second detection section; and an emergency stop section for bringing the servo motor to an emergency stop when a magnitude of the deviation computed by the computation section is greater than a reference value.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 11, 2011
    Publication date: October 20, 2011
    Applicant: FANUC CORPORATION
    Inventors: Ryo NIHEI, Tetsuaki Kato, Takeaki Aramaki, Tomoyuki Yamamoto
  • Publication number: 20110208354
    Abstract: A robot with a learning control function is disclosed. The robot includes a robot mechanism unit, a learning control unit for obtaining data on positional deviation of the robot mechanism unit upon execution of a task program and executing a learning control for calculating a learning correction amount in order to decrease the positional deviation of the robot mechanism unit below a certain value, a normal control unit for executing a learning operation of the robot mechanism unit in order to obtain the data during the learning control and executing an actual operation of the robot mechanism unit based on the learning correction amount calculated by the learning control unit after executing the learning control, and an anti-exception processing unit for executing an anti-exception process in the case where an exception process occurs during the learning operation or the actual operation.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 17, 2011
    Publication date: August 25, 2011
    Applicant: FANUC CORPORATION
    Inventors: Tetsuaki KATO, Masakazu Ichinose, Soichi Arita, Kiyonori Inaba, Hajime Suzuki