Patents by Inventor Tetsuya INOMATA

Tetsuya INOMATA 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).

  • Publication number: 20230166392
    Abstract: An industrial robot continuously and automatically executes a teaching step of learning a hand position that is the position of a hand when mounting a transported object to be placed in a predetermined position on a placing section, and a calibration step of correcting the hand position learned in the teaching step. In the calibration step, the hand is moved to the hand position identified in the teaching step, and a transported object for teaching placed in the predetermined position is mounted and taken out onto the hand. Thereafter, the hand is moved again to the hand position identified in the teaching step and the transported object for teaching is placed on the placing section. Afterward, the position of the transported object for teaching is detected by second sensors attached to the hand and the hand position is corrected based on the detection result by the second sensors.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 23, 2022
    Publication date: June 1, 2023
    Applicant: NIDEC SANKYO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Tamotsu KURIBAYASHI, Tetsuya INOMATA, Wataru MURATA
  • Patent number: 11529730
    Abstract: A robot system includes a robot controller and an object robot including a first storage part storing a hardware identifier, individual discrimination data, and device specific data including an individual difference parameter. The same hardware identifier is assigned to the object robot having the same mechanism. The robot controller includes a second storage part storing common configuration information corresponding to the hardware identifier and the individual discrimination data and the individual difference parameter of the object robot, and a control part configured, in a case that the hardware identifier corresponding to the common configuration information stored in the second storage part and the hardware identifier assigned to the object robot are collated and matched with each other, to create hardware definition information of the object robot based on the common configuration information stored in the second storage part and the individual difference parameter read from the first storage part.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 27, 2020
    Date of Patent: December 20, 2022
    Assignee: NIDEC SANKYO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hirokatsu Okumura, Jun Otsuji, Tetsuya Inomata
  • Patent number: 11407108
    Abstract: A robot may include a base; a base link connected to the base; an arm link coupled to the base link; an arm connected to the arm link; a hand connected to the arm; a storage; and a controller. The base link and arm link move so that a center of a coupling shaft of the arm link and the arm moves in a line. When the robot is within a predetermined range of a latest coordinate, the robot moves to the return-to-origin position in a direction from the transfer direction, otherwise the controller calculates the transfer path based on past teaching, and determines if there is a path close to the latest coordinate. If there is path, the controller determines whether the hand section is outside of a safe area, and if so, pulls the hand to a safe area and then moves the robot to the return-to-origin position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 9, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 9, 2022
    Assignee: NIDEC SANKYO CORPORATION
    Inventor: Tetsuya Inomata
  • Patent number: 11130232
    Abstract: A robot system may include a robot controller; and a target robot. The target robot may include a first memory to store device specific data including individual identification data; and an individual difference parameter unique to the target robot. The robot controller may include a second memory structured to store the individual identification data and the individual difference parameter of the target robot connected to the robot controller; and a controller to control the target robot on the basis of model configuration information the individual difference parameter stored in the second memory. The controller may check the individual identification data read from the first memory unit against the individual identification data stored in the second memory unit and, in accordance with a checking result, update the individual difference parameter stored in the second memory unit with the individual difference parameter read from the first memory unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 28, 2021
    Assignee: NIDEC SANKYO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hirokatsu Okumura, Jun Otsuji, Tetsuya Inomata
  • Patent number: 11014252
    Abstract: A robot system may include a robot controller; a target robot; and a host device. The target robot may include a first memory to store device specific data comprising information on the model of the target robot; individual identification data used to identify the target robot; and an individual difference parameter unique to the target robot. The robot controller may include a second memory to store information on the model of the target robot connected to the robot controller, the model configuration information, the individual identification data, and the individual difference parameter; and a controller to control the target robot on the basis of the model configuration information and the individual difference parameter stored in the second memory unit. The controller may read the model configuration information of the model and store the model configuration information in the second memory unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 25, 2021
    Assignee: NIDEC SANKYO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hiroshi Tonouchi, Tetsuya Inomata, Hirokatsu Okumura
  • Patent number: 10875726
    Abstract: A work transfer system may include cassettes to house a work; a processing apparatus; and a robot to load and unload the work. The robot may include a base, a base link connected to the base, an arm link coupled to the base link, an arm connected to the arm link, and a hand connected to the arm. The base link and the arm link are controlled so that a center a coupling shaft of the arm link and the arm moves along a straight line. The cassettes are parallel to the straight line. A via point is specified for each quadrant of coordinate system and the robot moves between stages that are a target of loading or unloading of the work and uses the via point as a via point when moving.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 9, 2018
    Date of Patent: December 29, 2020
    Assignee: NIDEC SANKYO CORPORATION
    Inventor: Tetsuya Inomata
  • Publication number: 20200338721
    Abstract: A robot system includes a robot controller and an object robot including a first storage part storing a hardware identifier, individual discrimination data, and device specific data including an individual difference parameter. The same hardware identifier is assigned to the object robot having the same mechanism. The robot controller includes a second storage part storing common configuration information corresponding to the hardware identifier and the individual discrimination data and the individual difference parameter of the object robot, and a control part configured, in a case that the hardware identifier corresponding to the common configuration information stored in the second storage part and the hardware identifier assigned to the object robot are collated and matched with each other, to create hardware definition information of the object robot based on the common configuration information stored in the second storage part and the individual difference parameter read from the first storage part.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 27, 2020
    Publication date: October 29, 2020
    Inventors: Hirokatsu OKUMURA, Jun OTSUJI, Tetsuya INOMATA
  • Publication number: 20190184557
    Abstract: A robot system may include a robot controller; and a target robot. The target robot may include a first memory to store device specific data including individual identification data; and an individual difference parameter unique to the target robot. The robot controller may include a second memory structured to store the individual identification data and the individual difference parameter of the target robot connected to the robot controller; and a controller to control the target robot on the basis of model configuration information the individual difference parameter stored in the second memory. The controller may check the individual identification data read from the first memory unit against the individual identification data stored in the second memory unit and, in accordance with a checking result, update the individual difference parameter stored in the second memory unit with the individual difference parameter read from the first memory unit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 18, 2018
    Publication date: June 20, 2019
    Inventors: Hirokatsu OKUMURA, Jun OTSUJI, Tetsuya INOMATA
  • Publication number: 20190184583
    Abstract: A robot system may include a robot controller; a target robot; and a host device. The target robot may include a first memory to store device specific data comprising information on the model of the target robot; individual identification data used to identify the target robot; and an individual difference parameter unique to the target robot. The robot controller may include a second memory to store information on the model of the target robot connected to the robot controller, the model configuration information, the individual identification data, and the individual difference parameter; and a controller to control the target robot on the basis of the model configuration information and the individual difference parameter stored in the second memory unit. The controller may read the model configuration information of the model and store the model configuration information in the second memory unit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 18, 2018
    Publication date: June 20, 2019
    Inventors: Hiroshi TONOUCHI, Tetsuya INOMATA, Hirokatsu OKUMURA
  • Publication number: 20190135556
    Abstract: A work transfer system may include cassettes to house a work; a processing apparatus; and a robot to load and unload the work. The robot may include a base, a base link connected to the base, an arm link coupled to the base link, an arm connected to the arm link, and a hand connected to the arm. The base link and the arm link are controlled so that a center a coupling shaft of the arm link and the arm moves along a straight line. The cassettes are parallel to the straight line. A via point is specified for each quadrant of coordinate system and the robot moves between stages that are a target of loading or unloading of the work and uses the via point as a via point when moving.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 9, 2018
    Publication date: May 9, 2019
    Inventor: Tetsuya INOMATA
  • Publication number: 20190134814
    Abstract: A robot may include a base; a base link connected to the base; an arm link coupled to the base link; an arm connected to the arm link; a hand connected to the arm; a storage; and a controller. The base link and arm link move so that a center of a coupling shaft of the arm link and the arm moves in a line. When the robot is within a predetermined range of a latest coordinate, the robot moves to the return-to-origin position in a direction from the transfer direction, otherwise the controller calculates the transfer path based on past teaching, and determines if there is a path close to the latest coordinate. If there is path, the controller determines whether the hand section is outside of a safe area, and if so, pulls the hand to a safe area and then moves the robot to the return-to-origin position.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 9, 2018
    Publication date: May 9, 2019
    Inventor: Tetsuya INOMATA
  • Patent number: 10173326
    Abstract: A teaching method for an industrial robot may include, while the hand is lifted up and down by the lifting mechanism, detecting, with the first sensor, a position of either the installation unit or a teaching jig to be installed on the installation unit in a vertical direction; while the hand is transferred in the first direction by the transfer mechanism, detecting, with the first sensor, a position of either the installation unit or the teaching jig in the first direction; while the hand is transferred in the first direction by the transfer mechanism, detecting, with the second sensor, a position of either the installation unit or the teaching jig in the first direction; and calculating a position of either the installation unit or the teaching jig in the second direction, in order to teach a position of the transfer object to be installed on the installation unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 6, 2017
    Date of Patent: January 8, 2019
    Assignee: NIDEC SANKYO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Tetsuya Inomata, Masami Hosokawa
  • Publication number: 20170173797
    Abstract: A teaching method for an industrial robot may include, while the hand is lifted up and down by the lifting mechanism, detecting, with the first sensor, a position of either the installation unit or a teaching jig to be installed on the installation unit in a vertical direction; while the hand is transferred in the first direction by the transfer mechanism, detecting, with the first sensor, a position of either the installation unit or the teaching jig in the first direction; while the hand is transferred in the first direction by the transfer mechanism, detecting, with the second sensor, a position of either the installation unit or the teaching jig in the first direction; and calculating a position of either the installation unit or the teaching jig in the second direction, in order to teach a position of the transfer object to be installed on the installation unit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 6, 2017
    Publication date: June 22, 2017
    Inventors: Tetsuya INOMATA, Masami HOSOKAWA
  • Publication number: 20160158935
    Abstract: A teaching method for an industrial robot may include, while the hand is lifted up and down by the lifting mechanism, detecting, with the first sensor, a position of either the installation unit or a teaching jig to be installed on the installation unit in a vertical direction; while the hand is transferred in the first direction by the transfer mechanism, detecting, with the first sensor, a position of either the installation unit or the teaching jig in the first direction; while the hand is transferred in the first direction by the transfer mechanism, detecting, with the second sensor, a position of either the installation unit or the teaching jig in the first direction; and calculating a position of either the installation unit or the teaching jig in the second direction, in order to teach a position of the transfer object to be installed on the installation unit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 8, 2015
    Publication date: June 9, 2016
    Inventors: Tetsuya INOMATA, Masami HOSOKAWA