Patent ID: 8423188
Filing Date: 2013-04-16
Classification: B25J,G05B

Abstract:
1. A control apparatus for a robot arm, which controls an operation of the robot arm so as to carry out a job by using the robot arm, comprising: an operation information acquiring unit that acquires operation information relating to the operation of the robot arm, the operation information including a force component; a force detection unit that detects a force externally applied to the robot arm; a grabbed position detection unit that, when a person grabs the robot arm, detects a grabbed position indicating a portion of the robot arm grabbed by the person, the portion of the robot arm grabbed by the person being a portion of the robot arm where the force detection unit is not available to detect a force externally applied to the robot arm by the person; a characteristic information acquiring unit that acquires pieces of characteristic information including (i) information relating to whether or not the force detection unit is available to detect the force externally applied to the robot arm by the person at a time when the person grabs the robot arm at the grabbed position detected by the grabbed position detection unit and (ii) information relating to whether or not there is a possibility that the force detection unit receives influences of a drag from a contact surface when the robot arm is manipulated while being grabbed by the person at the grabbed position; a control method switching unit that switches control methods of the robot arm using (i) the grabbed position detected by the grabbed position detection unit, (ii) the information relating to whether or not the force detection unit is available to detect the force externally applied to the robot arm by the person acquired by the characteristic information acquiring unit, and (iii) the information relating to whether or not there is the possibility that the force detection unit receives the drag from the contact surface acquired by the characteristic information acquiring unit; and an operation correcting unit that, during the operation of the robot arm based upon the operation information acquired by the operation information acquiring unit, corrects a value of the force component of the operation information acquired by the operation information acquiring unit by using a manipulation of the robot arm by the person and the switched control methods of the robot arm by the control method switching unit, wherein, based upon the operation information corrected by the operation correcting unit, the operation of the robot arm is controlled.