Numerical control device for use with a machine tool

Abstract: A numerical control device (CPU) stores dimensional details of a workpiece, a chuck, and a tailstock as coordinate data items in a memory, computes the positions and shapes of the workpiece, the chuck, and the tailstock based on the coordinate data items, and displays the workpiece, the chuck, and the tailstock as graphic patterns on a display unit based on the computed results. The computation may be simplified by using coordinates of a relative coordinate system as the coordinate data items for graphic display.

Description: The invention relates to a numerical control device according to the preamble of claim 1. Such a numerical control device is known from "Zeitschrift für wirtschaftliche Fertigung, 1981, vol. 8, pages 355-359". This document discloses a numerical control device including a CNC-controller controlling a lathe having first and second holder means, i.e. a chuck and a tail stock, for jointly holding a workpiece at opposite sides. Data indicative of dimensional details of the workpiece of the first and second holder means are entered to a central memory. A graphical display unit is coupled to said central memory for displaying the workpiece as held by a first holder mechanism (here the chuck). From the dimensional details entered into the central memory, a set of data for the graphical display is composed. Thus, limits or barriers for the chuck are made visible, in particular if the workpiece also comprises inner contours. One of the holder means is being disclosed as comprising a clamping means. The document "Zeitschrift für wirtschaftliche Fertigung, 1982, vol. 8, pages 353-357" relates to graphic-dynamic simulation system in connection with a numerical control program of a lathe for machining a workpiece. This document is particularly directed to avoiding a collision between workpiece and other components. For this purpose, the graphic-dynamic simulation displays a chuck, a protection zone for the chuck, a protection zone for the tail stock and the workpiece itself. It is stated that the coordinates of the protection zones can also be used for including contours of the chuck and the tail stock in the graphical display. The displays shown in this document, however, lack the representation of the display of a tail stock in connection with the workpiece. The document "Zeitschrift für wirtschaftliche Fertigung, 1981, vol. 4, pages 153-155" discloses a real-time simulation for program control and optimization in connection with the machining of a workpiece, which is displayed as being clamped by a clamping means on a display screen. Before a machining operation can be displayed on the display screen, first the contours of the workpiece are entered. In particular for cylindrical workpieces, the diameter and the length is entered. Thereafter, the workpiece is displayed clamped by one holding means on a display screen. Then, the simulation program starts, whereby a real-time representation of the operation speeds of the tool machining the clamped workpiece can be made visible. Also this document only discloses the display of the workpiece with one holder mechanism. Reference is directed to our three co-pending European patent applications EP-A-0 12 90 90, EP-A 0 12 90 91 and EP-A-0 12 71 22 of even date which disclose and claim related subject-matter. NC machining devices machine a workpiece by specifying the position of a tool with respect to the workpiece in the form of corresponding numerical information. The NC machining device can machine workpieces of complex configuration with ease and high accuracy at a high production rate. Fig. 1 of the accompanying drawings schematically shows a general machine tool controlled by a conventional NC device, the machine tool being a lathe by way of illustrative example. A cylindrical workpiece 11 fixedly clamped by a chuck 10 rotatable about a Z-axis has one end supported by a tip 12a of a tailstock 12. A cutting tool 14 is secured to a turret or tool base 13. For cutting the workpiece 11, the turret 13 is moved in the direction of the arrow Z to cause the cutting tool 14 to cut the workpiece 11. Where the NC device includes a graphic display unit, the shape of the workpiece 11, a cutting path of the tool 14, and a finished shape of the workpiece 11 are displayed on the display unit for checking the machining program for possible interference between the workpiece and the tool and monitoring the cutting condition. The machining program is checked by displaying the tool path as indicated by dotted lines as shown, for example, in Fig. 2 of the accompanying drawings. Whether the workpiece and the tool interfere with each other or not is checked by the determined values of functions which express the shape and position of holder mechanisms composed of the chuck tailstock. It has been generally proposed in "Computer Verification of machine Control Data" by L. O. Ward (published in the Proceedings of the 17th Numerical Control Society Annual Meeting and Technical Conference 27th-30th April 1980) that a machining process could be graphically simulated at a CRT by displaying the relationship between the cutter, workpiece, holding fixture and machine tool. It is also proposed that machine control data or the cutter path will be dynamically compared with models of the raw stock, part geometry and holding fixture to verify part configuration and to detect possible collision or interference and/or unmachined conditions. It is also suggested that a full range of shading should be employed to improve visibility for the user. However, the positions and shapes of the workpiece and holding fixtures are not automatically determined based on input data representing configuration and size of the workpiece. It is an object of the present invention to provide an NC device capable of automatically converting the shape of holder mechanisms of a lathe, such as a chuck and a tailstock, into a shape of a tool for holding a workpiece shape and displaying such a converted shape by processing data indicative of the shape of the workpiece. This object is solved by a numerical control device according to claim 1. Further advantageous embodiments and improvements of the invention may be taken from the dependent claims. The above and other objects, and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which a preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown by way of illustrative example, and in which: Fig. 1 is a schematic view of a lathe to which a conventional NC device is applied; Fig. 2 is a schematic view explanatory of the checking of a machining program for the lathe shown in Fig. 1; Figs. 3A and 3B are views showing the relationship between a workpiece shape and a chuck; Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram showing dimensional details of a chuck and a tailstock; Fig. 5A and 5B are diagrams showing coordinate data for graphic display; Fig. 6 is a diagram depicting the relationship between a reference coordinate system and a local coordinate system; Figs. 7A and 78 are diagrams illustrating the concepts of an absolute coordinate system and a relative coordinate system, respectively; Fig. 8 is a flowchart of processing steps according to the present invention; Fig. 9 is a block diagram of a hardware system used for executing the process illustrated in Fig. 8; and Figs. 10A and 10B are schematic views showing the relationship between a workpiece shape and a tailstock. According to the present invention, holder mechanisms such as indicated by reference numerals 10, 12 in Fig. 1 are displayed. A specific embodiment of the present invention will hereinafter be described. Figs. 3A and 38 are illustrated of graphic patterns such as that of a lathe to be applied to a graphic display unit. A first holder mechanism is composed of a chuck 10 and chuck jaws 10a for holding a workpiece 11. Where the chuck 10 is displayed as fixed in position, there is an instance where the workpiece 11 cannot be held by the chuck 10 as shown in Fig. 3A since the workpiece 11 may not be constant in shape and size. Dependent on the shape and size of the workpiece 11, the graphic pattern is converted so that the chuck jaws 10a will be moved so as to be able to hold the workpiece 11. Fig. 38 illustrates the graphic pattern as thus converted. A second holder mechanism is composed of a tailstock 12 having a tip 12a as shown in Figs. 10A and 10B. For a better understanding of the present invention, Fig. 4 shows dimensional details of the first and second holder mechanisms. Denoted in Fig. 4 at X 1 -X 8 are dimensional details of the first holder mechanism, and Y 1 -Y 7 dimensional details of the second holder mechanism. An appropriate example of graphic pattern conversion will be described with reference to Figs. 5A and 5B. Data items to be displayed as graphic patterns are all expressed as coordinate data items as shown in Figs. 5A and 5B. In Figs. 5A and 5B, coordinate data items for the chuck 10 are indicated by p n (n = 1 through 6) and coordinate data items for the chuck jaw 10a are indicated by q n (n = 1 through 6), with p 1 , q 1 serving as reference coordinates and p n , q n (n = 2 through 6) as relative coordinates from p 1 , q 1 . The relative coordinates are used for the reason that, with such relative coordinates, if a reference point is positionally changed, then all points in a certain coordinate system having such a reference point as a reference will be renewed, but with all points expressed only by absolute coordinates, if a positional change were to be made, the extent of such a positional change would have to be computed for all points in the absolute coordinate system. Reference coordinates will be simply described. Reference coordinates means having an origin of a local coordinate sysem as shown in Fig. 6. The reference coordinates are indicative of a single coordinate set or value when viewed from an outer coordinate system. With such a coordinate data construction, the coordinates can be indicated as shown in Figs. 7A and 7B. Designated at p 1 in Fig. 7A is a reference point, while the other points are representative of values of an absolute coordinate system with p 1 being the origin. Fig. 78 shows a relative coordinate system having the reference point p 1 as the origin. As shown in Figs. 7A and 7B, when a graphic pattern of p 1 (n = 1 through 4 in the illustrated example) is to be moved, only the reference coordinates p n are renewed, and offsets (p 2 through p 4 ) are added to the reference coordinates p 1 to translate the same for thereby obtaining actual coordinates, whereupon the pattern is displayed. The reference coordinates p 1 , q 1 of the chuck 10 and the chuck jaw 10a as shown in Figs. 5A and 5B can be be determined by an algorithm illustrated in Fig. 8. The algorithm of Fig. 8 is executed by a system shown in Fig. 9 whch operates as follows: Data items indicative of the shape of the holder mechanism and on the diameter of the workpiece are entered through an input unit of the NC device and stored in a memory. Based on these data items, a CPU computes the position of a chuck jaw, generates a pattern corresponding to the shape thereof, and displays the same on a display unit. The flowchart of Fig. 8 is composed of successive steps 1 through 5. A workpiece shape and a chuck shape are entered as coordinate data items in step 1. Coordinates on the outside diameter of the workpiece shape at the chuck are established as a reference point for the chuck jaw in the step 2. A point on the central axis which is spaced a distance Z 1 (Fig. 5B) from the end of the workpiece which faces the chuck is regarded as a reference point for the chuck in step 3. Actual coordinates can be determined by adding relative coordinates to the reference points thus defined in step 4. A chuck shape converted through linear interpolation of the actual coordinates is completely displayed together with the actual machining condition in step 5. Figs. 10A and 10B are illustrative of the display of the tailstock 12 or the second holder mechanism. Reference coordinates r 1 (Fig. 10A) can be established as shown in Fig. 10B by setting a workpiece end surface S on the Z-axis and setting X at "0" (on the Z-axis). The following process is the same as described with respect to the chuck 10, i.e., the shape of the tailstock is defined by a local coordinate system, and the tip of the tailstock is given by reference coordinates, which are translated and displayed. While in the foregoing embodiment the NC device has been described as being used with a lathe, the present invention is applicable to NC devices used in combination with various other machine tools such as a machining center. Although a certain preferred embodiment has been shown and described, it should be understood that many changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the scope of the appended claims.

Claims: A numerical control device including: a controller (CPU) for controlling a lathe having first and second holder mechanisms (10,12) for jointly holding a workpiece (11) at opposite sides thereof and for storing data indicative of dimensional details of said workpiece (11), dimensional details of said first holder mechanism (10) and dimensional details of said second holder mechanism (12) entered into said controller (CPU); a graphic display unit coupled to said controller (CPU) for displaying the workpiece (11) as held by said first holder mechanism (10) characterized in that said graphic display unit displays said workpiece as held also by said second holder mechanism (12); said workpiece (11) is a cylindrical workpiece (11); said controller (CPU) computes the positions of said first and second holder mechanisms (10,12) including the positions of parts (10a) of said first holder mechanism (10) movable transversally to a central axis of the workpiece (11) which are displayed gripping said workpiece (11) as relative coordinate data (p1-pn,q1-qn,r1) in terms of relative coordinate systems (p,q,r); said controller (CPU) determines (Fig. 8, steps 2,3) reference points in each of said relative coordinate systems by establishing (Fig. 8, step 2 ○) a point (q1) on the outside diameter of the workpiece shape at said holder mechanism (10,10a) as a reference point for said relative coordinate system of said transversally movable parts (10a) of said first holder mechanism (10), and by establishing (Fig. 8, step 3 ○) points (p1,r1) at respective distances (z1) from respective end surfaces (S) of said workpiece (11) facing said first and second holder mechanisms (10,12) and lying on said central axis of said workpiece (11) as reference points for the relative coordinate systems of said first holder mechanism (10) and said second holder mechanism (12); wherein one workpiece end coincides with one particular point of reference of one holder mechanism (10 or 12); and whereby when a new workpiece (11) is to be displayed held by said first and second holder mechanisms (10, 12), said controller (CPU) automatically computes the new positions of said first and second holder mechanisms (10,12) along the central axis of the workpiece (11) including the new positions of the transversally movable parts of said first holder mechanism (10,10a,) which are to be displayed gripping the workpiece (11), by only renewing said positions of said reference points (p1,q1,r1) on the basis of the data indicative of the dimensional details of said new workpiece (11). A numerical control device according to claim 1, characterized by means for entering dimensional details of said first and second holder mechanisms (10,12) as coordinate data items. A numerical control device according to claims 1 or 2, characterized in that a point at a distance (Z 1 ) from the end (S) of the workpiece (11) which faces the first holder mechanism (10) and lies on the central axis of the workpiece (11) is the reference point for the positions of the first and second holder mechanisms (10,12), wherein one workpiece end coincides with one particular point of reference of one holder mechanism (10 or 12). A numerical control device according to claims 2 or 3, characterized in that said coordinate data items comprise coordinates of a relative coordinate system. A machine tool characterized by a numerical ccntrol device according to any one of claims 1 to 4. A numerical control device according to claim 1, characterized in that said controller (CPU) adds offsets to said reference points (p1,q1,r1) for determining said new positions. A numerical control device according to claim 6, characterized in that said offsets respectively represent a difference in workpiece diameter and workpiece length between said gripped workpiece (11) and said new workpiece (11) to be displayed gripped.

Inventors: SEKIKAWA KATSUHIDE, SEKIKAWA, KATSUHIDE, SEKIKAWA, KATSUHIDE MITSUBISHI DENKI K.K.
Applicants: MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC CORP, MITSUBISHI DENKI KABUSHIKI KAISHA
Application year: 1984
Main classification: G05B19
IPC codes: G05B19