Patent GB-1246280-A (GB)
Title: Apparatus for manipulating articles
IPC: B25J18/02
Filed: 1968-12-20
Abstract: 1,246,280. Manipulators. INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORP. 20 Dec., 1968 [2 Jan., 1968], No. 60558/68. Heading B8H. [Also in Divisions F1, G3 and G4]  In an hydraulically operated manipulator the rotary connection between a gripper member 45 and the manipulator arm and the sliding connections between the X, Y, Z members 38, 40, 42 of the arm are, in operation locked and clamped with the exception of one selected connection, whereby on actuating a common endless drive cable 69 only the released member is driven. In addition to the four modes of movement, O, X, Y, Z, above, the manipulator is capable of grip, sweep (rotation through 90 degrees about a vertical axis) and search (vibratory partsmatching such as inserting a pin in a hole) modes. The sequence of the modes and the displacement in the O, X, Y, Z modes is contained in binary code on a perforated tape, the information being fed from a tape reader to an hydraulic serial-to-parallel converter for subsequent control of a piston adder driving the cable 69, described in Specification 1,219,679. The manipulator is controlled manually from a control panel, Figs. 6-9 (not shown), connected by a tape punch to produce the required programme. Mechanical construction.-Each sliding connection between the arm members consists of guide rollers, Figs. 21, 22 (not shown) and includes a cylinder (e.g. 387, 389) and a toothed piston which is hydraulically driven into engagement with a toothed rack (e.g. 385, 388) on the associated arm member and which is disengaged by a spring when the pressure is released. The endless drive cable 69 is secured to the piston adder by a clamp 368 and passes around pulleys 369, 373-379. The rack 391 for the rotary connection between the gripper and the arm is attached to the cable 69 and is supported by guides 393, 394 adjacent the locking piston and cylinder 392. Rotation of the pulley 375 by the cable 69 causes rotation of the gripper through bevel gears Fig. 24 (not shown). The column 370, in which the Z arm member slides, is secured between upper and lower horizontal discs which are mounted for rotation about a vertical axis in a housing containing the control apparatus, Fig. 2 (not shown), and which are rotatable by a double-acting ram, Fig. 18 (not shown). Gripper.-The gripper 45, Fig. 23, comprises jaws 406 mounted on links 414 and adapted to be closed when a wedge cam 409 is driven to the left by a piston 408 in a housing 424. The gripper is mounted on the arm member 38 by a hollow shaft 412 inserted in a cavity in the housing 424 and provided with a spring loaded detent piston 413 permitting removal of the gripper if the piston 408 is not pressurized. The shaft 412 provides a fluid connection to the piston 408 and is connected to a flexible pipe 420 secured to a piston 436 in a cylinder 425. In the search mode of operation, the gripper is vibrated longitudinally of the arm member 38 by oscillations of pistons 429, 430, the pistons 429, 430, 436 being connected to an hydraulic oscillator Fig. 25 (not shown) (see Division F1).  Conveyers.-The manipulator in the preferred embodiment is programmed to transfer bolts 47, Fig. 2, from a hopper 48 into apertures 49 in workpieces 50 on a conveyer 51 which is advanced successively in synchronism with the operations of the manipulator.