TWI664507B - Automatic control apparatus and automatic control method - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention provides an automatic control device including a controller and a motor device. The motor device includes an output shaft. The controller drives the motor unit to operate in a non-fixed mode or a fixed mode. If the motor device is operated in the fixed mode, the rotation angle of the output shaft of the motor device is maintained at the target angle. When the controller determines that the rotation angle of the output shaft has changed, if the controller determines that the difference between the current angle and the target angle exceeds the threshold angle, the controller uses the current angle to reset the target angle to maintain the output shaft at the reset target angle . In addition, an automatic control method is also proposed.

Description

Automatic control equipment and automatic control method

The present invention relates to a control technology, and more particularly, to an automatic control device and an automatic control method.

With the advancement of science and technology, the application of automatic control technology in life is becoming more and more popular, especially the robot or robot arm composed of multi-axis controllers. This multi-axis control system has multiple joints and joints that allow movement in flat or three-dimensional space or movement using linear displacement. The structure is composed of a mechanical body, a control device, a servo mechanism and a sensor, and a certain designated action is set by a program according to the operation requirements.

For example, if a general robot or robot arm is to set a certain posture, the controller of the robot or robot arm must first perform a relaxation operation on the motor device at the joint. Then, after the user pulls the robot or robot arm to a specific position, the controller of the robot or robot arm reads and records the rotation angle of the motor device. However, if the robot or robot arm has multiple joints, the above operation will not be easy. In other words, since the robot or the robotic arm sags under the influence of gravity, it is difficult for the user to maintain the posture of the robot or the robotic arm. Therefore, how to design an automatic control device that can have a convenient posture adjustment function is one of the important topics in the field.

The invention provides an automatic control device and an automatic control method, which can effectively adjust the rotation angle of the output shaft according to the amount of torque applied to the output shaft of the motor device. Therefore, the automatic control device of the present invention can have a convenient posture adjustment function.

The automatic control device of the present invention includes a motor device and a controller. The motor device includes an output shaft. The controller is coupled to the motor device. The controller drives the motor device to operate in a non-fixed mode or a fixed mode. When the motor device is operated in the non-fixed mode, the output shaft can be arbitrarily rotated. When the motor device is operated in the fixed mode, the output shaft is in a non-arbitrary rotation state. When the motor device is operated in the fixed mode, a rotation angle of the output shaft is maintained at a target angle. When the controller determines that the rotation angle of the output shaft has changed, if the controller determines that the difference between the current angle and the target angle exceeds a threshold angle, the controller uses the current angle to restart The target angle is set so that the output shaft is maintained at the target angle that is reset.

The automatic control method of the present invention is applicable to automatic control equipment. The automatic control device includes a controller and a motor device. The motor device includes an output shaft. The automatic control method includes: driving the motor device to operate in a non-fixed mode or a fixed mode by the controller, wherein when the motor device is operated in the non-fixed mode, an output shaft of the motor device is Arbitrary rotation state, wherein when the motor device is operated in the fixed mode, the output shaft is in a non-arbitrary rotation state; when the motor device is operated in the fixed mode, the rotation angle of the output shaft is maintained At the target angle; when the controller determines that the rotation angle of the output shaft has changed, if the controller determines that the difference between the current angle and the target angle exceeds a threshold angle, the controller uses the The current angle is reset to the target angle so that the output shaft is maintained at the reset target angle.

Based on the above, the automatic control device and the automatic control method of the present invention provide an operation mode that can decide whether to fine-tune the rotation angle of the output shaft of the motor device according to the rotation angle change made by the user's applied force, so that Automatic control equipment provides convenient posture adjustment.

In order to make the above features and advantages of the present invention more comprehensible, embodiments are hereinafter described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In order to make the content of the present invention easier to understand, the following presents multiple embodiments to describe the present invention, but the present invention is not limited to the illustrated multiple embodiments. Appropriate combinations are also allowed between embodiments. In addition, wherever possible, the same reference numbers are used in the drawings and embodiments to refer to the same or similar components.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an automatic control device according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 1, the automatic control apparatus 100 includes a controller 110 and a motor device 120. The motor device 120 is coupled to the controller 110. The motor device 120 includes an output shaft 121, an output shaft encoder 123, a control module 125, a motor 127, and a gear module 129. In this embodiment, the control module 125 is coupled to the motor 127 to control the motor 127. The motor 127 is combined with the output shaft 121 and the gear module 129 to drive the output shaft 121 and the gear module 129. The output shaft encoder 123 is coupled to the output shaft 121. In one embodiment, the output shaft encoder 123 includes, for example, a variable resistor having an angular range of 300 degrees. For example, the two ends of the variable resistor may be coupled to a voltage of 5 volts, and when the output shaft 121 rotates, the resistance value of the variable resistor changes corresponding to the rotation angle of the output shaft 121. Therefore, the output shaft encoder 123 obtains the rotation angle of the output shaft 121 correspondingly by reading the resistance value of the variable resistor.

In this embodiment, the motor device 120 may be, for example, a smart servo motor, but the present invention is not limited thereto. In this embodiment, the motor device 120 receives a command from the controller 110 and performs a corresponding operation. The commands of the controller 110 are, for example, a fixed command, a release command, a read rotation angle command, and a set target angle command. In this embodiment, the fixed command may mean that the output shaft 121 of the motor device 120 is maintained at a target angle. The release command may mean that the output shaft 121 of the motor device 120 can be arbitrarily rotated. The read rotation angle command may mean that the controller 110 reads and records the current angle of the output shaft. The set target angle command may mean that the controller 110 drives the output shaft to rotate to the target angle by using the Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) control theory, and fixes the output shaft at the target angle.

In this embodiment, the controller 110 is, for example, a central processing unit (CPU), a system on chip (SOC), or other programmable general-purpose or special-purpose microprocessors. ), Digital Signal Processor (DSP), Programmable Controller, Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASIC), Programmable Logic Device (PLD), other similar processing Device or a combination of these devices.

For example, in this embodiment, the controller 110 is used to drive the motor device 120 so that the motor device 120 operates in a non-fixed mode or a fixed mode. In this embodiment, the motor 127 is controlled by the driving signal provided by the controller 110 to drive the gear module 129 to rotate the output shaft 121 through the gear module 129. That is, when the motor 127 operates, the motor 127 drives the gear module 129 and the output shaft 121 to rotate, so that the controlled component connected to the output shaft 121 can move along a specific axis as the output shaft 121 rotates. In one embodiment, the output shaft encoder 123 is coupled to the output shaft 121. The output shaft encoder 123 is used to provide the rotation angle of the output shaft 121 to the controller 110 so that the controller 110 records the current rotation angle of the output shaft 121 or performs certain judgment operations based on the current rotation angle. However, the internal components of the motors of this embodiment can be obtained through sufficient teaching, suggestions, and implementation descriptions based on the general knowledge in the technical field, so they will not be described again.

It is worth noting, however, that in one embodiment, the automatic control device 100 may be, for example, a robot having a plurality of rotatable joint mechanisms, and each rotatable joint mechanism may be composed of one or more motor devices 120. Therefore, when the automatic control device 100 includes a plurality of motor devices 120, the controller 110 may couple the motor devices 120 through a serial port, and the controller 110 may sequentially or simultaneously drive the motor devices 120 so that the motor devices 120 Each of them can independently execute (sequentially or simultaneously) the automatic control methods described in the embodiments of the present invention.

2A is a schematic front view of a motor device according to an embodiment of the present invention. 2B is a schematic side view of a motor device according to an embodiment of the present invention. 2A and 2B, the device body of the motor device 220 includes an output shaft 221 and a control component 222. In FIG. 2A, the output shaft 221 extends in the direction of the direction Y, and the output shaft 221 and the controlled object 222 rotate in a plane formed by the directions X and Z. In FIG. 2B, the motor device 220 is in a fixed state with respect to the controlled object 222, and the controlled object 222 is in a rotatable state.

In this embodiment, the output shaft 221 is combined with the controlled object 222 so that the rotation of the controlled object 222 and the output shaft 221 is linked. In this embodiment, the rotation range θ of the output shaft 221 of the motor device 220 is 0 degrees to 300 degrees, but the present invention is not limited thereto. That is, the rotation range θ of the output shaft 221 may be as shown in FIG. 2A. The rotation range θ is a range from the rotation boundary A to the rotation boundary A '. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the motor device has a resolution of 1024 steps, but the present invention is not limited to this. In an embodiment, the rotation range of the output shaft 221 may also be, for example, 0 degrees to 360 degrees or other rotation ranges, and the resolution of the motor device may be, for example, 512, 1024, 2048 steps, or the like.

In addition, in this embodiment, the controlled object 222 may be combined with other mechanism members on the side opposite to the direction Y. That is, the rotation of the controlled component 222 and the output shaft 221 are linked and combined with other mechanism parts to form an automatic control device such as a robot arm or a robot. In addition, in this embodiment, when the motor device 220 is operated in the non-fixed mode, the output shaft 221 is in an arbitrarily rotatable state. When the motor device 220 is operated in the fixed mode, the output shaft 221 is in a non-arbitrary rotation state. It should be noted that the arbitrary rotation state can mean that the output shaft 221 can rotate arbitrarily within the rotation range θ according to the influence of the external force. The non-arbitrary rotation state may mean that the output shaft 221 may decide whether to fix the output shaft 221 at a rotated position according to whether the rotation angle change caused by the torque applied to the output shaft 221 exceeds a threshold angle.

3A and 3B are schematic diagrams of an automatic control device according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIGS. 3A and 3B, the automatic control device 300 includes a motor device 320 and a mechanism member 323. In this embodiment, the device body of the motor device 320 includes an output shaft (not shown) and a control component 322, and the motor device 320 may further include the controller 110 and various internal components described in the embodiment of FIG. 1. In this embodiment, the mechanism member 323 is combined with the controlled object 322 so that the rotation of the mechanism member 323 and the controlled object 322 is linked.

However, in an embodiment, the automatic control device 300 may be, for example, a robot arm or a robot. Therefore, the automatic control device 300 may also be composed of a plurality of motor devices 320 that operate independently, and each of these motor devices 320 operates independently or consists of The controller 110 integrates these motor devices 320 that operate in sequence, and can individually implement the automatic control methods described in the embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of an automatic control method according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 3A, FIG. 3B, and FIG. 4, in FIG. 3A, it is assumed that the motor device 320 is operated in a non-fixed mode, and the output shaft of the motor device 320 can be arbitrarily rotated. When the user does not apply external force, the mechanism member 323 is maintained at the rotation position B, and the rotation angle of the output shaft is a preset target angle θ1 (from the rotation boundary A to the rotation position B). However, when the user applies a force F to the mechanism member 323 in the Z direction, if the rotation angle change caused by the force F exceeds the threshold angle, the mechanism member 323 and the output shaft rotate. In the present embodiment, the unit of the force F is, for example, Newton (N). Moreover, in this embodiment, the automatic control device 300 executes the automatic control method of FIG. 4 so that the mechanism member 323 can automatically adjust the target angle of the output shaft according to the force applied by the user.

Specifically, in step S410, the automatic control device 300 determines whether the difference between the current angle of the output shaft and the target angle exceeds a threshold angle. If yes, the automatic control device 300 executes step S420. If not, the automatic control device 300 ends the determination. In step S420, the automatic control device 300 resets the target angle using the current angle. In addition, in the automatic control method of this embodiment, steps S410 and S420 may be repeatedly performed at intervals T. In one embodiment, the interval T is, for example, 1 second, 500 milliseconds, 100 milliseconds, or the like. The interval time length T can be determined according to different equipment requirements or sensitivity designs, which is not limited in the present invention.

That is, the automatic control device 300 determines whether the rotation angle of the output shaft has changed. As shown in FIG. 3B, if the automatic control device 300 determines that the current angle θ1 + α of the output shaft and the target angle θ1 differ by more than a threshold angle, the automatic control device 300 uses the current angle θ1 + α to reset the target angle θ1 so that the output shaft In the case of the force F applied by the user, the target angle θ2 (from the rotation boundary A to the rotation position B ′) can be maintained. In other words, since the increased rotation angle α of the output shaft exceeds the threshold angle, the output shaft will be maintained at the reset target angle θ2 (θ2 = θ1 + α), and the mechanism member 323 is maintained at the rotation position B '. Conversely, in an embodiment, if the automatic control device 300 determines that the current angle θ1 + α of the output shaft does not differ from the target angle θ1 by more than a threshold angle, the automatic control device 300 does not reset the target angle. Therefore, when the user stops applying the force F, the mechanism member 323 will return from the current angle θ1 + α and the target angle θ1 to maintain the mechanism member 323 at the rotation position B.

However, it is worth noting that the magnitude of the threshold angle is designed to correspond to the influence of gravity on the mechanism member 323, so that the mechanism member 323 can be maintained at the current target angle without the force of the user. The position of θ1. That is, the rotation angle of the mechanism member 323 caused by the influence of gravity will not exceed the above-mentioned threshold angle. Therefore, when the motor device 320 is operated in the fixed mode, the mechanism is not under the force of the user. The piece 323 and the output shaft can be maintained at a preset target angle θ1. In addition, the aforementioned threshold angle may be, for example, an amount of change in the angle by which the output shaft rotates by 4 steps. In other words, if the motor device has a resolution of 1024 steps and the rotation range is 300 degrees, for example, the angular change of the output shaft by 4 steps is approximately equal to 1.17 degrees ((300/1024) × 4 ≈1.17), but the present invention is not limited to this,

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of an automatic control method according to another embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 5, the automatic control method of FIG. 5 may be applied to the automatic control device 300 of FIGS. 3A and 3B, for example. In step S510, the automatic control device 300 is operated in the non-fixed mode or the fixed mode by the controller driving the motor device 320. When the motor device 320 is operated in a non-fixed mode, the output shaft of the motor device 320 can be arbitrarily rotated. When the motor device 320 is operated in a fixed mode, the output shaft is in a non-arbitrary rotation state. In step S520, when the motor device 320 is operated in the fixed mode, the rotation angle of the output shaft is maintained at the target angle θ1. In step S530, when the automatic control device 300 determines that the rotation angle of the output shaft is changed by the controller, if the controller determines that the difference between the current angle θ1 + α and the target angle θ1 exceeds the threshold angle, the controller uses the current angle θ1 + α resets the target angle θ1 so that the output shaft is maintained at the reset target angle θ2 (θ2 = θ1 + α). Therefore, when the motor device 320 is operating in a fixed state, the automatic control device 300 of this embodiment can effectively determine whether to fix the output shaft to the rotated position according to the degree of rotation angle change caused by the torque applied to the output shaft of the motor device 320. position.

In addition, regarding the automatic control equipment and other device features and implementations of the motor device of this embodiment, sufficient teachings, suggestions, and implementation descriptions can be obtained according to the above-mentioned embodiments of FIG. 1 to FIG. 3B, and therefore will not be described again.

In summary, the automatic control device and the automatic control method of the present invention provide an operation mode capable of effectively fine-tuning the rotation angle of the output shaft of the motor device. When the motor device is operated in the fixed mode, the output shaft of the motor device can be maintained at the target angle position. When the motor device is operated in a fixed mode, if the user applies force to the output shaft of the motor device, the output shaft of the motor device can be rotated by the external force applied by the user, and when the rotation angle exceeds a preset threshold angle At this time, the output shaft of the motor device of the present invention can be maintained at the adjusted rotation angle position. Accordingly, the automatic control device of the present invention can provide a convenient posture adjustment function.

Although the present invention has been disclosed as above with the examples, it is not intended to limit the present invention. Any person with ordinary knowledge in the technical field can make some modifications and retouching without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. The protection scope of the present invention shall be determined by the scope of the attached patent application.

100, 300‧‧‧ automatic control equipment

110‧‧‧controller

120, 220, 320‧‧‧ Motor devices

121, 221‧‧‧ output shaft

123‧‧‧Output shaft encoder

125‧‧‧control module

127‧‧‧ Motor

129‧‧‧Gear Module

222, 322‧‧‧ Controlled

323‧‧‧Institutional

A, A’‧‧‧ rotation boundary

B, B’‧‧‧ rotation position

F‧‧‧Strength

S410, S420, S510, S520, S530‧‧‧ steps

X, Y, Z‧‧‧ directions

θ‧‧‧ rotation range

θ1, θ2, α‧‧‧ angle

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an automatic control device according to an embodiment of the present invention. 2A is a schematic front view of a motor device according to an embodiment of the present invention. 2B is a schematic side view of a motor device according to an embodiment of the present invention. 3A and 3B are schematic diagrams of an automatic control device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a flowchart of an automatic control method according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a flowchart of an automatic control method according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Claims (15)

An automatic control device includes: a motor device including an output shaft; and a controller coupled to the motor device for driving the motor device to operate in a non-fixed mode or a fixed mode, wherein when the When the motor device is operated in the non-fixed mode, the output shaft is in an arbitrarily rotatable state. When the motor device is operated in the fixed mode, the output shaft is in a non-arbitrary rotation state. When the motor device is operated in the fixed mode, a rotation angle of the output shaft is maintained at a target angle, and when the controller determines that the rotation angle of the output shaft has changed, if the controller It is determined that the difference between the current angle and the target angle exceeds a threshold angle, and the controller uses the current angle to reset the target angle so that the output shaft is maintained at the target angle that is reset. The automatic control device according to item 1 of the scope of patent application, wherein if the controller determines that the current angle does not exceed the target angle to the threshold angle, the controller drives the output shaft to return to the The target angle is described. The automatic control device according to item 1 of the scope of patent application, wherein a rotation range of the output shaft of the motor device is 0 degrees to 300 degrees. The automatic control device according to item 1 of the scope of patent application, wherein the motor device has 1024 steps, and the threshold angle is an amount of change in the angle by which the output shaft rotates by 4 steps. The automatic control device according to item 1 of the scope of patent application, wherein when the motor device is operated in the fixed mode, the controller re-determines whether the rotation angle of the output shaft occurs every interval of time change. The automatic control device according to item 1 of the scope of patent application, wherein the motor device is a smart servo motor with a single axis. The automatic control equipment according to item 1 of the scope of patent application, further comprising: a mechanism member coupled to the output shaft of the motor device and linked to the output shaft so that when the mechanism member receives a When an external force is applied, a torque is generated on the output shaft. The automatic control device according to item 1 of the scope of patent application, wherein the motor device further includes: an output shaft encoder coupled to the output shaft to obtain the rotation angle of the output shaft; a control A module coupled to the output shaft encoder; a motor coupled to the control module, wherein the control module is used to drive the motor; and a gear module coupled to the motor and the The output shaft, wherein the gear module is linked with the output shaft. The automatic control device according to item 1 of the patent application scope further includes: a plurality of motor devices, which are coupled to the controller through a serial port, wherein the controller drives the plurality of motor devices sequentially or simultaneously. An automatic control method is applicable to an automatic control device, wherein the automatic control device includes a controller and a motor device, and the motor device includes an output shaft, and the automatic control method includes: by the controller Driving the motor device to operate in a non-fixed mode or a fixed mode, wherein when the motor device is operated in the non-fixed mode, the output shaft of the motor device is in an arbitrarily rotatable state, and wherein When the motor device is operated in the fixed mode, the output shaft is in a non-arbitrary rotation state; when the motor device is operated in the fixed mode, a rotation angle of the output shaft is maintained at a target angle; And when the controller judges that the rotation angle of the output shaft changes, if the controller judges that the difference between the current angle and the target angle exceeds a threshold angle, the controller uses the current angle The target angle is reset by an angle, so that the output shaft is maintained at the target angle that is reset. The automatic control method according to item 10 of the scope of patent application, further comprising: if the controller determines that the current angle does not exceed the target angle to the threshold angle, the controller drives the output shaft to return To the target angle. The automatic control method according to item 10 of the scope of patent application, wherein a rotation range of the output shaft of the motor device is 0 degrees to 300 degrees. The automatic control method according to item 10 of the scope of patent application, wherein the motor device has a number of 1024 steps, and the threshold angle is an angle change amount in which the output shaft rotates by four steps. The automatic control method according to item 10 of the scope of patent application, wherein when the motor device is operated in the fixed mode, the controller re-determines whether the rotation angle of the output shaft occurs every interval of time. change. The automatic control method according to item 10 of the scope of patent application, wherein the automatic control device further includes a plurality of motor devices, and the plurality of motor devices are coupled to the controller through a serial port so that the control The plurality of motor devices are driven sequentially or simultaneously.