A control device for controlling a machine tool, wherein the machine tool and the control device are configured such that a tool and/or workpiece disposed on the machine tool can be moved with at least one first speed and at least one second speed. When switching from a movement with the first speed to a movement with the second speed, the tool or the workpiece is at first stopped prior to the execution of the movement with the second speed, if the second speed is greater than the first speed by at least a predetermined factor. The control device has an input device for triggering the movement with the second speed, and the subsequent execution of the movement with the second speed is triggered by an operator input on the input device. A corresponding control method for controlling a machine tool is also described.

A robot control apparatus for a more precise seam tracking operation, includes: a storage unit in which teaching data is stored; an accepting unit that accepts a sensing result of a laser sensor, from a robot including a working tool and the laser sensor attached to the working tool and configured to detect a shape of a working target before an operation of the working tool; and a control unit that moves the working tool based on the teaching data, corrects the movement of the working tool based on the sensing result, and adjusts an angle about a tool axis such that an operation point indicated by the sensing result is at a center of a field of view of the laser sensor. Accordingly, an operation line can be detected near the center of the field of view of the laser sensor, and thus more precise detection is possible.

A robot slider position setting device sets a position of a robot slider that moves while being loaded with a robot that performs predetermined work on a workpiece by using a tool provided at a distal end of the robot. The robot slider position setting device includes an interference-region-information storage unit that stores interference region information indicating an interference region with which the robot interferes in a predetermined ambient environment, an approaching-direction determination unit that determines a direction of an arm of the robot as an arm approaching direction such that the direction does not overlap the interference region by fixing a wrist rotation center of the robot in a state where the tool is in an orientation according to a predetermined working position, and a position determination unit that determines the position of the robot, slider based on the arm approaching direction determined by the approaching-direction determination unit.

An alarm notification system configured to assist an operator so that the operator can effectively carry out a teaching operation, etc. The alarm notification system includes: a storing section configured to, with respect to a past alarm which occurred when a program generated by a teach pendant was executed, store alarm data including a name of the program and a number of a line of the program when the alarm occurred; a judging section configured to judge as to whether or not an alarm prediction condition using the alarm data stored in the storing section is satisfied, when the program is executed again; and an alarm predicting section configured to notify the operator who is carrying out teaching of the robot of alarm information relating to the alarm, when the alarm prediction condition is satisfied.

A method for controlling a robot device using a portable terminal including a touchscreen is provided. The method includes displaying an enable button in a first area of the touchscreen, displaying an emergency stop button in a second area of the touchscreen, displaying a plurality of robot control buttons in a third area of the touchscreen, in response to simultaneously receiving from a user an input on the first area and an input on the third area, transmitting a robot control signal to a control device configured to control the robot device, and in response to receiving an input from the user on the second area, transmitting an emergency signal to the control device.

A substrate mapping device 4 maps a plurality of substrates 10 inside a container where the substrates 10 are accommodated so as to be arrayed in a given arrayed direction. The substrate mapping device 4 includes a sensor 16 configured to detect a state of the substrate 10, a manipulator 14 configured to move the sensor 16, and a control device 18 configured to control the manipulator 14 to move the sensor 16 along a mapping course. The control device 18 sets a first mapping position and a second mapping position different in the position in the arrayed direction of the substrates 10 from the first mapping position, and sets the mapping course based on the first mapping position and the second mapping position.

An offline teaching device for reducing an amount of time required to generate a motion route with which interference could be avoided, the offline teaching device including at least one processor. The processor generates, as a result of a motion program that includes a plurality of teaching points being input, numerous interpolation points on a motion route of a tool distal-end point of a robot, the motion route being formed among the teaching points in accordance with the motion program; and detects whether interference occurs between each of the generated interpolation points and a peripheral device.

An offline teaching device for reducing an amount of time required to generate a motion route with which interference could be avoided, the offline teaching device including at least one processor. The processor generates, as a result of a motion program that includes a plurality of teaching points being input, numerous interpolation points on a motion route of a tool distal-end point of a robot, the motion route being formed among the teaching points in accordance with the motion program; and detects whether interference occurs between each of the generated interpolation points and a peripheral device.

There is provided a method and computer program product for programming a robot by manually operating it in gravity-compensation kinesthetic-guidance mode. More specifically there is provided method and computer program product that uses kinesthetic teaching as a demonstration input modality and does not require the installation or use of any external sensing or data-capturing modules. It requires a single user demonstration to extract a representation of the program, and presents the user with a series of easily-controllable parameters that allow them to modify or constrain the parameters of the extracted program representation of the task.

A robot controller includes a contact detection unit that detects contact of a welding wire protruding from a welding torch with a welding target, an override-value adjustment unit that sets and changes an override value for increasing or decreasing an operating speed of the robot from a predetermined speed, and a control unit which receives an operation signal from a teaching operation device and that controls the robot according to the operation signal at the operating speed based on the override value which is set by the override-value adjustment unit. When the contact of the welding wire with the welding target is detected by the contact detection unit, the control unit temporarily stops the robot, and the override-value adjustment unit decreases the override value.