Toshiba Welding System STE 58762 User Manual

STE 58762  
INSTRUCTION MANUAL  
INDUSTRIAL ROBOT SR SERIES  
ROBOT LANGUAGE MANUAL  
Notice  
1.  
Make sure that this Instruction Manual is delivered to the final user  
of the Toshiba Industrial Robot.  
2. Please read this manual before using the Toshiba Industrial  
Robot.  
3. Please read the “Safety Manual” also.  
4. Keep the manual nearby for further reference during use of the  
robot.  
TOSHIBA MACHINE CO.,LTD.  
1998- 3  
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STE 58762  
PREFACE  
This manual explains the SCOL robot language, commands and programming procedures as they  
apply to Toshiba SR Series industrial robots.  
SCOL stands for "Symbolic Code Language for Robots" and is a robot language made up of various  
commands used to control the robot. By using these commands, it is possible to create programs  
to make the robot do what you want.  
This manual is directed at those who have never written a robot program, and at those who have  
much programming experience. However, this manual only covers SCOL robot language. For  
information on Toshiba SR Series industrial robots themselves, please refer to the following  
manuals:  
-
-
-
Introductory Manual  
Start-up Manual  
Operating Manual  
This Manual is organized as follows:  
[1. An Outline of Robot Language]  
This chapter explains the connection between robot language and robot movement, and presents a  
rough outline of commands used in robot language. Be sure to read this chapter in order to get a  
grasp of the fundamentals of robot language.  
[2. Writing Programs in Robot Language]  
This chapters describes various rules for writing a program with robot language. Be sure to read  
this chapter before starting to write your own programs.  
[3. Explanation of Robot Commands]  
Here we describe in detail what each command means and does. These commands are listed in  
alphabetical order for your convenience. This chapter will come in useful when you write programs  
on your own.  
[4. Program Examples]  
In this chapter, we explain various programming examples. Be sure to use this chapter for  
reference when writing your own programs.  
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[5. Programming Hints and Warnings]  
This chapter explains timing considerations, things not to do, and things to watch out for when  
writing a program. Be sure to read it before beginning work on your own program. Also, be sure  
to look this chapter over should your program not be working the way you intended.  
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TABLE OF CONTENTS  
CHAPTER 1 AN OUTLINE OF ROBOT LANGUAGE  
1.1  
1.2  
1.3  
1-1  
ROBOT MOVEMENT ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
ROBOT LANGUAGE ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
TYPES OF COMMANDS ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
1-3  
1-5  
CHAPTER 2 WRITING PROGRAMS IN ROBOT LANGUAGE  
2.1  
2-1  
PROGRAM CONFIGURATION ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
2.1.1  
2.1.2  
2.1.3  
2-1  
2-1  
2-2  
Files ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
Program ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
Positional Data ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
2.2  
2.3  
2.4  
2-3  
2-4  
2-5  
CHARACTER SET ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
IDENTIFIERS ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
VARIABLES AND CONSTANTS ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
2.4.1  
2.4.2  
2.4.3  
2.4.4  
2-5  
2-7  
2-10  
2-11  
Scalar Data ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
Vector Data ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
System Variables ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
System Constants・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
2.5  
2-12  
MATHEMATICAL FUNCTIONS ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
2.5.1  
2.5.2  
2-13  
2-18  
Computational Expressions・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
Logical Expressions ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
2.6  
2.7  
2-19  
2-20  
LABELS ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
REMARKS AND COMMENTS・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
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2.8  
2.8.1  
2-21  
PROGRAMS ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
2-21  
2-22  
2-24  
2-25  
2-28  
Program Declaration・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
Subprograms・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
Library ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
Multitask Processing・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
Global Variable Definition・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
2.8.2  
2.8.3  
2.8.4  
2.8.5  
CHAPTER 3 EXPLANATION OF ROBOT COMMANDS  
3.1  
3.2  
3-1  
3-7  
COMMAND EXPLANATIONS ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
EXPLANATION OF COMMANDS ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
CHAPTER 4 PROGRAM EXAMPLES  
CHAPTER 5 PROGRAMMING HINTS AND WARNINGS  
5.1  
5-1  
PROGRAM EXECUTION TIMING ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
5.1.1  
5.1.2  
5.1.3  
5-1  
5-3  
5-4  
Arm Movement and Signal I/O Timing ・・・・・・・・・・・  
Synchronization of Arm Movement and Program Execution・・・  
DELAY Command and WAIT Command ・・・・・・・・・・・  
5.2  
5-7  
5-7  
5-8  
THINGS NOT TO DO WHEN PROGRAMMING ・・・・・・・・・  
5.2.1  
Variables・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
5.3  
THINGS TO WATCH OUT FOR WHEN WRITING A PROGRAM・・  
5.3.1  
5.3.2  
5-8  
Types of Commands・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
Robot Coordinate Systems・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
Short-Cut Movement・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
Robot Configuration・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
Data Blocks・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
Global Data Block・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
Robot Movement Speed・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
Robot Acceleration・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
5-10  
5-16  
5-22  
5-24  
5-27  
5-30  
5-31  
5.3.3  
5.3.4  
5.3.5  
5.3.6  
5.3.7  
5.3.8  
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APPENDIX A  
APPENDIX B  
APPENDIX C  
APPENDIX D  
APPENDIX E  
6-1  
LIST OF COMMANDS ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
LIST OF RESERVED WORDS ・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
CONTENTS OF LIBRARY FILE (SCOL.LIB)・・・・・・・・  
DOMAINS AND RANGES OF CALCULATOR FUNCTIONS ・・  
HOW TO READ SYMBOLS ・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・  
6-4  
6-5  
6-8  
6-9  
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CHAPTER 1  
AN OUTLINE OF ROBOT LANGUAGE  
This chapter describes the connection between robot language and robot movement, and presents  
a rough outline of commands used in robot language.  
1.1 ROBOT MOVEMENT  
Robots do work in place of people. For example, let’s say that somebody has to attach a part to a  
workpiece coming down a conveyor. The employee takes a part from a parts bin and attaches the  
part to a workpiece transported to his or her station by a conveyor. If we were to set up a robot to  
do this work instead, we would have an arrangement something like that shown in Figure 1.1.  
Parts feeder  
Wokpiece  
Conveyor  
Fig. 1.1 Assembly work  
Here, the robot grabs a part from the parts feeder and attaches the part to a workpiece coming  
down the conveyor. considering this work from the point of view of the robot (and not, for example,  
from the point of view of the parts feeder or conveyor), we would come up with a diagram like that of  
Figure 1.2. In this Figure, the robot first moves straight down from Point B to Point A, where it  
grabs a part. After grabbing the part, the robot moves back up from Point A to Point B. From  
Point B, the robot moves the part to Point C, which is directly above the part attachment location  
Point D. The robot then drops down from Point C to Point D, and attaches the part to the  
workpiece. When the robot is finished attaching the part, it moves back up to Point C, and then  
finally back to Point B. This completes one work cycle.  
1-1  
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B: Position just above A  
C: Position just above D  
D: Position where a part is mounted.  
A: Position where robot grips a part.  
Fig. 1.2 Robot movement  
1-2  
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1.2 ROBOT LANGUAGE  
Robots do assembly work and other tasks in place of people.  
However, someone still has to teach the robot what to do.  
Robots will only do what you tell them to do, and it's  
important to tell them exactly what you want it to do.  
Telling a robot what to do is called "teaching." Making a robot do what you taught it to do is called  
"playback." Of course, this only applies to what are called "playback robots," which repeat (or  
playback) the movements you instructed the robot when teaching. Toshiba SR Series robots are  
playback robots.  
There are various ways to teach a robot what to do. One way is to physically move the robot  
through the work cycle (while, of course, the robot is in the teaching mode). The robot remembers  
the locations where it was moved and, in the playback mode, retraces this path and performs the  
work. This is the usual method for teaching painting robots and spot welding robots.  
However, things get more complicated when dealing with peripheral devices (such as a parts  
feeder or a conveyor belt). In such a case, you must coordinate the movements of the robot with  
the movements of the peripheral devices. In the previous example, we talked about a robot  
attaching a part to a workpiece coming down a conveyor line. However, what if we want to attach  
different parts to different workpieces? What do we do if the robot misattaches the part and we  
want to try again?  
In order to tell the robot what to do, we need to express robot actions in terms the robot  
understands. This is the purpose of robot language. A robot language is nothing more than a set  
of words describing robot actions. An arrangement of these words used to control the movement  
of the robot is called a program. Writing a program is called programming.  
There are various robot languages in existence. However, SR Series robots use SCOL (Symbolic  
Code Language for Robots), a language developed specifically for robots. Therefore, we will limit  
our discussion of robot languages to SCOL in this Manual.  
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If we were to write a program in SCOL for the previous example (in which we attach a part from a  
parts feeder to a workpiece on a conveyor), it would look like this:  
PROGRAM ASSEMBLY  
MOVE B  
OPEN1  
MOVE A  
CLOSE1  
DELAY  
MOVE B  
MOVE C  
MOVE D  
OPEN1  
DELAY  
Move to Point B.  
Open Hand 1.  
Move to Point A.  
Close Hand 1.  
Wait 0.5 seconds before grabbing the part.  
Move to Point B.  
Move to Point c.  
Move to Point D.  
Open Hand 1.  
0.5  
0.5  
Wait 0.5 seconds before letting go off the part.  
Move to Point c.  
Move to Point B.  
MOVE C  
MOVE B  
END  
The word PROGRAM marks the beginning of a program and the word END marks the end of a  
program. The name of this particular program is ASSEMBLY. The commands should not be too  
hard to understand. MOVE A means to move to Point A. OPENi and CLOSE 1 mean to,  
respectively, open and close Hand 1. (There are two hands.) DELAY 0.5 means not to do  
anything for 0.5 seconds. Furthermore, the locations of Points A, B, C and D are defined (taught)  
beforehand by physically guiding the robot (in the teaching mode) to these points. (To put it  
another way, the location of these points is not defined by the program itself.)  
By arranging a series of commands in the order that you want things done, SCOL allows you, the  
programmer, to express just what the robot is supposed to do in terms that the robot understands.  
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1.3 TYPES OF COMMANDS  
In the previous section, we saw how SCOL is used to express the action of the robot.  
Here, we explain a little bit more about SCOL commands themselves.  
In addition to commands like "MOVE A" which actually move the robot, there are many other  
commands which do such things as send signals to other equipment (such as conveyors, parts  
feeders, process computers, etc.) or direct the robot to do the same thing over and over again.  
Table 1.1 presents a list of SCOL commands.  
All SCOL commands can be roughly classified into one of six categories.  
(1)  
Movement control commands  
These commands move the robot. Commands which temporarily stop the robot, interrupt  
movement, or restart the robot are also included in this category. Commands which actually move  
the robot are called movement commands.  
(2)  
Program control commands  
Program control commands control the execution of the program by doing such things as executing  
certain parts of the program in accordance with external signals or causing portions of the program  
to be carried out repeatedly.  
(3)  
I/O (Input/output) control commands  
These commands are used to read in (input) or send out (output) signals to and from external  
equipment, such as the teach pendant. Data input/output of hand open/close communication  
channel are included in the I/O control command.  
(4)  
Movement condition commands  
These commands are used to specify the configuration and speed of various joints of the robot  
while it is moving.  
(5)  
Calculator commands  
These commands are used to invoke (use) mathematical functions such as the trigonometric  
functions (sin, cos, etc.) and the square root function.  
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(6)  
Movement reference commands  
These commands are used to reference and check the movement of the robot. For example,  
these commands could be used to determine what percentage of a certain motion has been  
completed at a certain time. By including these commands in your program, you can set timers  
and make sure robot motions do not interfere with each other.  
These commands are meant to be used in combination with other commands in your program. By  
skillfully placing such commands in the right places, you can, for example; (1) Get the robot to send  
out a signal to an external device when the robot has completed 70% of a certain motion. (2)  
Should one motion not follow another motion within a certain period of time, have the program  
branch off to an error loop.  
Type  
Purpose  
Commands  
Movement control commands (1) Move the robot.  
MOVE, MOVES, MOVEC,  
MOVEA, MOVE1, READY  
(2) Temporarily stop the robot.  
DELAY  
(3) Move the robot hand.  
OPEN1, OPENI1, OPEN2,  
OPENI2, CLOSE1, CLOSEI1,  
CLOSE2, CLOSEI2, UP,  
DOWN, TURNL, TURNR  
BREAK, RESUME, PAUSE  
(4) Interrupt or restart operation.  
Program control commands  
(1) Monitor external signals,  
timers, etc.  
ON ~ DO ~,  
IF ~ THEN ~ ELSE,  
WAIT, IGNORE  
(2) Control program execution.  
PROGRAM, GOTO, RCYCLE,  
RETURN, FOR ~ NEXT, STOP,  
END  
TASK, KILL, SWITCH  
REMARK  
(3) Make remarks (comments)  
to aid in program debugging  
and modification.  
I/O control commands  
(1) Input and output of externa DIN, DOUT,  
l signals.  
PULOUT, RESET,  
BCDIN, BCDOUT  
(2) Input and output of commu PRINT, INPUT  
nication data.  
Movement condition  
commands  
(1) Specify conditions for  
controlling robot movement.  
CONFIG, ACCUR, ACCEL,  
DECEL, SPEED, PASS,  
TORQUE, GAIN, ENABLE,  
SETGAIN, DISABLE, NOWAIT,  
PAYLOAD, FREELOAD,  
SWITCH  
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Type  
Purpose  
Commands  
Calculator functions  
(1) Perform calculations for real SIN, COS, TAN, ASIN, ACOS,  
numbers.  
ATAN, ATAN2, SQRT, ABS,  
SGN, INT, REAL, LN, MOD,  
LOGIO, EXP, AND, OR, NOT  
HERE, DEST, POINT, TRANS  
(2) Perform calculations  
involving positional and  
coordinate data.  
DIM, AS  
(3) Use an array.  
Movement reference  
commands  
(1) Check robot movement.  
(2) Check system movement.  
(3) Assign a coordinate  
system.  
MOTION, MOTIONT, REMAIN  
REMAINT, TIMER, MODE  
TOOL, BASE, WORK  
Others  
(1) Define a variable.  
GLOBAL, END  
(2) Restore an updated value in RESTORE  
the program file.  
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CHAPTER 2  
WRITING PROGRAMS IN ROBOT LANGUAGE  
In Chapter 1, we got a rough idea of what a robot language is and how it works. Now, in Chapter  
2, we will describe how to write a program in robot language.  
2.1 PROGRAM CONFIGURATION  
Below we present a general outline of program configuration with the SCOL language.  
2.1.1 Files  
In order to get the robot to perform a task, you need both a program written in robot language and  
positional data for use by the program. That is, for each job you want the robot to do, you have to  
have a matched set of a program (or programs) and data. This matched set is called a file.  
Program editing, execution, saving and loading are all done in units of files.  
2.1.2 Program  
A program is an arrangement of words in robot language that tell the robot what you want it to do.  
A program may "call" (use) other programs from inside of the original program. The original  
program is referred to as the main program. These other programs are called subprograms since,  
from the point of view of the main program, they are secondary. It is often convenient to make  
sub- programs for sequences that are used often or for sequences that are more or less self-  
contained. These subprograms can then be called when you need them. Subprograms save you  
the trouble of having to write the same thing many times and, if used properly, can make your job a  
lot easier.  
You can include many programs in a single file. Unless you specify differently (in the command  
lines at beginning of the file), the robot will assume that the first program in your file is the main  
program. In order to call a subprogram, the subprogram must be in the same file as the main  
program. Also, just because you may have several programs lined up in the file does not  
necessarily mean that all the programs will be executed. As far as the robot is concerned, its job is  
over when the main program is completed (i.e., when the robot reaches the final END statement of  
the main program), and if the other programs have not been called by that time they will never be  
called.  
A plural number of programs can be executed at the same time, using the TASK command  
(multitask execution). For details of the multitask execution, see Para. 2.8.  
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Programs are edited with the teach pendant using the controller screen editor function. For  
information on how to use the screen editor, see the "operating Manual."  
2.1.3 Positional Data  
Positional data for use in a program (or programs) must be placed in the same file as the program  
(or programs). Positional data in a file can be accessed (used) by all programs in that file.  
However, positional data in a file cannot be accessed by any programs not in that file.  
Positional data is "fed" to the robot using the data editor function of the controller. See the  
operating Manual for information on how to use the data editor.  
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2.2 CHARACTER SET  
The SCOL character set is made up of alphanumeric characters and the following special symbols.  
Alphanumeric characters  
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z  
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z  
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0  
Special symbols  
“ ‘ ( ) + - * / , . < > =  
! [ ] ( ) % ^ & ?  
With the exception almost all of the small letters, these characters and symbols can all be input  
from the teach pendant. When executing a program, the robot makes no distinction between  
capital letters and small letters. For reading method of symbols, see "Appendix E."  
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2.3 IDENTIFIERS  
In the SCOL robot language, identifiers are used to express commands, program names, variable  
names, and labels (which are used to specify program branches). Identifiers must start with an  
alphabetic character, although alphabetic  
characters, numerals, or any combination of the two may follow. There is no particular limit on  
length, although the robot will only differentiate the first ten alphanumeric characters. The robot  
does not care whether you use capital or small letters, since it will treat them the same anyway.  
For example, as far as the robot is concerned, all four of the following are the same:  
T O S H I B A R O B  
t o s h i b a r o b  
T O S H I B A R O B O T  
t o s h i b a r o b o t  
With a few exceptions, small letters cannot be input from the teach pendant. Also, you cannot use  
any special symbols or include any spaces in the names for identifiers. (Instead, special symbols  
or spaces are used to separate identifiers.) For example, the robot will consider the following as  
different:  
T O S H I B A R O B O T  
T O S H I B A R O B O T  
“TOSHIBA ROBOT” will be interpreted as two different identifiers, i.e., TOSHIBA and ROBOT.  
Some identifiers have already been defined by the SCOL language itself. These are called  
reserved words, and you as the programmer cannot use them for any other purpose except for that  
already defined. (For example, PROGRAM is a reserved word used to tell the robot when a  
program will follow. Therefore you cannot, for example, go and call one of your variables  
PROGRAM since the robot will have no idea of what you are talking about.)  
A list of reserved words is shown in Appendix B. In addition to SCOL commands, you will find  
words used in the computer system and words set assigned for future expansion.  
Do not use identifiers with the same name for different meanings. For example, if you decide to  
call your program GEORGE, do not go and name any variables GEORGE. If you do, you may get  
an error when you try to execute your program. At the very least, you will be sorry when it's time to  
debug your program.  
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2.4 VARIABLES AND CONSTANTS  
Not all data takes the same form, and these different forms of data are called data types. Scalar  
type (integer type, real number type and character string) and vector type (position type, coordinate  
type and load type) can be used in the SCOL language. Variables are divided into global variable  
and auto variable according to the definition method. All taught data and variable defined in the  
area between GLOBAL and END are called the global variable. These variables can be referred  
and changed from any part of the program. For all data types of global variables, the array can be  
declared. For descriptions of global variable and array, see Para. 2.8.5.  
The work area in the controller is used for all data. The defined value is substituted for the global  
variables value at the start of the program, except for the array without a specific initial. If the  
value is entered for the variable during program execution, only the work area is changed. If the  
power of controller is turned off, execution file is reselected or the file is edited, work area is reset by  
the variable’s initial value saved in the file and the changed value is lost accordingly. This is also  
applicable for change of the taught data. If the data in the file is to be overwritten, the RESTORE  
command should be executed in the program.  
2.4.1 Scalar Data  
There are three types of scalar data, i.e., integers, real numbers and character strings. Scalar type  
auto variables can only be used in the program in which they were declared. That means that if  
you use a variable with the same name in another program, the two variables will be completely  
independent and have nothing to do with each other. Therefore, when passing data from one  
program to another, make it a point to, if possible, redefine the variable as the scalar type global  
variable or declare the arguments in the program. (If you did not understand this too well, refer to  
Section 2.8 "Programming.")  
(1) Integer data  
(a) Constants  
SCOL can handle integer values ("whole numbers") in the range of - 2147483648 to + 2147483647.  
When an integer is used as a constant in a program, if it is positive, directly describe the value; if it  
is negative, describe the value following the - symbol. Examples are:  
0
234  
-39208  
5963  
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(b) Variables  
Variables are distinguished by identifiers and can be in the range of - 2147483648 to +  
~147483647, just as above. The data type of a variable is determined by the data type of the first  
number you assign to that variable. For example, if the first thing you assign to a variable is an  
integer, all other numbers substituted into that variable will become integers. That means that if  
you later try to insert a real number into this variable, the controller will chop off all the decimal  
places and treat what is left as an integer.  
The variable comes in two types; the global variable which is valid in the entire program and the  
general variable which is valid in a part of the program. The global variable can be changed from  
any part of the program.  
(c) Logical values  
Logical values are used in the program when making conditional judgments. Logical expressions  
and commands such as DIN (which check input signals) return logical values.  
A logical value may have one of two values; TRUE or FALSE. Internally, logical values are treated  
as integers with 1 being TRUE and 0 being FALSE.  
Note)  
(Strictly speaking, 0 is considered as FALSE and everything else is considered as TRUE.)  
(2)  
With SCOL, numbers are treated as real types with the exception of certain special cases.  
(a) Constants  
Real data  
SCOL can handle real numbers having an absolute value in the range of approximately 5.87 x 10-3.9  
to 6.80 x 1038. This range can also be expressed as 2-127 to ((223 - 1) x 2106). The number  
significant digits for the mantissa [the mantissa is the part of the number to the right of the decimal  
point) is approximately 7 in Base 10. (The precision is 223).  
When a real number is used in the program, if it is positive, directly describe the value; if it is  
negative, describe the value following the - symbol.  
When the decimal part is 0, it is omissible. However, when the decimal point is omitted, the data  
are treated as integer type data. In addition, since the integer part cannot be omitted, even if the  
absolute value of a numeric value is less than 1, it is necessary to designate 0 to the integer part.  
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Example)  
1234.567  
-28.16  
0.00985  
1234567.  
-369.  
As mentioned above, the precision of the computer is somewhat limited when handling decimal  
values. Usually this is no problem if the number of decimal places is reasonable. Therefore,  
when working with the robot, try to use the following as the minimum set units.  
Distance (x, y, and z data)  
Angles (C data)  
Time  
0.001 mm  
0.001 deg.  
0.01 sec.  
1%  
Rates (Speed, torque, etc.)  
Mass  
0.01 kg  
Inertia  
0.01kg.m  
(b) Variables  
Variables are distinguished by identifiers and have the same range as listed above for constants.  
The data type of a variable is determined by the data type of the first number you assign to that  
variable. For example, if the first thing you assign to a variable is a real number, that variable will  
become a real type.  
(3) Character strings  
Character strings can only handle constants. They are expressed by placing one or more  
characters between quotation marks. In the example below, the character string is SCOL  
MESSAGE.  
Example) "SCOL MESSAGE"  
2.4.2 Vector Data  
As opposed to scalar-type data which only holds one data element, vector-type data holds multiple  
data elements. There are three types of vector data in SCOL; positional vectors, coordinate  
vectors and load vectors.  
Vectors hold one to five data elements. With commands such as POINT and TRANS which create  
vector-type data, elements are expressed by enclosing them in brackets {___}. With commands  
such as MOVE and TORQUE which use vector type data, elements are assigned and expressed by  
enclosing them in slightly different brackets {___}.  
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Vector type data other than the vector type global variable such as data taught by the data editor  
are temporarily stored in the working area of the controller. The data are not created in the file.  
The vector type variable can be used only in the declared program. Thus, even if the same  
variable is used in another program, the content of the former does not accord with that of the latter.  
When data are passed from one program to another program, the passed data should be redefined  
as the vector type global variable or it should be an argument. For details of arguments, see "2.8.2  
Subprograms."  
(1) Positional data  
Positional data is used by the robot to describe positions. Positional vectors have the following  
format.  
(X, Y, Z, C, T, <configuration>)  
X, Y, Z, C and T are coordinate values represented by real numbers. Units are in millimeters or  
degrees.  
<Configuration> holds an integer from 0 to 2 that describes the set-up configuration of the system.  
0 ... Free (Set-up of the system is undefined)  
1 ... Left hand system  
2 ... Right hand system  
(2) Coordinate data  
Coordinate data is used by the robot to specify coordinate systems. Coordinate vectors have the  
following format:  
(X, Y, z, C)  
X, Y, Z and C are coordinate values represented by real numbers. Units are in millimeters or  
degrees.  
Coordinate vectors allow one to convert between different coordinate systems as shown in Figure  
2.1. In the figure, we have an original coordinate system X, Y and Z. Then, with data provided by  
a coordinate vector (x, y, z, c), the original coordinate system is shifted parallel along its axes by the  
amounts x, y and z. This forms a new coordinate system centered about 0'. Once this is done,  
we twist the new coordinate system around the Z' axis by an amount c. We are now finished  
orientating our new coordinate system.  
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What we did above was take an original coordinate system (centered about 0), applied a coordinate  
vector (x, y, z, c) to it, and came up with a new coordinate system (centered about 0'). In short,  
coordinate vectors allow us to convert between different coordinate systems.  
Z
Z’  
Y’  
Y
X’  
O’  
z
y
x
X
O
Fig. 2.1 Coordinate transformation  
(3) Load data  
Load data is used to define the physical loads acting on the end effector (hand) of the robot. Load  
vectors have the following format.  
{<Mass>, <Center of gravity offset>}  
<Mass> is the mass of the load acting on the tip of the robot hand. Units are in kg.  
<Center of gravity offset> is the amount representing the distance between the center of gravity  
applied to the tip of the robot hand and the center of the tool flange of the robot (unit: mm).  
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2.4.3 System Variables  
The SCOL language provides special variables that are used in the programs to specify and  
referent robot operating conditions. These variables are called system variables. Just like other  
variables, you can refer to these variables in the program, change their value, etc. However, you  
have to be careful when setting or substituting values into system variables since doing this will  
directly effect robot operating conditions.  
A list of system variables is presented below in Table 2.1.  
Table 2.1 List of system variables  
Name  
CONFIG  
ACCUR  
ACCEL  
DECEL  
SPEED  
PASS  
TORQUE  
GAIN  
TOOL  
Description  
Robot configuration  
Positioning accuracy  
Acceleration (during acceleration)  
Deceleration (during deceleration)  
Speed of movement  
Short-cut movement parameter  
Maximum torque on each axis  
Servo gain on each axis  
Tool coordinates  
Effective values Initial value  
Data type  
Integer type  
Integer type  
Integer type  
Integer type  
Integer type  
Integer type  
Vector type  
Vector type  
Coordinate type  
Coordinate type  
Coordinate type  
Real type  
0, 1, 2  
0, 1  
0
1
0 ~ max%  
0 ~ max%  
0 ~ max%  
0 ~ 100%  
0 ~ max%  
0.1  
100  
100  
100  
100  
300  
1
0
0
0
BASE  
Base coordinates  
Work coordinates  
Timer  
Error information  
WORK  
TIMER  
ERROR  
PLAYLOAD Load on the robot  
SWITCH  
TID  
0.1 sec.  
-
-
Integer type  
Load type  
Integer type  
Integer type  
0 ~  
0, 1  
1 ~  
0
1
-
Multitask  
Note:  
Maximum values are set separately for each system.  
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Should you change the contents of a system variable related to movement control, that change will  
not take effect until the next motion; it will have no effect at all on a motion in progress at the time;  
However, by using a WITH construct, it is possible to temporarily set a system variable with regards  
to one motion command. For example:  
MOVE Al WITH SPEED = 50  
Furthermore, be warned that SCOL does not check to see whether a value substituted into a  
system variable is within the permissible range. Should the value not be in the permissible range,  
SCOL will do one of two things:  
Should you try to insert a value less than the minimum permissible value, the minimum  
permissible value will be entered in its place.  
Should you try to insert a value greater than the maximum permissible value, the maximum  
permissible value will be entered in its place.  
Refer to Chapter 3 for details on how to use system variables.  
2.4.4 System Constants  
In order to make programs easier to read (and thereby debug), SCOL provides the system  
constants shown in Table 2.2. These names can be substituted into the program in place of  
numbers in order to make it easier to see what you are doing. However, be sure to use them only  
in the locations specified in the Comments column of Table 2.2. If you use them in other locations,  
trying to debug your program can become a real nightmare.  
Table 2.2 List of system constants  
Name  
FREE  
Value  
0
Comments (Locations for use)  
In the system variable CONFIG  
LEFTY  
RIGHTY  
COARSE  
FINE  
1
2
0
1
In the POINT command  
In the system variable ACCUR  
OFF  
ON  
PAI  
0
1
In the system variable GAIN  
In the SETGAIN command  
Pi value  
3.141593  
CONT  
CYCLE  
SEGMENT  
0
1
2
In the MODE command  
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2.5 MATHEMATICAL FUNCTIONS  
This section describes the mathematical functions provided by SCOL for substitution, calculation  
and judgement.  
With SCOL, mathematical functions can either be used independently or included in a command.  
A mathematical function included in a command may be a computational expression (in which the  
result of a calculation is substituted into a variable), or a logical expression (such as greater-or-less-  
than constructs and true/false constructs).  
Mathematical functions provided by SCOL are shown in Table 2.3.  
Note that 0/0 will return a -1, and 0 ^ 0 will return a 1. One would normally expect these operations  
to return an error, but be careful because they don't.  
Table 2.3 Mathematical functions  
Type  
Arithmetic  
functions  
Operand  
Function  
Exponentiation  
Minus sign  
Example  
A ^ B (A to the B power)  
^
-
-A  
*, /  
+, -  
MOD  
Multiplication, division  
Addition, subtraction  
Remainder  
A * B, A / B  
A + B, A – B  
A MOD B (The remainder when A is  
divided by B.)  
A = B (Puts the value of B into A.)  
A = = B  
A < > B, A > < B  
A < B  
=
= =  
< >, > <  
<
Substitution  
Equal  
Not equal  
Relational  
function  
Less than  
>
Greater than  
Less than or equal  
Greater than or equal  
Logical product  
Logical sum  
Negation  
A > B  
< =, = <  
> =, = >  
AND  
OR  
NOT  
SIN  
A < = B, A = < B  
A > = B, A = > B  
A AND B  
A OR B  
NOT A  
Logical  
operands  
Functions  
Sine  
SIN (A)  
COS  
TAN  
ASIN  
ACOS  
Cosine  
Tangent  
Arcsine  
Arccosine  
COS (A)  
TAN (A)  
ASIN (A)  
ACOS (A)  
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Type  
Functions  
Operand  
ATAN  
Function  
Arctangent  
Example  
ATAN (A)  
ATAN2  
SQRT  
ABS  
SGN  
INT  
Arctangent  
Square root  
Absolute value  
Sign  
Changes number to an INT (A)  
integer.  
ATAN2 (A, B) (Arctangent of A / B)  
SQRT (A)  
ABS (A)  
SGN (A)  
REAL  
Changes number to a  
real number.  
REAL (A)  
LN  
LOG10  
EXP  
Natural logarithm  
Common logarithm  
Exponential to base e.  
LN (A)  
LOG10 (A)  
EXP (A)  
Parentheses ( ) may be used inside the expressions.  
2.5.1 Computational Expressions  
In the SCOL language, the results of computations on the right side of an equal sign are placed in  
the register (variable) on the left. Variables and constants may be used in the expressions.  
(1) Order of computational priority  
The SCOL language uses the same order of priority used by almost all other computer languages.  
Specifically;  
• When there are brackets, operations inside the brackets are done first.  
• Otherwise, operations are performed in the order of: 1.  
Assignment of negative signs, 2. Exponentiation, 3.  
Multiplication and division, 4. Addition and subtraction  
• Should the order of priority be otherwise the same, priority is assigned from the left of the  
expression to the right.  
For example:  
a = b + c * d / (e - f) - g,  
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The order of computation for the above expression is:  
1.Calculate e - f.  
e-f  
2.Calculate C * d.  
c * d  
3.Divide C * d by e - f.  
4.Add the above result to b.  
5.Subtract g from the above result.  
(c * d) / (e - f)  
b + (c * d) / (e - f)  
(b + (c * d) / (e - f)) - g  
Table 2.4 presents the order of computational priority for various operations.  
Table 2.4 Order of computational priority  
Priority  
High  
Operation  
Operand  
)
Grouping convention  
Left to right  
Left to right  
Right to left  
Left to right  
Parenthesis  
(
.
Assignment of vector elements  
Assignment of negative signs and negations  
Exponentiation  
-, NOT  
^
Multiplication, division, remainder  
Addition, subtraction  
*, /, MOD  
+, -  
Left to right  
Left to right  
Comparison  
<, >, < =, > =,  
= <, = >  
= =, < >, > <  
AND, OR  
=
Left to right  
Equality, inequality  
Logical product, logical sum  
Substitution  
Left to right  
Left to right  
Right to left  
Low  
Note:  
Explanation of grouping convention:  
Left to right ... 1 + 2 - 3 is interpreted as (1 + 2) - 3.  
Right to left ... NOT-3 is interpreted as NOT (-3).  
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(2) Computation of scalar type data  
Scalar type data can be used in calculations in combination with computational operands.  
However, should even one number in an expression be a real number, the output of that expression  
will also be a real number. Also, the following functions will all return a real number.  
SIN, COS, TAN, ASIN, ACOS, ATAN, ATAN2, SQRT, REAL, LN, LOG10, EXP  
When the variable on the left side of the equation is an integer type and the output of the calculation  
is not an integer, the output will be converted into an integer before being assigned to the variable.  
Do not forget, however, that all decimal points are chopped off when a real number is converted to  
an integer. On the other hand, when converting from an integer to a real number, the number of  
significant digits is limited. When you want to make it clear what kind of data type you are dealing  
with, use the INT or REAL command.  
Note that character strings cannot be used in calculations. Calculations may be carried out  
between the elements of vector-type variables and scalar data. In this case, an element specifier  
is appended to the end of a vector-type variable to specify the element which is involved in the  
calculation. The value of the element is then drawn out from the vector-type variable and used in  
the calculation.  
As element specifiers, ".X", ".Y", ".Z", ".C" and ".T" may be used. You may also numerically specify  
the element position with ".1", ".2", ".3", ".4" and ".5."  
Examples:  
A = POINT1.X/25  
GAIN={GAIN. l,GAIN.2,0,0,0}  
Note)  
You can only use this to return the value of an element from the inside of a vector-type variable.  
You cannot change the value of the element itself.  
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(3) Computation of vector-type data  
You can add and subtract corresponding elements of two vectors. Computation is a possib1e only  
between the same type variables. The <CONFIG> element is not involved in the calculations but  
rather takes the value of the variable substituted into it.  
Example:  
Given the following two position vectors and two coordinate vectors;  
P1: (10, 20, 30, 40, 50, RIGHTY)  
P2: (-5, 10, -15, 20, -25, LEFTY)  
C1: (100, 50, -50, 0)  
C2: (12, 34, 56, 78)  
and performing the following operations,  
P3 = P1 - P2  
C3 = C1 - C2  
we obtain:  
P3: (15, 10, 45, 20, 75, RIGHTY)  
C3: (88, 16, -106, -78)  
Notes)  
The <CONFIG> element in P3 is indeterminant.  
(4) Substitution into vector data types  
The following methods are available to substitute (insert) a constant, a variable or the result of a  
computation into an element of vector-type data.  
(a) Commands to convert a row of scalar-type data into vector-type data  
A POINT command and a TRANS command are available to convert rows of scalar data into a  
vector data. POINT converts scalar data into positional vector data, and TRANS converts scalar  
data into coordinate vector data. For details on how to use these commands, see "Chapter 3."  
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Examples:  
P1 = POINT(P2.X, P2.Y, P2.Z + 50, 0, 0)  
C1 = C2 + TRANS(100, 100)  
The more alert reader may have noticed that something is missing in the second example. That is,  
although the TRANS command is used to create coordinate vector types (which have four  
elements), only two numbers (100 and 100) have been assigned in the command. This will not  
cause any problems, however, since missing numbers will be assumed to be "0". Here, the  
second example will be considered as:  
C1 = C2 + TRANS(100, 100, 0, 0)  
As you will recall, positional and coordinate vectors have the following format:  
Positional data POINT (X, Y, Z, C, T <CONFIG>)  
Coordinate data TRANS (X, Y, Z, C)  
X, Y, Z, C and T are coordinate values represented by real numbers. Units are in millimeters or  
degrees.  
<CONFIG> stands for "configuration" and holds an integer from 0 to 2 that is used to describe the  
set-up of the system.  
0 ... Free (Set-up of the system is undefined)  
1 ... Left hand system  
2 ... Right hand system  
Any omitted elements are taken as "0".  
Note 1:  
In order to make it clear just what kind of data type you are using, always try to use the POINT  
command when creating positional type data and the TRANS command when creating coordinate  
type data.  
Note 2:  
When position data which have not been taught are used in a program of the robot language, the  
position data are temporarily stored in the controller memory. Thus, when the program is reset, the  
position data are cleared. The position data are only valid in the program which uses data.  
Therefore, to use the position data in a subprogram, it is necessary to pass it as an argument. For  
details of arguments, see "2.8.2 Subprograms."  
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Note 3:  
The substitution and reference to the array type data (type of variable name [index number]) are  
dealt in the same manner as the original data type (scalar type and vector type) of the array type  
data.  
2.5.2 Logical Expressions  
With SCOL, logical expressions can be used in combination with the commands IF, WAIT and ON.  
Also, six relational operands are available (<, >, < = (or = <), > = (or = >), < > (or > <), and = =).  
Also, logical expressions may be combined using the logical operands AND, OR and NOT. Scalar  
constants, scalar variables and the results of calculations may be used as data in logical  
expressions.  
When evaluating equivalence, use the "= =" sign and not the "=" sign. When comparing real  
numbers, differences of 0.001 or less will be ignored.  
Logical expressions will return an integer value of 1 if true and 0 if false.  
Examples:  
1)  
2)  
IF K = =K2 * K3 THEN K = K2  
ON MOTION > = 50 DO DOUT (1,2)  
IF J1 THEN GOTO BRANCH1 ELSE GOTO BRANCH2  
Let's take a look at the third example. If J1 is an integer 0 (or a real number with an  
absolute value less than or equal to 0.001), the comparison will be considered as  
FALSE. The program will then branch off to BRANCH2. Should J1 be anything  
other than an integer 0 (or a real number with an absolute value more than 0.001),  
the comparison will be considered as TRUE and the program will branch off to  
BRANCH1.  
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2.6 LABELS  
With the SCOL language, program branches are specified by labels placed at the beginning of the  
branch destination. When labelling a statement as a branch, put a colon at the end of the  
identifier.  
When directing the program to branch to another location with the GOTO command, do not put a  
colon at the end of the identifier.  
Program branching may only be carried out within a single program. You cannot branch from one  
program to another. Also, you may use the same labels in different programs, but you cannot use  
the same label in a single program.  
Examples:  
LOOP1: MOVE P1  
GOTO LOOP1  
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2.7 REMARKS AND COMMENTS  
The SCOL language allows you add comments to your program in order to make it easier to  
understand (and debug). Comments can be entered by using the teach pendant to type in  
whatever you want to say. However, you have to use one of the following formats so that your  
comments do not get mixed in with the program itself.  
(1) REMARK command  
You can write what you want to say after a REMARK command. The computer will ignore  
everything from the REMARK command to the end of the line. This keeps your comments  
separate from the program.  
Example:  
REMARK THIS PROGRAM WAS WRITTEN BY ME  
(2) Single quotation mark  
Everything written after a single quotation mark (') until the end of the line will be ignored by the  
program. The nice thing about this method is that you can write comments on the same line as a  
command to keep track of what is going on.  
Example)  
MOVE P1  
'THIS COMMAND MOVES THE ROBOT TO P1  
However, the ' mark does not have to follow a command. The following will also work:  
'THIS IS A MEANINGLESS EXAMPLE  
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2.8 PROGRAMS  
This section describes SCOL programs.  
2.8.1 Program Declaration  
A program has to have the following basic structure. If it does not, it is not a valid program.  
PROGRAM <name of your program>  
Contents of your program  
END  
A program is made up of everything from the PROGRAM statement to the END statement.  
Write a program name after the PROGRAM statement. For example, if you want to call your  
program "George," write PROGRAM GEORGE (and not PROGRAM <GEORGE>.) (Note,  
however, that the program name becomes an identifier). Put the contents of your program  
between the PROGRAM statement and the END statement.  
Example)  
PROGRAM SAMPLE  
REMARK SAMPLE  
SPEED=20  
MOVE Al  
'Program name "SAMPLE"  
'Comment  
'Set the movement speed to 20% of the maximum speed.  
'Move the robot to position Al.  
'Wait for 0.5 sec.  
DELAY 0.5  
MOVE A2  
DELAY 0.5  
'Move the robot to position A2.  
'Wait for 0.5 sec.  
END  
'End of program  
As shown in the example, the body of the program is composed of statements made up of an  
arrangement of SCOL commands. A new line is created every time you push the "RETURN" (or  
"ENTER") key when writing (or editing) the program. Up to 130 characters can be contained in a  
single line. You may add spaces as you wish in order to make the program neater and easier to  
read. Note how comments are entered with ' marks.  
Note)  
No spaces can be placed between characters structuring a word of a command and identifier.  
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2.8.2 Subprograms  
You can call up a subprogram by just writing its name in the main program.  
Example:  
Here is a main program which calls a subprogram called SUB1.  
PROGRAM MAIN  
REMARK *** SAMPLE 1 ***  
SUB1  
END  
Here is the subprogram which has been named SUB1.  
PROGRAM SUB1  
REMARK *** SUBPROGRAM NO. 1 ***  
Body of subprogram  
RETURN  
END  
A RETURN command should inserted in subprograms to send control back to the main program.  
If you forget to write RETURN, SCOL will forgive you and pretend that there is a RETURN  
command in front of the END statement.  
When wishing to pass data between subprograms and the main program, you have to first specify  
arguments for the subprogram. Arguments are like little "mailboxes" to which values passed  
between the programs are sent and received. And, before using these mailboxes, you have to put  
a name on each one so the postman knows whose mail goes where. When writing a subprogram  
(not a main program), the program statement should be written like this:  
PROGRAM <program name> (<names of arguments>)  
After writing the program name, write the names of the arguments inside of brackets. Use  
commas to separate the names of the arguments. (You cannot specify more than ten arguments  
for a single subprogram.) For example, the main program will have the statement:  
SUB EXAMPLE (A, B, C)  
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When calling the subprogram from the main program, write (in the main program) the name of the  
subprogram and the data you wish to pass over to that subprogram. For example, the  
corresponding subprogram will have the statement:  
PROGRAM SUBEXAMPLE (M1, M2, M3)  
The subprogram SUBEXAMPLE will now do whatever it does while treating A as M1, B as M2, and  
C as M3.  
Note that variables changed in the subprogram will automatically change the corresponding value in  
the main program. For example, if M3 were to change in the subprogram SUBEXAMPLE, C will  
also change simultaneously in the main program.  
Example:  
Main program  
PROGRAM MAIN  
REMARK *** SAMPLE 2 ***  
K1 = 15  
K2 = 28  
SUB2(K1, K2, K)  
PRINT K  
END  
Sub program  
PROGRAM SUB2(N1, N2, N3)  
REMARK *** SUBPROGRAM NO. 2 ****  
N3 = N1 + N2  
RETURN  
END  
In the above example, three arguments are being passed off between the main program and  
subprogram. Specifically, K1 of the main program is passed over as N1 of the subprogram.  
Similarly, K2 of the main program is passed over as N2 of the subprogram. The subprogram adds  
N1 and N2, and puts the result in a variable called N3. When this happens, the value of K in the  
main program also changes (since K and N3 correspond to each other).  
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When you execute this program, K1 will be passed off as 15 (to N1 of the subprogram) and K2 will  
be passed off as 28 (to N2 of the subprogram). The subprogram will add these together and call  
the result (which is 43) N3. The K variable of the main program will also change to 43. The  
RETURN command will send control back to the main program, and the PRINT K statement will be  
executed. This will cause the number "43" to be displayed on the teach pendant.  
Note that subprograms may not call themselves. Also, should you call a subprogram which is in  
another file, the controller will not understand you and instead will treat the name of that  
subprogram as an error.  
Note 1) An expression itself, result of vector data expression such as position data and vector  
data element can be designated as an argument.  
Note 2) When a constant is used as an argument, it cannot be substituted into a variable  
according to a subprogram.  
Note 3) For a variable which is an argument to a subprogram, a value should be substituted into  
the variable before the subprogram is executed.  
2.8.3 Library  
The SCOL language does not allow you to use subprograms which are not in the same file as the  
main program. However, by putting especially useful subprograms in the library file (SCOL.LIB),  
you can access these subprograms from all files.  
Many useful subprograms have already been inserted in the library file including subprograms to  
get the system ready and subprograms to operate the hand. Appendix C shows the contents of  
the library file SCOL.LIB provided as standard on the robot controller system disk.  
When writing your own subprogram to add to the library file, enter the program in that file just like  
you would enter any other subprogram. For information on how to enter a program into a file, refer  
to the Start-up Manual and the Operating Manual. Be sure to put any newly created files at the  
very end of the existing library file.  
Should a subprogram in the library file and a subprogram in the main file have the same name,  
the controller will execute the subprogram in the main file (and not the subprogram in the library  
file). The library is reloaded at program selection.  
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2.8.4 Multitask Processing  
This paragraph describes how to use the multitask function of the SCOL language together with the  
relevant commands and system variables.  
Program execution of single task and multitask operation is shown in Fig. 1 and Fig. 2. The  
number in the figure designates the order of the program execution. Specific timing of change-  
over from program to program (task change) is described later.  
Program  
Program 1  
Program 2  
Program 3  
A1  
B1  
C1  
A2  
A3  
A4  
B2  
B3  
C2  
Fig. 1 Single task  
operation  
Fig. 2 Multitask operation  
In Fig. 1, program A is executed continuously from the start to the end (single task operation and no  
subroutine call).  
A program which uses no multitask command is executed in the manner as shown in Fig. 1 (no  
subroutine call).  
Execution of a program which uses the multitask command is shown in Fig. 2.  
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As shown in Fig. 2, the multitask operation is realized, changing over a plural number of individual  
programs by time sharing, as if the programs were executed in parallel. The order of program  
execution is shown in the following table.  
Order  
Program to be executed  
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10  
11  
12  
13  
:
A1  
B1  
C1  
A2  
B2  
C2  
A3  
B3  
C1  
A4  
B1  
C2  
A1  
:
Program 1 start  
Program 2 start  
Program 3 start  
1-cycle end of program 3  
1-cycle end of program 2  
Program 3 start  
1-cycle end of program 1  
Program 2 start  
Program 1 start  
Next, the start of multitask is described.  
A program that can be treated as multitask is the program block containing no arguments. The  
program block means an area between the PROGRAM command and END command, which  
consists of the SCOL language statements. The subroutine without argument can be dealt with as  
a task. The argument cannot be kept in the task.  
To deal with a program as task, use the TASK command. The TASK command executes a  
program specified in the argument as a task. Unless the program starts by the TASK command,  
the program is not performed as a task.  
The program block (statements between the PROGRAM command and the END command)  
described at the head of the program file is an exception. Even if the TASK command is not used,  
the program is performed as a task.  
To execute the program 2 as a task in the Fig. 2, the TASK (“PROG2”) is required to be executed in  
the program 1. (The program 1 is described at the head of the file, and the program starts as a  
task without TASK command.)  
To execute the program 3 as a task, a new task (“PROG 3”) is required to be executed in the task  
(in the program 1 or 2 in this case) which has been already started.  
If the task and program which have been started are reset or the task operation is released by the  
SCOL language, the task is kept active.  
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The task ID (the number assigned to the task) is described.  
The characteristic numbers (task ID) are assigned to the tasks which have been started by the  
TASK command respectively. In the example of Fig. 2, “1” is assigned to the program 1, “2” is  
assigned to the program 2 and “3” is assigned to the program 3. This task ID starts from 1 in  
sequence and this ID increases one by one every time the task starts (every time the task  
executes). If the task is managed by the SCOL language, this task ID is used.  
To get the task ID, see the following examples.  
Example: I1 = TASK (“PROG 2”)  
“I1” is a desired variable of integer type. The task ID of PROG 2 can be obtained. This command  
is executed in the program 1. The task ID of its own cannot be referred to in the program 2 in this  
example.  
Example: I2 = TID  
“I2” is a desired variable of integer type. If the system variable TID is referred to, the task ID of its  
own can be acquired. If this command is executed in the program 2, the task ID of its own can be  
seen in the program 2 (“2” in this occasion).  
If this command is executed in the program 1, the task ID of program 1 (“1” in this occasion) is  
substituted for “I2”.  
If the task ID other than the own task is referred to from other tasks, variables of examples 1 and 2  
are required to be defined as the global variable.  
Change-over of task is described.  
As shown in the Fig. 2, the system executes the program 1 ~ 3 by time sharing. When this  
happens, timing of program change-over depends on the following three conditions.  
(1) When the program change-over is specified clearly by the SWITCH command of the SCOL.  
The SWITCH command is used if the task is changed over clearly by the SCOL language.  
Even if the task change-over conditions specified in the system are not satisfied while the  
SWITCH command is used, the task can be changed over.  
(2) When a new task starts by the TASK command of the SCOL.  
If a new task starts by the TASK command, the program control is changed over to the  
newly started task.  
(3) When the task terminates by the KILL command of the SCOL.  
If the task of its own terminates by the KILL command, the program control is changed over  
to the next task.  
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(4) When the predetermined conditions specified in the system are satisfied and the program is  
changed over by the system.  
The task change-over conditions specified in the system are as follows:  
(1) A program in a task is executed for more than 50 msec.  
(2) When the data area for movement command becomes full.  
Up to four data can be read beforehand by the movement command. If this internal area  
for prior reading becomes full, the task is changed over.  
(3) When the command requiring communication with an external device has been executed.  
The INPUT, PRINT and RESTORE commands are not executed alone by the SCOL  
program. They are the commands including such processing as the TP operation by an  
operator and RAM file operation. If the system waits for a reply, therefore, the task is  
changed over.  
To avoid the task change-over by the system, set the system variable SWITCH to  
“DISABLE”.  
Note: If the task change-over is prohibited, only currently active program is executed and the  
other task program which has already started is not executed (single task operation).  
2.8.5 Global Variable Definition  
If the global variable which can be referred to from the entire program is defined, obey the following  
rules.  
(1) Global variable declaration  
If the global variable is used, the type and identifier (variable name) of the variable to be  
used is required to be defined.  
This definition must be performed before the first PROGRAM statement.  
To define the variable A of real number type and the variable B of integer type, the definition  
is as follows:  
GLOBAL  
A = 1.0 (This value is the initial value of the variable.)  
B = 2  
END  
PROGRAM  
:
END  
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(2) Global variable declaration by type  
To define the global variable of each type, use the following formats.  
Integer type:  
A = 1  
Real number type: B = 1.0  
Position type:  
Array type:  
C = POINT (1.0, 2.0, 3.0, 4.0, 5.0, 1)  
DIM D(10) AS INT  
Array of ten integer type elements is  
defined. (Note 1)  
DIM E(10, 3) AS REAL  
DIM F(5) AS POINT  
Array of 10 × 3 real number type elements  
is defined.  
Array of five position type elements is  
defined.  
Note 1: The initial value of the array type global variable is indefinite. The variable is required to  
be initialized by the user program.  
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