Showing papers in "Industrial Robot-an International Journal in 2012"
457 citations
407 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors extracted lessons learned from the Fukushima Daiichi accident, caused by a big earthquake and a huge tsunami, which occurred on 11 March 2011, by summarizing emergency response by robots to the Fukushima Daiichi accident.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to extract lessons learned from the Fukushima‐Daiichi accident, caused by a big earthquake and a huge tsunami, which occurred on 11 March 2011.Design/methodology/approach – Lessons learned are extracted after summarizing emergency response by robots to the Fukushima‐Daiichi accident.Findings – Many lessons had been learned from the experiences on robots' emergency response to the accident; organization and operation scheme, and systemization were major lessons learned.Practical implications – Unmanned constructive heavy machines and robots donated from the USA or imported from Sweden did reconnaissance work and cleaning up of rubble outside of buildings. Quince and JAEA‐3 were deployed for reconnaissance inside buildings.Social implications – The Japanese nuclear disaster response robotics developed after Japan Conversion Corporation's critical accident occurred in 1999, could not work when the Fukushima‐Daiichi accident occurred on 11 March 2011.Originality/value – ...
148 citations
TL;DR: The experiments results show that transfer efficiency of wafer transfer robot has been significantly improved through application of the research in this paper, and finite element method is adopted to analyze wafer deformation.
Abstract: – Wafer transfer robots play a significant role in IC manufacturing industry and the end effector is an important component of the robots. The purpose of this paper is to improve transfer efficiency of a wafer transfer robot through study of its end effector, and at the same time to reduce wafer deformation., – Finite element method is adopted to analyze wafer deformation. For wafer transfer robot working in vacuum, for the first time, the authors apply the research of microfiber arrays inspired by gecko to the design of robot's end effector, and present equations between robot's transit acceleration and parameters of microfiber arrays. Based on these studies, a kind of micro‐array bump is designed and fixed to a structure optimized end effector. For wafer transfer robot working in atmospheric environment, the authors have analyzed the effects of different factors on wafer deformation. The pressure distributions in absorption area and calculation formula of maximal transfer acceleration are put forward. Finally, a new kind of end effector for atmospheric robot is designed according to these studies., – The experiments results show that transfer efficiency of wafer transfer robot has been significantly improved through application of the research in this paper. Also wafer deformation under absorption force has been controlled., – Through experiments it can be seen that the research in this paper can be used to improve robot transfer ability and decrease wafer deformation in the production environment. Also the studies of end effector lay a solid foundation for further improvement., – This is the first application of the research of gecko‐inspired microfiber arrays to vacuum wafer transfer robot. This paper also carefully analyzes effects of different factors on wafer deformation through finite element method.
140 citations
TL;DR: The benefits to nuclear operators arising from the deployment of snake arm robots include significant dose saving, increased quality and quantity of acquired data and the ability to enable repairs in highly confined spaces.
Abstract: – The purpose of this paper is to describe the use of snake‐arm robots to conduct inspection and repair operations within nuclear power plants. The systems that have been developed and deployed are described. Operational experience and results are provided. Inspection and repair of aging plant is increasingly important to continue to generate electricity safely from high value assets., – Snake‐arm robots are hyper‐redundant, multi‐jointed, wire rope drive manipulators that are able to snake between obstructions and gain access to areas that are inaccessible to people., – The benefits to nuclear operators arising from the deployment of snake arm robots include significant dose saving, increased quality and quantity of acquired data and the ability to enable repairs in highly confined spaces., – The two case studies are first‐of‐kind applications and indicate a direction of travel for the coming decades, both in the nuclear sector and far beyond.
101 citations
TL;DR: It is shown that the telescopic ballbar is an excellent, comparably low‐cost, high‐precision tool for assessing the static and dynamic positioning performance of industrial robots and its use in robotics should be further developed.
Abstract: – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the use of a laser tracker, a laser interferometer system and a telescopic ballbar for assessing the positioning performance of a six‐axis industrial serial robot The paper also aims to illustrate the limitations of these three metrology instruments for the assessment of robot positioning performance and to demonstrate the inadequacy of simplistic performance tests, – Specific test methods in the case of the laser interferometer system and the telescopic ballbar are proposed Measurements are analyzed in accordance to the ISO 9283 norm, – It is found that, in static conditions and after a relatively short warm‐up, the unidirectional position repeatability of the non‐calibrated industrial robot under study (an ABB IRB 1600) is better than 37 μm, the unidirectional orientation repeatability is at worst 87 μrad, the linear position accuracy is better than 650 μm, and the rotation accuracy is at worst 28 mrad (mainly because of the sixth robot axis) It was also found that the dynamic (radial) errors due to vibrations can be up to approximately ±250 μm along a small circular path at TCP speed of 700 mm/s, – It is pointed out that the use of a laser tracker (or any other large range portable 3D measurement system) is questionable for assessing – let alone analyzing in depth – the unidirectional position repeatability of some of today's industrial robots It is also demonstrated that the laser interferometer system can be used for measuring linear errors along a linear path of motion as well as angular errors about axes orthogonal to the path of motion Finally, it is shown that the telescopic ballbar is an excellent, comparably low‐cost, high‐precision tool for assessing the static and dynamic positioning performance of industrial robots and its use in robotics should be further developed, – This work is the first to detail the use of three metrology equipments for assessing the positioning performance of an industrial robot Experimental results are presented and discussed Some guidelines for optimizing the positioning performance of an industrial robot are provided
99 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors provide a review of the interdisciplinary research field, autonomous industrial mobile manipulation (AIMM), with an emphasis on physical implementations and applications, and identify key open issues and promising research directions to realize real-world integration and maturation of the AIMM technology.
Abstract: – The purpose of this paper is to provide a review of the interdisciplinary research field, autonomous industrial mobile manipulation (AIMM), with an emphasis on physical implementations and applications., – Following an introduction to AIMM, this paper investigates the missing links and gaps between the research and developments efforts and the real‐world application requirements, in order to bring the AIMM technology from laboratories to manufacturing environments. The investigation is based on 12 general application requirements for robotics: sustainability, configuration, adaptation, autonomy, positioning, manipulation and grasping, robot‐robot interaction, human‐robot interaction, process quality, dependability, and physical properties., – The concise yet comprehensive review provides both researchers (academia) and practitioners (industry) with a quick and gentle overview of AIMM. Furthermore, the paper identifies key open issues and promising research directions to realize real‐world integration and maturation of the AIMM technology., – This paper reviews the interdisciplinary research field, autonomous industrial mobile manipulation (AIMM).
94 citations
TL;DR: A CAD‐based human‐robot interface that allows non‐expert users to teach a robot in a manner similar to that used by human beings to teach each other is presented.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a CAD‐based human‐robot interface that allows non‐expert users to teach a robot in a manner similar to that used by human beings to teach each other.Design/methodology/approach – Intuitive robot programming is achieved by using CAD drawings to generate robot programs off‐line. Sensory feedback allows minimization of the effects of uncertainty, providing information to adjust the robot paths during robot operation.Findings – It was found that it is possible to generate a robot program from a common CAD drawing and run it without any major concerns about calibration or CAD model accuracy.Research limitations/implications – A limitation of the proposed system has to do with the fact that it was designed to be used for particular technological applications.Practical implications – Since most manufacturing companies have CAD packages in their facilities today, CAD‐based robot programming may be a good option to program robots without the need for skilled robot ...
49 citations
TL;DR: A screw axis identification (SAI) method based on the product of exponentials (POE) model, which is concerned with calibrating a serial robot with m joints equipped with a stereo-camera vision system.
Abstract: Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to propose a screw axis identification (SAI) method based on the product of exponentials (POE) model, which is concerned with calibrating a serial robot with m joints equipped with a stereo-camera vision system.
47 citations
TL;DR: Fiction stir welding is a novel method for joining materials without using consumables and without melting the materials.
Abstract: Purpose – Friction stir welding (FSW) is a novel method for joining materials without using consumables and without melting the materials. The purpose of this paper is to present the state of the a ...
45 citations
TL;DR: Experiments indicate that the service robot could successfully grasp the plate, from wherever is its initial position; and the proposed algorithms could estimate the robot pose well and accurately evaluate the localization performance.
Abstract: Purpose – Recently, service robots have been widely used in various fields. The purpose of this paper is to design a restaurant service robot which could be applicable to provide basic service, such as ordering, fetching and sending food, settlement and so on, for the customers in the robot restaurant.Design/methodology/approach – Based on characteristics of wheeled mobile robots, the service robot with two manipulators is designed. Constrained by the DOF, the final positioning accuracy within ±3 cm must be guaranteed to successfully grasp the plate. Segmented positioning method is applied considering the positioning costs and accuracy requirement in the different stages, and the shape‐based matching tracking method is adopted to navigate the robot to the object.Findings – Experiments indicate that the service robot could successfully grasp the plate, from wherever is its initial position; and the proposed algorithms could estimate the robot pose well and accurately evaluate the localization performance.R...
TL;DR: It is shown that robotic laboratory automation offers a number of key economic and operational benefits and is being used in many procedures, ranging from drug discovery and toxicity testing to forensics and environmental monitoring.
Abstract: – This paper aims to provide a review of the applications of robotic technology in laboratories., – Following a short introduction, this paper discusses a range of key applications for laboratory robots and describes a number of products. Some recent research is considered and brief conclusions are drawn., – This shows that robotic laboratory automation offers a number of key economic and operational benefits and is being used in many procedures, ranging from drug discovery and toxicity testing to forensics and environmental monitoring. An intriguing possibility is the creation of new scientific knowledge by combining robotic systems with artificial intelligence., – This paper illustrates the vital role played by robotic automation in laboratory procedures.
TL;DR: A new smooth online near time‐optimal trajectory planning approach to reduce the consuming time compared to the conventional dynamics trajectory planning methods can avoid Range's phenomenon and also guarantee the continuity of torque.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to propose a new smooth online near time‐optimal trajectory planning approach to reduce the consuming time compared to the conventional dynamics trajectory planning methods.Design/methodology/approach – In the proposed method, the robot path is expressed by a scalar path coordinate. The joints torque boundary and speed boundary are transformed into the plane, which can generate the limitation curves of pseudo‐velocity. The maximum pseudo‐velocity curve that meets the limits of torque and speed is built up through the feature points and control points in the plane by using cubic polynomial fitting method. Control points used for cubic polynomial construction are optimized by the Golden‐Section method.Findings – The proposed method can avoid Range's phenomenon and also guarantee the continuity of torque.Practical implications – The algorithm designed in this paper is used for the controller of a new industrial robot which will be equipped for the welding automatic line...
TL;DR: A new GPGPU based ICP implementation with regular grid decomposition guarantees high accuracy as equivalent CPU based I CP implementation with better performance.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate a real time 3D localization and mapping approach for the USAR (Urban Search and Rescue) robotic application, focusing on the performance and the accuracy of the General‐purpose computing on graphics processing units (GPGPU)‐based iterative closest point (ICP) 3D data registration implemented using modern GPGPU with FERMI architecture.Design/methodology/approach – The authors put all the ICP computation into GPU, and performed the experiments with registration up to 106 data points. The main goal of the research was to provide a method for real‐time data registration performed by a mobile robot equipped with commercially available laser measurement system 3D. The main contribution of the paper is a new GPGPU based ICP implementation with regular grid decomposition. It guarantees high accuracy as equivalent CPU based ICP implementation with better performance.Findings – The authors have shown an empirical analysis of the tuning of GPUICP parameters for o...
TL;DR: Important conclusions have been reached when solving the trajectory planning problem related to the value of the torque, power, jerk and energy consumed and the relationship between them, therefore enabling the user to choose the most efficient way of working depending on which parameter he is most interested in optimizing.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyze the impact of the torque, power, jerk and energy consumed constraints on the generation of minimum time collision‐free trajectories for industrial robots in a complex environmentDesign/methodology/approach – An algorithm is presented in which the trajectory is generated under real working constraints (specifically torque, power, jerk and energy consumed) It also takes into account the presence of obstacles (to avoid collisions) and the dynamics of the robotic system The method solves an optimization problem to find the minimum time trajectory to perform the tasks the robot should doFindings – Important conclusions have been reached when solving the trajectory planning problem related to the value of the torque, power, jerk and energy consumed and the relationship between them, therefore enabling the user to choose the most efficient way of working depending on which parameter he is most interested in optimizing From the examples solved the authors hav
TL;DR: A calibration method developed to improve the absolute accuracy of a novel three degrees‐of‐freedom planar parallel robot that is designed for the precise alignment of semiconductor wafers and performed within a target workspace.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe a calibration method developed to improve the absolute accuracy of a novel three degrees‐of‐freedom planar parallel robot. The robot is designed for the precise alignment of semiconductor wafers and, even though its complete workspace is slightly larger, the accuracy improvements are performed within a target workspace, in which the positions are on a disc of 170 mm in diameter and the orientations are in the range ±17°.Design/methodology/approach – The calibration method makes use of a single optimization model, based on the direct kinematic calibration approach, while the experimental data are collected from two sources. The first source is a measurement arm from FARO Technologies, and the second is a Mitutoyo coordinate measurement machine (CMM). The two sets of calibration results are compared.Findings – Simulation confirmed that the model proposed is not sensitive to measurement noise. An experimental validation on the CMM shows that the absolute acc...
TL;DR: The accuracy analysis and experimental technique in this paper can guide the research of three‐dimensional information computing by stereo vision and improve the computed accuracy of computing accuracy.
Abstract: – Stereo vision technique simulates the function of the human eyes to observe the world, which can be used to compute the spatial information of weld seam in the robot welding field. It is a typical kind of application to fix two cameras on the end effector of robot when stereo vision is used in intelligent robot welding. In order to analyse the effect of vision system configuration on vision computing, an accuracy analysis model of vision computing is constructed, which is a good guide for the construction and application of stereo vision system in welding robot field., – A typical stereo vision system fixed on welding robot is designed and constructed to compute the position information of spatial seam. A simplified error analysis model of the two arbitrary putting cameras is built to analyze the effect of sensors' structural parameter on vision computing accuracy. The methodology of model analysis and experimental verification are used in the research. And experiments related with image extraction, robot movement accuracy is also designed to analyze the effect of equipment accuracy and related processed procedure in vision technology., – Effect of repeatability positioning accuracy and TCP calibration error of welding robot for visual computing are also analyzed and tested. The results show that effect of the repeatability on computing accuracy is not bigger than 0.3 mm. However, TCP affected the computing accuracy greatly, when the calibrated error of TCP is bigger than 0.5, the re‐calibration is very necessary. The accuracy analysis and experimental technique in this paper can guide the research of three‐dimensional information computing by stereo vision and improve the computed accuracy., – The accuracy of seam position information is affected by many interactional factors, the systematic experiments and a simplified error analysis model are designed and established, the main factors such as the sensor's configurable parameters, the accuracy of arc welding robot and the accuracy of image recognition, are included in the model and experiments. The model and experimental method are significant for design of visual sensor and improvement of computing accuracy.
TL;DR: The purpose of this paper is to address the problem of improving energy efficiency in statically stable walking machines by comparing two leg, insect and mammal, configurations on the hexapod robotic platform SILO6.
Abstract: Purpose – Reducing energy consumption in walking robots is an issue of great importance in field applications such as humanitarian demining so as to increase mission time for a given power supply. The purpose of this paper is to address the problem of improving energy efficiency in statically stable walking machines by comparing two leg, insect and mammal, configurations on the hexapod robotic platform SILO6.Design/methodology/approach – Dynamic simulation of this hexapod is used to develop a set of rules that optimize energy expenditure in both configurations. Later, through a theoretical analysis of energy consumption and experimental measurements in the real platform SILO6, a configuration is chosen.Findings – It is widely accepted that the mammal configuration in statically stable walking machines is better for supporting high loads, while the insect configuration is considered to be better for improving mobility. However, taking into account the leg dynamics and not only the body weight, different re...
TL;DR: The design and the multi‐mode locomotion function of the new reconfigurable modular robotic system – UBot system – which combines the advantages from the chain‐based and lattice‐based self‐reconfigurable robots is introduced.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to introduce the design and the multi‐mode locomotion function of the new reconfigurable modular robotic system – UBot system – which combines the advantages from the chain‐based and lattice‐based self‐reconfigurable robots.Design/methodology/approach – The UBot modules the authors have designed are based on the universal joint and of cubic shape with two rotational joints and reliable automatic connecting mechanism. The modules are compact and flexible enough for locomotion and reconfiguration. The system can move in different modes to satisfy different terrains, through changing the modules' local connections and rotation of modules' joints.Findings – The UBot system can flexibly move in the modes of cross, loop, quadruped, snake‐type and other type of locomotion modes. All the locomotion has been implemented in the physical experiments.Originality/value – The UBot module is the new reconfigurable module which has two joints in one unit of regular cubic space and f...
TL;DR: It was found that the seam and pool images can be clearly acquired by using the passive vision system, and the welding image characteristic parameters were accurately extracted through processing.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyze the technology of capturing and processing weld images in real‐time, which is very important to the seam tracking and the weld quality control during the robotic gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW) processDesign/methodology/approach – By analyzing some main parameters on the effect of image capturing, a passive vision sensor for welding robot was designed in order to capture clear and steady welding images Based on the analysis of the characteristic of the welding images, a new improved Canny algorithm was proposed to detect the edges of seam and pool, and extract the seam and pool characteristic parameters Finally, the image processing precision was verified by the random welding experimentsFindings – It was found that the seam and pool images can be clearly acquired by using the passive vision system, and the welding image characteristic parameters were accurately extracted through processing The experiment results show that the precision range of the i
TL;DR: The authors developed an original finger‐pointing algorithm using a unique combination of standard morphological and image processing techniques which can be used to assist a “layperson” in re‐casting a generic pick‐and‐place application.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to design an interactive industrial robotic system which can be used to assist a “layperson” in re‐casting a generic pick‐and‐place application. A user can program a pick‐and‐place application simply by pointing to objects in the work area and speaking simple and intuitive natural language commands.Design/methodology/approach – The system was implemented in C# using the EMGU wrapper classes for OpenCV as well as the MS Speech Recognition API. The target language to be recognized was modelled using traditional augmented transition networks which were implemented as XML Grammars. The authors developed an original finger‐pointing algorithm using a unique combination of standard morphological and image processing techniques. Recognized voice commands trigger the vision component to capture what a user is pointing at. If the specified action requires robot movement, the required information is sent to the robot control component of the system, which then transmits the com...
TL;DR: The author shows that the former generates salient projections which can be interpreted with respect to Mori's uncanny valley, and the role of the task is highlighted with a theoretical attempt to integrate the robot as a social player into a Heider balance‐theory inspired model.
Abstract: – So‐called humanoid robots, among a large class of service robots, are designed to work in close harmony with humans. Their anthropomorphism and its consequences have, however, been little studied. The purpose of this paper is to tackle this question by differentiating the psychological meaning of anthropomorphism from its technical meaning, understood as a human‐like device. The author shows that the former generates salient projections which can be interpreted with respect to Mori's uncanny valley. The role of the task is highlighted with a theoretical attempt to integrate the robot as a social player into a Heider balance‐theory inspired model. This psychological anthropomorphism, however, must be compared with technical anthropomorphism, which leads to underlining present‐day difficulties in designing highly human‐like functional machines with, as a consequence, running the risk of giving them the delusion of a human behaviour that they are not able to realize., – This is a theoretical paper aimed to highlight a double meaning of anthropomorphism for humanoid robots and its consequences., – Task‐based interpretation of the Mori's uncanny valley and link between psychological anthropomorphism and technical anthropomorphism., – The originality of the approach consists in applying to the humanoid robot a double approach of anthropomorphism. The first one corresponds to the classical psychological meaning producing peculiar anthropomorphic projections on a non‐human being, while the second corresponds to the technical realization of a human‐like machine dedicated to be integrated into a human environment.
TL;DR: A supervised fuzzy inference system to learn the RFID sensor model is proposed and the obtained model is used by the tag localization algorithm, which proves the feasibility of RFID technology in a mobile robotics context.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to address the use of passive RFID technology for the development of an autonomous surveillance robot. Passive RFID tags can be used for labelling both valued objects and goal‐positions that the robot has to reach in order to inspect the surroundings. In addition, the robot can use RFID tags for navigational purposes, such as to keep track of its pose in the environment. Automatic tag position estimation is, therefore, a fundamental task in this context.Design/methodology/approach – The paper proposes a supervised fuzzy inference system to learn the RFID sensor model; Then the obtained model is used by the tag localization algorithm. Each tag position is estimated as the most likely among a set of candidate locations.Findings – The paper proves the feasibility of RFID technology in a mobile robotics context. The development of a RFID sensor model is first required in order to provide a functional relationship between the spatial attitude of the device and its respons...
TL;DR: The paper shows that robots have been developed which can withstand the hostile environment of space and make a significant contribution to lunar and Martian science and some of the technology has had an impact on terrestrial robots.
Abstract: – This paper aims to provide a technical description of the robots that have been deployed in space, primarily on the Moon and Mars., – Following an introduction, this paper describes the robotic devices that have been deployed on the Moon and Mars. It also considers the latest Mars robot mission, the humanoid robot recently deployed on the International Space Station and robotic developments for use during proposed future planetary missions. It concludes with a brief consideration of the impact of space robots on terrestrial robotic technology., – The paper shows that robots have been developed which can withstand the hostile environment of space. They have made a significant contribution to lunar and Martian science and some of the technology has had an impact on terrestrial robots., – This paper provides a technical insight into the robots that have operated on the surfaces of the Moon and Mars.
TL;DR: A hexapod walking robot was developed at the Royal Military Academy of Brussels in collaboration with the Free University of Brussels, Belgium, in the framework of the Humanitarian Demining Project (HUDEM) as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: Purpose – At present, more than 100 million undetonated landmines left over from wars remain buried worldwide. These mines kill or injure approximately 3,000 individuals each year (80 persons per day), most of them civilians. They represent a particularly acute problem in developing countries and nations already economically hard hit by war. The problem of unexploded mines has become a serious international issue, with many people striving to find a solution. The purpose of this paper is to examine the requirements of the robotic systems for humanitarian demining purposes. It will discuss a hexapod walking robot developed at the Royal Military Academy of Brussels in collaboration with the Free University of Brussels, Belgium, in the framework of the Humanitarian Demining Project (HUDEM).Design/methodology/approach – Considerations for the design of the walking robot according to the humanitarian demining requirements are discussed in detail.Findings – A successful walking robot design for demining purpose...
TL;DR: A technologically diverse range of novel actuation techniques exist, or are under development, which can act as artificial muscles and soft grippers and have prospects to impart robots with improved or unique capabilities.
Abstract: – The purpose of this paper is to describe a range of artificial muscle and soft gripping technologies for robotic applications., – Following a short introduction, this paper first discusses the role of air muscles and other pneumatic actuation technologies. It then considers electroactive polymer and shape‐memory alloys and finally discusses the prospects for various classes of electrohydrodynamic fluids., – This paper shows that a technologically diverse range of novel actuation techniques exist, or are under development, which can act as artificial muscles and soft grippers. They are based on pneumatics, shape changing materials and electrohydrodynamic fluids and have prospects to impart robots with improved or unique capabilities., – The paper provides an insight into developments in artificial muscle and soft gripping technologies. These are expected to play a vital role in future robot generations.
TL;DR: A dynamic model of heavy duty industrial robots is built considering the elastic of both joints and links, and a compound control algorithm based on singular perturbation theory was designed for the servo control loop.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a control system for a heavy duty industrial robot, including both the control structure and algorithm, which was designed and tested.Design/methodology/approach – An industrial PC with TwinCAT real‐time system is chosen as the motion control unit; EtherCAT is used for command transmission. The whole system has a decoupled and centralized control structure. A novel optimal motion generation algorithm based on modified cubic spline interpolation is illustrated. The execution time and work were chosen as the objective function. The constraints are the limits of torque, velocity and jerk. The motion commands were smooth enough throughout the execution period. By using the Lagangue equation and assumed modes methods, a dynamic model of heavy duty industrial robots is built considering the elastic of both joints and links. After that a compound control algorithm based on singular perturbation theory was designed for the servo control loop.Findings – The final e...
TL;DR: This paper proposes an intelligent system for industrial robotics in the logistic field, based on collaboration between heterogeneous robots, composed of a robots' network including one humanoid robot, wheeled robots, cameras, and remote computer.
Abstract: Purpose – Different machines are already present in the human environment, easing human beings' daily life. In the future, this tendency will be accentuated by integration of numerous robots (e.g. wheeled robots, legged robots, humanoid robots, network sensors, etc.) in the human environment. A wide range of applications, such as those dealing with warehouse management, industrial assembling, military applications, daily‐life tasks, can benefit from multi‐robot systems. The purpose of this paper is to propose an intelligent system for industrial robotics in the logistic field, based on collaboration between heterogeneous robots.Design/methodology/approach – The proposed infrastructure for this multi‐robot system is composed of a robots' network including one humanoid robot, wheeled robots, cameras, and remote computer. All devices can communicate between them by using wireless network. The goal of the humanoid robot is to lead the wheeled robots according to the environment and wheeled robots are used to ...
TL;DR: A universal approach has been found for configuration synthesis of reconfigurable robots based on fault tolerant indices to not only guarantee the robot with the synthesized configuration possesses the fault tolerant ability for the given task, but also has relatively high fault tolerant operation dexterity.
Abstract: – The purpose of this paper is to propose a universal approach for configuration synthesis of reconfigurable robots based on fault tolerant indices., – A universal approach is introduced to determine the best configuration of redundant reconfigurable robots based on fault tolerant indices. For a given task, a method based on genetic algorithm for evaluation on the index, fault tolerant workspace reachability, is employed first to search the robot configurations with the fault tolerant ability for the desired task. Then, among the obtained robot configurations, a method based on gradient projection algorithm is adopted to further find out the robot configuration that has the comparatively best fault tolerant operation dexterity. The validity of this approach is proved by conducting computational simulations., – A universal approach has been found for configuration synthesis of reconfigurable robots based on fault tolerant indices., – The paper introduces a universal approach for configuration synthesis of reconfigurable robots to not only guarantee the robot with the synthesized configuration possesses the fault tolerant ability for the given task, but also has relatively high fault tolerant operation dexterity.
TL;DR: The purpose of this paper is to provide a maximum speed algorithm for serial palletizing robots, which guarantees relatively low system modeling requirements and can be easily implemented in actual applications.
Abstract: – The purpose of this paper is to provide a maximum speed algorithm for serial palletizing robots, which guarantees relatively low system modeling requirements and can be easily implemented in actual applications., – Operation speed is an important index of palletizing robots performance. In order to improve it, features of palletizing motions are analyzed, and a refined iterative learning control algorithm for maximum speed optimization is proposed. The refined algorithm learns to increase local speed when the following error does not exceed a predefined tolerance, unlike conventional applications which make actual output identical to its reference. Furthermore, experiments were developed to illustrate the new algorithm's ability to take full advantage of motor capacity, drive ability and repetitive link couplings to improve palletizing efficiency., – Experiments show that motion time decreases more than 20 percent after optimization., – The new iterative control algorithm can be easily applied to any repetitive handling operations where manipulating efficiency matters.