Robotics and Automation

MFET5023

Lecture 2-2

Dr. Sang-Heon LEE

School of Advanced Manufacturing and Mechanical Engineering University of South Australia

Industrial Robot Components

Lecture Outline
This lecture will cover major components of industrial robots (Chapter 2, Section 3.4) 1. 1 Arms (manipulator) 2. End-effector 3. Drives 4. Controller 5. Sensor

Major components of industrial robots

Major components of industrial robots

1. Arms (Manipulator)
A mechanical linkage connected by joints to form an open kinematic chain capable of movements in various directions p Perform the work of robot Most important part of robot.

1. Arms (Manipulator)
Many different ways of positioning degree of freedom. Each direction of joint usually gives 1 degree of freedom. T reach any possible points in its 3D f d To h ibl i t i it working envelop, 6 DOF required. Two motions of robots Arm and body motions-usually determine its position. Wrist motions-usually determine its orientation.

1.1 Arm and body motions

Determine the position of the end-effector. Vertical traverse up-anddown motion of the arm. d ti f th Radial traverse extension and retraction of the arm (in-and-out movement). Rotational traverse rotation about the vertical axis (right or left swivel).

1.1 Wrist motions

Determine the orientation of the end-effector. Wrist swivel rotation of the wrist. i t Wrist bend up-and-down movement of the wrist, which also involves a rotational movement. Wrist Yaw right-or-left swivel of the wrist.

1.1 Motions of arms

1.2 Arms-example

2. End-Effector
A device attached to the robot manipulator to manipulate a workpiece and to perform the task. A tool to grip, hold and transport objects and position them in a desired location. Sometimes called endof-arm-tooling (EOAT)

2. End-Effector
A robot can become a production machine only if an end-effector has been attached to its mechanical arm by means of the toolmounting plate. Tool-mounting plate is for the interface between end-effector and the controller.

2. End-Effector
Many possible types-usually custom built. Process end-effector: welder, spray gun, grinder, drill, depth gauge, nut driver, etc. Grippers: Mechanical grippers: friction or physical configuration to be used to retain the objects. Magnetised grippers Suction cups (vacuum cups) Adhesive devices to hold flexible materials Some robots can change its end-effector and be programmable for different tasks - Tool exchanger required.

2.1 Gripper
Grippers are used to hold workpiece using mechanical open-close mechanism. Should consider the followings: Large mass at the end of robot arm requires a considerable amount of force to halt the movement. Changing direction of movement is difficult at high speeds with heavy loads. The workpiece should remain secured in the gripper even when the power of the grips is removed (safety reason).

2.1 Grippers-examples

2.2 Process End-effectors

Tools as a end-effector: in most applications where the robot manipulates the tool. The tools are attached to the robot wrist and become an end-effector. Example: welding gun, spray painting, drilling, grinding, heating, etc.
Movie file 1:polisher Movie file Welding Movie file Sealing

2.2 Process End-effectors: example

2.3 Consideration of endeffectors

Change in the size of parts (shape, weight) between operations Size variation in parts Surface of part, Scratching and/or distortion of part for fragile materials Grasping force, friction between part and gripper Weight of object Centre of mass (stability) Speed and acceleration of robot arm

2.4 Advanced End-effectors

2.4 Advanced End-effectors

Movie file 1 Movie file 2 Movie file 3 Movie file 4 Movie file 5: tiny gripper Movie file 6:parallel link gripper

2.5 Tool Centre Point (TCP)

The origin of the coordinate system or the point of action of the tool attached to the robot arm. Using forward kinematics, we could find the g , coordinate system in the base to the coordinate system attached on the tool-mounting plate of the arm. All movements of the manipulator are referenced from this location in space. If an end-effector is added to the mounting plate, the origin of coordinate system moved to a new location, which is called the TCP.

2.5 Tool Centre Point (TCP)

3. Drives (actuators)
It is an Engine that drives the links into the desired positions. Transmission of power from actuator to the p manipulators joints are mostly done by electromagnetic motors, gears, ball-screw or pulley drives. Drives are powered by air pressure (Pneumatic), oil pressure(Hydraulic) or electric motors.

3.1 Electrical Drives

Stepper motors or servo motors used in most industrial robots most common. Easy to control more repeatable positioning. Fast and accurate control. Relatively inexpensive. High speed with low torque-gear trains or other power transmission units are required: Limited in resolution and tend to be noisy. Limited payload capability.

3.1 Electrical Drives

3.2 Pneumatic Drives

Compressible air is used position control problem. Usually used in relatively low-cost with low-carrying capacity. Simple Si l control id l for gripper t l ideal f i Mechanical stops are usually used to control the actuator position simple stop-to-stop motions, ex. pick and place application.

3.2 Pneumatic Drives

Disadvantages: Usually more sophisticated valve required to reduce the error limited accuracy. Noise pollution from exhausts. Low efficiency especially at reduced loads. Low stiffness. Advantages High speed and relatively high power to weight ratio Very low cost No contamination of work space (no oil leak) Light weight.

3.2 Pneumatic DrivesExamples

Pneumatic control robot arm http://www.ks.uiuc.edu/Research/Neural/robot.html

3.3 Hydraulic Drives

Using high pressure oil Mechanically relatively simple (familiar to maintenance personnel) High strength and high speed for relatively small size (high power to weight ratio) ideal for moving moderate to high loads at reasonable speeds and moderate noise level. Stiffer than electrical motors, resulting greater accuracy and better frequency response Smoother response in low speed.

3.3 Hydraulic Drives

Expensive for small or medium sized robot with limited accuracy. Required additional energy storage unit including pumps and accumulators. nd m l to Susceptible for oil leaks frequent cleaning and maintenance required and environment issues. Highly nonlinear movement Digital encoder and highly capable feedback control system can provide better accuracy and repeatability compared to electrical drives but required very sophisticated control.

3.3 Hydraulic Drives-examples

3.4 Power transmission elements

Power created from actuators has to be transmitted to create the desired movement. Gears, Screw drives, pulley systems, linkages and bearings are used.

Unimate 2000 series robot (Spherical coordinate) http://www.ar2.com/uninfo.html

3.4 Power transmission elements

4. Controller
Controller is the brain of the robot Provide intelligence to make the manipulator perform the desired tasks in the desired manner Initiate and terminate the motions Store positions and sequence data Interface with outside world

4. Robot Control System

4.1 Type of Control

Non-servo: Open loop Servo-controlled: closed loop

4.1.1 Non-servo
Open loop control system. Each axis will continue to move until it reaches its limit. Path is not controlled: only the end point is limited by Mechanical stops Pneumatic valves Electrical relays

4.1.2 Servo-controlled
Closed loop system. The information about the position, velocity, acceleration is continuously monitored. The desired values and the actual values are h d d l d h l l compared and the difference are reduced by control action.

4.1.2 Servo-controlled

5. Sensors
Provide the controller about the status of the manipulator for proper control. Continuously monitoring position, velocity and acceleration l Internal and external sensors

5. Sensors

5. Sensors - Examples
Sonar Sensor Vision Sensor Vision Sensor