Dynamic Protective Volume Teaching for Machine Hazard Zones
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for defining and teaching protective volumes around hazardous sections of machines in human-robot collaboration are complex and inflexible, requiring separate training and restrictive templates, limiting the creation of user- and application-specific movement sequences.
Innovation Solution
A method that allows for the definition of a variable protective volume around hazardous sections by monitoring the environment during normal machine operation, triggering safety-related reactions only when an object intrudes into a defined protective volume, and adapting the volume through a teach-in process embedded within the sequence program, without modifying the program itself.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a fixed protective volume is defined around hazardous sections, then safety monitoring is simplified, but the machine cannot adapt to different applications and user-specific movement sequences
Solution Approach 1:
The protective volume is made dynamic and variable rather than fixed. The volume adapts based on the current position of the hazardous section along the movement path, allowing the machine to accommodate different applications and user-specific sequences while maintaining safety. This resolves the contradiction by enabling adaptability without requiring complex reconfiguration.
Solution Approach 2:
The parameters of the protective volume (position, shape, size) are changed dynamically based on the machine's operational state and the position of hazardous sections. This allows the same monitoring system to serve multiple applications by adjusting parameters rather than requiring separate fixed volumes for each scenario.
2Reliability
If separate training and restrictive templates are used for teaching protective volumes, then safety standards are met, but the process becomes complex and inflexible
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs self-adjustment of the protective volume based on sensor data and the predefined movement path. The hazardous section's position is automatically tracked, and the protective volume adapts accordingly without requiring manual teaching or separate training procedures. This maintains safety compliance while greatly simplifying operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors the position of hazardous sections and adjusts the protective volume in real-time based on this feedback. This automatic feedback mechanism ensures safety standards are met without requiring complex manual teaching processes, as the system self-regulates based on actual operational conditions.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the protective volume is adapted through a separate teach-in process, then user-specific sequences are achieved, but the sequence program must be modified
Solution Approach 1:
The protective volume adaptation logic is extracted from the sequence program itself and implemented as a separate, independent monitoring function. This allows user-specific sequences to be achieved through parameter adjustment rather than program modification, maintaining the original sequence integrity while enabling adaptability.
Solution Approach 2:
The safety monitoring function is segmented into a separate module that operates independently from the main sequence program. The protective volume definition and adjustment are handled by this separate module, which receives position data from the movement path but does not require modification of the sequence program itself, thus achieving adaptability without program complexity.
Data Source
Figure 1~5
Figure 6
AI summary
A method for the safe operation of a machine that has a moving machine part with a hazard zone comprises: the moving machine part moving according to a predetermined sequence program; and the monitoring of the hazard zone environment, whereby, in the event of an object entering a defined protective volume within the monitored environment, which depends on the current position of the hazard zone, a safety-related reaction is triggered, which includes stopping the movement of the moving machine part if the entry exceeds a defined intervention threshold of the protective volume.The following steps are provided for the training of the safety volume: an initial safety volume is defined; the machine is controlled so that the movable machine part moves according to the predefined sequence program while the area around the hazard zone is monitored; if the movement of the movable machine part is stopped due to an object entering the initial safety volume, a training mode can be started by means of a first user input, in which the movement continues and position data of objects in the area around the hazard zone is recorded; the training mode can be ended by means of a second user input; and the safety volume is defined based on the recorded position data.