Fixtureless Robotic Assembly Using Coordinate-Guided Joining
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Solution Overview
Problem
The automobile industry relies heavily on expensive and inflexible fixtures for robotic assembly of vehicle components, leading to high capital costs, limited design flexibility, and fewer choices for consumers due to the need for new fixtures with design changes.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a fixtureless robotic assembly system that uses a set of robots to join vehicle structures without the need for fixtures, utilizing additively manufactured structures and a computing system to direct the robots in precise assembly operations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If fixtures are used for robotic assembly of vehicle components, then assembly precision and stability are improved, but capital costs and device complexity increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes fixtures entirely from the robotic assembly system, extracting the constraint mechanism from the environment and embedding positioning capabilities directly into the components themselves through additive manufacturing features
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical fixture system with a digital control system that uses coordinate data and robotic manipulation to achieve positioning, substituting physical constraints with computational geometry and programmed motion
2Stability of the object's composition
If fixtures are used for robotic assembly, then assembly stability is improved, but adaptability to design changes deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes the assembly system dynamic by allowing coordinate data and robotic positions to be easily modified through software, enabling rapid adaptation to design changes without physical reconfiguration of fixtures
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the system from fixed physical constraints to variable digital parameters, where positioning information is stored as modifiable coordinate data that can be updated to reflect design changes
3Reliability
If fixtures are used for each part in robotic assembly, then assembly reliability is improved, but manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a universal robotic assembly system that can handle multiple different components using the same robotic manipulators and control software, with universality embedded in the digital coordinate system rather than physical fixtures
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces expensive, long-lived fixtures with inexpensive, easily modifiable digital coordinate data and software configurations that can be updated without capital investment
4Measurement precision
If fixtures are used for robotic assembly, then positioning accuracy is improved, but production time for design updates increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary positioning through pre-calculated coordinate data generated from CAD models, allowing robots to be programmed with exact positions before assembly begins, eliminating the need for physical fixture setup
Data Source
AI summary
A computing system may direct a first robotic arm to a first position based on a first set of coordinates. The computing system may cause the first robotic arm to engage with a first structure based on the first position of the first robotic arm. Further, the computing system may direct the first robotic arm to a second position based on a second set of coordinates such that the first structure is brought within a joining proximity of a second structure without a fixture retaining the first structure and without a fixture retaining the second structure, wherein the first structure is configured to be joined with the second structure when the first and second structures are within the joining proximity, the joining proximity being a proximity at which the first and second structures can be joined together.