Linear 7th-Axis Robot Control for Full Workspace Tray Handling
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Solution Overview
Problem
In warehouse operations, tasks like line kitting, which involve assembling stacked trays of items, are labor-intensive, prone to errors, and cause worker fatigue due to the manual handling of trays with handholds, limiting efficiency and accuracy.
Innovation Solution
A robotic system with a 7th axis of movement, integrated into a 6-axis robot, allows for dynamic control along a guide rail, enabling the robot to move within a larger solution space and perform tasks more efficiently by optimizing the robot's pose and movement, reducing suboptimal positions and increasing speed and accuracy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If human workers manually handle trays with handholds, then the operation is flexible and adaptable to different tray types, but the work causes fatigue and injuries, takes a lot of time, and is error-prone
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the human mechanical system with an automated robotic system featuring a robotic arm with multiple degrees of freedom. The robotic arm can automatically grasp, lift, and position trays without human intervention, eliminating fatigue and errors associated with manual handling while maintaining high-speed operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The robotic system is designed to autonomously perform tray handling operations without continuous human supervision. The system includes sensors and controllers that enable the robot to independently navigate, identify trays, execute pickup and placement operations, and adapt to different tray configurations, making the system self-sufficient in performing the kitting task.
2Adaptability or versatility
If a 6-axis robot is used for tray handling, then the robot has sufficient degrees of freedom for most tasks, but the robot cannot access all locations within the working area and must assume suboptimal positions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent adds a seventh degree of freedom to the robot system, extending the 6-axis robotic arm with an additional linear or rotational axis. This extra dimension expands the robot's workspace envelope, allowing it to reach all locations within the working area without assuming suboptimal positions, thereby improving both adaptability and operational speed.
3Ease of operation
If the robot operates within a limited solution space, then the control system is simpler and faster, but the robot cannot access all locations within the working area
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a dynamic control system that adapts the robot's motion planning and trajectory optimization in real-time based on the expanded seven-degree-of-freedom configuration. The controller dynamically adjusts the robot's pose and movement paths to utilize the additional degree of freedom, enabling comprehensive workspace coverage while maintaining efficient and manageable control complexity through adaptive algorithms.
Data Source
AI summary
The present application discloses a robotic control system, and a method and a computer system for controlling a robot. The robotic control system includes a memory and one or more processors coupled to the memory. The memory is configured to store configured to store a model of a robot having a plurality of axes of control including at least a linear axis and one or more rotational axes. The one or more processors are configured to use the model to control the robot to perform a task, including by sending to the robot a set of control signals to cause the robot to move with respect to two or more of said axes of control including at least the linear axis.