Offline Programming NC Manipulator Singularity Check
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Solution Overview
Problem
Offline programming of NC-controlled manipulators faces challenges in accurately accounting for real-world geometric deviations and kinematic changes, leading to potential singularities that cause production downtime and costs due to mismatches between virtual and actual conditions.
Innovation Solution
The method involves defining a virtual tolerance space in the offline programming environment to account for expected path deviations, including geometric and kinematic singularities, allowing for a comprehensive singularity check and interactive modification of trajectories to prevent singularities, with the option to include tolerance spaces in the NC program for real-time control limits.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If offline programming is used to minimize online programming time, then productivity is improved, but the risk of singularities occurring in real operation increases due to mismatches between virtual and actual conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs singularity checks on tolerance spaces before generating the final NC program. By预先 (in advance) defining tolerance spaces around the virtual movement path and checking them for singularities, the system identifies and corrects potential singularity issues before they occur in real operation, thus maintaining both high productivity and reliability
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a 'cushioning' effect by defining tolerance spaces that account for geometric deviations and sensor-supported path variations. These tolerance spaces act as a buffer zone that is checked for singularities, preventing the manipulator from encountering singularities during actual operation despite deviations from the virtual path
2Manufacturing precision
If tolerance spaces are defined to account for geometric deviations, then manufacturing precision is improved, but device complexity increases due to additional checking requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the movement path into discrete path sections and defines tolerance spaces for each section. This segmentation allows the system to manage complexity by breaking down the overall path checking into smaller, more manageable units while maintaining comprehensive coverage of geometric deviations
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements a layered checking approach where tolerance spaces are checked at different levels of detail. The system performs essential singularity checks on tolerance spaces without requiring exhaustive analysis of every possible variation, achieving sufficient precision while controlling computational complexity
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a method for offline programming of an NC-controlled manipulator which, during operation, traces at least one real motion path with its tool center point (TCP), optionally with sensor support, wherein a kinematic manipulator model and an environment model are stored in an offline programming environment with a user interface, wherein at least one virtual motion path of the manipulator and a virtual tolerance space assigned to this motion path are defined in a definition routine using the offline programming environment, which represents deviations from the virtual motion path, wherein the previously defined tolerance space is checked at least partially with regard to kinematic singularities of the manipulator using the offline programming environment, and a singularity routine is executed if such singularities occur.