Robot Arm Retraction Control Along Traced Paths After Collision
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing industrial robot systems lack the ability to intentionally retract their arms from obstacles and often risk colliding with additional foreign matters due to the lack of directional control and intentional retraction capabilities.
Innovation Solution
A control device that includes an accepting unit, a control unit, and a storage unit to manage the movement of a robot arm, allowing for intentional retraction along previously traced or stored routes to avoid obstacles, using commands from an input unit and data from sensors like force detection and image pickup devices.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the robot arm is moved to retract from a foreign matter based on collision detection, then the robot arm can avoid collision damage, but the robot arm may come into contact with another foreign matter depending on the movement direction
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of moving the robot arm in a predetermined direction upon collision detection, the system inverts the approach by making the robot arm return along its own traced route. The control unit stores position information during movement and commands the robot arm to retract by following the reverse path of previously recorded positions, ensuring it avoids obstacles it previously navigated around.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback by continuously detecting the robot arm's position during movement, storing this position information in the control unit, and using this stored data to guide the retraction process. The robot arm's movement status is fed back to the control unit, which then determines the appropriate retraction path based on the accumulated position data.
2Reliability
If the robot arm is retracted automatically upon collision detection, then collision damage is prevented, but the robot arm cannot be retracted intentionally according to operator intent
Solution Approach 1:
The control unit is designed to handle multiple functions: it detects collisions automatically, stores position information during normal operation, and processes operator commands for intentional retraction. By integrating these diverse functions into a single control unit that manages both automatic collision response and manual operator commands, the system achieves multi-functionality without requiring separate dedicated systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary action by storing position information during the robot arm's movement before any collision occurs. This pre-stored position data is prepared in advance and can be immediately utilized when either an automatic collision detection or an intentional operator command triggers a retraction, eliminating the need for separate preparation in each scenario.
3Productivity
If the robot arm returns to a previous position after collision, then work can be resumed without repetition, but the robot arm risks colliding with obstacles on the return path
Solution Approach 1:
The control unit performs preliminary action by storing the robot arm's position information at multiple points along its movement path before any collision occurs. These pre-recorded position data points create a map of the safe path already traversed, which the system then uses to guide the robot arm's return journey, ensuring it follows the same proven-safe route in reverse.
Solution Approach 2:
The system applies inversion by having the robot arm return along its own traced route in reverse order. Instead of selecting a new random path or moving in a predetermined direction, the robot arm inverts its forward movement pattern by following the sequence of stored position points backward, ensuring it retraces the exact path it successfully navigated before the collision.
Data Source
AI summary
A control device comprising: a processor controls a robot having a robot arm and accept a command from an input unit which enables an input operation; and a storage that stores information about a driving of the robot, wherein the processor carries out first drive control to move a predetermined part of the robot arm or of an end effector connected to the robot arm from a first position toward a second position if the processor accepts a first command to move the predetermined part, and second drive control to move the predetermined part in such a way as to return along at least a part of a route which the predetermined part traces when moving from the first position toward the second position, based on the information stored in the storage, if the processor accepts a second command to retract the predetermined part after the first command.