Robot System Boundary Monitoring for Safety and Productivity
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional robot systems face productivity limitations due to the need for physical area separation and manual unlocking of safety fences, and existing surveillance methods are not effective in preventing unauthorized access and ensuring operator safety during robot operation.
Innovation Solution
A robot system equipped with a distance image data acquisition device, reference image data storage, and a controller that sets and monitors boundaries using distance image data to recognize and track operators and robots, preventing unauthorized access by detecting boundary crossings and stopping the robot when necessary.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a safety fence is used to physically separate the operator area and robot area, then operator safety is improved, but productivity deteriorates due to the need to manually unlock the fence door for operator entry
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical safety fence system with an optical monitoring system using cameras and image processing. The system uses visual fields and boundary lines detected through image data to monitor operator-robot interaction areas, eliminating the need for physical fences and manual unlocking while maintaining safety through automated detection and alert mechanisms.
2Productivity
If a light curtain is used to improve productivity by allowing operator entry, then operator entry efficiency is improved, but safety deteriorates because the light curtain may not reliably detect all unauthorized access scenarios
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a multi-functional monitoring system that serves both safety monitoring and productivity enhancement functions. The image acquisition system not only detects operator presence and boundary crossings for safety purposes but also enables automated process monitoring and control, replacing the single-function light curtain with a system that provides multiple benefits simultaneously.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements continuous feedback through image acquisition, processing, and analysis. The monitoring device constantly captures image data, detects operator positions relative to boundary lines, and provides real-time feedback through alerts or robot control adjustments, creating a closed-loop safety system that adapts to actual conditions rather than relying on fixed light curtain barriers.
3Measurement precision
If distance image data is used to monitor operator and robot positions, then detection accuracy is improved, but device complexity increases due to the need for image acquisition devices and processing systems
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses optical copying through image acquisition to create visual representations of the physical workspace. Cameras capture images that are then processed to extract position information, effectively creating a digital copy of the operator-robot interaction environment. This allows for accurate position detection without requiring complex physical measurement devices, as the image data serves as a simplified representation that can be easily processed.
Data Source
AI summary
A robot system includes: a recognition means that recognizes an operator in distance image data as a security surveillance target; an area setting means that sets, in the distance image data, a common work area that a robot and the operator are allowed to enter; and a boundary setting means that sets, in the distance image data, a first boundary that the operator S is allowed to cross for entering the common work area but the robot is not allowed to cross, and a second boundary that the robot is allowed to cross for entering the common work area but the operator is not allowed to cross, wherein the crossing of the second boundary by the security surveillance target and the crossing of the first boundary by a non-target object not recognized as the security surveillance target are detected.