Robot Failure Handling Using Stored Motion Data
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Solution Overview
Problem
Industrial robots face challenges in automatic failure handling, particularly after collisions, as they often enter an unknown end position due to soft acting, which complicates recovery and may result in damage to the robot or objects.
Innovation Solution
A method for failure handling in robots with multiple movement axes involves recording and storing position information at multiple points in time, allowing the robot to automatically return to a safe position by moving to its last known position and then to the start position through control signals based on stored motion data.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If soft acting is implemented to avoid damaging the robot or clash object, then safety is improved, but the robot ends up in an unknown position making automatic recovery impossible
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by storing position information at multiple time points (t1, t2, t3) before a potential failure occurs. This allows the robot to have predefined reference positions for recovery without requiring complex real-time calculations after a clash, enabling automatic recovery while maintaining safety through soft acting.
Solution Approach 2:
The failure handling system uses feedback by comparing the robot's current position against stored position information from multiple time points. After a clash, the system determines which stored position to return to based on the failure timing, creating a closed-loop recovery process that automatically guides the robot back to a safe state.
2Speed
If the robot returns directly to the start position after a failure, then recovery speed is improved, but the robot may collide with objects in the original path
Solution Approach 1:
The system prepares multiple position references (t1, t2, t3) in advance along the trajectory. After a failure, instead of blindly returning to the start position, the robot selects an appropriate intermediate position from the stored data that avoids known obstacles, enabling safe and efficient recovery.
Solution Approach 2:
The recovery path is segmented into multiple possible return points corresponding to different time points in the stored trajectory. Rather than a single direct return to start position, the system divides the recovery options into segments, allowing selection of the safest intermediate position based on when the failure occurred.
3Measurement precision
If position information is stored at multiple time points, then recovery accuracy is improved, but memory requirements and data processing complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system stores position information at selected time points (t1, t2, t3) rather than continuously, providing sufficient accuracy for recovery without the excessive data burden of continuous storage. This partial sampling approach achieves adequate recovery precision while minimizing memory and processing requirements.
Data Source
AI summary
A method and apparatus for failure handling of a robot having at least a first and a second movement axis are disclosed. In one embodiment the method includes receiving a first position information of the first movement axis for a first point of time and a first position information of the second movement axis for the first point of time and storing the received first position information as a motion data set, receiving a second position information of the first movement axis for a second point of time and a second position information of the second movement axis for the second point of time and storing the received second position information in the motion data set and controlling the robot according to a failure procedure.