Multi-Manipulator Work Area Division for Shorter Robot Cycles
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional methods for optimizing work cycles in robot systems with multiple manipulators fail to consider practical difficulties in collision avoidance, leading to inefficient work cycles due to manual and suboptimal work area divisions.
Innovation Solution
A method and device that automate the process of calculating cycle times for various combinations of layouts and work area divisions, integrating work area division as part of the optimization problem to achieve a more efficient work cycle.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional work area division methods are used to avoid collisions between manipulators, then collision avoidance is achieved, but work cycle efficiency deteriorates due to manual and suboptimal divisions requiring many delays
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-calculating and storing optimal work area divisions and task allocations in a database before actual production. The optimization system evaluates multiple possible divisions in advance, selecting the most efficient configuration that minimizes delays while avoiding collisions. This pre-computed optimal division is then reused across multiple work cycles, eliminating the need for real-time delay insertions and improving overall productivity while maintaining collision avoidance.
2Ease of operation
If work area division is performed manually to allocate tasks to manipulators, then task allocation is achieved, but optimization quality deteriorates due to inability to evaluate all possible combinations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements self-service by enabling the robot system to automatically optimize its own work area division and task allocation without human intervention. The optimization system autonomously evaluates multiple division configurations, calculates cycle times for each, and selects the optimal configuration. This self-optimizing capability allows the system to continuously improve productivity while maintaining ease of operation through automated computation and database storage of optimal solutions.
3Productivity
If the number of work area division combinations is increased to find optimal solutions, then optimization quality improves, but computational complexity deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-computing and storing optimal work area divisions in a database before actual production runs. The optimization system evaluates multiple division configurations in advance, calculates their cycle times, and stores the results. During actual operation, the system simply retrieves the pre-computed optimal division from the database, avoiding repeated complex computations and reducing real-time computational complexity while maintaining high optimization quality.
Data Source
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AI summary
A method for a robot system with at least two manipulators with a common work area, wherein the layout of the robot system is defined and the common work area between the at least two manipulators is divided to thereby obtain a work area division. The method is characterized in that at least one of the previous steps is repeated to thereby obtain a plurality of different combinations of layouts and work area divisions. For each of the combinations, a cycle time for at least one work cycle is calculated and the best cycle time is chosen to optimize the work cycle of the robot system.