Coordinating Robotic Machines for Rail Brake Maintenance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing automated systems for managing air brakes in rail vehicles are unreliable due to variations in brake system designs, including lever locations, force requirements, and obstructions, making it difficult to perform tasks like brake bleeding efficiently and safely.
Innovation Solution
A system comprising multiple robotic machines with diverse capabilities, such as a grasping robotic machine and an aerial robotic machine, that collaborate to locate, inspect, and manipulate brake levers, coordinating their actions through a task manager to perform tasks like brake bleeding, hand brake operation, and hose lacing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Extent of automation
If a single automated robotic machine is used to perform brake bleeding tasks, then automation and cost efficiency are improved, but reliability deteriorates due to wide variances in brake system designs among different vehicles
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides the brake bleeding task into multiple sub-tasks that can be performed by different robotic machines with specialized capabilities. Each robotic machine is responsible for specific aspects of the task (e.g., locating the brake lever, applying force, monitoring progress), allowing the system to handle variations in brake system designs more effectively while maintaining automation.
2Adaptability or versatility
If human operators are used to perform brake bleeding and other vehicle tasks, then adaptability to different brake system designs is improved, but safety risks and operational costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses sensors and detection capabilities to identify variations in brake system parameters (lever locations, force requirements, component configurations) and dynamically adjusts its operation parameters accordingly. This allows the automated robotic machines to adapt to different vehicle designs without exposing human operators to safety risks.
3Device complexity
If a single robotic machine attempts to access brake levers on all vehicles, then device complexity is reduced, but productivity deteriorates due to difficulty in locating and accessing brake levers with varying locations and obstructions
Solution Approach 1:
The system employs intermediary components such as cameras, sensors, and communication systems that facilitate coordination between multiple robotic machines and the central controller. These intermediaries enable the system to efficiently locate and access brake levers on various vehicles by sharing information about lever locations, obstacles, and task progress, thereby improving productivity without excessive complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
A system includes first and second robotic machines and a task manager. The first and second robotic machines have respective first and second sets of capabilities for interacting with a surrounding environment. The task manager selects the first and second robotic machines from a group to perform a task based on the first and second sets of capabilities of the robotic machines. The task involves manipulating and/or inspecting a target object of a vehicle. The task manager assigns a first sequence of sub-tasks to be performed by the first robotic machine and a second sequence of sub-tasks to be performed by the second robotic machine. The first and second robotic machines are configured to coordinate performance of the first sequence of sub-tasks by the first robotic machine with performance of the second sequence of sub-tasks by the second robotic machine to accomplish the task.