Robotic Cell Gripper Tool Coupling Assembly
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional robotic cell units are limited in efficiency, precision, accuracy, reliability, adjustability, versatility, adaptability, and ergonomics, often requiring costly robot-exclusive tools that need frequent replacement.
Innovation Solution
A robotic cell with a workstation, tool support, and a robot equipped with a gripper that can selectively seize and release tools and workpieces, featuring a coupling assembly for stable tool engagement and a modular element library for flexible task performance, allowing the robot to manipulate and position workpieces and tools in a three-dimensional environment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If robot-exclusive tools are used in conventional robotic cell units, then the robot can perform its given task, but the cost increases and the tools need frequent replacement
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies universality by enabling a standard robot gripper to manipulate multiple types of tools (drills, welders, grinders, etc.) through a coupling assembly interface. This eliminates the need for robot-exclusive tools, allowing standard tools to be used across different robotic applications, thereby reducing tool costs and increasing durability through selective use rather than frequent replacement
Solution Approach 2:
The coupling assembly serves as an intermediary component between the standard robot gripper and various tools. This mediator enables secure attachment and detachment of different tools to the robot arm, allowing standard tools to be used in robotic applications without requiring specialized robot-exclusive tooling, thus reducing both cost and replacement frequency
2Adaptability or versatility
If a gripper is designed to selectively seize and release tools and workpieces, then the robot can perform multiple tasks with standard tools, but the gripper structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The gripper is designed with universal functionality through the coupling assembly interface, which allows it to securely hold various tool types (drills, welders, grinders, etc.) and workpieces. The standardized interface enables the same gripper structure to perform multiple tasks by simply changing the attached tool, achieving high versatility without requiring multiple specialized grippers
Solution Approach 2:
The system segments the tool-holding function into a separate coupling assembly component that interfaces between the gripper and the tool. This segmentation allows the gripper itself to remain relatively simple while the coupling assembly provides the adaptability needed to secure different tool types, distributing the complexity across modular components rather than the entire gripper structure
Data Source
AI summary
A robotic welding cell is provided, and includes a workstation to receive at least one workpiece, a tool support comprising at least one tool and a robot. The robot includes a robot arm being displaceable in a 3D environment of the workstation, and a robot end effector operatively coupled to the robot arm at a free end thereof. The robot end effector has a gripper adapted to separately and selectively seize and release the at least one tool from the tool support and the at least one workpiece. The tool support is within reach of the gripper such that the robot is operable to manipulate and position the workpiece within the workstation using the gripper and perform a predetermined operation on or around the workpiece using the tool held by the gripper.