State-Machine Robot Path Planning Beyond Fixed Safety Zones
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing industrial robot control techniques rely on predefined safety zones, which restrict mobility and cannot adapt to obstacles moving into the robot's workspace at arbitrary times, locations, and velocities, limiting the ability to avoid collisions with dynamic obstacles.
Innovation Solution
A state machine controller that dynamically plans a robot's path by using sensors to detect objects and transitioning between states to adjust speed and replan paths, allowing the robot to avoid collisions by computing new paths that avoid obstacles in real-time.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If predefined safety zones are used to prevent collisions, then collision avoidance is achieved, but robot mobility is restricted
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic path planning that allows the robot to adapt its motion in real-time based on detected obstacles. The robot transitions between different operational states (track current path, change speed, replan path) dynamically, rather than being constrained by fixed safety zones. This enables the robot to maintain mobility while ensuring collision avoidance through continuous environmental assessment and adaptive response.
2Reliability
If predefined safety zones are used, then collision avoidance is achieved, but adaptability to moving obstacles is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The system employs sensor-based feedback to continuously monitor the workspace for obstacles. The sensor streams workspace data to the state machine, which processes this information to determine appropriate states and transitions. This closed-loop feedback mechanism enables the robot to detect and adapt to moving obstacles in real-time, maintaining both collision avoidance and adaptability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamic path planning that allows the robot to adapt its motion in real-time based on detected obstacles. The robot transitions between different operational states (track current path, change speed, replan path) dynamically, rather than being constrained by fixed safety zones. This enables the robot to maintain mobility while ensuring collision avoidance through continuous environmental assessment and adaptive response.
3Reliability
If the robot stops to avoid obstacles in safety zones, then collision is prevented, but productivity is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic path planning that allows the robot to adapt its motion in real-time based on detected obstacles. The robot transitions between different operational states (track current path, change speed, replan path) dynamically, rather than being constrained by fixed safety zones. This enables the robot to maintain mobility while ensuring collision avoidance through continuous environmental assessment and adaptive response.
Solution Approach 2:
The state machine controller dynamically changes operational parameters including speed and path based on obstacle detection. Instead of always stopping, the robot can adjust its speed parameter or replan its path parameter to avoid collisions while maintaining continuous operation, thus preserving productivity while ensuring safety.
Data Source
AI summary
A state machine controller to dynamically plan a robot's path. An industrial robot such as a multi-arm articulated robot operates in a workspace according to a program. A sensor or camera monitors the workspace and detects any object, such as a person, approaching or entering the workspace. The sensor provides input to the state machine controller, which includes states of; track current path, change speed, and replan path. When an object approaches or enters the workspace, the state machine determines if a transition to the change speed state is necessary. After reducing robot speed in the change speed state, the state machine can resume the original path and speed if the object has cleared the workspace, further reduce speed to zero if necessary to avoid a collision, or transition to the replan path state to compute a new path to the goal position which avoids the object in the workspace.