Worker Work Region Estimation for Safe Robot Collaboration
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Solution Overview
Problem
In factory production lines, estimating the work region of a worker is challenging, leading to potential interference between the worker and industrial machines, which can reduce productivity and compromise safety.
Innovation Solution
A control system with detection devices attached to the worker, including acceleration and angular velocity sensors, estimates the work region by calculating orientation and movable ranges, allowing the robot to operate outside the worker's high operability area, preventing collisions and expanding the robot's work area safely.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the robot's work area is expanded to improve productivity, then the robot can perform more tasks and increase output, but the risk of interference with the worker increases
Solution Approach 1:
The robot control system dynamically adjusts the robot's work area based on real-time worker position and orientation data from detection devices. The robot's operational boundaries are not fixed but continuously adapted to the worker's current state, allowing maximum robot productivity while maintaining safety margins.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses detection devices mounted on the worker to continuously monitor position and orientation, feeding this information back to the robot control system. This feedback loop enables real-time adjustment of the robot's work area to prevent interference while maximizing productivity.
2Measurement precision
If detection devices are mounted on the worker to improve work region estimation accuracy, then safety and precision are enhanced, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The worker themselves becomes part of the detection system by wearing detection devices that automatically track their position and orientation. This self-service approach eliminates the need for complex external monitoring infrastructure while achieving high measurement precision.
Solution Approach 2:
Traditional mechanical monitoring systems are replaced with electronic detection devices and computational algorithms that calculate work region based on sensor data. This substitution reduces mechanical complexity while improving measurement accuracy through digital processing.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Accurately estimates the work region with high operability, enhancing safety by preventing robot-worker collisions and improving productivity by allowing the robot to operate closer to the worker.
Implementation Method 1
detection devices mounted on a worker... each of the detection devices detects acceleration data and angular velocity data in portions of a worker
Implementation Method 2
each of the detection devices detects acceleration data and angular velocity data in portions of a worker
Data Source
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AI summary
This work region estimation device, which estimates a region in which a worker performs work, is provided with an orientation acquisition unit that acquires worker orientation information, and a work region calculation unit that, on the basis of the orientation information and a worker body model, calculates a region in which a worker operation is forecast.