let we know robotics

ROBOT TECHNOLOGY:

OBJECTIVE

      REALIZE THE FUNDAMENTALS OF ROBOT TECHNOLOGY.

      KNOW THE GENERAL CHARACTERSITICS OF ROBOTS

      UNDERSTAND THE BASIC COMPONENTS OF ROBOTS

      RECOGNIZE ROBOT ANATOMY

      BE INFORMED OF ROBOT GENERATIONS

      BE AWARE OF ROBOT SELECTION

DEFINITION

      ROBOT TECHNOLOGY IS AN APPLIED SCIENCE THAT IS REFERRED TO AS A COMBINATION OF MACHINE TOOLS AND COMPUTER APPLICATIONS.

      INCLUDES SUCH DIVERSE FIELDS AS MACHINE DESIGN, CONTROL THEORY, MICROELECTRONICS, COMPUTER PROGRAMMING, ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE, HUMAN FACTORS, AND PRODUCTION THEORY.

GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS

      A SPECIALIZED MACHINE TOOLS WITH A DEGREEN OF FLEXIBILITY THAT DISTINGUISHES THEM FROM FIXED-PURPOSE AUTOMATION.

      IS ESSENTIALLY A MECHANICAL ARM THAT IS BOLTED TO THE FLOOR, A MACHINE, THE CEILING, OR, IN SOME CASES THE WALL FITTED WITH ITS MECHANICAL HAND, AND TAUGHT TO DO REPETITIVE TASK IN A CONTROLLED, ORDERED ENVIRONMENT.

      ABILITY TO MOVE MECHANICAL ARM TO PEROFRM WORK.

      ROBOT INTERFACE WITH THEIR WORK ENVIRONMENT ONCE A MECHANICAL HAND HAS BEEN ATTACHED TO THE ROBOT’S TOOL-MOUNTING PLATE.

DEFINITIONS:

      WORK ENVELOPE: THE SET OF POINTS REPRESENTING  THE MAXIMUM EXTENT OR REACH OF THE ROBOT HAND OR WORKING TOOL IN ALL DIRECTIONS.

      PAYLOAD: THE ABILITY TO CARRY, CONTINOUSLY AND SATISFACTORILY, A GIVEN MAXIMUM WEIGHT AT A GIVEN SPEED.

      VELOCITY: THE MAXIMUM SPEED AT WHICH THE TIP OF A ROBOT IS CAPABLE OF MOVING AT FULL EXTENSION, EXPRESSED IN INCHES OR MILLIMETERS PER SECOND.

      CYCLE: TIME IT TAKES FOR THE ROBOT TO COMPLETE ONE CYCLE OF PICKING UP A GIVEN OBJECT AT A GIVEN HEIGHT, MOVING IT TO A GIVEN DISTANCE, LOWERING IT, RELEASING IT, AND RETURNING TO THE STARTING POINT.

      ACCURACY: A ROBOT’S ABILITY TO POSITION THE END EFFECTOR AT A SPECIFIED POINT IN SPACE UPON RECEIVING A CONTROL COMMAND WITHOUT PREVIOUSLY HAVING ATTAINED THAT POSITION.

      REPEATIBILITY: THE ABILITY OF A ROBOT TO RETURN CONSISTENTLY TO A PREVIOUSLY DEFINED AND ACHIEVED LOCATION.

      RESOLUTION: THE SMALLEST INCREMENTAL CHANGE IN POSITION THAT IT MAKE OR ITS CONTROL SYSTEM CAN MEASURE.

      SIZE: THE PHYSICAL SIZE OF A ROBOT, WHICH INFLUENCES ITS CAPACITY AND ITS CAPABILITIES.

BASIC COMPONENTS:

      THE BASIC COMPONENTS OF AN INDUSTRIAL ROBOT ARE THE

n  MANIPULATOR

n  THE END EFFECTOR (WHICH IS THE PART OF THE MANIPULATOR).

n  THE POWER SUPLLY

n  AND THE CONTROLLER.

       THE MANIPULATOR, WHICH IS THE ROBOT’S ARM, CONSISTS OF SEGMENTS JOINTED TOGETHER WITH AXES CAPABLE OF MOTION IN VARIOUS DIRECTIONS ALLOWING THE ROBOT TO PERFORM WORK.

      THE END EFFECTOR WHICH IS A GRIPPER TOOL, A SPECIAL DEVICE, OR FIXTURE ATTACHED TO THE ROBOT’S ARM, ACTUALLY PERFORMS THE WORK.

      POWER SUPPLY PROVIDES AND REGULATES THE ENERGY THAT IS CONVERTED TO MOTION BY THE ROBOT ACTUATOR, AND IT MAY BE EITHER ELECTRIC, PNEUMATIC, OR HYDRAULIC.

      THE CONTROLLER INITIATES, TERMINATES, AND COORDINATES THE MOTION OF SEQUENCES OF A ROBOT. ALSO IT ACCEPTS THE NECESSARY INPUTS TO THE ROBOT AND PROVIDES THE OUTPUTS TO INTERFACE WITH THE OUTSIDE WORLD.

MANIPULATOR:

      MECHANICAL UNIT THAT PROVIDES MOTION SIMILAR TO THAT OF A HUMAN ARM.

      ITS PRIMARY FUNCTION IS TO PROVIDE THE SPECIFIC MOTIONS THAT WILL ENABLE THE TOOLING AT THE END OF THE ARM TO DO THE REQUIRED WORK.

      A ROBOT MOVEMENT CAN BE DIVIDED INTO TWO GENERAL CATEGORIES: ARM AND BODY (SHOULDER AND ELBOW) MOTIONS AND WRIST MOTIONS.

      THE INDIVIDUAL JOINT MOTIONS ASSOCIATED WITH THESE CATEGORIES ARE REFERRED TO AS DEGREE OF FREEDOM.

      EACH AXIS IS EQUAL TO ONE DEGREE OF FREEDOM. TYPICALLY AN INDUSTRAIL ROBOTS ARE EQUIPPED WITH 4-6 DEGREES OF FREEDOM.

      THE WRIST CAN REACH A POINT IN SPACE WITH SPECIFIC ORIENTATION BY ANY OF THREE MOTIONS: A PITCH, OR UP-AND-DOWN-MOTION; A YAW, 0R SIDE-TO-SIDE MOTION; AND A ROLL, OR ROTATING MOTION.

n  THE JOINT LABELED PITCH, YAW, AND ROLL ARE CALLED ORIENTATION AXES.

      THE POINTS THAT MANIPULATOR BENDS, SLIDES, OR ROTATES ARE CALLED JOINTS OR POSITION AXES.

      MANIPULATION IS CARRIED OUT USING MECHANICAL DEVICES, SUCH AS LINKAGES, GEARS, ACTAUTORS, AND FEEDBACK DEVICES.

      POSITION AXES ARE CALLED AS WORLD COORDINATES, IS IDENTIFIED AS BEING FIXED LOCATION WITHIN THE MANIPULATOR THAT SERVES AS ABSOLUTE FRAME OF REFERENCE.

      THE X-AXIS TRAVEL MOVES THE MANIPULATOR IN AN IN-AND-OUT MOTION.

      THE Y-AXIS MOTION CAUSES THE MANIPULATOR TO MOVE SIDE-TO-SIDE.

      THE Z AXIS MOTION CAUSES THE MANIPULATOR TO MOVE IN AND UP-AND-DOWN MOTION.

      THE MECHANICAL DESIGN OF A ROBOT MANIPULATOR RELATES DIRECTLY TO ITS WORK ENVELOPE AND MOTION CHARACTESTICS.