COMPUTER-AIDED PROGRAMMING TOOL FOR ROBOTICS

The use of industrial robots for welding automation is a major and expanding applications area. In a welding task, the robot should smoothly trace along the weldseam with appropriate tool poses. For welding a complex 3-D curve, a large number of points should be taught to make the weld path smooth. This is a very tedious job and is not an easy way to leach the robot. In this paper, the requirements of a CAD system to be used as a robotic off-line arc-welding programming system are discussed. An off-line programming system for such application was developed. The workpieces and the weldseam were represented by analytical geometries. The positions and orientations of the weldgun along the trajectory were analysed by the task requirement of the welding procedure and solved by differential geometry. Calibration process was discussed to ensure programs were properly executed. This system is especially useful for off-line programming for the welding of complex 3-D curves.

A robotic simulation and off-line programming package has been developed for use on Silicon Graphics workstations that has the capability of using several types commercially available virtual reality (VR) hardware devices. The software includes a library of 4, 5, and 6 degree-of-freedom (DOF) industrial robots with closed form inverse kinematics and translators that convert graphical simulation commands into the device control language that can be transferred to the robot control hardware. Forward kinematics, inverse kinematics, and joint space path planning methods used in the software development are discussed. The performance of three types of commercially available 6-DOF input devices are compared for use in interactive off-line programming. Stereo vision and external 6-DOF positioning devices were added to enhance programming efficiency and offer more realistic access to the virtual workcell environment.

High power Nd-YAG lasers enable wide variety of material processing. Good control of power and affected area enables good results with minimum distortion. Beam delivery with flexible optical fibers enables robotized 3D processing which requires complicated paths and programming. Short delivery cycles and small batch sizes require short response times. Off-line programming of laser robot cells is usually the only solution to meet these needs.Without physical toolpoint, teaching the hardening paths on complex shapes is very difficult and slow. Aligning the tool visually is demanding. What cause teaching to be virtually impossible are paths inside the workpiece. When 3D model of workpiece is available, programming can easily be done with off-line programming software.One robot program can consist of over 1000 tagpoints, which are automatically generated on model features like surfaces and edges. All laser controls can be added to robot program already at off-line stage. With simulation, created programs can be tested against collisions and robot performance limitations.In this paper a case of large area hardening of cylindrical workpieces is presented. Process is fully automated and gained hardening area is over 1 m2 per hour, regardless of the workpiece shape.High power Nd-YAG lasers enable wide variety of material processing. Good control of power and affected area enables good results with minimum distortion. Beam delivery with flexible optical fibers enables robotized 3D processing which requires complicated paths and programming. Short delivery cycles and small batch sizes require short response times. Off-line programming of laser robot cells is usually the only solution to meet these needs.Without physical toolpoint, teaching the hardening paths on complex shapes is very difficult and slow. Aligning the tool visually is demanding. What cause teaching to be virtually impossible are paths inside the workpiece. When 3D model of workpiece is available, programming can easily be done with off-line programming software.One robot program can consist of over 1000 tagpoints, which are automatically generated on model features like surfaces and edges. All laser controls can be added to robot program already at off-line stage. With simulation, created programs can ...

More and more robot control systems require intelligent extensions such as vision or virtual reality (VR) system in order to be capable of easy and flexible interaction with the environment or humans. This paper describes the stereo vision, virtual reality and off-line programming part of the intelligent control system of the Puma 560 robot and the dextrous hand developed at the Technical University of Budapest. With the use of the detailed graphic models of the VR system, efficient off-line robot programming and simulation of the contact forces between the hand and the grasped object is available. A simple robot programming language, which was written specifically for this robot-hand system, is introduced.

Despite the importance given to providing students with programming skills, there are significant problems in teaching programming, mainly at the entry level. Various programming education tools and methods have been developed to solve these problems in introductory programming education. For this reason, block‐based and robot programming tools are widely used at various education levels, especially at the novice level. Although the advantages of using block‐based and robot programming over classical or text‐based programming methods in introductory programming education have been demonstrated in various studies, the two methods have not been compared in experimental studies. The main purpose of this study was to compare the effects of using block‐based programming and robot programming methods in introductory programming education on students' perceptions of programming self‐efficacy. The results of the study indicated that the perceptions of programming self‐efficacy of the students who used the robot programming method in programming education were significantly more positive than those of the students who used the block‐based programming method. Moreover, the programming self‐efficacy perceptions of the male students who used robot programming in introductory programming education were significantly more positive than those of the female students. After the robot programming activities, the students had more fun with programming and their self‐confidence increased.

This book contains 26 papers presented at the NATO Advanced Research Workshop on "CAD Based Programming for Sensory Robots," held in IL CIOCCa, Italy, July 4-6, 1988. CAD based robot programming is considered to be the process where CAD (Computer Based) models are used to develop robot programs. If the program is generated, at least partially, by a programmer interacting, for example, with a computer graph i c d sp i 1 ay of the robot and its workce 11 env ironment, the process is referred to as graphical off-line programming. On the other hand, if the robot program is generated automatically, for example, by a computer, then the process is referred to as automatic robot programmi ng. The key element here is the use of CAD models both for interact i ve and automat i c generat i on of robot programs. CAD based programmi ng, therefore, bri ngs together computer based model i ng and robot programmi ng and as such cuts across several discipl ines including geometric model ing, robot programming, kinematic and dynamic modeling, artificial intelligence, sensory monitoring and so-on.

<div class="section abstract"><div class="htmlview paragraph">This paper presents a novel approach to automated robot programming and robot integration in manufacturing domain and minimizing the dependency on manual online/offline programming. Traditional industrial robots programming is typically done by online programing via teach pendants or by offline programming tools. This presents a major challenge as it requires skilled professionals and is a time-consuming process. In today’s competitive market, factories need to harness their full potential through smart and adaptive thinking to keep pace with evolving technology, customer demand, and manufacturing processes. This requires ability to manufacture multiple products on the same production line, minimum time for changeovers and implement robotic automation for efficiency enhancement. But each custom automation piece also demands significant human efforts for development and maintenance. By integrating the Robot Operating System (ROS) with vision-based 3D model generation systems, we address these challenges effectively. A ROS-based framework has been developed to automate the manual offline robot programming and enable real-time task optimization for performing manufacturing operations such as painting, welding, and torquing. The proposed framework—Capture → Connect → Compile → Create—using RGBD camera systems to record 3D point cloud data and part details. It then connects the complete points, annotate features, interprets edges and tasks to be performed and then convert into executable robotic programs. This method significantly reduces manual programming efforts and enables rapid deployment of robotic systems across diverse tasks. The paper outlines the system architecture, implementation methodology, and integration strategy within existing manufacturing lines. Through autonomous robotic programming, this approach enhances mass customization and boosts overall manufacturing efficiency. The proposed system offers a scalable solution for smart factories aiming to achieve high productivity, flexibility, and reduced operational costs.</div></div>

The work described in this paper address the problems of productivity of Grohe's Portugal grinding/ polishing department, related to the frequent stops of robotic cells for on-line programming and program adjustments. The solution to the stated problem was achieved through the adoption of off-line programming as an alternative to the conventional on-line method. Efforts were developed to overcome some limitations and restrictions found in terms of the software applications used, in order to adapt and improve their use to the needs of this type of contact applications. The solution developed is currently used for off-line programming the grinding robots at Grohe Portugal, with a significant reduction in the cells stop time to program the robots and also in the cycle time. The application of the off-line programming method and of the new programming techniques allowed to obtain a reduction of the cell stop time (up to 85% reduction), to optimize the production cycle time (up to 10% reduction) and, simultaneously, good results in terms of product finishing. The main limitations faced are the lack of realism of the wheel flexibility and the lack of sensitivity of the contact force with it.

A knowledge-based multipass welding distortion estimation method for a multi-robot welding off-line programming and simulation software

It is generally accepted that active control systems provide better structural performance when compared to their passive counterparts. On the other hand, the design of active control systems based on linear control theory is highly dependent on the structural properties. For this reason, their performance is expected to be affected more severely by variations in structural properties compared to those of passive systems. These variations can occur due to nonlinear structural behavior, or even before that due to uncertainties in the estimation of these properties and in numerical modeling. The present work is an investigation of the dependency of various control systems used for supplemental energy dissipation to the changes in structural properties. For this purpose, the performance degradations of most common control systems are studied for structures entering their nonlinear response range. The considered control systems include active control using linear quadratic regulator algorithm and passive control using viscous fluid dampers and yielding devices. These control systems are optimized separately for linear and nonlinear structures by minimizing performance indices based on inter-story drift and absolute acceleration response. It is shown that among these control systems, viscous dampers are affected the least by the alteration of structural properties, which may further support their utilization contrary to the more costly active control systems. It is also shown that the amount of performance degradation depends on the selected structural performance index, and more importantly, the severity of the earthquake excitation.

Paper presents brief description of AIIL Controlling System is designed for search and rescue Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV). Concept is result of few years’ development of control systems and was created to fulfill requirements pointed by Red Crescent organization in Iran. This system is a distributed controlling system operates in real-time mode and divides system overhead between stations. Furthermore it is fully customizable and portable that can be used as a platform for advanced navigation systems. Moreover it is a common control system with an open and functional architecture that can be easily added new operational interfaces without any major modifications. The system includes controlling and monitoring parts, flight simulation and also target tracking and flight path planning systems that make the system able to be utilized in real search and rescue missions.

As autonomous driving technology gradually matures, it may become the most crucial driver assistance system in the near future. As an important part of autonomous driving technology, decision-making, path planning, and control technologies have become mainstream research trends. This paper focuses on the development and key technologies of autonomous driving planning and control system, based on published literature. The architecture of an autonomous driving planning and control system is usually divided into two subsystems: decision-making and planning system and control system. Our study provides a detailed description of the different methods and interconnections of these two subsystems. We then conduct a comparative analysis and discussion to review the advantages and limitations of the various schemes. Overall, we hope that this study provides timely and relevant information in a rapidly evolving field concerning planning and control technology for autonomous vehicles.

Off-line programming of spot-weld robot is the future application of robotics. It could develop robot programs without the access to the robot itself and reduce the programming time required for the manufacturing process. In this paper, an approach to implement the off-line programming of robot based on Robcad with the process knowledge of car-body in White welding was proposed. Some common problems, such as motion simulation, collision detection and calibration can be solved by this approach. Finally, the off-line programming of spot-welding robots for a car's welding work-station was realized.

SummaryAfter some general remarks on the development of industrial robots the structure of a control system for robots from the first generation and the corresponding operator s interface are described. It is shown, how the requirements from today and the rapidly developing microelectronics lead to more powerful and more flexible control systems, that increase the possibility of the robot to react on not predictable situations in its environment. General safety requirements on robot control systems are being standardized. By an example it is demonstrated that such complex systems still can have an efficient operator’s interface, to enable the production expert in the work shop to do the robot programming without necessarily having an education as engineer. Trends of the ongoing development are shown.

End-user programmers need programming tools that are easy to learn and use. Development environments for end-users often support one of two visual modalities: block-based programming or data-flow programming. In this work, we discuss differences in how these modalities represent programs, and why existing block-based programming tools are better suited for imperative tasks while data-flow programming better supports nested expressions. We focus on robot programming as an end-user scenario that requires both imperative and expressions-based code in the same program. To study how end-user tools can better support this scenario, we propose two programming system designs: one that changes how blocks represent nested expressions, and one that combines block-based and data-flow programming in the same hybrid environment. We compared these designs in a controlled experiment with 113 end-user participants who solved programming and program comprehension tasks using one of the two environments. Both groups indicated a small preference for the hybrid system in direct comparison, but participants who used blocks to solve tasks performed better on average than hybrid system users and gave higher usability ratings. These findings suggest that despite the appeal of data-flow programming, a well-adapted block-based programming interface can lead end-users to more programming success.