Chapter 1

Introduction to Robotics
Ts. Dr. Mohd Riduwan bin Ghazali
Outline
 1.1 History of robotics
 1.2 Robotics application
 1.3 Social and economics issue
 1.4 Robot anatomy and work volume
 1.5 Robot configuration and work space
 1.6 End- effectors: grippers and tools
 1.7 Robot actuactors and drive systems
 1.8 Safety consideration
1.1 History of robotics
What is the distinction between 'Automation' and 'Robotics’?

“Robot” – derives from Czech word robota

“Robota”: forced work or compulsory service

'Robots' is only a small sub-set of the technologies covered by the much broader term Automation'
Automation is generally regarded as being able to be divided into 2 types:
 1. Fixed automation
 2. Flexible automation

ROBOTS are just one example of flexible automation.

Other examples in the industrial sector are:
 NC machine tools,
 Automated assembly machines (including automated component insertion machines),
 Automated guided vehicles (AGV's) automated storage and retrieval systems (ASRS's),
 Coordinate measuring machines (CMM's) laser / plasma / water jet cutting machines
 etc etc.
1.2 Robotics application

Benefits Of Industrial Robots Applications

 Reduced labor cost.
 Increased output rates.
 Elimination of dangerous or undesirable jobs for human.
 Improved product quality.
 Increased manufacturing flexibility.
 Reduced material wastage.
 Easier to compliance with standard regulations e.g. OSHA
 Reduced labor turnover.
 Lower capital cost.
 Controlled and faster inventory turnover.
 Examples Of Industrial Robot
Application
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P7fi4hP_y80&t=33s
Examples of robotic applications
Examples of robotic applications
Examples of robotic applications
AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY

 The first industrial application, mostly in welding, machine

loading, spray painting, and parts transfer.
AEROSPACE TECHNOLOGY

 Robots being use extensively especially for flexible aircraft

assembly – use fixtures for temporary fastening, the
permanent fastening must be drilled and parts dissembled for
deburring and cleaning, finally parts are reassembled and
permanently fastened.
 It was reported that, in many installation around the world in
Aircraft manufacturing, the following improvements have been
achieved :
 Reduced cost
 Shorter cycle time
 Improved control
 Increased throughput and surge capability
 Improved quality
 An example : a bulkhead of a F-15 fighter aircraft need 25 person-
hours to inspect 1100 measurements is now reduced to 2.5 hours.
MACHINE AND TOOL LOADING

 • The keyword is robot works tirelessly and consistently.

 • Special robot attributes for machine tool applications :
 Need at least 6 dof robot
 Repeatability of 0.01”
 Speed is not critical but comparable to human operator
 Compatible with wider NC machines
 With dual gripper
ROBOTIC MACHINING

 Applied mainly in aerospace industry especially for

complex machining profile and to avoid workers to carry
heavy hand tools.
 Advantages :
 Have the ability to offset an entire cycle of preprogrammed
points to account for positional changes of the fixtured part
from set-up to set-up.
 Have the ability to take alternative actions based on signals
from tool breakage or improper alignment – allows ease of
locating TCP.
PUNCH PRESS LOADING

 Has used robot since as early as mid-60’s.

 Advantages :
 Safety and health problems can be avoided.
 Increased productivity.
 No fatigue problem.
 Factors related to feasibility of robot applications :
 Two or three shifts operation
 Line speed
 Parts presentation and orientation
 Current productivity
 Reject rates
 OSHA compliance status
SPOT WELDING

 Dominated applications of robot until recently – 36% of

the applications of robots are in this field.
 Advantages :
 Uniformity of spot welding and weld integrity.

Application Robot
Manual
Robot line
ARC WELDING

 Started using robots about in 1975 with seam MIG (metal

inert gas) arc welding systems.
 Advantages :
 Remove operator from hazardous environment.
 Increased arc time.
 Reduce the cost for worker protection.
 The main problem is to accurately guide an arc welding
torch along a seam without the need for human
intervention.
SPRAY PAINTING

 • First highlighted at World Fair 1982 with the demonstration of a Tokico Amstar
Painting Robot.
 • Spray painting robot consists of two basic unit : the spray gun manipulated by a
robot arm and an electronic control unit.
 • To spray a particular pattern, the robot must first be ‘teach’ to move accordingly.
 • Incentives :
 Robot can work in the toxic and noisy environment – operators have to wear masks.
 Quality control – uniform path and speed gives uniform thickness and better appearance.
 Dirt problem can be reduced with modified ventilation system since no human is in the
spray booth.
 Better productivity.
 • In an installation, only 20% requires human operator but they are responsible for
most of the paint defects.
 • Energy saving – air flow rates in the spray booth can be better controlled to save
energy.
 • Material savings – paint is less wasted.
FORGING

 Types of forging process :

 Drop forging – hammer forging, die forging
 Press forging – Upset forging and roll forging
 It is a noisy, hot and polluted environment – not suitable
for human.
 Acute labor problem when older and experience workers
retire.
 The main problem for robotic application – (solution) :
 Parts often stick on either the upper or the lower die and do
not eject from the drop hammer – (use infra red sensor).
 Handling of hot billets of various sizes – (use special grippers).
GRINDING & DEBURRING
POLISHING & BUFFING
 • Polishing and buffing of metal workpieces by fabric wheels is
a fatiguing and monotonous task, time consuming and noisy,
thus suited for robots.
WIRE INDUSTRY
 • Robots are used in the manufacturing of freezer shelves
made of several metal wire rods, a metal frame, and a wire
harness wrapping at Langsing Bagnall (England).
MATERIAL HANDLING & PALLETIZING
 • It is estimated that 40% of the labor force in the US is
devoted to part transfer and palletizing operations.
 • It is a repetitive, no challenge, and boring job which is suited
for robots.
 INSPECTION
 ROBOT PACKAGING
 PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARD’S COMPONENT
INSERTION
 PHARMACEUTICAL MANUFACTURING
 APPLICATIONS IN TEXTILE INDUSTRY
 APPLICATIONS IN AGRICULTURAL INDUSTRY
 APPLICATIONS IN BRICK INDUSTRY
 APPLICATIONS IN GLASS INDUSTRY
 APPLICATIONS IN FOOD/BAKERY PRODUCTS
 MAKINGS
 PRINTING & PUBLISHING INDUSTRY
 And Many More!
1.3 Social and economics issue

 In the social area, what are the main issues related to robotics?
 How will the labour and manpower market be affected by robotics?
 How many workers are likely to be displaced?

 What are the impacts on the professional and semiprofessional work force who are
employed in manufacturing?
 Also, will robotics affect productivity and international economic competition?

 What kind of retraining and education is needed to upgrade the present work
force?

 Will foreign investors still choose Malaysia (as cheap labour will not be needed
when factories are run by robots)?

 Some 90 percent of Malaysian industry is in the SMI (Small and Medium Industry)
catagory. Can SMIs afford installation of robotics in the near future?
 Or will robotics benefit only MNCs (Multinational Corporations)?
Robot basics

 What is a robot?
What is a robot?
 • The term robot comes from the Slavic word robota, meaning hard work.

 • According to the official definition of an industrial robot: “A robot is a freely

programmable, program-controlled handling device”.

 • The robot system thus also includes the controller and the operator control
device, together with the connecting cables and software.
Robot basics

 What is a manipulator?
What is a manipulator?
 • The manipulator is the actual robot arm.
 • It consists of a number of moving rigid links that are linked together by
means of axes.
 • The individual axes are moved by means of targeted actuation of
servomotors.
 • These are linked to the individual components of the manipulator via
reduction gears.
1.4 Robot anatomy and work volume

 BASIC COMPONENTS OF INDUSTRIAL ROBOTS

 An industrial robot has three types of components :

 Physical parts or anatomy

 Built-in instructions or instinct (placed there by the
manufacturer)
 Learned behaviour or task programs (on-the-job training).
WHAT IS A JOINT?

 A joint of an industrial robot is similar to a joint in the

human body.

 Each joint gives the robot with a degree-of-freedom (d.o.f)

of motion.

 In nearly all cases, only 1 d.o.f is allowed to a joint.

 However, future robots may be designed with joints having

more than 1 d.o.f each.

 Robots are often identified according to the total number of

d.o.f they possess, such as a 6 degree-of-freedom robot.
WHAT IS A ROBOT LINK ?

 Links are rigid components that form a chain connected

together by joints,

 Each joint has two links, known as an input link and an

output link.
TYPES OF ROBOT JOINTS

 The purpose of the joint is to provide controlled relative

movement between the input link and the output link.

 Nearly all industrial robots have mechanical joints that can be

classified into one of five types.

 They include two types that provide linear motion and three
types that provide rotary motion.

 Each of the joints have a range over which it can be moved.

The five joint types illustrated in the figures below are:
1. Linear joint. The relative movement between the input link
and the output link is a linear sliding motion, with the
axes of the two links being parallel.

http://www.xemo.io/edu/robot/actuators/#prismatic-joint
 2. Orthogonal joint. This is also a linear sliding motion, but
the input and output links are perpendicular to each
other during the move.

 3. Rotational joint. This type provides a rotational relative

motion of the joints, with the axis of rotation
perpendicular to the axes of the input and output links.
 4.Twisting joint. This joint also involves a rotary motion, but
the axis of rotation is parallel to the axes of the two links.

 5. Revolving joint. In this type, the axis of the input link is

parallel to the axis of rotation of the joint, and the axis of
the output link is perpendicular to the axis of rotation.
 Most robots are mounted on a stationary base on the
floor. We will call it as robot base and its connection to
the first joint as link 0.

 It is the input link to Joint 1, the first in the series of joints

used in the construction of the robot. The output link of
joint 1 is link 1. Link 1 is the input link to joint 2, whose
output link is link 2, and so on.

 This joint-link numbering, scheme is shown below.

1.5 Robot configuration and work space

 Industrial robot work Cell

 Automated or semi-automated operation which involves a
robot is referred to (robot cell or robot work cell)
 Existing
 Orientation devices
 Sensors
 Cameras
 Conveyors
 Tracking systems
Robot specification
 Number of axes (number dof)
 Reach and stroke (mm)
 Load carrying capacity (kg)
 Precision and Accuracy (mm)
 Repeatability (mm)
 Maximum speed, cycle time (mm/s)
 Operation environment
 Tool orientation (deg)
Robot classification based on kinematic
structure
 Arm geometry or kinematic structure
 Cartesian (PPP),
 Cylindrical (RPP),
 Spherical (RRP),
 SCARA (RRP),
 Articulate/Revolute (RRR).

 The work envelope or work volume is defined as the

space within which the robot cans manipulator the end of
its wrist. The shape of work volume is determined by the
type of robot configuration.
 Cartesian Type Configuration (PPP)

 Three joints are prismatic.

Advantages:

 Three linear axes

 Easy to visualize
 Rigid structure
 Easy to program off-line
 Linear axes make for easy mechanical stops

Disadvantage:

 Can only reach in front of itself

 Requires large floor space for size of work envelop
 Axes hard to seal

Figure: (a) A Cartesian or rectangular coordinate arm. (b) The box shaped work envelope within which a Cartesian coordinate manipulator operates (c) An overhea
Cylindrical Type Configuration (RPP)

First joint is revolute which produces a rotation about the based, while its second
and third joints are prismatic.

Advantages:
 Two linear axes, 1 rotating axis
 Can reach all around itself
 Reach and height axes rigid
 Rotational axis easy to seal.

Disadvantages:
 Cannot reach above itself
 Base rotation axis is less rigid than a linear axis
 Linear axes hard to seal
 Will not reach around obstacles
 Horizontal motion is circular
Spherical Type Configuration (RRP)

 Polar type manipulator.

 The first two joints are revolute, while its third Joint is
prismatic.

Advantages:
 1 linear axis, 2 rotating axes
 Long horizontal reach

Disadvantages:
 Cannot reach around obstacles
 Generally has short vertical reach
SCARA Type Configuration (RRP or PRR)

 SCARA (Selective Compliant Articulated Robot for Assembly).

 There are two type of SCARA robot configuration:
 Type 1 SCARA : 2 parallel revolute joint (join1 &2) & 1 linear prismatic (joint 3)
 Type II SCARA : 1 joint vertical prismatic (joint 1) & 2 parallel revolute (joint 2 &3)

Advantages:
 1 linear axis, 2 rotating axes
 Height axis is rigid
 Large work area floor space
 Can reach around obstacles
 Two ways to reach a point

Disadvantages:
 Difficult to program off-line
 Highly complex arm
Revolute Type Configuration (RRR)

 Also called articulated or anthromorphic manipulator.

 These type of robot resembles human arm. Two common revolute
designs are the elbow type manipulator such as the PUMA and the
parallelogram linkage such as the Cincinnati Milacron T3 735.

Advantages:
 3 rotating, axes
 Can reach above or below obstacles
 Largest work area for least work space
 Two or four ways to reach a point

Disadvantages:
 Difficult to program off-line
 The most complex manipulator
End- effectors: grippers and tools

Robot Wrist
 Refers to the joints in the kinematic chain between the robot
arm and the hand or tool.
 In general, the wrist joints are revolute.
 Depending on its applications, the wrist can be of either one,
two or three degree-of-freedom.

Robot End of Effector

 Grasping, lifting and manipulation workpieces
 Simplest form of End-Effector is the Gripper (open & close)
Methods of Grasping

There are many ways of grasping:

 These includes:
 Mechanical grippers.
 Hooking on to a part.
 Lifting and transferring a part on a thin platform or spatula.
 Scooping or ladling
 Electromagnets.
 Vacuum cups.
 Sticky fingers, using adhesives.
Mechanical Grippers

 Simplest and usually used end-effectors.

 How hard the robot must grasp 'the 'object depends on
the weight of the object, the friction between the object
and the fingers, how fast the robot is to move, and the
relation between the direction of movement to the
finger's Position on the object.
 Grippers are one area of robotization where specialized
design of tooling is often necessary.
 Some of these grippers are shown in the following:-
Cam-operated hand
 It can easily handle heavy weights or bulky objects.
 It is designed to hold the object so that its center of gravity (CG) is
kept very closed to the wrist of hand.
 The short distance between the wrist and the CG minimizes the
twisting tendency of a heavy or bulky object.

Wide-opening hand
 It is recommended for picking up object which is not always in a
constant orientation or at the same size. The hand develops low
force when opening and maximum force when closed. It is for
objects of moderate weight.
Cam-operated hand with inside and outside jaws
 When the part is oriented as shown, the hand can grasp it on
the outside by employing the outer self-aligning pads. If the
part is turned over, the inner pads will grasp the inside

Special hand with one movable jaw

 A hand with single-acting should be considered when there is
any access underneath a part, as when it is on a rack. Where
this hand can be applied, it will scoop up a part quite quickly.
Simplicity of the design makes this one of the most econimical
hands.
Special hind for cartons
 The dual-jaw hand will open wide to grasp inexactly
located objects of light weight. Lifting and placement of
cardboard cartoons is an application.

Special hand with modular gripper

 This special hand, with pair of pneumatic actuators, is one
of the many special hand designs for industrial robots. It is
suitable for parts of light weight.
Special hand for glass tubes
 To securely grasping of relatively short tubes. The fingers of the hand close
in two stages -First, they travel through an arc until they are vertical;
second, the actuator draws them together axially. Linear travel in this
second stage of closure is selected to accommodate the range of tube
lengths to be handled.

Special hand chuck type

 This special end-effector is designed to pick up drums and similar type
large cylindrical parts of various diameters. It is relatively a simple
mechanism consisting of three fingers and a single actuator. The actuator
drives all three fingers simultaneously by means of a chain or sprockets. The
fingers expand against the inside diameter of the drum.
Vacuum Systems

 Uses the suction force to pick up on object.

 To create vacuum, a choice exists between two devices : the
vacuum pump
 The vacuum pump is either a piston or vane-type pump driven by
electric motor.

 The advantages of the pump are :

 Able to create a high vacuum;
 Low cost of operation; and relatively silent.
 Pump disadvantages are :
 High initial cost;
 Requires a more complex system ~ vacuum tank and blow off valve
Some typical vacuum pick-up systems are as
shown in the following:
Vacuum cup hand
 The vacuum pick-up has the virtues of the magnetic pickup and is
much less susceptible to workpiece side slip. For light to moderate
weight glass, plastic, ferrous, and non-ferrous parts, the vacuum
pick-up Is often an excellent choice.

Simple vacuum cup hand

 This simple vacuum cup hand is suitable for handling fragile parts such as
cathode ray tube face plates (Illustrated). The vacuum pick-up has better
reliability than the magnetic pick-up : there are welldesigned telescoping
vacuum lines for long-reach arms.
Expansion bladder hand
 Large cylindrical vessels with flexible walls are difficult for
mechanical hand and fingers to grasp, but an expendable
bladder in the form of a cuff will do the job. A rigid back
up ring supports the bladder.
Magnetic Pickups

 Magnetic handling is most suitable for parts of ferrous contents

 Magnets falls into two principle categories : Permanent and electro
 Electro magnets are well suited for remote control as well as for
moderately high speed pick-up and release of parts. A source of DC power
is required.
 Permanent magnets do not require a power source for operation which
makes them well adapted for hazardous atmospheres that require
explosion proof electrical equipment
 Regardless of either the permanent magnet or electro magnet is used,
there several matters that must be considered before a proper selection
can be made : Shape of part; Weight.Temperature. Surface condition;
and position to be handled.
Tools

 There is a wide range of tools designed for robot

applications available. These tools can be either
permanently fastened to the robot hands, or if the robot
has two or more tools to choose among, then quick
disconnect selection of tool may be in order.
 Some of the tools are as illustrated below :

Stud-welding head
 Equipping an industrial robot with a stud-welding head is
also practical. Studs are fed to the head from a tubular
feeder suspended from overhead.
Heating torch
 The industrial robot can also manipulate a heating torch to bake out
foundry molds by playing the torch over the surface, letting the
flame linger where more. heat input is needed. Fuel is saved because
heat is applied directly, and the bakeout is faster than it would be if
the molds were conveyed through a gas-fired oven.

Inert gas arc welding torch

 Arc welding with a robot held torch is another application in which
an industrial robot is used. The welds can be single or multiple pass.
The most effective use is for running simple-curved and
compound - curved joints, as well as running multiple short welds at
different angles and on various planes.
Spotwelding gun
 A general purpose industrial robot can maneuver and operate
a spotwelding gun to place a series of spot welds on flat,
simple-curved, or compound-curved surfaces.

Ladle
 Ladling hot materials such as molten metal is a hot and
hazardous job for which industrial robots are well suited. In
piston casting permanent mold die casting and related
applications, the robot can be programmed to scoop up and
transfer the molten metal from the pot to the mold, and then
do the pouring.
Routers, grinders
 A routine, head, grinder, belt sander, or disc sander can be mounted readily
on the wrist of an industrial robot. Thus equipped, the robot can rout
workpiece edges, remove flash from plastic parts, and do rough snagging of
casting

Spray gun
 Ability of the industrial robot to do multipass spraying with controlled
velocity fits it for automated application of primers, paints, and ceramic or
glass frits, as well as application of masking agents used before plating. For
short or medium-length production runs, the industrial robot would often
be a better choice than a special purpose setup requiring a lengthy
change-over procedure for each different part. Also the robot can spray
parts with compound curvatures and multiple surfaces.
Tool changing
 A single industrial robot can also handle several tools
sequentially, with an automatic tool-changing operation
programmed into the robot's memory. The tools can be
of different types or sizes, permitting multiple operations
an the same workpiece
Robot actuators and drive systems

 Each joint of the manipulator is actuated by an actuator.

 Actuators are devices that make robot move.
 Robot drive systems determine the capacity to move its body,
the speed of operation the strength, dynamic performance and
the kinds of applications that the robot can be used.
 The commonly used actuators are :
 Stepper motors
 DC servomotors
 AC servomotors
 Hydraulic pistons
 Pneumatic pistons

 By far, hydraulic and electric drives are the most commonly used
on more sophisticated robots.
SOME COMPARISON ON THE DRIVE
SYSTEMS
Electric Drive
 Small and medium size robots are usually powered by electric drives via gear
trains using servomotors and stepper motors.
 Most commonly used are dc motors, although for larger robots, ac motors may
be utilised.
 Advantages
 Better accuracy & repeatability
 Require less floor space
 More towards precise work such as assembly applications
 Disadvantages
 Generally not as speedy and powerful as hydraulic robots
 Expensive for large and powerful robots, can become fire hazard
 There is now a trend towards designing, robot with all electric
drives.
 A new design based on direct drives (without gear trains) is being
developed.
Hydraulic Drive
Larger robots make use of hydraulic drives.

Hydraulic drive system can provide

 rotational motion (rotary vane actuators) and linear motion (hydraulic pistons).
 Advantages:
 more strength-to-weight ratio
 can also actuate at a higher speed

 Disadvantages:
 Requires more floor space
 Tendency to oil leakage.

 There is now a trend towards designing robot with all electric drives.
 A new design based on direct drives (without gear trains) is being
developed.
Pneumatic Drive

For smaller robots that possess fewer degrees of freedom (two- to fourjoint motions).
They are limited to pick-and-place tasks with fast cycles.
Pneumatic drive system can be applied to the actuation of piston devices to provide linear
motions. Rotational motions can be achieved by rotary actuators.

Direct Drive Robots

In 1981 a "direct- drive robot" was developed at Carnegle-Mellon University, USA. Is used
electric motors located at the manipulator joints without the usual mechanical
transmission linkages used on most robots.
The drive motor is located contiguous to the joint.
Benefits:
 Eliminate backlash and mechanical deficiencies
 Eliminate the need of a power transmission (thus more efficient)
 Joint back drivable (allowing for joint-space force sensing)
Robot safety
Safety consideration

WHEN?
 Practise it as soon as starting robotics project
 Must be built into robotics system at the outset
 Do not risk injuries by robots

3 R'S OF ROBOTIC SAFETY

Robots Require Respect
 Human safety first then Robot Safety then other
equipment
 then Robot Safety
 then other equipment
WHAT DANGERS ?
Starting with the most dangerous:
Repairing a robot (has to be within work cell)
 Faulty robots can suddenly move unexpectedly
Training/programming a robot
 For PTP (Point-to-Point) motion, human nearby to check
 Robot programming results in physical motion

Normal operation
 If other equipment fails, it is a source of danger e.g. case of Kawasaki robot
engineer (10 years experience), died when struck by a robot while
repairing a malfunctioning machine

Power supply
 Apart from normal dangers of electrical supply, high pressure hydraulic
leakage can punch a hole through a person's hand.
WHAT SORT OF INJURES? ?
 Bodily impact
 Pinching - caught in grippers or joints
 Pinning human against a structure

SAFETY AIDS
Use Sensors:
 Range & Proximity:
Perimeter penetration detection
Intruder detection inside work cell
Intruder detection near a robot

 Brakes and holding technology

 Simulation packages (test the programs by simulation first)
 Design of interlocks
 Work cell design layout