ABB RobotStudio Research Articles

Modelling, Analysis and Comparison of Robot Energy Consumption for Three-Dimensional Concrete Printing Technology

The technology used for the 3D printing of buildings from concrete is currently a very relevant and developing topic and appears to be especially advantageous in terms of sustainable production. An important aspect of the sustainability assessment is the energy efficiency of the printing robots. Printing robots consume a significant amount of energy when printing. It is important to analyse this energy thoroughly and to be able to predict it in order to optimise the movement and control of printing robots to reduce energy consumption. In that paper, we analyse in detail the energy consumption of printing robots, which has not yet been thoroughly investigated in the context of 3D printing building applications. We present a methodology to develop an energy consumption model for a printing robot, specifically developed and optimized for this technology. Our methodology incorporates an innovative approach to determine reduced-efficiency maps, allowing for the inclusion of difficult-to-measure drive efficiency parameters in the model. This results in a comprehensive model of the energy consumption of the printing robot, reflecting its operating characteristics in a real-world environment. An open control system of the printing robot is used for the measurement of energy quantities, and specially developed software tools are introduced. We also present the first direct comparison of the energy consumption of different printing robots when following a uniform printing trajectory. The comparison is made based on the presented methodology to obtain and compare actual energy data from workplaces with printing robots. The methodology combines measured data with energy simulations from ABB RobotStudio, enabling energy comparisons between industrially articulated robots and real printing robots, including the ABB IRB4600, the gantry printing robot, and the printing robot. The experiments clearly demonstrate that the kinematic structure of printing robots significantly affects their energy consumption in 3D printing concrete. Based on the conducted methodologies and analyses, we identify key aspects of energy consumption of printing robots in 3D Construction Printing or 3D Concrete Printing (3DCP) technology. In doing so, we bring a new perspective and provide a basis for further research and development in this previously understudied area.

Influence of working height on the energy consumption of an industrial robot

Electricity consumption is a big problem not only for the economy, but also for the environment. More and more electricity is used, so it is necessary to find a way to save it. This article focuses on the electrical energy consumption of an industrial robot by changing its working height. The goal is to find out at which height it is most suitable to work in order to achieve the lowest possible energy consumption. Research is realized on industrial robot ABB IRB 6700 using simulation tools such as ABB RobotStudio and Process Simulate, where different trajectory heights are simulated. The trajectories are dimensioned according to the size of the robot. Also, the trajectories are designed to maximize the use of the robot’s axis. This method makes it possible to reduce energy consumption even before the robot is physically located in the factory and its position cannot be changed.

Toward safer Human-Robot collaboration in MR environment

This paper presents a Mixed Reality (MR) approach to extend the Safe Move tool from ABB Robot Studio (RS) to view and intuitively edit the safety configuration, allowing the import of existing configurations and the export of modified ones to RS for certification by the expert. The added virtual sensor can detect the user's position allowing collision detection and avoidance. The robot's motion is not only adjusted to the safety zone in which the robot is but also to its relative position to the operator by monitoring in real-time positions of the operator's hands as well as head and triggering appropriate action in the robot.

Quantifying injury risks of collaborative robots in a manufacturing cell using a simulation approach

Safety remains an important impediment towards fully exploiting the potential of collaborative robots for executing manufacturing tasks. The ISO 15066 proposes requirements for safety assurance of collaborative robots. This includes safeguards such as force, torque, and safe distance limiting functions. More importantly, safe force (and impact pressure) limits depend on the human body region. The latter is based on biomechanical limits derived from the body model, which specifies maximum pressure and force limiting values on different body regions. However, the limiting values proposed in the body model seldom considers practical impact scenarios that may potentially occur while executing collaborative manufacturing tasks. For instance, the impact force/pressure thresholds are influenced by aspects such as the speed of the moving manipulator, or contact point, further influenced by the mass, and contact surface area of the end effector. Consequently, this influences operator safety and design of collaborative workspaces and manufacturing tasks. So far, these practical influences are under-explored in literature, discussing human-robot collaboration, while considering manufacturing tasks.In this paper, a simulation framework is proposed exploring a use case of assembly tasks in a manufacturing setting. The framework embeds a hazard and operability analysis to identify potential hazardous events during execution of the collaborative manufacturing tasks. The tasks further modelled in the ABB RobotStudio environment, where varying path configurations of the manipulator are mimicked during task execution. Force and pressure impact values based on the path configurations are quantified on different body regions. Transient and quasi static forces/pressure are considered for varying impact scenarios on the body regions. Finally, risk mitigation is proposed based on the impact scenarios and quantified injury severity. This includes task re-design or implementing alternative path configurations for the robotic manipulator.

Innovative solution of mobile robotic unit for bricklaying automation

This study presents an innovative solution for a mobile robotic unit intended for the construction industry, the task of which is to automate time-consuming and burdensome masonry work performed manually using bricklayers. A ZSM mobile robotic bricklaying system (ZSM in Polish Zrobotyzowany System Murarski) was designed and developed in a demonstration version. The mobile ZSM consists of an ABB six degrees-of-freedom (6 DoF) industrial robot with a replaceable hydraulic gripper, a Hinowa tracked undercarriage with a hydraulic unit, hydraulic lifting and leveling module, a brick warehouse, a brick belt feeder, a mortar applicator, a control cabinet, and a control panel. Simulation tests were performed in a virtual ABB RobotStudio environment to verify the functioning of the robot and individual ZSM modules during the bricklaying process. ZSM control is based on the Siemens Simatic S7-1500 programmable controller in the fail-safe version, which supervises the correct operation of all devices. ZSM was tested under laboratory conditions and on the construction site. The robotic technological process of building a wall consists of the following stages: the robot grips the bricks, picks them up, manipulates them, applies mortar to them, and places them on the wall.

Engineering Method and Tool for the Complete Virtual Commissioning of Robotic Cells

Intelligent robotic manufacturing cells must adapt to ever-varying operating conditions, developing autonomously optimal manufacturing strategies to achieve the best quality and overall productivity. Intelligent and cognitive behaviors are realized by using distributed controllers, in which complex control logics must interact and process a wide variety of input/output signals. In particular, programmable logic controllers (PLCs) and robot controllers must be coordinated and integrated. Then, there is the need to simulate the robotic cells’ behavior for performance verification and optimization by evaluating the effects of both PLC and robot control codes. In this context, this work proposes a method, and its implementation into an integrated tool, to exploit the potential of ABB RobotStudio software as a virtual prototyping platform for robotic cells, in which real robots control codes are executed on a virtual controller and integrated with Beckhoff PLC environment. For this purpose, a PLC Smart Component was conceived as an extension of RobotStudio functionalities to exchange signals with a TwinCAT instance. The new module allows the virtual commissioning of a complete robotic cell to be performed, assessing the control logics effects on the overall productivity. The solution is demonstrated on a robotic assembly cell, showing its feasibility and effectiveness in optimizing the final performance.

Vision Based Self Adaptive Algorithm for 6 Axis ABB Industrial Welding Robot

The ultimate aim of this work “Vision Based Self Adaptive Algorithm for 6 Axis ABB Industrial Welding Robot” is to develop a self-adaptive RAPID algorithm based on the captured image of the work piece. The image of the work piece is captured using NI Guppy pro F031C camera which has 300 DPI with 120 FPS resolution. The captured image is transferred to the LabVIEW software for developing the self-adaptive algorithm through RS232 serial communication protocol. The LabVIEW vision assistant module is used to develop an algorithm based on the geometry of the captured image. The various image processing operations like Thresholding, Morphological operation (Thinning), and edge detection are carried out. The caliper tool is used to measure the distance between the coordinate points (welding distance). With the aid of Visual Basic, the measured values are converted into coordinates. The coordinates are used to develop a RAPID program with the aid of ABB Robot Studio library functions. The virtual server is established between the ABB Robot Studio and IRC5 Controller with the use of MOD-BUS protocol with VISA. After receiving the data from the MOD-BUS, the IRC5 controller moves the ABB Industrial Robot End effectors along with the welding gun for the welding purpose. The work piece is located on the designed jigs and fixtures. The different types of welding with different design can be incorporated with the Vision Assistant module for further development. To illustrate the developed algorithm, robot assisted MIG welding process is carried out. The welded work-pieces are tested for its strength quality and the results are verified. Optimal welding parameters for the good quality of weldment identified by using Taguchi method of optimization.

Industrial Robot Trajectory Tracking Control Using Multi-Layer Neural Networks Trained by Iterative Learning Control

Fast and precise robot motion is needed in many industrial applications. Most industrial robot motion controllers allow externally commanded motion profiles, but the trajectory tracking performance is affected by the robot dynamics and joint servo controllers, to which users have no direct access and about which they have little information. The performance is further compromised by time delays in transmitting the external command as a setpoint to the inner control loop. This paper presents an approach for combining neural networks and iterative learning controls to improve the trajectory tracking performance for a multi-axis articulated industrial robot. For a given desired trajectory, the external command is iteratively refined using a high-fidelity dynamical simulator to compensate for the robot inner-loop dynamics. These desired trajectories and the corresponding refined input trajectories are then used to train multi-layer neural networks to emulate the dynamical inverse of the nonlinear inner-loop dynamics. We show that with a sufficiently rich training set, the trained neural networks generalize well to trajectories beyond the training set as tested in the simulator. In applying the trained neural networks to a physical robot, the tracking performance still improves but not as much as in the simulator. We show that transfer learning effectively bridges the gap between simulation and the physical robot. Finally, we test the trained neural networks on other robot models in simulation and demonstrate the possibility of a general purpose network. Development and evaluation of this methodology are based on the ABB IRB6640-180 industrial robot and ABB RobotStudio software packages.

Fused Deposition Modeling of an Aircraft Wing using Industrial Robot with Non-linear Tool Path Generation

Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM) is an additive manufacturing process to build 3D objects on a horizontal plane from bottom to top. In the conventional FDM process, the printing of curved objects causes the staircase effect and results in poor surface finish. In this work, the FDM process integrated with a 6-DOF Industrial robot is used to print the curved objects by generating non-linear tool paths to avoid the staircase effect. A standard NACA 0015 aircraft wing having curved surfaces is printed without staircase effect at a uniform deposition rate using an industrial robot. The wing is sliced into concentric curved layers either in the form of convex or a concave shape. A new methodology is developed by combining the non-linear toolpaths with the change in extruder orientation to print curved objects at a uniform deposition without any staircase effect. ABB Robotstudio simulation software is used for simulating the printing process and simulation results are validated by printing the portion of the wing using the Industrial robot with an FDM extruder as an end effector. The experimental results showed that the aircraft wing is printed successfully with uniform deposition at constant velocity without any staircase effect.

Investigation of object manipulation positioning accuracy by bernoulli gripping devices in robotic cells

Ensuring the necessary accuracy of positioning the objects of manipulation of Bernoulli's grippers in robotic cells is an urgent task and can be achieved by choosing rational parameters of the gripping process. The article conducts experimental studies of the process of handling by Bernoulli grippers of objects of manipulation at different operating parameters and their weight. For this purpose, an experimental setup was developed, which consists of an industrial robot IRB 4600, an IRC5 controller, a Raspberry Pi microcontroller and two clock-type micrometers. The method of determining the total positioning error of the "robot-gripper-object" system is presented, which takes into account the positioning errors of the industrial robot, the errors of the gripping device and the errors of basing the object of manipulation relative to the axis of symmetry of the gripping device. The ABB IRB 1600 industrial robot was programmed in the ABB RobotStudio environment to cyclically simulate the handling operation and to determine the deviation of the position of the manipulation object after its gripping from different distances. The first cycle of automatic mode was used to calibrate the micrometer indicators, while gripping the object was carried out from a distance of 0.02 mm. For better reliability of research results, 20 measurement cycles were performed for each of the variable parameters. As a result, it was found that the maximum base error of objects does not exceed 0.4 mm. When capturing objects from a distance of 0.5…1 mm, the mean value of the base error will be 0.08…0.15 mm, with a standard deviation of 0.025…0.035 mm. The paper studies the effect of the displacement Δ of the center of mass of the gripped object relative to the axis of the Bernoulli gripper on the accuracy of the base of the objects. It is established that when the center of mass of the gripped objects is shifted relative to the Bernoulli gripper axis up to 20 mm, the maximum base error of the objects increases 2.2 times.

Planning and Design of Robotic Production

This paper discusses the design of automated lines, taking into account the use of industrial robots to perform technological operations. When planning manufacturing processes, as well as the placement of process equipment and robots in the production area, optimization techniques are usually used to ensure critical performance and efficiency indicators. The considered design methods are shown on the example of an automated line for the production of lithium-ion batteries. To design this line, 3D CAD models of technological equipment and transport lines were built. Based on the results of time analysis, those technological operations were opted, for which it would be advisable to use robots. The design of the robotic production for the technological operations was carried out using ABB robots. The robots required were chosen from the ABB catalog by weight, size of work area, speed and power. The plan of the robotic zones was drawn up using the ABB RobotStudio software, which allows visualizing the movements and programming robots off-line.

Investigation on Dual Nozzle Fused Deposition Modelling using Industrial Robot

ABSTRACT Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM) process builds the 3D objects by extruding the material in layer-by-layer fashion from bottom-to-top. In a conventional FDM machine, due to limited degrees of freedom, change in extruder orientation is not possible. Industrial robots with 6 degrees of freedom are capable to move and orient the end effector in 3D space with high resolution and repeatability. The limitation of the conventional FDM machine can overcome by using an industrial robot with a dual nozzle extruder as an end effector. In this work, an attempt is made to print objects with an industrial robot with dual nozzle extruder attached to it. The results showed that the orientation of the extruder can be changed easily so that a strong bonding between the layers is possible while going for dual nozzle extrusion. By extruding the same material with both nozzles, the printing time is less than the conventional FDM process. The methodology adopted for printing the objects using ABB Robotstudio® simulation software and printing a component with ABB IRB1600 industrial robot is presented in this article.

Modeling hierarchical usage context for software exceptions based on interaction data

Traces of user interactions with a software system, captured in production, are commonly used as an input source for user experience testing. In this paper, we present an alternative use, introducing a novel approach of modeling user interaction traces enriched with another type of data gathered in production—software fault reports consisting of software exceptions and stack traces. The model described in this paper aims to improve developers’ comprehension of the circumstances surrounding a specific software exception and can highlight specific user behaviors that lead to a high frequency of software faults. Modeling the combination of interaction traces and software crash reports to form an interpretable and useful model is challenging due to the complexity and variance in the combined data source. Therefore, we propose a probabilistic unsupervised learning approach, adapting the nested hierarchical Dirichlet process, which is a Bayesian non-parametric hierarchical topic model originally applied to natural language data. This model infers a tree of topics, each of whom describes a set of commonly co-occurring commands and exceptions. The topic tree can be interpreted hierarchically to aid in categorizing the numerous types of exceptions and interactions. We apply the proposed approach to large scale datasets collected from the ABB RobotStudio software application, and evaluate it both numerically and with a small survey of the RobotStudio developers.

Predicting Future Developer Behavior in the IDE Using Topic Models

While early software command recommender systems drew negative user reaction, recent studies show that users of unusually complex applications will accept and utilize command recommendations. Given this new interest, more than a decade after first attempts, both the recommendation generation (backend) and the user experience (frontend) should be revisited. In this work, we focus on recommendation generation. One shortcoming of existing command recommenders is that algorithms focus primarily on mirroring the short-term past,—i.e., assuming that a developer who is currently debugging will continue to debug endlessly. We propose an approach to improve on the state of the art by modeling future task context to make better recommendations to developers. That is, the approach can predict that a developer who is currently debugging may continue to debug OR may edit their program. To predict future development commands, we applied Temporal Latent Dirichlet Allocation, a topic model used primarily for natural language, to software development interaction data (i.e., command streams). We evaluated this approach on two large interaction datasets for two different IDEs, Microsoft Visual Studio and ABB Robot Studio. Our evaluation shows that this is a promising approach for both predicting future IDE commands and producing empirically-interpretable observations.

Off-Line Programming and Functioning Simulation of Robotic Flexible Manufacturing Cell for Part's Turning

This paper presents the works performed by the authors in the field of robotic flexible manufacturing cell offline programming and simulation. The study includes a manufacturing cell structure which includes a part transport system, a CNC lathe / turning centre and an articulated arm type industrial robot. The robot performs the task of loading / unloading the CNC lathe / manufacturing centre and manipulating the parts inside the cell, while the machining operations are performed by the CNC manufacturing centre. After briefly presenting the layout of the cell, the paper focuses on describing the methods used for offline programming and simulation of the tasks performed by the industrial robot. The software package used is ABB RobotStudio. The results of the research work are a process simulation and validation for CNC lathe / machining centre loading / unloading operation and part manipulation performed by the industrial robot and assisted task programming for this application using ABB RobotStudio software. The assisted offline programming and simulation general methods used, as well as the procedures for each stage of the applications are described, in order to illustrate the specific operation for each cell and offline programming aspects.

Some Aspects Concerning Geometric Forms Automatically Find Images and Ordering them Using RobotStudio Simulation

The paper presents finding certain geometric objects in an image of the work area. Using offline programming of robots ABB RobotStudio program is ordered using these objects in a predetermined order. A significant number of high-performance algorithms used in image processing using methods and techniques of artificial intelligence. On the other hand, artificial intelligence requires intersection area and building systems capable of performing the functions of the human intellect: experiential learning, natural language understanding and the use of reasoning to solve problems or make decisions. All these imply, however, accumulating a certain amount of information (knowledge base, environmental information, etc.). This information is taken from the intelligent sensors, and creates an image of the environment when taking data. The image thus obtained is extracted useful information. However the field of artificial vision is a common discipline both image processing and artificial intelligence. In the first stage, objects placed in the normal position as to determine the geometrical shape feature. Determine a range of appropriate methods for recognizing geometric shapes (square, circle, rectangle, etc.). Using ABB robot with gripper each object is positioned firmly in place .

A Rapid Planning Method for the Freeform Surface Spraying Based on CAD Model

In order to solve the freeform surface spray planning problem in spray industrial, this article proposed a model of the spray gun and description of the spray procedure. Then, the article presents a rapid planning method based on CAD model of the workpiece. With this method, the spray trajectory is constructed by the path points normal vector and S-shaped path using CAD model. In ABB's RobotStudio simulation software, a spray experiment is carried out. The simulation results show that this method can effectively simplify the offline planning process and save processing time.

Modular Welding Fixtures for Robotic Cells

This paper describes the proposal of welding fixtures which achieves pre-arrangement of individual parts of fixture based on suitable modules. Also is focused on methodological process of their design using modularity principle and reconfigurability. Describe procedure of designing fixture with emphasis to specific requirements for welding fixtures in robotic welding. Take advantages of simple substitution of individual modules welding fixtures by database compatible with modules in 3D environment. Optimization and control of collision status is realized in simulation environment ABB Robot Studio.

Technology and applications of ABB RobotStudio

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the capabilities, technological features and applications of a particular industrial robot simulation package.Design/methodology/approachThe paper begins with an introduction to the general characteristics and distinguishing technological features of RobotStudio. Next, there is a detailed study of how the tool is used by a company developing bespoke automation solutions, particularly in the food industry. Finally, the educational value of the software is addressed.FindingsRobotStudio is used to improve the efficiency and accuracy of robot programming and reduce downtime. It also has a role in remote maintenance and troubleshooting, risk management and education.Originality/valueA study of the approach and achievements of an automation integrator makes the technological features of the software easier to understand, in their proper context.