ME 4815 Industrial Robotics

Lab 1: KUKA KR 125 Robot Pick and Place Two sessions, w/c 1st November 2004

Name:

Laboratory Group:

Table of Contents

1. Robotics Laboratory - Rules and Regulations ________________________________ 3 2. Lab Overview __________________________________________________________ 5

2.1 Robot type _______________________________________________________________ 5 2.2 Programming ____________________________________________________________ 5 2.3 Additional Equipment _____________________________________________________ 5 2.4 Objectives _______________________________________________________________ 5 2.5 References _______________________________________________________________ 5 2.6 Laboratory prerequisites ___________________________________________________ 5 2.7 Lab duration _____________________________________________________________ 5

3. KUKA Startup and Shutdown Procedures ___________________________________ 5 4. Task__________________________________________________________________ 7 5. User level commands for the KR 3 _________________________________________ 7 6. Sample program for Session 1____________________________________________ 10 7. Grading and Laboratory Report __________________________________________ 11

1. Robotics Laboratory - Rules and Regulations

Manager of Robotics Laboratory: Bill Weir e-mail - weirw@wpi Phone - 831-5122 Office - Washburn 108B GENERAL 1. Robotics Laboratory hours are 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM Monday through Friday. 2. During regular laboratory hours equipment can only be used under the supervision of: Bill Weir, or qualified TAs. 3. No tools will be removed from any laboratory without permission Laboratory Manager. 4. NEVER leave the laboratory unattended and unlocked under any circumstances. 5. Doors to the lab must remain locked during off hours. No unauthorized persons will be allowed to enter under any circumstances. 6. Those people using the labs during off hours will not prop open any doors. 7. During off hours, laboratory SAFETY, SECURITY and HOUSEKEEPING are the sole responsibility of those using the facility. ACCESS RULES FOR ROBOTICS LABORATORY Students in ME4815 will be required to complete all of their laboratory assignments during their assigned hours. After hours access will not be granted. If a lab is missed, the student may schedule makeup time (during laboratory hours) with their laboratory instructor. SAFETY 1. There must be at least two people in the laboratory to work with machine tools, robots, welders or any other potentially hazardous industrial machinery. Two people are not needed if only computers are being used. 2. Laboratory managers must check any prototype or experimental electrical wiring before energizing it for the first time. 3. Never use any equipment unless authorized to do so by the laboratory manager. 4. DO NOT attempt to repair ANY equipment without permission from the laboratory manager. 5. Never disarm or deactivate any piece of safety equipment i.e. guards, shields, safety fences, ESTOP buttons. 6. Do not dismantle or disassemble any equipment without the approval of the laboratory manager. 7. Do not use any equipment that is broken or that has a safety feature that has been compromised in any way. 8. Report all broken tools and equipment verbally or in writing to the laboratory managers. 9. Safety glasses must be worn in the proper manner to protect the eyes when performing or observing any operation that involves machining, grinding, striking, polishing or as instructed to do so. 10. Face shields must always be worn when performing or observing arc welding. 11. Wear hearing protection when needed. 12. Know where the phone, fire extinguishers and exits are. 13. EMERGENCY # 5555 14. When fire or radiation alarm sounds, SHUT OFF EQUIPMENT and leave building immediately until further notice. 15. Only use tools for what they were intended for. 16. Never leave a powered piece of equipment unattended. SHUT IT OFF. 17. Never enter the working envelope of an industrial robot unless all power has been shut off. 18. Assume that everything is hot in a welding environment. Test before touching.

19. Always turn off gas valves after using the MIG welding equipment. 20. WHEN IN DOUBT, STOP AND ASK! 21. Read and understand specific safety rules as posted. HOUSEKEEPING 1. Always clean up after yourself. Clean tables, equipment, and sweep floor in your area. 2. Return tools used to their proper place. 3. Shut off all equipment before leaving lab. 4. When you leave the lab, be certain that all windows and doors are closed and locked. Turn off the lights. Finally, RESPECT THE ROBOTS WORK ENVELOPE!

2. Lab Overview
2.1 Robot type KR 125 - Kuka Robot 2.2 Programming User level Programming on KRC 125 Pendant 2.3 Additional Equipment 1. Plastic Bottles 2. Prong tool 3. Fixturing 2.4 Objectives 1. To familiarize the student with the use of robot systems for pick and place operations. 2. To familiarize the student with the programming a robot system using a control pendant. 3. To familiarize the student with the importance of cycle times of a manufacturing cell and the effect of robot toolpaths upon cycle times. 4. To familiarize the student with the benefits and shortcomings of 6-axis design robots. 5. To familiarize the student with the KR 3 robot for a typical industrial application. 2.5 References 1. Basic commands for this lab. 2. Related books and periodicals. 2.6 Laboratory prerequisites 1. Read this lab handout THOROUGHLY. 2.7 Lab duration 1. This laboratory will last for two one-hour sessions.

3. KUKA Startup and Shutdown Procedures

If you are in the first laboratory session of the day, and the robot is not running: 1. Close the panel on KR 125 and flip power switch. 2. Turn on light curtain. 3. Remaster the robot (this stage should not normally be necessary. If it is, then check with the TAs for the correct procedure). 4. Run the master program to ensure the robot is at its HOME position.

At the end of your session:

1. Run the master program. 2. Press the Emergency Stop.

If you are the last lab group of the day: 1. Turn off the controller.

4. Task
During this laboratory you will create a program that will perform a pick-and-place operation commonly found in industry. The program should be capable of picking up bottles from a conveyor belt and placing them in a pallet box for subsequent delivery. This is very similar to a task performed within the soft drinks industry. Figure 1 illustrates the equipment you will have at your disposal. The tool on the end of the robot is a prong tool that slides underneath the lip of a drinks bottle. Moving the tool in a vertical direction will therefore pick up the bottle. You will have to pick up six bottles (one at a time) from the end of a conveyor belt and place them in a 2 * 3 array on the delivery box, ready for shipping.

tool robot

bottles

delivery pallet

Figure 1: The laboratory setup

Each lab group will have their program execution time recorded and the group with the best cycle time will be eligible for a bonus to their lab 1 grade of up to 10%. However, your grade for this lab cannot exceed 100%. A time penalty of 30 seconds will be charged for any bottle that is incorrectly picked/placed. A 30 second penalty will also be incurred if any manual assistance is required during the execution of your program.

5. User level commands for the KR 3

You will spend the majority of this lab teaching the robot the path along which it should move. The procedure adopted is to manually jog the robot to the points that make up that path and to define how the robot should travel when moving to a particular point. The robot has three kinds of motion: PTP

(point-to-point), LIN (linear), and CIRC (circular), and these are explained in detail in Table 1 and Figure 2. PTP motion is the quickest way of moving the robot tool from one position to another. The robot has six rotational axes, each of which has a predetermined maximum velocity. When specifying the velocity of a PTP command, a percentage of this maximum is used e.g. 50%. The movements of the axes are synchronized in such a way that all of the axes start and stop moving at the same time. This means that only the axis with the longest trajectory is moved at the programmed velocity. All other axes move at a velocity that allows them to reach the end point of their motion at the same moment. In the case of linear motion, the robot calculates a straight line from the current position to the desired position. Velocities are specified in m/s. Each joint of the robot will rotate at a different velocity to ensure that a straight line is maintained. CIRC allows the robot to travel along an arc. Velocities are specified in m/s, and a start and end point plus a center point of the arc are also required. It is important to note that only the LIN and CIRC commands give you true control over the path that the robot moves. However, the disadvantage is that they are much slower than the PTP command. It is up to you when you use PTP or LIN moves in this lab, but you must bear in mind that although you want to keep cycle time small (which would favour PTP moves), you also need to exert control over the path the robot moves for safety reasons (which would favour LIN moves). The maximum speed you can use when using the PTP motion command is 100%, and the maximum speed when using the linear command is 3m/s.
CIRC path point 2

PTP path LIN path

point 1 Figure 2: The basic types of motion

Absolute PTP This motion moves from the current position to the specified position by moving all axes, with only the leading axis moving at the programmed velocity. All axes start and stop moving at the same time. The exact path cannot be predicted because it is determined by the controller. Example: PTP P1 CONT VEL=100% PDAT1

Relative PTP_REL This moves axes relative to the current position in synchronous motion. Example: PTP_REL {A1 30} The robot moves the A1 axis 30 degrees in the positive direction.

P1 is the end point of the move. CONT means that the robot moves approximately to this position before proceeding to the next point. This is left blank for exact positioning. VEL sets the axis velocity as a percentage of the maximum for each axis. 100% will be the maximum for this lab. PDAT1 is the data set in which the motion parameters will be saved. LIN This is a linear move between a start and end point. This moves the TCP (Tool center point) or workpiece reference point so that is travels in a straight line. Example: LIN P1 CONT VEL=.5 m/s CPDAT1 Tool[1] Base[0] If the linear velocity cause the axis velocity to exceed its maximum, the robot will not travel at its programmed speed of present an error message. CIRC This is an arc move between a current position and an end point. Example: CIRC P1 P2 CONT VEL=.5m/s CPDATA1 P1 is the center of the arc. P2 is the end point of the arc. CIRC_REL This is an arc move between a current position and an end point. Example: CIRC {X20} {X10, Z20} CONT VEL=.5m/s CPDATA1 This moves along a 20 mm arc in the XZ plane. Ending at the position 20 mm in the Z and 10mm in the X from the beginning position.

LIN_REL This moves the TCP in a straight line relative to the current point. Example: LIN_REL {Z 10} The robot moves up 10 mm.

Logic Commands WAIT This command waits the specified amount of time before executing the next line. Example: WAIT Time= 1.25 sec
Table 1: Basic motion commands

6. Sample program for Session 1

A standard approach when writing robot motion programs is to create a flowchart of the motions that the robot must perform and then convert that into the relevant programming language of the robot. You will not have to write any code for this lab as you will create a program through an interface with the robot controller. A sample flowchart is provided in Figure 3. This details the tasks the robot must perform to pick up and subsequently place the first bottle. Table 2 illustrates the equivalent code in the programming language. Dont worry too much about the syntax at the moment this code is generated by the controller and you only have to specify certain parameters such as speeds and define positions together with their names.

Figure 3: Sample flowchart

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Line 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Code PTP HOME Vel= 100 % DEFAULT PTP app_pick Vel= 100 % PDAT1 Tool[1] Base[0] LIN pick Vel= 1 m/s CPDAT1 Tool[1] Base[0] LIN pick_dep Vel= 1 m/s CPDAT2 Tool[1] Base[0] PTP main_app Vel= 100 % PDAT2 Tool[1] Base[0] PTP drop1_app Vel= 100 % PDAT2 Tool[1] Base[0] LIN drop1 Vel= 1 m/s CPDAT2 Tool[1] Base[0] LIN drop1_dep Vel= 1 m/s CPDAT2 Tool[1] Base[0] PTP main_app Vel= 100 % PDAT2 Tool[1] Base[0]

Description Move to HOME position Move to app_pick position at 100% velocity Move linearly to pick position at 1m/s Move linearly to pick_dep position at 1m/s Move to main_app position at 100% velocity Move to drop1_app position at 100% velocity Move linearly to drop1 position at 1m/s Move linearly to drop1_app position at 1m/s Move to main_app position at 100% velocity and continue to pick up next bottle

Table 2: A sample program for Session 1

7. Grading and Laboratory Report

The grading metric for the lab is highlighted below. 1. Successful completion of the lab 20% 2. Individual lab report 80 %. 3. Possible bonus of 10%. Each group will time how long it takes their program to correctly place the six bottles in the box. The group with the quickest cycle time will be eligible for a 10% bonus on their laboratory report grades (but your laboratory report grade cannot exceed 100%). Each member of the class will submit one laboratory report detailing their lab. The format and grading for each section of the report is outlined below: Introduction/Objectives illustrate the importance of the pick and place operations in industry and state the objectives of the lab as you see them. (10%) Background discussion based upon at least 2 journal articles that are relevant to the lab. Suggested topics may be pick and place, teach mode, the use of robots in production/assembly lines, optimizing tool paths, etc. TEXTBOOKS AND WEBSITES SUCH AS http://www.howstuffworks.com etc. DO NOT COUNT AS REFERENCES. (20%) Methods the procedure you followed and why, show, describe, and discuss your flow charts (30%). (do not include a print out of you program) Results did you pick up all the bottles, what was your cycle time etc. (5%) Discussion how good was your program, how can you improve it, how can you improve your cycle time (be thorough i.e. point out specific lines of your program that you could alter to reduce cycle time and state how they should be altered), review the lab as a whole e.g. what

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were your difficulties, would you use a different approach if you had to do it again, how do you think what you did relates to industry, what have you learned etc (25%) Conclusion should follow naturally from the discussion; include possible suggestions for improving/altering the lab. (10%)

All reports should be handed directly to the TAs (WB117) by 5pm on Monday 15th November 2004.

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