FUNDAMENTALS OF ROBOTICS Analysis and ControlRobotic Manipulation ‘The term robot can convey many different meanings in the mind of the reader, de- pending on the context. In the treatment presented here, a robot will be taken to mean an industrial robot, also called a robotic manipulator or a robotic arm. An ex- ample of an industrial robot is shown in Fig. 1-1. This is an articulated robotic arm and is roughly similar to a human arm. It can be modeled as a chain of rigid links interconnected by flexible joints. The links correspond to such features of the human anatomy as the chest, upper arm, and forearm, while the joints correspond to the shoulder, elbow, and wrist. At the end of a robotic arm is an end-effector, also called a tool, gripper, or hand. The tool often has two or more fingers that open and close. To further characterize industrial robots, we begin by examining the role they play in automation in general. This is followed by a discussion of robot classifica- tions using a number of criteria including: drive technologies, work envelope ge- ometries, and motion control methods. A brief summary of the most common appli- cations of robots is then presented; this is followed by an examination of robot design specifications. Chap. 1 concludes with a discussion of the use of notation and a summary of the notational conventions adopted in the remainder of the text. 1-1 AUTOMATION AND ROBOTS Mass-production assembly lines were first introduced at the beginning of the twenti- eth century (1905) by the Ford Motor Company. Over the ensuing decades, special- ized machines have been designed and developed for high-volume production of me- chanical and electrical parts. However, when each yearly production cycle ends and new models of the parts are to be introduced, the specialized machines have to be shut down and the hardware retooled for the next generation of models. Since peri- odic modification of the production hardware is required, this type of automation is 1referred to as hard automation. Here the machines and processes are often very efficient, but they have limited flexibility. More recently, the auto industry and other industries have introduced more flexible forms of automation in the manufacturing cycle. Programmable mechanical ‘manipulators are now being used to perform such tasks as spot welding, spray paint- ing, material handling, and component assembly. Since computer-controlled me- chanical manipulators can be easily converted through software to do a variety of GES TEE Figure 1-1 An industrial robot. (Courtesy of Intelledex, Inc., Corvallis, OR.) tasks, they are referred to as examples of soft automation. A qualitative comparison of the cost effectiveness of manual labor, hard automation, and soft automation as a function of the production volume (Dorf, 1983) is summarized in Fig. 1-2. It is evident that for very low production volumes, such as those occurring in small batch processing, manual labor is the most costeffective. As the production volume increases, there comes a point v1 where robots become more cost-effective than manual labor. As the production volume increases still further, it eventually reaches a point o, where hard automation surpasses both manual labor and robots in cost-effectiveness. The cirves in Fig. 1-2 are representative of general qualitative trends, with the exact data dependent upon the characteristics of the unit being pro- duced. As robots become more sophisticated and less expensive, the range of pro- 2 Robotic Manipulation Chap. 1Hard automation Manuel labor Unit cost 7 ° % ” Figure 1-2 Relative cost-effectiveness Production volume of soft automation. ‘Cost-ffeative robots Guction volumes {vi, v2] over which they are cost-effective continues to expand at both ends of the production spectrum. In order to more clearly distinguish soft automation from hard automation, it is useful to introduce a specific definition of a robot. A number of definitions have been proposed over the years. However, as robotic technology continues to evolve, any definition proposed may need to be refined and updated before long. For the purpose of the material presented in this text, the following definition is used: Definition 1-1-1: Robot. A robot is a software-controllable mechanical de- vice that uses sensors to guide one o: more end-effectors through programmed mo- tions in a workspace in order to manipulate physical objects. Contrary to popular notions about robots in the science fiction literature (see, for instance, Asimov, 1950), today’s industrial robots are not androids built to im- personate humans. Indeed, most are not even capable of self-locomotion. However, many of today’s robots are anthropomorphic in the sense that they are patterned af- ter the human arm. Consequently, industrial robots are often referred to as robotic arms or, mote generally, as robotic manipulators. 1-2 ROBOT CLASSIFICATION In order to refine the general notion of a robotic manipulator, it is helpful to classify manipulators according to various criteria such as drive technologies, work envelope geometries, and motion control methods. 1-2-1 Drive Technologies One of the most fundamental classification schemes is based upon the source of power used to drive the joints of the robot. The two most popular drive technologies are electric and hydraulic. Most robotic manipulators today use electric drives in the form of either DC servomotors or DC stepper motors. However, when high-speed Sec. 1-2 Robot Classification 3manipulation of substantial loads is required, such as in molten steel handling or auto body part handling, hydraulic-drive robots are preferred. One serious drawback of hydraulic-drive robots lies in their lack of cleanliness, a characteristic that is im- portant for many assembly applications. Both electric-drive robots and hydraulic-drive robots often use pneumatic tools or end-effectors, particularly when the only gripping action required is a simple open-close type of operation. An important characteristic of air-activated tools is that they exhibit built-in compliance in grasping objects, since air is a compressible fiuid. This is in contrast to sensorless rigid mechanical grippers, which can easily damage a delicate object by squeezing too hard. 1-2-2 Work-Envelope Geometries ‘The end-effector, or tool, of a robotic manipulator is typically mounted on a flange or plate secured to the wrist of the robot. The gross work envelope of a robot is defined as the locus of points in three-dimensional space that can be reached by the wrist. We will refer to the axes of the first three joints of a robot as the major axes. Roughly speaking, it is the major axes that are used to determine the position of the wrist, The axes of the remaining joints, the minor axes, are used to establish the ori- entation of the tool. As a consequence, the geometry of the work envelope is deter- mined by the sequence of joints used for the first three axes. Six types of robot joints are possible (Fu et al., 1987). However, only two basic types are commonly used in industrial robots, and they are listed in Table 1-1. TABLE 1-1. TYPES OF ROBOT JOINTS. ‘Type ‘Notation ‘Symbol Description Revotute R <1 Rotary motion about an axis Prismatic. P Linear motion along an axis Revolute joints (R) exhibit rotary motion about an axis. They are the most common type of joint. The next most common type is a prismatic joint (P), which exhibits sliding oF linear motion along an axis. The particular combination of revo- lute and prismatic joints for the three major axes determines the geometry of the work envelope, as summarized in Table 1-2. The list in Table 1-2 is not exhaustive, since there are many possibilities, but it is representative of the vast majority of com- mercially available robots. As far as analysis of the motion of the arm is concerned, prismatic joints tend to be simpler than revolute joints. Therefore the last column in Table 1-2, which specifies the total number of revolute joints for the three major axes, is a rough indication of the complexity of the arm. For the simplest robot listed in Table 1-2, the three major axes are all pris- matic; the resulting notation for this configuration is PPP. This is characteristic of a Cartesian-coordinate robot, also called a rectangular-coordinate robot. An example 4 Robotic Manipulation Chap. 1TABLE 1-2 ROBOT WORK ENVELOPES BASED ON MAJOR AXES Robot Axis1 — Axis2_—Axis3——_Total revolute Cartesian Pp P P 0 Cylindrical R P P it Spherical R R Pp 2 SCARA R R P 2 Articulated R R R 3 P = prismatic, R = revolute. of a Cartesian-coordinate robot is shown in Fig. 1-3. Note that the three sliding joints correspond to moving the wrist up and down, in and out, and back and forth. It is evident that the work envelope or work volume that this configuration generates is a rectangular box. When a Cartesian-coordinate robot is mounted from above in a rectangular frame, it is referred to as a gantry robot. po Lo Figure 1-3 Cartesian robot. If the first joint of a Cartesian-coordinate robot is replaced with a revolute joint (to form the configuration RPP), this produces a cylindrical-coordinate robot. ‘An example of a cylindrical-coordinate robot is shown in Fig. 1-4. The revolute joint swings the arm back and forth about a vertical base axis. The prismatic joints then move the wrist up and down along the vertical axis and in and out along a ra- dial axis. Since there will be some minimum radial position, the work envelope gen- erated by this joint configuration is the volume between two vertical concentric cylinders. a a 3 Figure 1-4 Cylindrical robot. Sec. 1-2 Robot Classification 5If the second joint of a cylindrical-cootdinate robot is replaced with a revolute joint (so that the configuration is then RRP), this produces a spherical-coordinate robot. An example of a spherical-coordinate robot is shown in Fig. 1-5. Here the first revolute joint swings the arm back and forth about a vertical base axis, while the second revolute joint pitches the arm up and down about a horizontal shoulder axis. The prismatic joint moves the wrist radially in and out. The work envelope generated in this case is the volume between two concentric spheres. The spheres are typically truncated from above, below, and behind by limits on the ranges of travel of the joints. Figure 1-5 Spherical robot. Like a spherical-coordinate robot, a SCARA robot (Selective Compliance As- sembly Robot Arm) also has two revolute joints and one prismatic joint (in the configuration RRP) to position the wrist. However, for a SCARA robot the axes of all three joints are vertical, as shown in Fig. 1-6. The first revolute joint swings the arm back and forth about a base axis that can also be thought of as a vertical shoul- der axis. The second revolute joint swings the forearm back and forth about a verti- cal elbow axis. Thus the two revolute joints control motion in a horizontal plane. The vertical component of the motion is provided by the third joint, a prismatic joint which slides the wrist up and down. The shape of a horizontal cross section of the work envelope of a SCARA robot can be quite complex, depending upon the limits on the ranges of travel for the first two axes. 2 <> fs [Fl Figure 1-6 SCARA robot. 6 Robotic Manipulation Chap. 1‘When the last remaining prismatic joint is replaced by a revolute joint (to yield the configuration RRR), this produces an articulated-coordinate robot. An articulated-coordinate robot is the dual of a Cartesian robot in the sense that all three of the maior axes are revolute rather than prismatic. The articulated-coordinate robot is the most anthropomorphic configuration; that is, it most closely resembles the anatomy of the human arm. Articulated robots are also called revolute ro- bots. An example of an articulated-coordinate robot is shown in Fig. 1-7. Here the first revolute joint swings the robot back and forth about a vertical base axis. The second joint pitches the arm up and down about a horizontal shoulder axis, and the third joint pitches the forearm up and down about a horizontal elbow axis. These motions create a complex work envelope, with a side-view cross section typically being crescent-shaped. Figure 1-7 Articulated robot. 1-2-3 Motion Control Methods Another fundamental classification criterion is the method used to control the move- ment of the end-effector or tool. The two basic types of movement are listed in Table 1-3. The first type is point-to-point motion, where the tool moves to a se- quence of discrete points in the workspace. The path between the points is not ex- plicitly controlled by the user. Point-to-point motion is useful for operations which are discrete in nature. For example, spot welding is an application for which point- to-point motion of the tool is all that is required. TABLE 1-3. TYPES OF ROBOT MOTION CONTROL Control method Applications Point to point Spot welding Pick-and-place Loading and unloading Continuous path Spray painting Are welding Gluing Sec. 1-2 Robot Classification 7The other type of motion is continuous-path motion, sometimes called con- trolled-path motion. Here the end-effector must follow a prescribed path in three- dimensional space, and the speed of motion along the path may vary. This clearly presents a more challenging control problem. Examples of applications for robots with continuous-path motion control include paint spraying, arc welding, and the application of glue or sealant. 1-3 APPLICATIONS Robotic applications often involve simple, tedious, repetitive tasks such as the load- ing and unloading of machines. They also include tasks that must be performed in harsh or unhealthy environments such as spray painting and the handling of toxic materials. A summary of robot applications (Brody, 1987) is displayed in Table 1-4. Here the percentages listed in the second column represent shares of the overall robot market in the United States for the year 1986. The size of the market in 1986, excluding separate sales of vision systems, was $516 million (Brody, 1987). TABLE 1-4 U.S. ROBOT MARKET (1986) Application Percent Material handling m4 Spot welding 16.5 ‘Are welding 145 Spray painting and finishing 12.4 Mechanical assembly 6.2 Electronic assembly 48 Material removal 45 Inspection and testing 29 ‘Water jet cutting 27 Other wt Traditional applications of material handling, welding, and spray painting and finishing continue to dominate. The market share of assembly applications, both me- chanical and electrical, has grown steadily over the past decade, and there is clearly potential for more applications in this area. However, the general assembly problem has turned out to be quite challenging. The assembly process can be modeled as a sequence of carefully planned collisions between the manipulator and the objects in its workspace. The delicate motion control that is required for assembly tasks dic- tates the use of feedback from external sensors. This allows the robot to adapt its motion in order to compensate for part tolerances and other uncertainties in the en- vironment. Often customized fixtures and jigs are used to secure parts and present them to the robot at known positions and orientations (Boyes, 1985). This has the effect of reducir g uncertainty, but it can be an expensive approach. The worl . population of installed robots as of the end of 1984 (Wolovich, 1987) was reported to be approximately 68,000. The country that has the largest population of industrial robots is Japan; it is followed by the United States, West Germany, and Sweden, as can be seen in Table 1-5. If the robot population figures in Table 1-5 are normalized by the human population of the country, the leading country in per capita robot population is Sweden. 8 Robotic Manipulation Chap. 1TABLE 1-5 DISTRIBUTION OF WORLD ROBOT POPULATION (1984) Country Percent Japan 44.1 USA. 2.1 West Germany 88 Sweden 14 France 29 Great Britain 29 Italy 22 Others 9.6 1-4 ROBOT SPECIFICATIONS While the drive technologies, work-envelope geometries, and motion control meth- ods provide convenient ways to broadly classify robots, there are a number of addi- tional characteristics that allow the user to further specify robotic manipulators. Some of the more common characteristics are listed in Table 1-6. TABLE 1-6 ROBOT CHARACTERISTICS Characteristic Units Number of axes _ Load carrying capacity kg Maximum speed, cycle time mmisec. Reach and stroke mm Tool orientation deg, Repeatability mn Precision and accuracy mm Operating environment = 1-4-1 Number of Axes Each robotic manipulator has a number of axes about which its links rotate or along which its links translate. Usually, the first three axes, or major axes, are used to es- tablish the position of the wrist, while the remaining axes are used to establish the orientation of the tool or gripper, as shown in Table 1-7. Since robotic manipulation is done in three-dimensional space, a six-axis robot is a general manipulator in the sense that it can move its tool or hand to both an arbitrary position and an arbitrary orientation within its workspace. The mechanism for opening and closing the fingers TABLE 1-7 AXES OF A ROBOTIC MANIPULATOR Axes Type Function 1-3 Major Position the wrist 46 Minor Orient the toot Tn Redundant Avoid obstacles Sec. 1-4 Robot Specifications 9or otherwise activating the tool is not regarded as an independent axis, because it does not contribute to either the position or the orientation of the tool. Practical in- dustrial robots typically have from four to six axes. Of course, it is possible to have manipulators with more than six axes, The redundant axes can be useful for such things as reaching around obstacles in the workspace or avoiding undesirable geo- metrical configurations of the manipulator. 1-4-2 Capacity and Speed Load-carrying capacity varies greatly between robots. For example, the Minimover 5 Microbot, an educational table-top robot, has a load-carrying capacity of 2.2 kg. At the other end of the spectrum, the GCA-XR6 Extended Reach industrial robot has a load-carrying capacity of 4928 kg (Roth, 1983-1984). The maximum tool-rip speed can also vary substantially between manipulators. The Westinghouse Series 4000 robot has a tool-tip speed of 92 mm/sec, while the Adept One SCARA robot has a tool-tip speed of 9000 mm/sec (Roth, 1983-1984). A more meaningful mea- sure of robot speed may be the cycle rime, the time required to perform a periodic motion similar to a simple pick-and-place operation. The Adept One SCARA robot carrying a 2.2-kg payload along a 700-mm path that consists of six straight-line seg- ments has a cycle time of 0.9 sec. Thus the average speed over a cycle is 778 mmisec, considerably less than the 9000 mm/sec maximum tool-tip speed. Although the load-carrying capacities and maximum operating speeds of ro- bots vary by several orders of magnitude, it is, of course, the mix of characteristics that is important when selecting a robot for a particular application. In some cases, a large load-carrying capacity may not be necessary, while in other cases accuracy may be more important than speed. Clearly, there is no point in paying for addi- tional characteristics that are not relevant to the class of applications for which the robot is intended. 1-4-3 Reach and Stroke ‘The reach and the stroke of a robotic manipulator are rough measures of the size of the work envelope. The horizontal reach is defined as the maximum radial distance the wrist mounting flange can be positioned from the vertical axis about which the robot rotates. The horizontal stroke represents the total radial distance the wrist can travel. Thus the horizontal reach minus the horizontal stroke represents the mini- mum radial distance the wrist can be positioned from the base axis. Since this dis- tance is nonnegative, we have: Stroke < reach (1-4-1) For example, the horizontal reach of a cylindrical-coordinate robot is the ra- dius of the outer cylinder of the work envelope, while the horizontal stroke is the difference between the radii of the concentric outer and the inner cylinders, as shown in Fig. 1-8. ‘The vertical reach of a robot is the maximum elevation above the work surface that the wrist mounting flange can reach. Similarly, the vertical stroke is the total vertical distance that the wrist can travel. Again, the vertical stroke is jess than or 10 Robotic Manipulation Chap. 1