Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Mobile industrial robots are pieces of machinery that are able to be programmed to perform tasks in an industrial setting. Typically
these have been used in stationary and workbench applications; however, mobile industrial robots introduce a new method for lean
manufacturing. With advances in controls and robotics, current technology has been improved allowing for mobile tasks such as
product delivery. This additional flexibility in manufacturing can save a company time and money during the manufacturing process,
and therefore results in a cheaper end product.
Mobile robot technology has potential to revolutionize many sectors of industry; however, it carries with it some disadvantages. The
logistics of manufacturing will be streamlined by allowing robots to autonomously navigate to different areas for their work. The
labor demands for employees will be lessened as robots will be able to work alongside humans, and robots will assist with medicine
and surgery more and more. However, there are drawbacks to this technology. Coordinating the movement of robots around facilities
and calibrating their position at their destination is tedious and far from perfect.[1] A robot malfunctioning in a manufacturing setting
will hold up production - and this robot could malfunction anywhere in a facility
. Human safety must also be considered. Robots must
prioritize the safety of human operators over their programmed task - which may complicate the coordination of multiple autonomous
robots. Especially in a surgical setting, there is noroom for error on the robot's part. Even though some challenges are present, mobile
.[2]
robot technology promises to streamline aspects across much of the industry
Contents
History
Overview
Applications of mobile industrial robots
Medicine
Scientific experimentation and exploration
Aircraft maintenance and repair
Pipeline maintenance
Examples
OTTO Motors (a division of Clearpath)[13]
MiR (Mobile Industrial Robots corp.)
Kuka
References
History
Automation began in the automobile industry in the years surrounding WWII (1946) and the origin of the term itself belongs with
D.S. Harder, the engineering manager at the Ford Motor Company. At first, the term was used to describe the increased presence of
automatic devices in production lines and solely manufacturing contexts. Now, automation is widely used in many industries where
computerized action and feedback loops can replace human intervention in the workplace. Over time, development in this area has
[3]
become increasingly dependent upon advanced computer technologies and the advancement of processing capabilities.
In its current form, most industrial robots are powered mechanical arms with the ability to perform anthropomorphic actions.
Advancements in miniaturization of computers, mathematical control theory as well as improved sensory technologies have had great
impact on the feedback control systems that drive robotics.[3] The first industrial robot performed spot welding and die castings in a
General Motors factory in New Jersey, USA in 1962. Soon, robotic arms were exploding within the large-scale manufacturing
industry and several new companies came into existence including Kuka in 1973, Nachi in 1969, Fanuc in 1974, Yaskawa in 1977,
[4]
ASEA in 1977, and several others. By 1980, it is estimated a new major robotics company entered the market every month.
Mobile robotics are now set to experience similar expansion as they become significantly more reliable in an industrial setting. Even
if a mobile robot makes mistakes, it will eventually be less frequently than mistakes caused by human factors.
Overview
The simplicity of mobile industrial robots provide their main advantage in industrial
settings due to the ease of use and ability to be operated via technologies well
understood by most people. In addition, robots are able to operate almost
continuously and will never complain about long work hours; greatly increasing
efficiency in a lean manufacturing environment. The main current disadvantage lies
in high costs of repair as well as the production delays that would be caused by a
failure or malfunction. These factors are very preventative to putting major amounts
of responsibility on mobile robotics, however they are being continually
lessened.[1][5]
Medicine
Mobile industrial robots have several uses within the healthcare industry in both hospitals and homes. Drug delivery, patient services,
and other nursing functions could be easily adapted to robots. Due to the fact that items being carried around typically weigh less
than 100 kg, robots much smaller than the MiR (see above) may be used. Specialized equipment may be mounted on robots, allowing
them to assist with surgical procedures. Overall, their place in the medical industry is to provide a more reliable source of customer
care while reducing human error.[5]
Pipeline maintenance
For maintenance of pipelines which are buried underground, mobile robots can
travel through the pipeline performing inspection and maintenance operations, Air-Cobot is a collaborative mobile
replacing other techniques, some of which could only otherwise be done by robot able to inspect aircraft. Picture
of the robot in Air France Industries.
unearthing the pipeline. CISBOT (cast-iron sealing robot) a cast iron pipe repair
robot that seals the joints innatural gas pipelines from the inside.[12]
Examples
Kuka
Very widely used—Example: Tesla Motors
"Mecanum" wheel system: customizeable, modular
, heavy-lifting capable
Very easy to integrate with autonomous robotics and humans[2][18]
References
1. Zhang, Biao; Martinez, C.; Wang, Jianjun; Fuhlbrigge, T.; Eakins, W.; Chen, Heping (2010-08-01)."The challenges of
integrating an industrial robot on a mobile platform"(http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=5585
289&tag=1). 2010 IEEE International Conference on Automation and Logistics (ICAL) : 255–260.
doi:10.1109/ICAL.2010.5585289(https://doi.org/10.1109%2FICAL.2010.5585289) .
2. "Why Should we use Autonomous Industrial Mobile Manipulators - Smashing Robotics"
(http://smashingrobotics.co
m/why-should-we-use-autonomous-industrial-mobile-manipulators/)
. Smashing Robotics. Retrieved 2016-03-16.
3. "automation" (http://www.britannica.com/technology/automation). Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 2016-03-16.
4. "Industrial Robot History"(https://www.robots.com/education/industrial-history). www.robots.com. Retrieved
2016-03-16.
5. "Robotics Online" (http://www.robotics.org/content-detail.cfm/Industrial-Robotics-Industry-Insights/New-Applications-f
or-Mobile-Robots/content_id/3362). Robotics Online. Retrieved 2016-03-16.
6. "Robots in the hangar" (http://www.flightsafetyaustralia.com/2015/11/robots-in-the-hangar/). November 23, 2015.
Retrieved May 20, 2016.
7. "Air-Cobot" (https://aircobot.akka.eu/). Retrieved May 20, 2016.
8. Jovancevic, Igor; Larnier, Stanislas; Orteu, Jean-José; Sentenac, Thierry (November 2015)."Automated exterior
inspection of an aircraft with a pan-tilt-zoom camera mounted on a mobile robot"
(http://spie.org/Publications/Journal/
10.1117/1.JEI.24.6.061110). Journal of Electronic Imaging. 24 (6).
9. I. Jovancevic, I. Viana, T. Sentenac, J.J. Orteu and S. Larnier, Matching CAD model and images features for robot
navigation and inspection of an aircraft, International Conference on Pattern Recognition Applications and Methods,
pp. 359-366, February 2016.
10. "Donecle - lightning fast aircraft inspections"(http://donecle.fr/). Retrieved May 20, 2016.
11. "EasyJet's Using Drones to Check Planes for Lightning Damage"(https://www.wired.com/2015/06/easyjets-using-dro
nes-check-planes-lightning-damage/). Retrieved May 20, 2016.
12. Barron, James (December 28, 2017)."21st-Century Repairman: The Robot in the Gas Main"(https://www.nytimes.c
om/2017/12/26/nyregion/con-ed-robot.html). New York Times. Retrieved February 26, 2018.
13. "OTTO Motors" (https://www.ottomotors.com/vehicles). Retrieved August 8, 2016.
14. "Clearpath to Provide GE Healthcare Repair Center with Self-Driving ehicles"
V (https://www.ottomotors.com/compan
y/newsroom/press-releases/clearpath-to-provide-ge-healthcare-repair-center-with-self-driving-vehicles)
. Retrieved
August 9, 2016.
15. "Clearpath Joins John Deere Supply Base"(https://www.ottomotors.com/company/newsroom/press-releases/clearpa
th-joins-john-deere-supply-base). February 23, 2016.
16. "Mobile Industrial Robots | Robot til transportopgaver i industrien og i sundhedssektoren"
(http://mobile-industrial-rob
ots.com/en/). mobile-industrial-robots.com. Retrieved 2016-03-16.
17. Mobile Industrial Robots ApS (2014-12-10),MiR at Hannover 2014(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VACvuzaHW
pk), retrieved 2016-03-16
18. "KUKA Industrial Robots - Mobility"(http://www.kuka-robotics.com/usa/en/products/mobility/). www.kuka-
robotics.com. Retrieved 2016-03-16.
Text is available under theCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this
site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of theWikimedia
Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.