Robotica

Table of Contents - 2002 - Volume 20, Issue 04  

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Calibration-based absolute localization of parts for multi-robot assembly

Edward J.  Park a1, Weihua  Xu a1 and James K.  Mills a1
a1 Laboratory for Nonlinear Systems Control, Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, University of Toronto, 5 King's College Road, Toronto, Ontario (Canada) M5S 3G8

Abstract

In multi-robot assembly of parts, for successful mating, the grasped parts must be located with sufficiently small position and orientation errors so that assembly can be achieved. This paper describes a new approach for determining the absolute three-dimensional spatial location of parts grasped by robots during assembly. Through a combination of robot pose calibration and part-sensor calibration, the robot, used to grasp the part, is calibrated to accurately position and orient parts to a designated mating location. First, by employing a robot pose measurement system, the 6 DOF robot pose errors relative to a reference coordinate frame are compensated. Second, with the implementation of a part pose measurement, the 6 DOF part pose errors, relative to the robot tool frame, are estimated in real time. An experimental verification of the proposed methodology using a single FANUC S–110 robot manipulating an automotive sheet metal part is described.

(Received February 1 2001)


Key Words: Multi-robot assembly; Part localization; Robot calibration; Laser sensor.