Using a neural network for predicting the average grain size in friction stir welding processes

In the paper the microstructural phenomena in terms of average grain size occurring in friction stir welding (FSW) processes are focused. A neural network was linked to a finite element model (FEM) of the process to predict the average grain size values. The utilized net was trained starting from experimental data and numerical results of butt joints and then tested on further butt, lap and T-joints. The obtained results show the capability of the AI technique in conjunction with the FE tool to predict the final microstructure in the FSW joints.     

Defect identification in friction stir welding using discrete wavelet analysis

This article discusses on the detection of fault occurred during friction stir welding using discrete wavelet transform on force and torque signals. The work pieces used were AA1100 aluminum alloys of thickness 2.5 mm. The plates were 200 mm in length and 80 mm in width. Presence of defect in welding causes sudden change in force signals (Z-load), thus it is easier to detect such abrupt changes in a signal using discrete wavelet transform. Statistical features like variance and square of errors of detail coefficients are implemented to localize the defective zone properly as it shows better variations (in defective area) than the detail coefficient itself.     

Conceptual design and analysis of the 2T1R mechanism for a cooking robot

This paper deals with the design and analysis of a two-translation and one-rotation (2T1R) mechanism for a novel cooking robot. Firstly the motions involved in stir-fry, the most representative operation in the cooking processes used in Chinese cuisine, are analyzed in details. Then the featured motions are decomposed into four main movements that are used as a design base for a wok motion mechanism. Several three-degrees-of-freedom (DOF) parallel manipulators are considered. From these, a 2T1R mechanism is selected as an ideal candidate. A 4-DOF (2T1R+1T) cooking robot is constructed by combining the 2T1R parallel manipulator with a 1-DOF linear feed mechanism. It is shown that the combined 4-DOF robot can perform the required cooking operations, particularly the stir-fry. The analysis conducted on the proposed 2T1R parallel manipulator includes inverse kinematics, forward kinematics, the velocity analysis, the constant orientation workspace, and the total orientation workspace. A prototype of the cooking robot is developed. The experiments verify that the proposed cooking robot is suitable for performing the required operations.     

Participatory design of a robot for demonstrating an epileptic seizure

ABSTRACT

We present the methodology and results of participatory design of a robot for presenting an epileptic seizure and a scenario of the educational workshop using this robot. Children with epilepsy encounter stigma and stereotypes and may receive inadequate aid when having an epileptic seizure. The goal of the larger project was to use the prototype device in a series of workshops for improving teachers' actions during an epileptic seizure and their attitudes towards epileptic students. In this paper, we show how various design goals for an educational robot were accomplished to fit the needs of all identified stakeholders, particularly people with epilepsy.

We used a co-design (participatory design) approach through a series of meetings participated by members of the association Polish Association for People Suffering from Epilepsy, students and faculty members of the biomedical engineering and robotics departments, teachers, psychologists and medical specialists (epileptologist, neurologist).

These meetings created an opportunity for a better understanding of the (functional and nonfunctional) requirements and resulting tradeoffs and led the participants to find appropriate solutions. Participation of people with epilepsy in the design process allowed them to deal with the potentially stereotyped representation of themselves. The prototype robot, therefore, combined goals of various stakeholders, such as an accurate presentation of an epileptic seizure, lightweight, ease of use and control, while preserving the dignity of people with epilepsy.

As a result of the co-designing process, an inexpensive robot was created and used in a series of 10 pilot workshops with 217 participants, mainly teachers of primary and middle schools. Teachers improved their understanding of epilepsy and suggested further improvements to the system.     

Preliminary design and manufacturing planning integration using web-based intelligent agents

Software agents have been increasingly used in the product and process development in industry over the past years due to the rapid evolvement of the Internet technology. This paper describes agents for the integration of conceptual design and process planning. Agents provide mechanisms to interact with each other. This mechanism is important since both of those processes involve negotiations for optimization. A set of design and planning software agents has been developed. These agents are used in a computer-based collaborative environment, called a multi-agent platform. The main purpose of developing such a platform is to support product preliminary design, optimize product form and structure, and reduce the manufacturing cost in the early design stage. The agents on the platform have access to a knowledge base that contains design and planning rules. These rules are derived from an analysis of design factors that influence process and resource planning, such as product material, form, shape complexity, features, dimension, tolerance, surface condition, production volume, and production rate. These rules are used by process planning agents to provide process planners with information regarding selecting preliminary manufacturing processes, determining manufacturing resources, and constructing feedback information to product designers. Additionally, the agents communicate with WEB servers, and they are accessible by users through Internet browsers. During performing design and planning tasks, agents access the data pertinent to design and manufacturing processes by the programming interfaces of existing computer-aided design (CAD) and manufacturing system. The agents are supported by a developed prototype agent platform. The agents and the platform enable the information exchange among agents, based on a previously developed integrated design and manufacturing process object model.     

A Scalable Intelligent Takeoff Controller for a Simulated Running Jointed Leg

Running with jointed legs poses a difficult control problem in robotics. Neural controllers are attractive because they allow the robot to adapt to changing environmental conditions. However, scalability is an issue with many neural controllers. This paper describes the development of a scalable neurofuzzy controller for the takeoff phase of the running stride. Scalability is achieved by selecting a controller whose size does not grow with the dimensionality of the problem. Empirical results show that with proper design the takeoff controller scales from a leg with a single movable link to one with three movable links without a corresponding growth in size and without a loss of accuracy.     

焊接机器人曲线焊缝的自动跟踪控制

为实现焊接机器人对曲线焊缝的自动跟踪,提出一种简便的位姿实时调整策略和协调视觉跟踪与机器人运动的视觉伺服控制方法。建立了曲线焊缝视觉跟踪过程中焊接机器人期望位姿的数学模型;设计了一种上下层结构的模糊视觉伺服控制器,通过建立焊缝特征点像素坐标偏差与末端轴旋转角度之间的关系模型,动态确定模糊论域的大小,在机器人期望位姿的基础上仅仅通过调整末端轴的旋转量来保证图像特征点始终存在于相机视场内。通过模拟焊接机器人自动跟踪曲线焊缝的实验,验证了所提策略与方法的有效性。     

含有摩擦补偿的全方位移动机器人自抗扰控制

本文针对全方位移动机器人轨迹追踪中的摩擦补偿问题,提出了一种改进的非线性自抗扰控制器.首先建立了含有经典静态摩擦模型的全方位移动机器人动力学模型.其次,基于该模型设计非线性控制器和线性扩张状态观测器并给出了系统的稳定性分析.通过将模型已知项加入线性扩张状态观测器中得到摩擦力的估计值,并将估计值用于非线性控制器中摩擦补偿部分.为减小摩擦力对机器人低速运动轨迹追踪控制的影响,非线性控制器采用变增益控制器进行轨迹追踪控制.最后通过仿真结果验证本文提出控制器的有效性.     

Optimal design and workspace analysis of a mobile welding robot with a 3P3R serial manipulator

This paper presents the design optimization of a mobile welding robot based on the analysis of its workspace. A welding robot has been developed to be used inside the double-hull structure of ships, and it shows good welding functionality. But there is a need to optimize the kinematic variables ensuring that the required welding functions inside the ships are satisfied. The task-oriented workspace, which is the workspace enabling specific rotations, has been defined in order to validate the welding ability of the robot, and incorporating the required rotational capabilities. To calculate the workspace, a geometric approach is adopted which considers the pitching and yawing angles simultaneously. Based on the workspace analysis, a scenario is compiled for considering a mass reduction, and a ratio between the design parameters and the workspace, with constraints on the workspace margins. The proposed optimization procedure is composed of two steps of coarse and fine searching. In the coarse searching step, a feasible parameter region (FPR) is defined, which satisfies the geometrical design constraints, and can be obtained without any considerations of the objective functions. In the fine searching step, the design parameters are determined by using the optimization technique of the conjugate gradient method in the overall FPRs. The suggested approach to calculating the task-oriented workspace, and the procedure of optimal design, are expected to be applied to general industrial robots.     

A shape optimization study for tool design in resistance welding

The purpose of this study is to apply shape optimization tools for design of resistance welding electrodes. The numerical simulation of the welding process has been performed by a simplified FEM model implemented in COMSOL. The design process is formulated as an optimization problem where the objective is to prolong the life-time of the electrodes. Welding parameters like current, time and electrode shape parameters are selected to be the design variables while constraints are chosen to ensure a high quality of the welding. Surrogate models based on a Kriging approximation has been used in order to simplify the calculation of shape sensitivities and to generate a generic tool that can be interfaced with other simulation tools. An example numerical study shows the potential of applying optimal design techniques in this area. Part of this work was presented at WCSMO7 in Seoul Korea, May 21–25, 2007, in the paper titled ‘Some optimization aspects of resistance welding’ (CD-ROM, pp 2687–2695).     

Artificial Neural Network Application to the Friction Stir Welding of Al 6061 Alloy to Stainless Steel 304

The joining of a 6-mm thickness Al 6061 to Stainless steel 304 has been performed by solid state welding. A selection method of optimum friction welding condition using neural networks is proposed. The data used for analyses are the friction stir welding condition, the input parameters of the model consist of welding speed and tool rotation speed. The outputs of the ANN (Artificial Neural Network)model includes resulting parameters, namely, maximum reached temperature,and heating rate for both aluminum allo...     

焊接机器人图像传感器噪声分析

焊接机器人获取焊缝的计算机视觉信息过程中,由于工件表面的反光系数,光学镜头性能的非线性,光电转换时叠加了随机噪声;信号电荷的存储、传输和输出存在暗电流等噪声;视频信号传输时存在噪声;视频信号模数转换存在量化噪声,导致获取的二维数字图像信号有一定的误差。为了减小此误差对后续的图像处理的影响,对图像传感器的图像噪声进行了分析,并得到了一个经验的图像噪声模型,实验结果表明:该模型有效且实用。     

两轮自平衡机器人控制系统的设计

针对自行设计的两轮自平衡机器人Opyanbot建立了动力学模型,应用最优控制和两轮差动等控制方法设计了控制器,提出了针对两轮自平衡机器人平衡和行进的新策略。为了提高两轮自平衡机器人的控制效果,利用基于DSP数字电路的全数字智能伺服驱动单元IPM100分别精确控制左右轮电机,并利用上位机实时控制机器人的运动状态,提高了控制精度、可靠度和集成度,得到了很好的控制效果。     

弧焊机器人直线轨迹精度测试研究

在传统平面最小二乘拟合方法的基础上,提出空间直线拟合的方法。利用该方法对弧焊机器人的直线轨迹进行了拟合,拟合结果显示,机器人实到轨迹与指令轨迹之间存在较大误差,通过分析误差分布情况可以为机器人的位姿误差补偿及精度优化设计提供依据。     

智能移动机器人跟踪系统应用研究与设计

针对移动机器人检测与跟踪系统的世界模型,从智能控制与模式识别方法和传统控制理论相结合的思想出发,提出一种多层次、多阶段的智能控制模型结构。此结构仿人思维模式把复杂任务系统分解为感知、执行、决策三个层次,解决了复杂任务中不易建模的问题;跟踪过程采用Kalman预报器对运动目标状态进行一步预测估计和两步增量式跟踪算法,可快速平滑地实现移动机器人对运动目标的跟踪驱动控制。给出了该结构模型的移动机器人视觉检测识别和跟踪控制系统在汽车桩考中的实际应用。     

Experimental control of a single-link flexible robot arm using energy shaping

Flexible-link robotic manipulators are mechanical devices whose control can be rather challenging, among other reasons because of their intrinsic under-actuated nature. This paper presents the application of an energy-based control design methodology (the so-called IDA-PBC, interconnection and damping assignment passivity-based control) to a single-link flexible robotic arm. It is shown that the method is well suited to handle this kind of under-actuated device not only from a theoretical viewpoint but also in practice. A Lyapunov analysis of the closed-loop system stability is given and the design performance is illustrated by means of a set of simulations and laboratory control experiments, comparing the results with those obtained using conventional control schemes for mechanical manipulators.     

三自由度苹果采摘机器人本体设计

目前绝大部分应用在水果采摘上的关节型机器人控制复杂,成本高,而且采摘效率低,设计结构简单的采摘机器人是研究的重点。针对苹果种植的园艺特点和关节型采摘机械臂的不足,设计了一套基于圆柱坐标的三自由度苹果采摘机器人本体结构。控制系统采用基于PC&MP2100的分布式控制方案,阐明了机器人作业流程,编写了采摘控制程序,控制中引入模糊PID和偏差耦合同步控制方法,并基于C#,开发了人机交互界面。在实验室对机械臂进行了单轴调试、多轴同步调试、运动耗时和定位精度试验,结果表明采摘机械臂单次运动时间平均为6.619 s,平均运动误差值只有4.929 mm,相比关节型机械臂减少了耗时,降低了成本并且提高了定位精度和采摘效率。     

Design of a teaching pendant program for a mobile shipbuilding welding robot using a PDA

Teaching pendant is a handheld device by which a human can control a robot. The main functions of a teaching pendant are moving the robot, teaching it about the locations, running robot programs, and jogging the axes. A teaching pendant is usually connected to the robot by a cable. The cable connection and the size of the teaching pendant generally do not pose a problem when the robot controller is separate from the robot. However, a large teaching pendant connected by a cable is not suitable for a self-propelled mobile robot with an internal controller. This paper describes the communication network of a personal data assistant (PDA) as a wireless teaching pendant for a mobile shipbuilding welding robot with embedded controller system that welds and moves autonomously inside the double hull structure of a ship. A double hull is a closed structure that has only a few access holes. It is very difficult and dangerous to weld components inside a double hull structure because of fumes, poisonous gas, and high temperatures. Using a wireless teaching pendant has the following advantages: (1) there are no limits to the welding activities that can take place, (2) the safety level increases because no workers are in close proximity to the robot, (3) workers are far away from the dangerous environmental conditions, (4) it is possible to reduce the weight of the cable connected to the robot, and (5) it is possible to reduce the weight of the robot because of the reduced load of the teaching pendant and the cable. We demonstrate the functionality and performance capabilities of our wireless teaching pendant through field-testing experiments.