Updating workpiece geometry using robotic sensor information gathered during contact tasks

During robotic contact tasks, geometric information of the workpiece is used to specify the position of the robot’s hand on the workpiece and the direction of force control. This geometry is idealized in a typical CAD file, but due to manufacturing precision or wear, the actual workpiece geometry is inevitably deviated from the desired geometry. Furthermore, when the workpiece is mounted, position and orientation inaccuracies emerge. In this paper, we investigate two questions: (1) Can the workpiece geometry in the CAD file be used to control a robot in contact with an inaccurately placed workpiece?; and (2) Once the task is performed, how can the robot’s sensor information be used to update the geometry of the workpiece? A methodology is developed to solve robotic control problems with workpiece position and geometry inaccuracies. Once performed, the CAD file image is displaced to fit the sensed trajectory of the robot’s hand. Finally, the workpiece image geometry is modified using a least squares approximation to fit the sensed data more accurately. In the end, the robot performs the contact task while gathering information that is used to update the original CAD file geometry. The methodologies are demonstrated through a simulation experiment that requires a robot to shave a geometrically altered face that is inaccurately positioned.