~ ARTISAN® with Experienced Engineers and Technicians on Staff

Full-service, independent repair center -~ ARTISAN® with experienced engineers and technicians on staff. TECHNOLOGY GROUP ~I We buy your excess, underutilized, and idle equipment along with credit for buybacks and trade-ins.

Custom engineering Your definitive source so your equipment works exactly as you specify. for quality pre-owned • Critical and expedited services • Leasing / Rentals/ Demos equipment. • In stock/ Ready-to-ship • !TAR-certified secure asset solutions

Expert team I Trust guarantee I 100% satisfaction Artisan Technology Group (217) 352-9330 | [email protected] | artisantg.com All trademarks, brand names, and brands appearing herein are the property o f their respective owners.

Find the ABB DSQC 317 at our website: Click HERE ABB Review

The corporate technical journal of the ABB Group

www.abb.com/abbreview

Special Report: Robotics

30 years in robotics page 6

Applications stories page 10

MultiRobot page 53

Virtual technology page 62

a Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Editorial

Intelligent muscles

When in 1974 ABB launched the world’s first fully electri- offers a great combination of speed and flexibility. Thanks cal, microprocessor controlled industrial robot it took in- to picking rates exceeding 120 items per minute products dustrial robotics into a new dimension of speed, accuracy such as metal parts, pralines or even pizza can be econom- and flexibility. Thirty years later ABB has delivered 115,000 ically picked and placed. robots worldwide, more than any other supplier. This success story is based on a continuous stream of pioneering Building successful robots today is no longer an innovation in robotics that has not yet come to an end. issue of mechanical design alone. The programming and the understanding of the Robots have not only become stronger, they can also oper- processes these machines have to perform ate over larger working areas and can position parts with is the key to success. The latest step sub-millimeter accuracy. This geometrical positioning abili- towards a better use of robots comes ty replaces specialized equipment and greatly simplifies from virtual reality. Combining the production cell design. visual appearance of an object with the background information of robot Welding is one of the broad application areas of industrial handling allows a very easy, forward robots. In order to permit the robot to work with the oriented programming. ABB made the experience of a professional welder and with the highest first test with this technology and the accuracy, ABB has developed the Virtual Arc software. researchers involved were nominated as one the world’s 100 young innova- The time consuming and expensive task of robot pro- tors by MIT, underlining the innovative gramming is no issue any more. Robot Studio, another spriti underlying ABB’s work. intelligent solution from ABB, allows robots to be pro- gramed off-line on a PC. In this Special issue of ABB Review you can learn about this innovative power. We hope you Often robots also have to perform tasks in coordination. share our enthusiasm about the success of ABB Again, ABB has developed a controller, IRC5, that simulta- robots. neously controls up to four robots or positioning devices with a maximum of 36 servo axes. For example, two robots welding simultaneously on the same workpiece, while the positioning devices continuously move the servo axes. Thus, the robots reach every required seam position without interrupting the welding. The improved path accuracy and better repeatability contribute to a higher quality.

The days that robot grippers were not sensitive and could not carry out difficult operations are over. The new ABB robot force control technology shows the way – robots can even assembly gearboxes, up to now only possible for experienced workers. Markus Bayegan ABB robots are not only strong but can be very flexible, Chief Technology Officer too. The FlexPicker is a parallel kinematics robot, which ABB Ltd

2 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Foreword

Committed to manufacturing

Thirty years in Robotics is not a very long time but as this must be concerned with sustainability and environmental Special Issue of ABB Review reveals, significant progress matters. We have macro-economic currents such as the has been made. The range of innovations and the spectra development of countries like China and India. In addition of applications developed here provide a great overview we have big-time changes in consumer patterns such as, and insight into how far the industry has come. It is for example, the boom in mobile phone usage. It is an with great pride that I read the articles, which intriguing and dynamically changing world. reflect the leading role ABB has held during this brief episode – and still holds. In most A core piece of all this is manufacturing. Manufacturing cases – and this is equally true for cus- that consumes less energy with less waste, manufacturing tomers, partners and co-workers – only that follows market demand into new corners of the world a thin slice of what we are doing is and finally manufacturing of new, usually more compact, visible at one time, but this report versatile and cheaper products. presents a comprehensive review of the current state of affairs. We are committed to remain at the center of these developing events and are committed to support our customers We, in ABB, have a passion for serv- and partners with technology; packaged into products, ing our customers and a conviction services and solutions for flexible manufacturing in a that leading – in many cases unparal- changing world. leled technologies – is required to address the issues and challenges our I hope you get a flavor of both the breadth and the depth customer face. This conviction is the very of our expertise. I hope that you contact the author if you foundation of the efforts resulting in the find a topic interesting, and I hope that you test us if you products, solutions and services you can read have a manufacturing challenge. We are tirelessly working about in this issue. to stay ahead to keep you ahead. Enjoy! We take pride in working closely with customers and partners when developing new technology for the future. Our record shows that we are good innovators - to be innovative and relentless is not only expected from our engineers and scientists – it is in our lifeblood. Serving discrete manufacturing in its many variations and in a truly global market must be regarded as one of the most competitive businesses there is. This collaboration around R&D is pivotal in securing that tomorrow’s products continue to address the needs of our customers every time and all the time – with the right features, at the right cost and the right quality. ABB’s 30 years of history in robotics and flexible automation is the proof that we are succeeding.

I find that the business responsibilities of today go beyond the short-term aspects of delivering productivity enhancing Bo Elisson solutions. With responsibility for future generations we Head of ABB's Business Area Manufacturing Automation

Special Report Robotics 3 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Contents

ABB Special Report Robotics

6 29 30 years in robotics Mail order Thirty years that revolutionized manufacturing. Robots are working at the post office. And there’s more to come! 31 Picking pizza picker Delicious, crunchy, and packed by robots. Customer stories 35 and applications Shelf life Powerful, agile, flexible, and at home on a shelf. 10 Body Builders 37 Standard modules add flexibility to manufacturing. Quick payback for(e)cast Making moulds in a foundry is just the job for an 13 IRB 7600! Measures of accuracy Delivering “absolute accuracy” in robot positioning. 39 The die is cast 16 Die casting zinc for a precision manufacturer. Learning skills Robots learn to be sensitive as well as powerful. 41 Teach saver – A time saver 20 Teaching robots to clean castings in a foundry. Welding sees the light Laser welding for precision manufacturing. 42 More colors, less waste 23 Changing colors without waste! Unique and ingenious Small batch or single unit production? Robots can do it! 46 Plastics made perfect 26 Making automobile parts out of plastic. Virtual Arc® Simulation software for better welds. 50 Offline programming, online productivity Simulation-supported programming slashes downtime.

4 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com 6

MultiRobot

53 Team mates Precise coordination of multiple robots made simple.

57 Welding double Two robots weld better than one. 10 59 Multiple robots, single solution Multiple robots require precise coordination.

Tools

62 Robots, virtual and real 53 The simulated robot that behaves exactly like the real one.

65 Traced to the source Actionable production information enhances traceability and quality.

68 Painting the future of robotics Augmented reality will revolutionise the way robots are programmed. 62

Special Report Robotics 5 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Thirty years in robotics Brian Rooks

Productivity enhancing robot based applications are omnipresent in discrete manufacturing across the world. The advancement during the last 30 years has been significant. Initially single robots were used for relatively simple and monotonous tasks in hazardous environment. Today multirobot synchronized configurations are dealing with sophisticated assign- ments in flexible production cells. ABB has been a prime driver in this rapid development process. The following article highlights the mile- stones achieved along this exciting journey.

The first industrial robot appeared in Electric drive robots opened up new 60kg capacity. The first of these was 1961 when a Unimate was supplied to applications not possible with hy- supplied to Saab in Sweden for spot General Motors for tending a die cast- draulic machines, in particular arc welding car bodies 2 . Perhaps the ing machine. The Unimate, the brain welding. However, the first applica- “final nail in the coffin” of the hy- child of Joseph Engelberger, the tion outside of ASEA was polishing draulic robot spot welder was the “Father of the Industrial Robot”, was stainless steel pipe bends for the food IRB 90, launched in 1982, which ASEA hydraulically driven, a technology that industry at Swedish company, Mag- designed specifically for spot welding. dominated the fledgling industrial ro- nusson. Its first IRB 6 was installed in It was a full 6-axis device with inte- bot business for its first decade. Then 1974 1 , with further units delivered grated WAC (water, air, current) sup- in 1974, the Swedish company ASEA in 1975. These robots ran virtually plies built into the arm. developed the IRB 6, the first all-elec- non-stop in a dirty environment for tric industrial robot. This 6kg capacity over 25 years. This factory became Robots for painting device was unique, not only in the one of the first in the world to oper- However, still in the era of the hy- drive system but also in its anthropo- ate around the clock, seven days a draulic robot, a significant event took morphic configuration and its use of week, completely unmanned. place in Norway, which was later to a microprocessor control system. It set impact on ASEA’s robot business. new robot standards in the small foot- Spot welding continued to be the do- Trallfa, a small agricultural engineer- print, the speed of movement and main of the hydraulic robot until 1975 ing company was having difficulty in positioning accuracy and gave rise to when ASEA launched the IRB 60, sim- recruiting labour to paint its wheel- a number of IRB 6 look-alikes. ilar in design to the IRB 6 but with a barrows and sought a solution

6 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Thirty years in robotics

1 In 1974 Magnusson AB became ASEA’s first external robot customer. 2 The SAAB Model 99 of 1975 was an early Manager Leif Jönsson together with Lennart Benz of ASEA monitor spot welding application. the installation.

through automation, a challenge taken kinematics with rotary joints move- High-speed robots up by a young engineer, Ole Molaug. ments are continued in today’s range While the anthropomorphic arm has In 1966 he developed the world’s first of ABB robots. What has changed dominated the scene for the past painting robot driven by hydraulics, of over the 30 years has been the speed, 30 years there are some high-speed which an early version is shown in 3 . accuracy and space efficiency with small part assembly and product pick- It differed from the Unimate in that it larger working envelopes and more ing applications where the design is had continuous path control and pro- compact footprints. limited and other configurations have grams were created by recording the emerged. spray patterns of a skilled painter on- ABB’s first major advance in robot to magnetic tape. mechanics after the IRB 6 was the One of the most successful designs 10kg capacity IRB 2000 launched in was the SCARA (Selective Compliance Initially, this automatic painter was 1986 4 . In this second generation Assembly Robot ARM), developed by used solely internally but such was its design, backlash-free gearboxes re- Professor Hiroshi Makino at Yamanashi success that Trallfa decided to market placed ballscrew drives for the “hip” University and launched commercially it outside the company. Its first sale of and “shoulder” axes, resulting in better by several Japanese robot manufactur- the Trallfa TR-2000 was in 1969 to spatial kinematics. But, the other sig- ers in 1981. ABB introduced its own Swedish company, Gustavsberg for nificant change was the switch from SCARA, the IRB 300 in 1987. enamelling sanitary wear such as bath DC to AC drive motors. AC motors tubs and shower trays. deliver higher torques, are physically In 1984 ABB developed what was be- smaller than DC motors, are brushless lieved to be the world’s fastest assem- In 1985 Trallfa was acquired by ASEA and consequently easier to maintain bly robot, the IRB 1000, which had a and soon afterwards development and have a longer life. started on an electric drive painting robot, culminating in the release of Flexibility and adaptability are features 3 Early version of the Trallfa paint robot ABB’s first electric drive paint robot, constantly called for by industrial robot from 1969. the TR-5000, in 1988 – the year ASEA users, and in 1991 ABB met these de- merged with the Swiss company, mands head-on with the heavy duty Brown Boveri to form ABB. Prior to (150kg capacity) IRB 6000 5 . Aimed this development, hydraulic drives primarily at spot welding and large were exclusively used for painting ro- component handling, the IRB 6000 was bots due to their intrinsic safety. The built on a modular concept with a TR-5000, however, saw intrinsic safety range of base, arm and wrist modules achieved with electric drives and their so that it could be optimised for every inherent benefits of speed, accuracy user’s needs. The IRB 6000 was also and electronic controls were brought highly cost competitive through its to the painting process. “lean design” with 60 % fewer parts than the IRB 90. It was ABB’s most Evolution of robot mechanics successful spot welding robot with Such was the elegance of the IRB 6 many large multi-robot orders from design that its basic anthropomorphic leading car manufacturers.

Special Report Robotics 7 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Thirty years in robotics

“pendulum” configuration with the namic and kinematic modelling avail- adapt functions to meet each user’s arm suspended from a pivot. The able in today’s products. specific needs. arm’s moving masses were concentrat- ed at the pivot, minimising the mo- The S4 controller was Dynamic modelling ments of inertia and resulting in accel- The concept employed by ABB to im- erations of 2g within a working enve- designed to improve two prove robot performance with S4 was lope much larger than possible with a areas of critical impor- “Motion Control” using smart software SCARA. functions rather than purely increasing tance to the user; the mechanical performance. The founda- But even these robots were not fast man-machine interface tion of this motion control is a com- enough for on-line picking operations and the robot’s technical plete dynamic model of the robot in such as the electronics and food held in S4 and is the basis of Quick- industries. To meet such demand ABB performance. Move, a function in which the maxi- introduced the IRB 340 FlexPicker ro- mum acceleration in any move is deter- bot in 1998. Based on the Delta robot The S3 control unit introduced during mined and used on at least one axis conceived by Professor Raymond 1986 differed from the S2 mainly in its so that the end position is reached in Clavel at EPFL in Switzerland, the switch to AC drives such as for the the shortest time. As a result, cycle FlexPicker is capable of 10g accelera- IRB 2000 series. The next big change time is minimised and not dependent tion and 2 picks per second, matching came with the S4, launched in 1992 purely on axis speeds. human operators in both speed and and which many in ABB regarded as versatility when handling small items big an advance as the introduction of Another feature emanating from dy- such as electronic components to the IRB 6 and S1. Over 150 man-years namic modelling is minimal deviation chocolates 6 . went into developing the multi-micro- from the programmed path, which is processor S4, which could control six applied in TrueMove. This function Advances in control systems external axes, all welding parameters ensures the motion path followed is While mainstream robot kinematics as well as the robot’s own six axes. the same whatever the speed and has continued on an evolutionary obviates the need for “path tuning” path, the control systems, operator The S4 controller was designed to im- when speed parameters are adjusted (HMI) interfaces and software have prove two areas of critical importance on-line. changed beyond all recognition. The to the user; the man-machine interface control system for the IRB 6 in 1974, and the robot’s technical performance. With the dawn of the new millenni- later designated the S1 and very ad- A vital key to the former was the um, robot productivity and communi- vanced for its time, had a single 8-bit “Windows” style teach pendant. It was cation needs were becoming ever Intel 8008 microprocessor, an HMI the same familiar environment as used more vital to lean production. ABB’s with a 4-digit LED readout and 12 in PCs with drop down menus and di- answer to these demands was the punch buttons, and rudimentary soft- alogue boxes, so that set-up and oper- S4Cplus controller, first seen in 2000, ware for axis interpolation and move- ation of the robot was made simpler. which featured new computing hard- ment control. It needed specialist At the same time programming was ware to deliver superior robot per- knowledge to program and operate. made easier through a new open mul- formance and enhanced communica- ti-level programming language, RAPID tions capabilities. For the first time The first “breakthrough” in set-up and with the flexibility to develop or ABB adopted a standard PC format programming came with the S2 introduced in 1981. Based on two Motoro- 4 IRB 2000 arc-welding, AC-powered robot 5 IRB 6000 with its modular design concept la 68000 microprocessors, the S2’s was born out of an egg at a show was introduced in 1991 and became ABB’s HMI or “teach pendant” incorporated in Brussels in 1986. most successful spot-welding robot. a joystick for intuitive jogging and positioning of the robot axes. Also introduced were the concept of the TCP (Tool Centre Point) and a new programming language, ARLA (ASEA Pro- gramming Robot Language). These features made programming and set- up easier and quicker for both experienced and untrained robot users.

Other new software for S2 included, limited process software such as arc welding functions and “built-in” weld timers for spot welding, and a kinematic model of the robot arm. The latter enabled the IRB 6000 to gain a level of performance not limited by the physical stiffness of the physical structure, and was ABB’s first step along the road to the complete dy-

8 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Thirty years in robotics with a PCI bus and a Pentium MMX side each other or distributed up to ent user levels, and new ones may be processor at the heart of the main 75m apart. Installation is made even created to suit a user’s needs and ap- control computer. It proved capable simpler by the two-cable link between plications. FlexPendant simplifies all of controlling the fastest robots on the modules, one carrying safety and the aspects of robot cell operation from market including the FlexPicker. other Ethernet communications. The set-up and program loading through modular arrangement also means the process development and cell opera- Coordinated multi-robot control system may be cost-effectively speci- tion to reporting and servicing. A further dramatic advance in robot fied to match the customer’s imme- control was made by ABB in 2004 diate exact needs, while still readily Virtual robot technology when it launched the fifth generation expandable to meet future demands. In 1994 when ABB brought out the S4 IRC5 control system. An outstanding controller, it also introduced “Virtual feature of IRC5 is its ability to simulta- Controlling up to four Robot Technology”, a unique concept neously control up to four ABB robots in which simulation of a robot system plus work positioners or other servo robots from a single on a PC utilizes exactly the same code devices – a total of 36 axes – in fully controller minimizes to that which drives the real physical coordinated operation through a new robot. In 2004, the second generation function: MultiMove. installation costs and Virtual Robot Technology was launched brings quality and alongside the IRC5. In this, even more Controlling up to four robots from a productivity benefits. behaviour patterns are simulated in- single controller minimizes installation cluding all aspects of the production costs and brings quality and produc- process and connected PLCs. This way tivity benefits. It also opens up com- Intelligent operator interface total transparency between the virtual pletely new application possibilities, Although complex, setting up and controller and the real IRC5 controller such as two arc welding robots work- operating a multi-robot cell with fully is achieved. Consequently, programs ing in tandem on the same workpiece coordinated motions was made easier developed off-line are very accurate deliver even heat input and eliminate for a user by FlexPendant, the world’s and run “first time every time” helping distortion due to shrinkage on cool- first open robot operator interface to reduce lead times and set-up costs. ing; several robots in concert handling unit, developed for IRC5. The joystick a single flimsy workpiece to prevent is retained, not just for jogging each Over the past 30 years industrial ro- bending; and two or more robots lift- robot but also to manipulate all four botics has advanced beyond all recog- ing a load larger than the capacity of robots as a single entity in synchro- nition. Having created the first all- the one robot. nism, a feature unique to ABB. electric microprocessor controlled robot in 1974, ABB has continued its In seeking a lean solution for robot FlexPendant has its own computing pioneering developments, culminating control, ABB developed a modular power with an open system PC archi- in the IRC5 multi-robot modular con- concept for IRC5 7 , in which func- tecture. It set new standards in ease- trol system in 2004. In the intervening tions are logically split into control, of-use and flexibility of operation with 30 years, positioning accuracies have robot axis drives and process mod- a full colour “touch” screen, on which improved from 1mm to 10 microns, ules, each housed in identical stan- Windows-style menu-driven pages are user interfaces from a 4-digit LED dard “footprint” cabinets. IRC5 con- displayed. Pages with familiar icons read-out to a full Windows touch trollers may be stacked, placed along- and graphics are available for differ- screen display and computing power from 8kB to 20 GB or more. At the same time reliability has increased 6 The FlexPicker in action. 7 The modular controller IRC5 has to 80,000 hours MTBF (Mean Time the capability to control multi-robot Between Failures) in some applica- applications. tions and costs have plummeted so that today, the robot price is less in actual terms than it was 30 years ago. The world of the industrial robot is well past its early dawn.

For more information see www.abb.com/robotics

Brian Rooks Freelance journalist Bedford, UK

Special Report Robotics 9 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Body builders Robot-based standardized manufacturing modules for easier and faster installation of new production assets Bernard Negre, Marie-Pierre Picard

Robot participation in the manufac- Behind the simplest lift and place Years of technological developments turing world is at its most visible in movement, however, lies a remark- have enabled ABB to produce solu- the automotive industry. Robots make able amount of technology. And the tions that simplify and standardize the entire process look very simple complexity of the tasks continues to many of the different car development as, with unerring accuracy, they grow as the market demands shorter and manufacturing processes. These repeat the same procedures over cycle times, more cost efficiency, and solutions, designed as “Plug and Pro- and over again. increased reliability and flexibility. duce” standardized manufacturing Besides all this, technical evolution modules are based on the extensive and innovation are forcing manufac- use of robots. turers to rethink the way robots are employed.

The rapid evolution of products and markets requires manufacturers to be very agile. However, it also presents them with a dilemma: how to introduce more flexibility into production facilities without having to invest heavily in extra plant and equipment?

For many years, the automobile industry was restricted by the inflexibility of the frames used to build cars. Each car model required a massive steel construction to hold the car parts firmly in place during assembly. Today, robots are strong enough to hold the parts in place while a spot-welding robot applies many dozens of spot welds to keep the parts solidly together before the car is passed on to a further station where thousands of fine welds are performed. Robots have not only become stronger, they can also operate over larger working areas and can position parts with sub-millimeter accuracy. This geometrical positioning ability replaces specialized equipment and greatly simplifies production cell design.

Tooling has also improved. Assembly lines equipped only with welding, material handling or servo tool-welding robots provide an ideal basis for standardization. Lightweight tools and clever tool changers have also made their mark.

10 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Body Builders

Standard Manufacturing Modules which can address all the different cell is managed by an MMI equipped ABB is a leading supplier of equip- areas of the body shop. A range of PLC. Each cell can be configured as a ment for the entire automobile pro- modular basic products has been separate safety zone. duction line, including the so-called central to ABB’s drive to standardize body-in-white stage. This latter term many different car manufacturing FlexFramer is used to describe a “raw” car body, processes. These exploit many tech- Main assembly lines, constructing, say, assembled in the “body shop”, before nology evolutions, such as high pay- complete cars, and which require geo- it has been treated or painted. The load robots, modular concepts for metrical grippers, can be equipped strongly competitive body-in-white grippers, and a simplified Human with this framing system. Three trian- market has experienced significant Machine Interface, and are put togeth- gularly arranged interlocking tools changes including: er to form mini “assembly zones”. The connected to the baseframe ensure Life cycle cost reduction. setup is simplified by extensive use of components are held firmly and accu- Shorter lead times between design geometrical grippers (movable tool- rately in place. The system is the most and production. ing), which enables the robot to both flexible on the market and capable of Increased uptime. handle and position parts by itself bringing new model variants to the Increased flexibility. instead of having to use dedicated market more quickly. High quality. machines or equipment. Four basic Simultaneous production start-up ABB systems can be used to provide FlexFramer 2 uses three robots (two of the same model in different complete Standard Manufacturing to pick and place and an optional rear locations. Modules for body shops: tool robot) to take the bodysides and Simultaneous engineering – new FlexiCell place them in position while welding ways to analyze and handle data. FlexFramer robots apply the welds. More product customization. Robotic roller hemming cell Reusability of installations (carry Robot Based Measurement System Robotic roller hemming over process) for future vehicles. The process of hemming is used to FlexiCell join two components by folding the These changes have resulted in pres- FlexiCell is a range of modular Spot- edge of one over the other to create sure for processes to be fully stan- Welding cells for preparing body com- a mechanical interlock. dardized and for installations to be ponents and subassemblies 1 . Built significantly less complex. It is simply from standardized components, these Many assembly lines around the world no longer acceptable to develop new cells can be used independently or use ABB’s hemming equipment be- production lines that are capital-inten- in combination with other cells to cause of its productivity and dimen- sive, inflexible and with customized equip assembly lines and preparation sional precision in the production of automation solutions. islands. They are composed of the doors, hoods, sliding doors and other following basic subsystems: automotive parts. As well as table top For this reason, ABB has produced Robot. hemming and die hemming systems, solutions that simplify, standardize Operator loading station. manufacturers can buy production cells and optimize body-in-white installa- Robot grippers. for robotic roller hemming, a technique tions across a wide range of assembly Process units (welding, gluing etc). which successfully hems corners. line types, such as framing systems, Standard controls and MMI (man- main subassembly and closure lines. machine interface). This roller hemming method 3 is Operator safety system. highly flexible, with fast set-up capa- Elements of standardization Cell supervision software. bility and low maintenance costs. As demand grew for body-in-white With a capacity of 5–80 panels per equipment to be provided with higher Batch production is possible thanks to hour, it is suitable for both low and reliability and flexibility in a shorter quick-change tools, and up to four ro- high volume production. It is highly time, ABB began to develop manufac- bots can work in one unit performing flexible, allowing the production of turing solutions based on robots as many as 4000 welds per hour. Each up to four models on the same line.

1 A handling robot brings the part to a pedestral gun. 2 „All in one“ framing station – 4 models – for Holden Australia.

Special Report Robotics 11 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Body Builders

Robot Based Measurement System For body framing, ABB installed the 3 Roller hemming robot carrying ABB (RBMS) FlexFramer system 5 thereby giving patented hemming tool. As the demands for measurement Renault maximum flexibility in their flexibility and lower manufacturing production line, especially at a time tolerances increase, manufacturers, when new models need to be brought in particular those in the automotive quickly to the market. industry, are looking for a robot “absolute accuracy” measurement ap- The total production cycle in the proach similar to what a CMM (coor- Valladolid plant is more than 70 cars dinate measuring machine) offers. per hour.

ABB’s answer is an automatic in-line Simplicity for the future calibration solution known as the No more will dedicated jigs or com- Robot Based Measurement System1). plex equipment be required on the It is a 3D measurement system which assembly line. These are now re- uses 3D triangulation laser sensors to placed by ABB’s standardized Plug achieve absolute accuracy measure- and Produce modules, which can be ment capability, without calling for configured in a simple and flexible any additional correlation or offset manner. compensation. Adapted and defined on a customer- This solution makes the manufacture by-customer basis, this concept is of accurate and repeatable workpieces changing the way body shops are im- from robots cells simpler and faster. plemented and organized. And they Tolerance to all kinds of changes that are also changing automakers’ prod- must be reckoned with on a real- A large part of the body shop, includ- uct strategies in terms of diversity, world factory floor and which could ing underbody, framing line and manufacturing capacity, simultaneous otherwise degrade product quality is respot was installed in 2003. In addi- installation in different plants, and improved. tion, front end, central and rear floor very short lead time. Such a concept assembly lines were also provided. contributes to the evolution of the Standardized solutions in action Over 100 FlexiCells are used in the body-in-white technology and fully A few hundred kilometres to the north- production units and because they responds to these market require- west of Madrid lies the city of Valladol- were fully tested by ABB prior to ments. It simplifies the complete car id. It is here that Renault assembles shipping and then shipped whole to development and manufacturing its compact and spacious Modus car. the plant in Spain, the total installa- process and prepares the automotive Renault’s production facility in Valladol- tion and commissioning time needed industry for the future. id is special from an ABB point of view for the cells was minimized. in that it is an ideal example of the Bernard Negre company’s body shop modular concept For the underbody, framing and respot ABB MC in operation 4 . To be more specific, lines, Renault chose ABB’s standard Beachamp, France the facility employs both the FlexiCell underbody pallet system, and therefore [email protected] and FlexFramer standardized solutions. benefits from the “locate and weld” concept. Here, one robot is equipped Marie-Pierre Picard with a geometrical gripper to accurate- ABB MC Reference: ly locate a part for other robots to Saint Ouen L’Aumone, France 1) See “Measures of accuracy”, pp 13–15. weld. [email protected]

4 Roof positioning on car: the required 5 Even car body framing operations are done by ABB accuracy is reached by ABB robots. heavy load robots in the FlexFramer.

12 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Measures of accuracy Achieving “absolute accuracy” with a robot based measuring system Fabrice Legeleux

Have you ever wondered how they less. On the assembly line, however, different continents. All of these sup- make car-doors fit exactly into their doors and thousands of other parts pliers must be able to produce parts frames? must be matched with the car body and ship them in the confidence that without requiring reworking or adjust- they can and will all fit together and The shape matches precisely and the ments. These parts may be made work exactly as required. Strict mar- door opens and shuts perfectly every from different materials, on different gins of manufacturing tolerance are time. In everyday use we may take production lines, in different facto- required. this for granted and accept nothing ries, by different companies and on

Special Report Robotics 13 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Measures of accurancy

Keeping parameters within specifica- 1 Robot manufacturing places high demands on repeatability and accuracy tions is primordial for quality assur- ance. Where parts are robot manufactured, this relies on precise positioning of robot and workpiece.

Such precision is not as simple to achieve as it may seem. The real world trajectory of the robot may diverge from the predicted trajectory for a variety of reasons: The position of the robot on the factory floor may not match its intended position precisely. Furthermore, the robot is ex- posed to wear, and thermal and environmental effects – settings that delivered correct results in the morning may no longer do so in the afternoon. Continuous re-calibration is required.

Increasing demands for measurement flexibility and lower manufacturing

tolerances are fuelling the develop- 2 Accuracy and repeatability: the work of most 4 A robot cell using RBMS. ment of new measuring systems. In- industrial robots is repeatable but not accu- dustrial manufacturers, in particular a Protection enclosure rate. RBMS provides them with the means automotive 1 , are looking for a robot b Workshop Floor to hit the centre of the target every time. “absolute accuracy” measurement ap- c Metrological concrete slab and robot risers proach similar to what a CMM (coor- d Calibration monuments dinate measuring machine) offers. e Electrical cabinet Indeed, all vision based robot measure- f IPNet controller ment systems currently allow “only” g Station console relative measurements – requiring a h Robot controller tedious initialization phase using a Not repeatable Not repeatable a scribed part and a CMM correlation b Not accurate Accurate to link the measurement data to the CAD data.

ABB’s answer is a proven automatic d c in-line calibration solution allowing – e for the first time – a 3D robot based measurement system using 3D triangulation laser sensors to achieve ab- Repeatable Repeatable solute accuracy measurement capabili- Not accurate Accurate ty, without calling for any additional correlation or offset compensation. f g h The sources of errors 3 Measurement monuments with low expan- Industrial robot actions are highly The base plate is a concrete slab. sion coefficients are used for calibration. repeatable but typically show a poor This provides a metrological base accuracy 2 . The total error is approx- and is protected against vibrations imately the sum of the inaccuracies from the workshop floor by a pe- of the individual components of the ripheral joint. It is not connected to robot, from the concrete base slab to the enclosure for the same reason. the tooling at the end of the robot The base plate is, however, linked arm. Errors may be systematic (devia- to the robot risers (also concrete) tions in robot component dimensions to provide common rigidity. or their base positions), or fluctuating Calibration monuments are at- (thermal drift or variations in ambient tached to the risers assuring stabili- temperature). ty of geometric relations over time. The monuments themselves are When a program is transferred from made of silicon carbide for low simulation to a real robot station, con- thermal expansion. siderable disparities between simulat-

14 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Measures of accurancy ed and real results can be Advantages of “absolute 5 After a cold start the robot warms up leading to thermal expansion of observed. Deviations of sev- accuracy” its parts. Settings that led to perfect results initially are to be corrected eral millimetres can ensue – The continuous calibration as the robot warms up. Drift is maintained within a very narrow margin. sufficient to make manufac- and compensation cycle at tured parts unusable: a door the heart of the RBMS phi- -0,95 that is too big won’t shut losophy makes this type of -1 and one that’s too small will Compensation production more robust: let the rain in. -1,05 Greater tolerance to ambi- Compensation ent temperature reduces To surmount these prob- e -1,1 demands on air-condition- lems, a system is required ing and temperature con- -1,15 permitting the real 3D lo- Measur trol. cations of all parts of the -1,2 Downtime for interven- car to be measured with tions such as replacing absolute accuracy. -1,25 sensors is shortened -1,3 due to automatic calibra- Calibration and 0 50 100 150 200 250 tion. compensation Number of cars 100% of production is Accurate reference monu- controlled. ments 3 are located within the robot cell 4 . These are first meas- The bar is made of material with a Operational flexibility is also enhanced ured with a stationary laser tracker, low thermal expansion coefficient. because: returning accurate measurements rela- It is placed in several positions on a Different car models can be pro- tive to the car’s position. The same rigid fixture 6 throughout the work- duced on a single line and new positions are then measured again by ing envelope of the robot and pro- models easily added to running the robot’s “eye”. This eye is carried vides a measure of the repeatability of lines. by the robot and moved to the object the robot’s self-adjustment. The test is Instant feedback is provided when to be measured, so returning the ex- based on the norms used for classic tooling adjustments are made (nec- act robot settings required to reach CMM, such ISO 10360-2 and the ASME essary, for example, when a new these positions. The two sets of data B89.4.1 as well as the robot perform- model is introduced). obtained are used to create a so- ance standard ISO 9283. Calibrated measurement points are called “inaccuracy map” of the robot. easy to add using off-line programming. This map correlates CAD positions Standard robots can be used instead 6 The hole-bar test provides a measure to real-world robot settings. It is the of those with a built-in “absolute of accuracy and repeatability of the robot’s basis of the “absolute accuracy” of accuracy” option. self-adjustments. the robot’s positioning. No more time-consuming and cum- bersome correlation with CMM or The procedure is used at the start of “Gold Model”. production and is repeated periodical- ly to ensure and monitor repeatability. Conclusion This approach not only assures the ABB’s robot based measurement sys- robot’s positional accuracy, but also tem (RBMS) makes manufacturing the repeatability of its performance accurate and repeatable workpieces over time irrespective of wear, tem- from robots cells simpler and faster. perature and other environmental Tolerance to all kinds of changes that factors. have to be reckoned with on a real- world factory floor and which could 5 illustrates a cold start production. otherwise degrade product quality When robot thermal drift exceeds is improved. And despite living in a 0.1 mm, this is automatically detected sub-optimal real world, production to by the robot controller and corrected within 0.4mm of the ideal CAD world by the compensation software; keep- Implementation history is possible. ing total error within a much narrower band than would otherwise be possi- 2001: First performances tests ABB is making sure your car doors ble. with IRB 4400 and Perceptron shut perfectly the first time and every vision system. time! Volumetric accuracy test 2002: Validation of absolute To additionally observe accuracy and accuracy performances with For more information see www.abb.com/robotics repeatability of this equipment, a Dynalog. volumetric accuracy test is used. This 2003: Industrial validation with “hole bar test” uses a bar with ten Renault. Fabrice Legeleux equidistant holes and an ABB IRB 4400 2004: First four industrial robots ABB MC robot carrying a Perceptron FlexiCam stations at Renault Flins plant. Beauchamp, France sensor. [email protected]

Special Report Robotics 15 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Learning skills Robotics technology in automotive powertrain assembly Hui Zhang, Zhongxue Gan, Torgny Brogard, Jianjun Wang, Mats Isaksson

The past 40 years have seen industrial robots establish their superiority over humans in most areas of manufacturing requiring endurance or repeatability. One important application domain, however, has so far lagged behind the industry’s expectations: mechanical assembly. As fast, precise and dependable as they are, traditional industrial robots just don’t seem able to perform certain assembly operations as well as a skilled human A task as simple as worker. screwing a light bulb into a lamp socket shows why. Applying the right amount of force and turning the bulb at just the right time, at exactly the right angle, is some- thing a human does intuitively. How can a robot be programmed to do this?

For robots to successfully emulate humans on an assembly line, they need to have force-sensing capability and exhibit compliance. They must be able to direct forces and moments in a controlled way, and react to contact information. New robot force control technology from ABB shows how.

16 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Learning skills

Assembling automotive powertrains is vary widely, making it necessary to of compliance, sensed forces and mo- traditionally manual work, performed frequently change from one part-spe- ments, and tactile contact clues from by skilled, experienced operators. cific device to another. Also, since the edges and boundaries, to quickly ob- This is because gears and other criti- device itself is not able to position and tain the desired result. One feature cal components of the clutches, rotate the parts relative to each other, that clearly distinguishes humans from torque converters and so on, have to assembly takes longer. All in all, there industrial robots is our ability to sense be aligned with very high precision in is a higher risk of malfunctioning. a contact force and respond to it. For a constrained environment. Such op- robots to emulate human behavior, erations, however, take their toll on Learning from us they therefore need to exhibit similar human labor. Tedious and fatiguing, Humans are remarkable for their agili- force-sensing capability and compli- they can lead to repetitive-motion ty of thought and action when faced ance and be able to direct forces and stress injury as well as lower product with assembling complex parts – ap- moments in a controlled way, as quality and efficiency. A robot able to plying insertion force where appropri- well as react to contact information. perform at the same level as a human ate, yielding before a part becomes All of this calls for a change in the operator would obviously make the jammed. Human assembly workers in- traditional robot position control para- prospect of automation in this appli- stinctively learn to make the best use digm. cation area very attractive.

The problem with 1 F/N torque converter assembly with force controlled IRB6400. position-controlled robots If a position-controlled robot tries to align a pair of gears and its control program does not have precise information about the gear-tooth positions, the robot’s only option is iterative trial and error, repeated until the relative tooth positions are found. Any attempt by the robot to mate the gears as long as they are misaligned will cause one gear to press hard against the other, generating unacceptably high contact forces. Even if the teeth were chamfered to facilitate mating, misalignment would still produce large side forces as the robot strug- gled to move the gear along the pre- programmed path toward the center- line of insertion. More than likely, the gears would even jam unless some means of mechanical compliance is provided.

The remote center compliance (RCC) device was developed to solve this problem. Fitted with elastomer shear pads to reduce the contact forces, it enables an assembly machine to com- pensate for positioning errors caused by lack of accuracy, by vibration or by inadequate tolerances. As soon as its compliance center approaches the contact point, the (male) part being inserted aligns automatically with the female part by yielding to the high contact forces that are generated by lateral and rotational misalignment. Neither the parts nor the tool are damaged.

Unfortunately, as useful as the RCC device is, it cannot be used for many of the assembly tasks found in an automotive plant. There are several reasons for this. First, the geometries of the assembly parts are complex and

Special Report Robotics 17 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Learning skills

The ABB solution The technology was initially tested on motion should be changed in a con- As the supplier of the world’s largest IRB 4400 and IRB 6400 robots, with trolled manner so as not to further installed base of robotic products, payloads ranging from 30 to 200kg, increase the contact force. ABB continuously researches and de- used to assemble different automotive velops new technology for robot ap- powertrain parts. These tasks, which Using the concept of maximum plications. Part of this ongoing activity can be considered complex, included achievable passive admittance as a includes university collaborations, and inserting forward clutch hubs and the foundation, ABB’s engineers con- in one of these ABB scientists and en- assembly of F/N torque converters 1 . structed intelligent control methods gineers teamed up with researchers The tests demonstrated consistently that integrate seamlessly with existing from Case Western Reserve University superior performance in terms of advanced position control methods in Ohio, USA, and Lund University in cycle time, acceptable insertion force, and guarantee stable, gentle contact in Sweden, to develop a new force/posi- reliability and ease of programming. most common production environ- tion hybrid platform based on ABB’s ments. The design also ensures S4Cplus robot controller. Around the To emulate human behav- a smooth transition between the force same time the team also began collab- control and position control modes. orating with Ford Motor Company to ior, robots need to exhibit learn more about the specific applica- force-sensing capability Easy to program tion requirements. This project yield- Although a robot with active force ed a general solution for force con- and compliance, be able control has the advantage of being trol-based assembly applications. to direct forces in a con- versatile and programmable for differ- trolled way and react to ent applications, it requires a more The outcome of this work is a solu- advanced control system and adapted tion that makes ABB robots “sensitive” contact information. programming to specify how the ro- as well as powerful. What is more, bot should interact with external con- this new sensitivity is gained without Harmonious position and force control straints. Research so far has focused any loss of existing capability or func- While the literature on robot force on the control strategy and its capaci- tionality. Hallmark features of ABB control is formidable, the results have ty for enabling the robot to establish robots – advanced control for fast generally been less than impressive. stable, gentle contact while interacting acceleration, enhanced communica- Achieving acceptably fast robot move- with the environment. At present, tion and high reliability, to name a ment while assuring contact stability there exists neither a high-level pro- few – are all retained. has persisted as a challenge. Many gramming language nor a suitable promising intelligent-control methods programming concept with which to have been investigated, but superim- exploit the force control capability. posing slow force control on position 2 Assembly force for a forward clutch with control has typically resulted in poor Introducing force feedback only en- advanced force control. performance. ables an industrial robot to respond to an environmental force. In no way 20 765 The concept of impedance and admit- does it tell the robot how to move 760 0 tance1) is also helpful in understand- when mating parts. A force control 755 -20 ing force control in a robot. Along enabled compliant robot can therefore 750 each degree of freedom the instanta- only try to avoid high contact force; -40 ce (N) 745 neous power flow between two or it lacks a mechanism for mating parts, For -60 more physical systems can be defined such as gears, according to their geo- 740 Position (mm) -80 as the product of two conjugate vari- metrical contours. Jamming of the 735 ables, an effort (force) and a flow assembly pieces is prevented, but no -100 730 (velocity). An obvious but important help is provided with aligning them. Time physical constraint is that no one sys- The presumption that a robot’s posi- tem may determine both variables. tion can be modified via the interac- Along any degree of freedom a mation forces is difficult, if not impossi- 3 Cycle time statistics for F/N torque nipulator may exert a force on its ble to put into practice when mating converter assembly with an IRB 6400 environment or impose a displace- uncertainty is high and there are so robot with vacuum gripper. ment or velocity on it, but it may not many possible contact scenarios that do both. Thus, an assembly robot they are mathematically impossible to 500 Total trials: 1000 should have the property of admit- handle. 450 Failure (>15s): 0 400 Average: 6.98 s tance, accepting force (input) and 350 Max: 12.12 s yielding motion (output). The under- The ABB solution relieves users of the Min: 4.05 s 300 standing is that once contact force is burden of complex programming by 250 sensed during assembly, the robot’s introducing the concept of attraction 200 force. Coupled with admittance-based 150

Inser tion time (s) fast force control, this ensures not 100 Footnote only that contact is made gently, but 50 1) In force control, the relationship between force and 0 also that the part being mated is posi- velocity is very important as a means of understand- 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 ing system behavior in terms of stability and perform- tioned for accurate alignment. As soon Assembly cycles ance. The impedance is defined as force divided by as all the alignment requirements are velocity, while admittance is its inverse. satisfied, the robot can begin its part-

18 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Learning skills specific search and execute the as- Strength plus agility In one application involving the inser- sembly. A typical assembler program Clearly, the lighter the parts being as- tion of a forward clutch 2 , a work could look as simple as this: sembled, the easier it is to apply just a cell with an IRB 4400 robot averaged slight contact force. This is even true 5.7 seconds for the insertion with a Set attraction force; for manual assembly. When assem- reaction force of less than 100 N on Set search parameter; bling heavy parts it is no easy matter initial contact and under 80 N during Set destination; to limit the allowable contact force to assembly (performed manually, inser- Move to start point; less than the weight of the part being tion typically takes 15 to 20 seconds). Activate force control; moved into position, as it requires the In another, F/N torque converters If contact operator to support that part, against were assembled in an average time Activate search; the force of gravity, while going of 6.98 seconds with the contact force Endif through the assembly steps. The work limited to 200 N 3 . Here it is worth If destination is not can be tricky as well as backbreaking. noting that, in addition to the part reached itself weighing about 25kg, the Keep searching; An example is the assembly of Ford’s allowed positional tolerance was Endif F/N torque converter case, which +/–2mm. Deactivate search; weighs about 25 kg. Inside this case is Deactivate force control; a double splined gear-set into which a ABB’s S4Cplus robot controller is ac- Restract pump gear has to be inserted. The claimed throughout the manufacturing pump gear seal is critical and great industry as the most reliable on the care has to be taken to ensure it is not market today. The add-on force con- damaged in any way during the inser- trol option was developed to enhance tion. An internal splined shaft has to this reputation. Leaving nothing to 4 Application map for advanced force control be fitted at the same time, complicat- chance, its supervisory functions also in the automotive industry. ing the assembly. monitor the robot for potential sensor error and communication error in ad- Powertrain assembly Tests carried out with addition to the possibility of operational Engine error. • Bearing Installation vanced force control in in- • Bearing liner Insertion Benefits for a broader market • Gear pump assembly dustry have demonstrated • Piston assembly Developed primarily for assembly ap- • Spark plug assembly its ability to improve cycle plications in the automotive industry • Valve Insertion time and agility in different 4 , advanced force control has poten- • Reverse servo installation assembly applications. tial benefits for many other areas of Trans/gearbox industry. Quick market acceptance is • Bearing Installation expected, especially where absence of • Bearing liner Insertion ABB’s robotic solution for this task the “human element” in mechanical • Clutch plate assembly started with the choice of robot, an assembly – the ability to “get it just • Forward clutch hub assembly • Splined shaft insertion IRB 6400. This was selected on the right, first time” – has been a problem • Sun gear assembly basis of its payload capacity of 150kg in the past. In bringing this innovation • Torque converter assembly – the weight of the parts it can sup- to market, ABB is once again under- • Transmission accumulator port, without help, and without con- scoring its position as the industry assembly • Transmission differential tributing to any undesirable contact leader in robotics technology. assembly forces. Tests showed that the IRB 6400 • Triple clutch assembly is able to handle a total weight of 75kg The article was first published in (the combined weights of the part, ABB Review 1/2004 pp 13–16. Cylinder head gripper, force sensor, etc) and still limit • Bearing Installation For more information see www.abb.com/robotics • Bearing liner Insertion the contact force to less than 200 N. • Cylinder head assembly Advanced force controlled ABB robots, as the tests demonstrated, are capable of extremely delicate assem- Axle bly operations, even when heavy • Bearing Installation parts are involved. Arm movement is Dr. Hui Zhang • Bearing liner Insertion Dr. Zhongxue Gan • Planetary carrier assembly ‘feather-light’ but still powerful, a • Planetary pinion insertion combination that suits assembly appli- Dr. Jianjun Wang • Splined shaft insertion cations in a wide range of industries. ABB Corporate Research • Sun gear assembly Windsor, CT, USA Superior performance, [email protected] Misc. reliable operation • Bearing Installation • Bearing liner Insertion The tests carried out with advanced Dr. Torgny Brogardh • Piston assembly force control in the automotive indus- Mats Isaksson try have convincingly demonstrated its ABB Automation Technologies AB ability to improve cycle time and agili- Västeras, Sweden ty in different assembly applications. [email protected]

Special Report Robotics 19 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Welding sees the light Precision welding with lasers and robots Fabrice Legeleux

The automated production of com- The tools used by the robots are an plex metal parts would hardly be pos- equally important part of the process. sible without robots. Robots repeat They must fulfill the same high de- the same movement sequences end- mands on accuracy, repeatability and lessly and tirelessly, delivering high reliability as the robots themselves, quality workmanship at low cycle and they must interface optimally times. However, with robot technolo- with the robots. gy alone, this would hardly be possible ...

20 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Welding sees the light

Welding requires a heat application of work when the welding source is A cycle time of about 40ms leads to around 103 W/cm2. If too much ener- changed. an exceptional responsiveness. gy is applied, the metal evaporates. If not enough is applied, the heat is Safety first! A roller positions the welding tool on conducted away too quickly. In laser The light from such a powerful source the seam line 2 and presses the two welding, a powerful laser delivers this as a welding laser diode can cause pieces of metal together at a defined energy. Laser welding technology permanent blindness. Hence, greatest pressure to assure optimal bonding. must additionally consider such as- care is taken to ensure the safety of The pressure is pneumatically regulated pects as focusing and controlling the staff at all times. Even reflected light and adjustable. The roller angle is fixed position of the welding spot. is hazardous; with this in mind, the but the optics tilt to follow the contours cell is uncompromisingly implemented of the workpiece. Filler wire, protective Different laser welding technologies to eliminate risk of contact. The en- gas nozzle, welding beam focusing unit exist. One common approach is the closure is made of multiple layers of and workpiece sensor are all attached

CO2 laser. This technology, despite sheet metal supported by a steel to this press device (PD) module, as- what its name may suggest, typically frame. According to risk-analysis rec- suring they are always in the intended uses a gas mixture with 70% He, 15% ommendations, various sections may positions, and that they all “float” along

CO2 and 15% N2. A drawback of CO2 be additionally reinforced. lasers is that the light cannot be trans- 1 Laser welding fixture. mitted along fiber optic cables. In- Robust automatic doors are provided stead, a system of mirrors is used. Very for workpieces to enter and leave the precise coordination is necessary to cell. Their size is varied to suit the direct the light to the correct location. product being manufactured and can range from small up to garage-door The Nd:YAG laser (neodymium yttrium size. Additionally, a service door is aluminum garnet) solves this problem. provided for staff to access the cell. It is a solid state pumped laser whose A safety mechanism monitors these light can be transmitted along flexible openings and ensures welding cannot fiber optical cables. Because of this, take place while any door is not com- Nd:YAG lasers are finding increasing pletely shut and locked. Any attempt use in body in white applications. to open a door during operation stops the process instantly. The technology does have its draw- backs: The efficiency of an Nd:YAG Perfect positioning laser source is limited to around 2–3%, Besides the welding robots and their and the light quality is inferior to that associated equipment, the cells also of a CO2 laser. The flexibility offered contain positioners to optimally orient by being able to use fibre optics make the workpiece for welding and so re- many customers prefer this technolo- duce cycle times. gy however. Perfect coordination between the ro- 2 Press device module. To offset the low laser efficiency, the bots and positioners in the cell is re- technology must strive for the highest quired to produce a suitably accurate possible productive laser uptime. This is weld. This coordination is provided achieved using a mirror that switches by ABB’s IRC5 robot controller, which the ray between cells: ideally, one cell can control up to four robots or posi- starts welding the moment the other cell tioners simultaneously. stops – and the light is never wasted! Additional accuracy is gained using The new IRC5 industrial robot con- Seam Tracking (ST) technology, in troller provides unparalleled capabili- which optical recognition guides the ties with its MultiMove functionality1) welder perfectly along the seam. precisely synchronizing multiple robots with extreme accuracy. It also Seam Tracking controls the mirror that switches the In Seam Tracking, the robot “sees” and ray, ensuring that this perfectly match- follows the intended welding seam us- 3 Welding cell in China. es the movements of the robot. ing a focus optic. This optic is the same that is used to focus the main The use of a fiber optic connection welding beam (Beam Path Integrated has another important advantage: The Vision). The lack of additional camera welding source is not rigidly attached optics leads to a compact tool design. to the robot 1 . This saves on time- consuming alignment and adjustment Seam tracking is supported by a powerful software that analyzes the pic- Reference: tures fed to it by the camera and ad- 1) See Team mates, pp 53–56. justs the spot position accordingly.

Special Report Robotics 21 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Welding sees the light

4 Laser welding of metal boxes. 5 A look inside the cell of 3 .

h b

f e

c d

the seam together. Different PD module welding tool. The laser output is designs are available depending on the switched between the stations in the Permanova AB application. For example, a flange joint cell, so making optimal use of laser weld needs a two-wheel configuration uptime, and accomplishing two tasks Permanova Lasersystem AB deliv- – one wheel for every sheet, whereas a in a single work cycle. ers robotized laser processing single wheel is normally sufficient for systems globally, mainly for laser an overlap joint. The cell is equipped with a Permanova welding (including hybrid weld- WT03 Laser Welding Tool and an ABB ing and brazing), laser cutting The following customer use-cases de- robot. The system uses Seam Tracking and laser marking. Permanova scribe laser-welding applications real- technology and the AW hybrid-welding also designs and manufactures ized in cooperation by ABB and Per- feature with a MIG power source. laser process tools and calibra- manova. tion tools, and supplies service Using a laser for welding assures tight and spare parts. Laser welding cell in China seams while causing very little heat A customer in China uses a robot laser deformation. It also only requires PERMANOVA Lasersystem AB is welding system for manufacturing sev- access from one side, so reducing based in Mölndal near Gothen- eral types of stainless steel boxes 4 . handling requirements. burg, Sweden. The requirements placed on the weld- web-site: www.permanova.se. ing equipment are very high because Renault Megane roof welding no oxygen may leak into the boxes. Karmann is an important supplier of components and services to the auto- The variant cutting system is based The robot cell 3 contains two welding mobile industry. A welding system around two robots, one on either side stations. Each has its own door for from ABB and Permanova is in use at of the line. These share a laser source loading and unloading workpieces 5a their Rheine plant in Germany. It and cut to an accuracy of 0.1 mm. 5b . A welding robot is located between welds the thin zinc-coated steel frames the stations 5c and can access either that hold the Megane’s “glass roof”. This process requires the cutting of station through door-protected openings The customer chose this solution be- curved trajectories. It is extremely diffi- in the walls of the workstation 5d 5e . cause only the seam-tracking system cult to guide a cutting unit so precise- could deliver the required accuracy. ly. Failure to do so, however, leads to In one station 5f , the boxes are weld- jagged corners. The ability to fulfill this ed. To assist this process, an adjustable The slender workpieces can easily be requirement gave this product a clear positioner 5g orients the workpiece. deformed by in inappropriate welding advantage over competitor’s solutions. While this station is being loaded or process. The small and precise weld- unloaded, the robot switches to the ing spot as delivered by a guided After this process, the cut-out part is re- other station 5h , where other assembly laser was the appropriate solution. trieved by a dedicated robot fixture. The parts and fastening elements are laser collected parts are counted to make sure welded. Using this technique, com- Variant cutting at Volvo none has been left inside a car. plete subassemblies can be laser weld- In Volvo’s Torslanda plant, robot-welded, providing savings in assembly ing systems from ABB and Permanova Customer stories are courtesy of Permanova AB. work and logistics. are used for variant cutting of semi-assembled car bodies. To cut costs, the Fabrice Legeleux The laser beam from a single 3300 W cross-country model, XC70 shares ABB MC diode pumped Nd:YAG laser is guided side-panels with the standard V70, Beauchamp, France through a flexible optical fiber to the saving costs in tooling and handling. [email protected]

22 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com How is this achieved? The answer lies in the use of powerful software to support the programming process. Unique and Such software can, for example, de- rive trajectories directly from CAD data and uses 3D simulation techniques to avoid collisions. ingenious Partnership in heavy welding A component of ABB’s strategic direc- Using robots to produce small batches or even tion is to seek out partnership with single units – once unthinkable – is now reality! companies having global reach and which complements ABB’s own engi- Göran Bergling – Andon Automation AB neering know-how. Andon Automa- tion AB is such a partner focusing on robotic welding and thermal cutting Until recently, any robot operator would have told you that the applications. In these applications, great strength of robotics lay in mass production. In the automobile components are produced in large se- industry for example, robots – once set up – produced hundreds of ries or small batches. The core com- thousands if not millions of identical items with hardly any human petence of Andon is related to the arc intervention. When it came to handling smaller batches, however, welding process, production logistics the high costs of programming and verification made robots in- and handling of external axes. Its employees have, on average, 14 years of creasingly inflexible and uneconomic; the idea of producing single experience in robotic arc welding. units was entirely out of the question. A new generation of pro- The company has developed system gramming tools have changed that paradigm. modules for robot carriers and positioners to handle customer products Today robots work efficiently also with small batches. For example, up to 50 tonnes in weight. In combi- welding robots are used in shipyards and for building bridges – nation with ABB robot technology, a areas where practically every unit built is different from any that unique market offer is realized. Virtu- ally any size and shape of product is was made before. Despite the uniqueness of every job, robots are covered by combining standardized providing customers with market leverage through lower costs and modules. higher quality and flexibility.

Special Report Robotics 23 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Unique and ingenious

1 Flexible production of trailer sub-components. 2 ABB IRB 140 inside a ship structure.

General Industry – Flexible production In 1987, Andon’s predecessor formed extreme importance. Andon’s modular In most installations, industrial robots an agreement with Kranendonk Pro- system for robot carriers facilitates are employed for mass production. duction Systems. This company, based robotic welding of extreme product Once the robot is programmed, it can in The Netherlands, is a supplier of sizes such as double-bottomed hull continue welding without production turnkey automated production systems sections for oil tankers (24 × 16 × stops for years on end. However, for the industry, including installation, 3 meters). All external and internal market conditions are continuously production start up and customer train- robot axes are integrated into one changing: In the early 80’s, supplying ing. Its portfolio includes offline pro- unit, thus the system works as one companies had to start adapting to an gramming and on line control software macro-sized robot. Because of the increase in model variants and orders for industrial robots and CNC con- stability and motion performance of for small batches. trolled machines. These allow for easy the gantry, the system offers full con- integration with the customer computer trol over all weld positions 4 . Making welding systems more flexible systems, supplying the production data means eliminating set-up times: thus for continuous one-piece production. Programming – Integration the robot is able to produce batches The programming method used de- down to a single item. The user gains Together with Kranendonk, Andon pends on the application, on the level new competitive leverage such as engineers have designed and imple- of automation, and on the number of shorter lead times, flexibility, stock mented more than 100 systems for welding robots. In addition to Robot- reduction, improved productivity, and single piece production in the infra- the means to produce directly to meet structure industry. Examples are the individual customer orders. The result deliveries of complete systems for the 3 IRB 2400 in process of welding ship panels. is a drastic reduction in production welding of ship panels to Newport costs, leading to higher competitive- News, Aker Warnow Werft, Kvaerner ness on the world market. Over the Philadelphia, Chantiers de l’Atlantique years Andon and its predecessors and Fincantieri 2 . have implemented a large number of flexible concepts for different prod- Automatic welding of superstructures ucts inside general industry segments demands the highest component qual- 1 . ity, both with respect to hardware and software as well as the supplier’s Robotic Welding in infrastructure ability to integrate the system into the environment customers’ production environment. The technology described above is, Depending on the application, various 4 Gantry fully dressed during factory however, not applicable to the infra- types of ABB robots are used. All of- acceptance test. structure industry (eg, ship-building, fer high stability, unique path follow- offshore, aircraft, boiler, construction ing and integration with external axes industries and bridges). In these sec- and the arc welding process. The arc tors, most of the parts needing to be welding functionality allows for con- welded are different in shape, size trol of advanced sensor technologies, and configuration. Robot welding time which – in combination – assure a per unit is extensive and welds must high weld quality 3 . be applied over a vast area. Conven- tional programming methods cannot The integration and control of robot be applied. gantry motions and positioning is of

24 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Unique and ingenious

5 Robot Studio model of web production cell. 6 RINAS model of ship structure.

Studio from ABB, two software prod- robots can reach all programmed points blades, welding double hull assem- ucts from Kranendonk, ARAC and and that there is no interference with blies and cutting curved segments. RINAS, are used. fixtures and other objects in the workspace of the robot 5 . Chantiers de l’Atlantique RobotStudio is an offline programming One of the latest deliveries from An- and simulation system that is based on ARAC is a parameterised macro-based don/Kranendonk includes four double VirtualRobot technology. That is, it in- programming system, where the oper- robot-welding gantries for the French corporates the real software that is used ator directly defines the work order, based shipyard Chantiers de l’Atlan- to run robots in production. It is thus or where work orders are created by tique. The shipyard is a major global ideally suited to verify that generated importing and filtering CAD data. supplier of cruise ships. Last autumn, programs will run as intended, that the Manual input is considerably lower the Queen Mary II was launched, than robot production time. Program- probably one of the most advanced ming of a new block is performed and modern ships on the oceans 7 . Andon Automation AB while the robot is welding the previous block: the robot can work without The four double robot-welding any production stops. gantries are an autonomous produc- The Swedish company Andon tion system for the fabrication of web Automation AB was formed in The ARAC system also takes care of panels. Working in synergy, Andon 2004 by taking over the arc weld- the online production control. Produc- and Kranendonk have created a sys- ing system business from ABB, tion processes can be monitored, and tem consisting of four individual lines, who had built it on its 1993 acqui- if needed, corrected through an easy which should be programmed by one sition of the robot activities of to use graphical interface. single operator. The four welding Swedish ESAB, a world leader in gantries are each equipped with two the supply of welding consumables RINAS is a model-based system that ABB robots and feature the latest and equipment. ESAB had already automatically generates collision free welding technologies with torch cali- in 1987 formed a partnership with robot programs. The main objective of bration and seam tracking facilities. Kranendonk of the Netherlands. this package is to create and maintain At the time Andon was established a combined model with full control Single piece production is no longer experienced engineers from ABB over the 3D workspace and the ob- utopia in the infrastructure industry. joined the new company and jects within this space. In practice, Andon and Kranendonk have trans- formed its substantial knowledge this means that Rinas creates a colli- formed the vision to reality. and experience base. sion free robot program from the customer’s CAD data with virtually no programming time 6 .

7 Cruise ship – Queen Mary II The base of the Rinas software package is the ROMA concept (Robotized Model based Automation). ROMA allows easy adaptation of Rinas software to a variety of industrial processes. The software is CAD system inde- Göran Bergling pendent and is suitable for a broad Sales and Applications range of applications, such as model- Andon Automation AB ing castings, grinding propeller [email protected]

Special Report Robotics 25 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com ABB has developed a software tool enabling programmers and process engineers to reliably determine the result of a weld. VirtualArc® permits a rapid yet detailed evaluation of scenarios. The reduced need for test runs cuts costs whilst optimizing productivity and quality.

“Black art” For many years, welding using the MIG/MAG process has been considered a “black art”. Most people know that welding is the process of joining two metal parts together, but very few understand the parameters involved and their bearing on the result.

This ambiguity does not just confuse ordinary people: It is said that when ten welding engineers or welders are asked how a given task should be approached, ten different parameter settings are suggested – all of them achieving the same result!

Complex process The MIG/MAG process is very complex. To fully understand the theory behind it requires in-depth knowledge of arc physics, fluid dynamics, material science, arc-electrode interaction, amongst others. Very few people in the world have all this knowledge, and of those that do, it is unlikely that any have any practical hands-on welding experience.

On the other hand, many very skilled welders in the industry perform per- ® fect welds without any special knowledge of arc physics and the science VirtualArc behind it. Rather, their choices are guided by so-called “feeling” for the process itself. Such knowledge can Transforms welding from “black art” to practical therefore be found only in the “head” science of each individual welder. Dick Skarin, Brith Claesson, Göran Bergling Unfortunately, the number of such The concept of the traditional welder at work in his smithy is being skilled welders will most certainly replaced by a more high-tech view of the craft. Who isn’t familiar with decrease in the future, making it pictures of robot welders at work on production lines? Designers and increasingly difficult for the welding industry to be successful. manufacturers take precise and clean mass-produced welds for granted. But teaching a robot to weld isn’t as easy as it may seem. The challenge Welding equipment suppliers must Whereas a human welder draws on experience and intuition in choosing combine the science behind the the correct welding technique and settings, a robot welder must be in- MIG/MAG process with practical structed in every detail of the procedure. Despite the availability of con- expertise: Welding must evolve from today’s “black art” to a modern fully siderable theoretical knowledge, a series of test runs are often required to controllable manufacturing process. determine the correct settings. Such runs waste test materials and block robots that could otherwise be in revenue generating use. The costs and The welding industry itself is interest- time involved mean that the number of test scenarios must be limited and ed in raising cost efficiency by using the optimum can easily be missed. simulation tools as much as possible

26 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Virtual Arc® for production optimization and plan- costs for automated processes are nology. Predictions from arc simula- ning. saved. The robust software package tions, and heat and mass transfer to offers a user-friendly interface, which the work-piece are used as input to ABB have taken up the challenge of helps minimize process implementa- the neural network to predict weld serving robot arc welding customers tion time and hence reduces the costs quality and profile as well as defects. by fulfilling these criteria. of automated arc welding. The VirtualArc® software The product, VirtualArc® Arc welding process VirtualArc® consists of different mod- A unique simulation tool called Vir- simulation technology ules with input pages with which the tualArc® has been developed to meet The technology behind the VirtualArc® user enters data on the system param- the arc welding requirements of cus- software is based on the combination eters, the application and the weld tomers. VirtualArc® offers robot proof arc-physics, a self-consistent two- process. The first page asks for infor- grammers, operators and welding en- dimensional wire-arc workpiece simu- mation on the weld power source, gineers an “expert” system providing lation tool, practical experience with gun, cables and wire feed system. The in-depth analysis of the arc welding arc welding and experimental results. second asks for the materials, plate process. Its use leads to improve- thickness, joint configuration, gap, ments in process control, final weld- The software consists of different weld geometry and weld class (B, C ing quality and productivity. modules that are strongly inter-con- or D). On the third page details are nected with the whole process system, requested of the wire and gas specifi- The simulation tool incorporates state- including power source characteristics cations and whether a short arc, spray of-the-art technology, facilitating pre- and connecting cables. Weld profile arc or rapid arc is to be employed. diction of the dominant phenomena in and quality predications are obtained the weld. Implementation time and using Bayesian neural network tech- Armed with this data, the software then undertakes a pre-weld analysis using a Bayesian neural network tool 1 . A further page graphically displays 1 VirtualArc pre-weld analysis page. the predictions from the analysis of Analysis is carried out using a Bayesian neural network tool. the weld parameters, the weld profile and the required or default speeds and torch angles. The user can inspect time graphs of current and voltage and a cross section of the weld. The latter shows the depth of weld penetration and profile, enabling the user to assess the quality and knowing the speed, estimate the productivity of the process.

Entering the relevant data literally takes a few minutes. The analysis is completed in seconds. VirtualArc® enables significant time saving by eliminating the need for live weld test runs and the subsequent sectioning of the weld for inspection. In addition to costing time, such live test runs con- sume components and materials and remove the valuable robots from the production process. VirtualArc® also allows rapid appraisal of “what if” scenarios. In just a few seconds, the effect of different weld speeds and 2 Simulation versus reality: torch angles can be evaluated, making Simulated weld profile. Real weld profile. it easier to find ways of improving productivity and/or weld quality. In addition, there are cost and investment 1 mm: pages that enable the user to accurate- ly and rapidly determine expenditure and justify the application before welding is undertaken.

Simulation versus reality Whenever software replaces testing, the validity of the results is often in question. Comparison of VirtualArc® predictions with test welding data

Special Report Robotics 27 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Virtual Arc®

shows that the simulated weld profile VirtualArc® in use: the example Two tools from ABB play an important is extremely close to its real weld of Andon Automation role here: RobotStudio and VirtualArc®. counterpart 2 . Market pressure is forcing welding RobotStudio is used to define and cre- equipment users to raise their produc- ate robot programs offline without re- VirtualArc® benefits tivity. One way to do this is by mak- quiring any real robots to be diverted Featuring an easy-to-use software in- ing increased use of equipment; from their productive activity, and Vir- terface, VirtualArc® can be operated around-the-clock production is no ex- tualArc® is used to evaluate and set from a single PC or laptop. It provides ception. Production stops are costly welding parameters. Both tools elimi- users with efficient “off-line” welding and must be kept to a minimum. nate risk and shorten the production process tuning, which predict a wide time for new programs while maintain- range of results including weld shape The welding industry is ing plant productivity. and penetration, weld quality and possible welding defects. interested in raising cost Göran Bergling of Andon Automation efficiency by using simula- says that “rom a single PC or laptop Predicting such results brings substan- we can predict close to exact weld tial benefits including shorter imple- tion tools as much as configuration, which results in sub- mentation time, optimised welding possible for production stantial benefits such as short imple- productivity and quality, and well optimization and planning. mentation time, optimised welding documented welding procedures. In productivity and quality – all con- turn these considerations contribute tributing to lower production costs”. to lower production costs’ 3 . One company that helps manufacturers meet these goals is Andon Auto- VirtualArc® also facilitates cost and As well as saving time and money mation1). Andon Automation not only investment analysis, enabling Andon through better production, VirtualArc® provides welding customers with Automation to support their customers is also an efficient training tool for hardware (eg, robots, positioners, ro- by providing financial analyses of pro- robot operators, programmers and bot carriers and welding equipment), duction scenarios. production/welding engineers, and an but also provides support using ad- excellent platform for retrieving and vanced software tools. Bergling adds that as a supplier of storing arc welding process informa- advanced robot systems, Andon sees tion for future developments. Virtu- RobotStudio and VirtualArc® as excel- alArc® is also useful for comparing lent tools in the application and im- different weld procedures in cost per Reference: plementation phases. On top of this, metre of weld. 1) See also “Unique and ingenious”, pp 23–25. he predicts that customers will benefit from these technologies in years to come.

3 Robot gantry system during testing and before delivery. VirtualArc® is a tool that enables quality and productivity to be increased and costs to be cut. Customers are given a head start in a competitive and tough market.

The article was first published in ABB Review 3/2004 pp 41–44.

For more information see www.abb.com/robotics

Dick Skarin ABB Automation Technologies AB Sweden [email protected]

Brith Claesson ABB Corporate Research Sweden [email protected]

Göran Bergling Andon Automation AB Sweden [email protected]

28 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Mail Order ABB robots are sorting mail for the U.S. Postal Service! Jerry L. Osborn, Erwin C. Dimalanta

Until the mail service can deliver a letter to you, it has to pass through many hands in many places – increasingly even the hands of robots.

From 1999 to 2001, 100 Robotized Containerization Systems (RCS) from ABB entered service with the U.S. Postal Service (USPS). But, ABB’s in- volvement did not end there. Besides the usual maintenance, training and upgrades, ABB was soon providing more far-reaching services. One installation had to be completely reconditioned following damage in the aftermath of an anthrax attack. Other installations had to be relocated following changes in the deployment plans of the customer.

ABB’s focus and dedication in com- pleting these planned and unplanned tasks placed them in a good position for winning a follow-on contract. From mid 2005, ABB will deliver 67 systems of a second generation RCS-II.

The story begins in 1999 with the de- proved the accuracy of the sorting op- RCS-II), ABB maintained close contact ployment of 100 RCS manufactured by eration (thereby providing significant with the USPS and fostered a collabo- ABB. This project, ABB’s first with the cost savings), improved productivity, rative relationship beneficial to both USPS, was a major success. The RCS and reduced the potential for lifting companies. This relationship and ded- system supplied to the USPS is an auto- related injuries. icated work by ABB staff ultimately mated sorting system for mail trays resulted in a USPS request for a pro- based on the ABB IRB 840 gantry ro- Shortly after the deployment of the posal for 67 additional units – and bot. Two robots are used per RCS in- last production RCS in 2001, the USPS ultimately the new contract. stallation. The RCS sorts trays of letter reduced capital spending in automa- mail or magazines (called flats) into tion due to new security concerns ABB Customer Service had been a 24 postal mail containers. Such opera- brought on by the September 11th ter- major contributor to the RCS phase 1 tions were previously performed man- rorist attacks. Throughout the ensuing program. The company provided all ually. The RCS system was well re- two and a half years (between the spare parts support, training develop- ceived by the USPS because it im- end of RCS-I and the beginning of ment and delivery as well as the man-

Special Report Robotics 29 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Mail Order

ufacture of several RCS components. The nature of ABB support was de- later from Edison, NJ to the JFK Air- In early 2002, the USPS requested that fined in the aftermath of 9/11. Shortly mail Facility and from Kearny, NJ to ABB Customer Service provide the after the terrorist attacks in New York, Brooklyn, NY. Relocating these sys- first in a long list of after-sales sup- the US Postal Service was the victim tems provided a valuable service to port services which ultimately grew to of several anthrax attacks on their the USPS. include: facilities. After extensive study, the 1. Software upgrades to accommodate USPS directed that the facility be de- In recognition of the good service and new USPS bar code configurations. contaminated by an infusion of chlo- reliable performance that ABB RCS 2. Design of a solution to improve rine dioxide followed by a second was providing, USPS went ahead with barcode reading accuracy in selected infusion of neutralizing chemicals. the procurement of additional systems facilities. The chemicals rendered the remaining from ABB. 3. Numerous maintenance upgrades anthrax spores harmless but at a price and services including overhaul of – they were very corrosive and caused The RCS-II (as the Phase II system is four systems (see below) and relo- significant damage to most of the fa- called) offers an improved computer cating of two other systems. cility equipment including four ABB and software suite, a next generation 4. Design and production of retrofit kits RCS systems. barcode scanner, and a number of to improve automatic lubrication of modifications to the deployment and the RCS. In recognition of the good support services tailored to USPS requirements. Production of the first service and reliable per- Phase II system is scheduled for formance that ABB RCS March 2005 with delivery of the systems to commence in June 2005 and was providing, USPS finish in the Fall of 2006. went ahead with the procurement of additional systems from ABB.

ABB was subsequently contracted by the USPS to perform complete over- hauls on these systems. ABB technicians dismantled the RCS equipment and replaced or reconditioned damaged components returning the systems to as-new condition. Jerry L. Osborn, Erwin C. Dimalanta On another front, the USPS deter- ABB Flexible Automation mined that some of the RCS systems Auburn Hills, MI, USA were deployed at locations that were [email protected], not able to fully utilize their produc- [email protected] tivity. Consequently, the USPS approached ABB to relocate RCS systems

from Harrisburg, PA and Toledo, OH References: to Columbus, OH (to coincide with Post-haste, Bruce A. Meyer, ABB Review 2002/2 the new Columbus plant opening) and pp 48–51.

30 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Picking pizza picker ABB FlexPicker robots demonstrate their speed and agility packing pizzas Henrik J. Andersson

A good pizza maker is hard to find. While an expert pizzaiolo might pre- He or she has to know how to prepare pare a pizza in a few minutes, an in- the dough, how long to let it rise, how dustrial pizza machine must turn out to shape it without patting, how to hundreds of pizzas in the same time choose the proper accoutrements frame. No one would claim that frozen (tomatoes, mozzarella, etc.) and final- pizza tastes the same as that pre- ly how to cook it, according to tradi- pared fresh in a brick oven, but frozen tion, in a wood-burning oven. pizza can bring an Italian aura and a good deal of nutrition to people who want the taste of Italy without an authentic pizzeria nearby.

Special Report Robotics 31 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Picking Pizza Pickers

For an industrial pizza producer, mak- other items on top of the pizza and ideal for packaging of open food. The ing the pizza is only the first part of these can’t be lost in the trip from line fact that the robot is top-mounted the problem. It must be frozen, sort- to the package. means it doesn’t restrict access to the ed, wrapped and packaged in accor- robot line, a feature that is appreciat- dance with regulations for freshness Looking at the requirements of the ed by operators and maintenance and hygiene, and must not lose its pizza packaging system, Italian system personnel. attractiveness during this process. For integrator Vortex Systems concluded example, if the pizza starts out round, that this total flexibility in combina- The FlexPicker is powered by the it should still look round when it tion with high capacity could only be IRC5 controller (previously by arrives in the customer’s kitchen. achieved with ABB’s FlexPicker and S4Cplus) which allows for conveyor If cheese has been sprinkled on top, its PickMaster software for vision tracking functionality. This means that it should still be there when the cus- guidance. the FlexPicker can pick and place tomer opens the package ... and not while the product is moving on the be left behind on the factory floor. The FlexPicker can pick belt. This is necessary in order not to lose valuable time starting and stop- The challenge and place while the ping the conveyor. Last year Italian system integrator Vor- product is moving on the tex, was asked by Panidea, a pizza The PickMaster gives eyes to the ro- producer in Italy to design an auto- belt. bots 2 . The products are normally mated packaging system for frozen arranged randomly on a conveyor belt pizzas. Pizzas coming from a freezer The FlexPicker and PickMaster technology and the robots need to know their lo- were to be loaded into a flow-pack The FlexPicker 1 is a parallel kine- cation to pick them up. PickMaster is machine before going to the cartoning matics robot which offers a great com- a PC software package incorporating a machine. The major challenge was to bination of speed and flexibility. With Cognex vision system. Furthermore, handle four different products – trian- picking rates exceeding 120 items per PickMaster makes the programming of gular, circular and oval shaped pizzas. minute, the products can be picked multiple robots (up to eight), cameras Furthermore, the customer wanted a and placed one by one. Since all the and conveyor belts an easy task, even fully flexible and scaleable system, motors and gears are fixed on the for a not very experienced robot pro- where new products (new shapes, base of the robot, the mass of the grammer. sizes, types) could be introduced and moving arms is limited to a few kg. the capacity increased over time. This means that accelerations above The ABB – Vortex partnership 10g can be achieved. Vortex Systems was founded in 1987. A specific challenge with pizzas lies in At that time in Italy, robots were used the fact that they are not collated The FlexPicker has a hygienic design for automotive production lines, not neatly on the line and may not be with no painted surfaces. Fulfilling for food. But through a series of perfectly uniform in shape. The pizzas ingress protection norm IP67 it can be encounters, Vortex Systems was con- also must be handled delicately with washed with low-pressure water and fronted with the problem of designing the gripper: there may be cheese or detergents. These features make it machinery for packaging ice cream

1 The Flexpicker robot achieves accelerations 2 The Pickmaster software enables robots to pick items from a moving conveyor with of 10g and handles up to 120 items/minute. total accuracy.

32 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Picking Pizza Pickers cones. The opportunity came about one camera each. Should Panidea by chance, but Vortex Systems devot- wish to upgrade the capacity of the Vortex Systems ed itself to the challenge of packaging system, the layout has room for a frozen foods. third robot at the end of the line. This Today Vortex Systems is part of the pizza loading system is the first of its CT Group. Its sister companies are Vortex already made its own “robots” kind in Italy. Catta27: ice cream process, Otem: but the processing of frozen products flowpack machines and Mopa: requires more manipulation of the A key to the success has been the feeding systems. Together with Vor- product while on the production line. gripper design. Although single grip- tex, this group represents a global At the same time, these products pers are simpler and cheaper than player in providing integrated solu- come in a variety of shapes, and these multi-grippers, the high capacity and tions to different packaging and shapes may change every few months, product variation makes gripping process needs. Vortex is located in according to consumer tastes. Vortex technology very important. In this Fossalta, near Ferrara in Northern engineers decided that for this special project, there are two types of grip- Italy, where the traditions of ma- application they needed, together pers depending on product type. A chine making are almost as deeply with a vision system able to “see” the finger like gripper is used for some rooted as those of cooking. products coming down the line, a formats while others are handled with more sophisticated and fast robotic a faster vacuum gripper. system that has at least four axes of to be changed valuable production movement to provide sufficient flexi- The flexibility is very time. Also the system scalability, to be bility in their solution. able to add one robot is a valuable valuable to the customer. option in case of high market de- Vortex decided to enter the frozen Since four different mands for the delicious pizzas. food market because they had some new solutions for this industry, products are produced Since the system packages open food, despite it being a complex market and packaged at the the system is mainly designed in stain- demanding great flexibility and high same line, the optimal less steel according to wash-down hygiene standards.” standard, a very important require- mix of products can be ments in food production. In 2003, the company began experi- produced depending on menting with the packaging of frozen Customer confidence products and ABB became involved. consumer demand. According to personnel at Panidea, In the beginning of the project, ABB the FlexPicker system installation made the FlexPicker available to Vor- went very smoothly and took some tex and supported Vortex with train- Each robot has a capacity of 60–80 two weeks. The reliability has been ing and support. ABB also provided pizzas per minute depending on the very good since the installation in Vortex a sample robot to work with, type of gripper being used, vacuum March 2004. According to Panidea en- learn about and experiment on. Vor- gripper being the faster technology. gineers, this is probably the only way tex tested and evaluated it and devel- If a third robot is added to the line, to automate this application with such oped several potential applications the maximum capacity of the system a great combination of flexibility and with innovative features and advan- will be 240 pizza portions per minute. speed. For example, the change of tages compared to other solutions on format (to run a different pizza prod- the market The cameras and the Cognex vision uct) can be done very quickly by the system locate the pizzas and feed the operator. The only equally flexible The partnership with ABB and the positions to the robot controller. The FlexPicker product has enabled Vortex products don’t have to be guided or 3 Picking pizzas from a moving conveyor belt. to compete with much larger German pre-arranged by traditional hard-au- One wrong move and all the accoutrements and Swiss competitors. This has con- tomation, which would have been are spilt onto the factory floor. tributed to Vortex’s growth and given very difficult for pizzas. On the con- the company a better presence inter- trary, they can be fed on normal flat nationally. conveyor belt for all product variants. The FlexPicker robots and vision sys- This was the beginning of the very tem take care of the rest. The result is successful partnership between ABB a cleaner robot-based system with less and Vortex, resulting in this pizza- mechanical peripherals 3 . packaging project and other exciting business opportunities. ABB has the The flexibility is very valuable to the robot and the software and Vortex customer. Since four different prod- (and the CT group) the experience in ucts are produced and packaged at building turnkey solutions for the the same line, the optimal mix of frozen food industry. products can be produced depending on consumer demand. The time for The solution change-over between different batch- The loading system contains two Flex- es reduces down-time and loss of pro- Picker robots and a PickMaster with duction, since only the gripper need

Special Report Robotics 33 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Picking Pizza Pickers

4 The loading system with two FlexPicker robots. 5 The right gripper for a delicate job.

alternative to the FlexPickers, would pressures, it’s a must that manufactur- The deployment of robots in packag- have been a manual labour based ers at least know enough about what’s ing lines is an area where technology solution. out there to decide if it makes sense is quickening the pace and making for their needs. If they are not already human hands redundant. Also, unlike The Picking Pizza Picker installation using some kind of robotics in their humans, robots do not suffer from is an excellent example of how stan- factory, they probably ought to be repetitive strain, fatigue, boredom or dard robots and application software learning all they can about them and any of the related illnesses or condi- result in short pay-back for a food looking for opportunities to use them tions these provoke. Establishing the producer. And Panidea plan to contin- as part of their company’s manufactur- need for robots in packaging lines, ue the expansion of the concept: The ing strategy. however, requires consideration. First, future plans for the line is to add one the investment needs to be cost justi- more flow-packer and another Flex- Those manufacturers, fied, and then the system must be Picker to the line 4 . modelled to make the most of the who have been quick to capabilities of robots. Robots in packaging adopt and install new During the past ten years, the use of Indeed, robots often replace human robotics in the area of food packaging packaging systems, are workers, which is why their accept- increased, and new exciting applica- stealing an edge over ance is often a subject of negotiation. tions have come up frequently. The their rivals. However, robots do present a strong standard uses for robots in the food case of their own and this is why we manufacturing environment are in are seeing more and more getting to packaging – such as for top loading Until now, wrapping a new product work in food industry. Incidences of wrapped articles into cartons, or case- has been a real challenge for the strain industries and lost time in the packing, and palletizing, as well as packaging industry. Whereas humans baking industry are a motivator for high-speed pick and place applica- are able to quickly adapt to pack dif- many companies to seriously consider tions – and will continue to grow. ferent products, building robots with the role of the robot. As the USA, UK, Robots have become simpler to use, the same flexibility is another matter. and elsewhere in Europe become cost less and the technology has Until recently, modifying machinery more litigious, the costs against claims evolved to apply to a much wider to package different products was too against businesses from workers suf- range of applications today. From great a challenge. Now, those manu- fering workplace related injuries will decorating machines and extremely facturers, who have been quick to rise. reliable quality control functions in adopt and install new packaging sys- the process area, to counter mold tems, are stealing an edge over their For more information see www.abb.com/robotics feeding into wrappers and mold stack- rivals. This is brought about by spe- ing/retrieval systems, robots are show- cially designed machinery and soft- ing up everywhere. ware developments. Good packaging companies also provide training to Developments in special end-of-arm- make adoption of new technology tooling, vision technology and the straightforward and trouble free. controller technology expand the Changeover is especially quick and Henrik J. Andersson things that robots can do 5 . Not only convenient when the entire packaging ABB Automation Technologies has robotics become accepted, but process comprises one integrated Västerås, Sweden given the real world of operating cost system. [email protected]

34 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Shelf life The development of the IRB 6650S shelf robot – a successful cooperation between supplier and customer Ola Svanström

When a customer needs a powerful and agile robot in a very short time and no existing product covers the niche, the chances of success may seem slim. But if the supplier is well-prepared and has a strong modular platform to develop from, then the situation is totally different.

In close cooperation with Gestamp Automocion, ABB was able to develop a new shelf robot in under seven months. The IRB 6650S is handling the customer’s tough requirements with ease – these translate into an enlarged working range, an increased handling capacity and a high moment of inertia – all factors which increase the productivity of the customer’s lines.

Gestamp Automocion is a specialist in tive industry such as doors, hoods, What is a shelf robot? automation of press body shops for panels, covers, supports etc. Most of The term “shelf robot” is somewhat automotive industries and a long- these parts are manufactured from misleading. It would be more precise standing customer of ABB robots. metal sheets in press shops. The to speak of shelf mounted robots; methods used vary, but include press they are designed to be placed on a In early 2003, Gestamp contacted ABB stamping, hydro forming, welding and pedestal or machine at a distance explaining that they needed improved coating. from the floor 1 . shelf mounted robots with a better payload and working range. The head office of Gestamp is in Because the robot is placed at a higher Spain, with plants located in Mexico, “level” than other robots, its working The time frame for development was South America and Europe. Gestamp range must extend further down. The very tight but made possible by the Automocion has more than 7000 robot’s working range is tilted forwards recently introduced new large robot employees and a turnover of over and downwards. This is made possible platform. This had been launched the 1100 million Euros. by a different frame (the part of the previous year and provided a solid robot holding the lower arm). basis for further development based Customers include Peugeot, Citroën, on a modular and well thought out Ford, Mazda, Fiat, Suzuki, GM, Daim- The IRB 6650S features a larger work- concept. ler Chrysler, Renault, Nissan and VW- ing envelope and a stronger wrist than group. For over ten years, Gestamp its competitors. The strong wrist gives Gestamp – A world-leading supplier of has been an important customer of the robot a capability to not only han- automotive components ABB robots, and often made impor- dle heavy workpieces, but also to do Gestamp is an industrial group pro- tant contribution to the development so with a high moment of inertia. In ducing components for the automo- of new robots. combination with its high agility, this leads to an exemplary flexibility.

1 A shelf robot’s working envelope includes a 2 An IRB 6650S at work at Gestamp’s Puebla The IRB 6650S is based on the highly large area below its pedestal. plant in Mexico. modular IRB 6600 family. This means it was possible to develop the new shelf robot to an excellent quality in a very short time. Another advantage of this approach is that options available for the IRB 6600 family will also fit the new shelf robot (service tools will be the same etc).

Joint development between ABB and Gestamp ABB always appreciates the collaboration of a competent and highly competitive customer when developing

Special Report Robotics 35 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Shelf life

3 The IRB 6650S robot (right) is based closely on the IRB 6650 floor 4 The press line at Gestamp’s Puebla Plant. mounted model (left). This use of an existing modular platform made the extremely short development time possible.

new products. The risk of missing cer- was motivated by Gestamp’s aim to Other applications for IRB 6650S tain customer features caused by de- run more than 200 references (ie, dif- The shelf robots open up new possi- veloping mainly with a single customer ferent press tool geometries) in one bilities for the plastics industry. Un- is in many cases outweighed by the press line. This meant that besides loading of injection-moulding ma- advantage of not having an over-speci- cycle time, the production change chines is one interesting application. fied product. In this case Gestamp was time, the ability to keep a steady Such robots have several advantages an ideal partner as a frontline company parts flow and the easy access for over traditional robots for customers: in the press tending business. maintenance and operators were key factors. The cycle time can be reduced be- What Gestamp needed in comparison cause the shelf robot can unload the to previous robot models, was a work- For this purpose, Gestamp and ABB injection-moulding machine from ing range that was much larger in the Spain jointly developed a standard for above instead of from the side. This area below the robot 2 , and an in- Gestamp’s lines: The Shelf mounted means the robot has a shorter dis- creased handling capacity. The high robots had proven to have advantages tance to move, and also that the safe- moment of inertia handling ability was over floor-mounted robots for medi- ty doors of the machine do not have especially appreciated. um and large parts. to open and close during every cycle. Less floor space is required for these The biggest challenge during the de- In May 2003, representatives of robots because they can be mounted velopment of IRB 6650S was obtaining Gestamp including the project leaders on top of the injection-moulding the correct working range and adher- for the Gestamp Puebla project devel- machine or on a pedestal beside the ing to the time schedule. As men- opment in Mexico 4 , agreed to the machine. tioned above, one fundamental contri- delivery of the first 8 units of the bution to keeping the schedule was IRB 6650S for this project. If the robot is placed on a pedestal, the highly modular IRB 6600 product the robot and the injection-moulding platform 3 . Although few parts of the The very first unit was sent to ABB machine are not mechanically cou- robot had to be changed, completely Spain outside Barcelona just before pled, leading to better process result. new product characteristics were Christmas 2003 for Gestamp techni- achieved. In fact, designing the new cians to give ABB their immediate These same benefits are also applica- parts only took about two months. feedback. Gestamp pointed out that ble in die-casting setups. In this case, the new IRB 6650S had a working the robot has better corrosion protec- New concepts for cutting lead-time envelope below the robot itself like tion for the harsh environment. from suppliers were also needed to no other robot. This opened up pos- meet the Gestamp delivery demands. sibilities for tool changing below Another application where IRB 6650S Design engineers worked in close the robot that had previously not has proven its record is in power train cooperation with suppliers and their existed. assembly in the automotive industry. production technology to reduce de- In this case the robot can replace in- livery times. Acceptance test samples The other 8 units were shipped in verted mounted robots (hanging up- were delivered to ABB by airfreight. February to May 2004, just in time for side down). Again, the IRB 6650S’s the equipping of the new plant in advantage is its large working range To achieve the large working range of Mexico. The robots worked as and lower cost. the robots, the lower arm needed a Gestamp had expected. new counter-balancing system. A new For more information see www.abb.com/robotics balancing cylinder with high balanc- Thanks to the on-time launch of the ing force and a long stroke was devel- IRB 6650S robot, ABB has received oped. additional orders from Gestamp for Laser Welding at Puebla in Mexico, for Ola Svanström First installations at Gestamp two Gestamp press line systems in ABB Automation Technologies AB The development and delivery of the Poland and another press line system Västerås, Sweden new shelf-mounted IRB 6650S robot in Hungary. [email protected]

36 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Quick payback for(e)cast Investing in robotized investment casting ensures quick payback Claudia Berg The foundry industry is enjoying At TPC Components, the process of steady growth. Investment casting manufacturing high quality shells had companies are no exception. In this already been robotised for some climate, investing in higher productiv- years. However, with the introduction ity has a short payback, as the recent of ABB's long-reach, high-payload experience of TPC Components of IRB 7600, it became possible to in- Sweden illustrates. crease output by an additional 30%. Ongoing optimization of the installation will improve results even further.

Growth rate in the investment casting initially formed with wax, which is parts close to their final shape, reduc- business reaches a healthy 6–10% per then coated with ceramic. The wax is ing time-consuming and costly post year, and customers in the automo- melted and drains away (hence the processing to a minimum. The part bile, aerospace, gas turbine, food, name – lost wax method) leaving a can also be produced in a wide variety medical and process industries are mould into which metals can be of materials. The designers can there- buying more and more components poured 1 . fore optimise part characteristics. The made with the lost wax method. high precision of the lost wax method There are a number of reasons why results in a very high quality casting The method is primarily used for com- this method has become so popular: It with an excellent surface finish. plex and intricate shapes. They are is possible to manufacture complex The high part quality, combined with a large degree of freedom regarding 1 Robot arm holding a waxform tree. design and material choice, make investment casting an increasingly attractive option.

Automation trend Investment casting is still a labour intensive industry. Production runs are often short, and even large batches require the flexibility and precision of

2 Bertil Bredin General Manager of TPC Hallstahammar Sweden.

Special Report Robotics 37 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Quick payback for(e)cast

Jan Johansson, Manager Shell Depart- 3 Robot IRB 7600 with long arm placing forms for drying. ment, at TPC Components. When Mr Johansson reaches his goal, the productivity boost will reach almost 65% – an excellent performance by any standard!

It was possible to introduce the new robot into the existing production line without making any changes to the machinery.

Quick payback ABB’s IRB 7600 was selected for a number of reasons. Foremost were the long reach and high payload for which this type of robot is designed. The Foundry plus protection ABB offers with this robot provides IP67 4 Robot holding form in sand. 5 Robot dipping in liquid. tightness (prevents explosive and alcohol-based slurries from entering the machine) 4 .

Both technically and economically, the IRB 7600 is a success.

“Our investment in new automation was basically limited to the robot itself, since we could introduce it without rebuilding the production line. Because of that, pay-back time is not much more than a year and a half,” concludes Mr Johansson. skilled workers to achieve the high ers at volumes of up to 250,000 parts casting quality that customers de- per year. The ceramic shell making Because of a forward looking man- mand. However, there is a definite au- process is practically completely auto- agement the TPC plant is now well tomation trend. Shell making, where mated. An old hydraulic Unimate ro- prepared to take advantage of the the wax trees are dipped in an alco- bot previously produced the large steady growth the market currently hol or water based slurry and where shells. Because of its outstanding provides. Investing in investment cast- the ceramic shells are continuously reach and large handling capacity, it ing clearly has a favourable payback built using special sand is often robo- was retained in use for many years. period right now. tised 1 . Robots are also used for post Only recently was it replaced it with processing applications, such as ABB’s new IRB 7600 long-arm ver- For more information on investment casting grinding and polishing of the cast sion, which features a reach of 3.5m automation, visit www.abb.com/robotics part. and a handling capacity of 150kg. Thanks to these characteristics, it was Progressive companies are now look- possible to introduce the new robot ing at automating the wax tree mount- into the existing production line with- ing area of the shop floor. “Global out making any changes to the ma- competition drives us to keep looking chinery. Only minor changes of the for automation possibilities to increase control system were necessary. The our productivity”, says Bertil Bredin, new robot reduces cycle time, allow- CEO of TPC Components in Hallsta- ing the robot cell to handle more hammar, Sweden 2 . “Quality control parts per unit of time 3 . using vision systems is just one example of this trend”. “The number of manual operations are reduced and final output has so IRB 7600 helps increase output far increased from 1400 trees per day Claudia Berg TPC Components produces some 1000 to 1800. When the production cycle is ABB Automation Technologies AB different articles every year – some in optimised, we plan to produce ap- Västeras, Sweden very small, prototype series and oth- proximately 2300 trees per day”, says [email protected]

38 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com The die is cast Zinc die caster opts for robot-based automation David Marshall, Nigel Richardson, Chris Miles

The South Yorkshire based PMS Diecasting is a small but highly dynamic company. It has positioned itself at the forefront of its field by adopting the latest techniques.

High volume zinc diecasting manufac- The cell was the brainchild of PMS designed pneumatic grippers, and turer PMS Diecasting, based in Rother- Director Gordon Panter, who realised transfers it to a part separation station. ham, South Yorkshire, has automated that a fully automated facility could A pneumatic press then separates in- part of its plant by installing an ABB bring significant productivity and cost dividual castings from the runner. The IRB 140 FoundryPlus six-axis robot, to benefits, particularly when applied to robot directs the runner to a chute for tend a Frech DAW 20 RC real time a new contract awarded by wire rope reprocessing before returning to the control, zinc diecasting machine. component manufacturer, Sheffield- starting position for the next cycle. based Gripple. The installation, carried out by robot in- Installed in the summer, the PMS integration experts Geku Industrial Au- The robot cycle is short and relatively vestment appears to be completely tomation Systems, is unusual in that the simple, with little scope at present for justified, with the automated cell in- ABB robot is tending a relatively small adding extra downstream tasks. The creasing manufacturing efficiency and (20 tonne) machine, while the Frech, us- IRB 140 FoundryPlus robot picks up reducing costs. Benefits include: total ing real time control (RC), is one of only the casting assembly from the Frech reliability in a harsh environment; re- four such machines operating in the UK. diecasting machine using specially lease of skilled manpower; maximised

Special Report Robotics 39 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com space; improved quality and accuracy sure steam cleaning and liquid im- the Geku-designed cell has had a of castings; and a complete “closed pacts up to 25 bar, even complete im- most significant effect. It is very com- loop” for zinc waste. mersion in water for short periods. In pact and highly efficient, scrap is re- addition, each robot is treated with processed immediately – rather than Plans are in place for Geku to install tough, two-component epoxy coatings being allowed to build up in bulky an automatic feed for zinc ingots, so to prevent corrosion. skips – and an arduous, boring and that a total “lights-out” operation can labour intensive task has been fully be established. Richardson comments: “As well as automated, allowing staff to use their operating in a relatively harsh envi- skills on much more challenging and Gordon Panter has previous experi- ronment, the cell needed to be both fulfilling operations.” ence in the plastic injection moulding space saving and portable, so the industry, where automated production IRB 140 FoundryPlus with its compact He adds: “The introduction of full is commonplace. When he decided to dimensions was ideal for the PMS ‘lights-out’ operation is the next mile- automate, an ABB robot and Frech operation.” stone and a significant development diecasting machine were the first for the future success of our business.” items on his acquisition list. “To achieve portability, we mounted the cell on castors – so it is highly “The efficiency of our operation is transportable and can be moved away achieved by eliminating variables, in seconds for access to the Frech for wherever possible. I felt that by buy- tool changes and servicing. Interfacing ing the most efficient and reliable the DAW-20 diecasting machine to the David Marshall brands of robot and diecasting ma- IRB 140 robot was also a relatively ABB Automation Technologies Division chine, a considerable number of vari- simple task, as Geku engineers have a Milton Keynes, UK ables would be totally eliminated,” wealth of experience with both Frech [email protected] says Panter. and ABB systems,” he adds. Nigel Richardson Having decided on an ABB robot, the Commenting on the impact of the Geku Industrial Robot Systems IRB 140 FoundryPlus robot was speci- Geku/ABB automated cell on PMS Chatham, Kent, UK fied after consultation with Nigel Diecasting, Gordon Panter says: “We [email protected] Richardson, Joint Managing Director are a relatively small business and to www.geku.co.uk of ABB preferred partner Geku. be highly competitive we must also be highly efficient. This means that Chris Miles The IRB 140 robot is ideal for harsh every square foot of workspace needs FMPR environments and features full IP67- to be utilised and every employee Keighley, West Yorkshire, UK classified seals, which withstand pres- 100 percent effective. To these ends, [email protected]

40 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com The foundry-casting process is not always as perfect as many people imagine. Casting leaves excess mate- TeachSaver – rial known as burrs and flashes and this must be cleaned away before the part can be used as intended. The deburring and de-flashing process is a time saver dirty, noisy and hazardous. Addition- ally, scrap rates are high and quality An innovative programming tool opens inconsistent. It might seem that the great new applications for robotics stage is set for the entry of robots ... Per Åström

Even so, some 80% of foundry clean- operations. The programming time Calibration ing work is still performed manually. and the fact that the production has TeachSaver provides high-accuracy The principle barrier to robotization to be stopped during the program- methods for calibration of the tools is not the complexity of the task itself, ming is one of the biggest obstacles and of the relation between the robot but lies in the programming of the ro- to a more expansive use of robots and and the workpiece. This is automati- bots. Such programming is time-con- has also restricted automation to only cally handled in TeachSaver and the suming. With many production batch- the largest batches. With TeachSaver, results can be repeated time after time. es being small, this leads to excessive robots can be programmed off-line down time of the costly equipment. and time cut dramatically – from Process fine-tune All this is set to change with ABB’s weeks to hours. This opens up new The process program runs in the robot new TeachSaver. possibilities for the automated clean- controller, and if necessary, the posi- ing of smaller batches and complex tions are fine-tuned. Robot paths are This product, an add-in to RobotStu- parts with a high cleaning content. recalcualted automatically according to dio, brings with it an array of wel- the changes. come benefits to foundries across the The use of TeachSaver Step-by-Step world. Process path programming Duplication of cell programs The process path is created with a Duplications of robot programs be- The use of TeachSaver slashes pro- digital arm or by using a CAD model tween robot cells are simple and fast to gramming time by up to 90 %. In ad- in RobotStudio. This ensures quick achieve with TeachSaver. Together with dition, it offers better quality products and easy generation of hundreds of the automatic calibration methods, this thanks to more accurate calibration robot positions. Guidelines assist the ensures identical results in all robot and processing methods. Repeatabili- user during programming. cells; several work cells can be made ty is a further bonus as well as dra- ready for production in less than a day. matic timesavings throughout the life Process path generation, simulation and cycle of the work cell. And, as pro- modification For more information see www.abb.com/robotics gramming is carried out off-line, there With TeachSaver it is very easy to is never any need to disturb produc- generate and simulate process paths, Per Åström tion. optimize programs, estimate cycle ABB Automation Technologies times and eliminate potential colli- Västerås, Sweden A Time Saver sions. The final result is a robot pro- [email protected] For decades, the foundry industry has gram that is ready for production – been searching for effective, prof- including all customer specific proce- Reference: itable ways to automate its cleaning dures. See also “Virtual and real” on pp 62–64.

Special Report Robotics 41 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com More colors, less waste ABB Cartridge Paint System: Cutting Costs and Reducing Environmental Impact Osamu Yoshida

How many different colors should an automaker offer its customers? A famous pioneer supposedly said, "You can have it in whatever color you want so long as it’s black”. Today, however, it goes without saying that automakers seek to improve their market position by offering customers as many choices as possible.

But how many choices are possible? Diversity is largely limited by production line logistics. Until now, to change color, the painting apparatus of a robot had to be thoroughly cleaned. This wastes paint and solvent, adds to pollution and costs time and money. All good reasons not to change color more often than is absolutely necessary.

But imagine being able to switch color without losing paint or time, and while reducing solvent waste by more than a factor of ten. With ABB’s innovative cartridge bell system, this vision becomes reality.

42 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com More colors, less waste

When a modern car gets into a fend- that having a traditional paint line tion in a time of increased environ- er-bender, it’s increasingly unlikely with many different paint tanks and mental awareness and tighter legisla- that the local body shop will bang the all the lines and hoses needed to tion. ABB thought the concept might bumper back into shape. Neither will paint just a few bumpers was a terri- also increase the total efficiency of the manufacturer pull a spare out of ble waste not only of paint and sol- automotive paint operations. They set stock; instead a whole new bumper vent, but also of time, labor and mon- a number of goals for the project. module will be built specifically to ey. Why not move the paint tank to One was to practically eliminate paint meet the individual need. the end of the robot arm itself? The and solvent loss caused by paint total amount of paint needed didn’t change. The other was to reduce This saves on inventory costs, but it have to be too much, only 350 to material loss at color change from makes the paint operations at au- 500 ml, so if a way could be found to approximately 120 ml of solvent and tomakers and their subsidiary suppli- put a small tank – a cartridge – on the 32 ml of paint to just 10 ml of solvent: ers far more complex; not only do robot, only the atomizer itself would the amount needed to clean the bell they need to paint bumpers for cur- have to be cleaned with solvent. Each cup. rent-model cars, but must also be able cartridge could be dedicated to one to paint small lots of replacement color, so keeping cleaning to a mini- There were several initial technical parts for older models. mum. hurdles that had to be overcome. First was that the time for a cartridge During the normal production run of As carmakers struggle change had to be 10 seconds or less. a car model, some ten colors are re- If this could not be achieved, painting quired. For a bumper line, however, to position themselves operations would have to slow down that number can often be as high as in a highly competitive – not an option for automakers! 50 or 60, and consequently the number of units painted in any one color global market, offering Next was the question of how to hold is limited. Even so, an entire paint consumers a greater the cartridge in place in the robot line has to be operated to ensure the choice in color and arm. Vacuum pressure was the obvi- same quality as the original product. ous answer, but it had to be very features is one way to carefully controlled. Whether using hand spray guns or ro- set themselves apart. bots, long paint supply lines and atom- To increase coating efficiency and re- izers must be thoroughly cleaned with duce paint loss, paint robots use elec- solvent between each paint change. Working closely with a major Japan- trostatic painting. In traditional hand Both paint and solvent are wasted, in- ese automaker, ABB began to pursue painting, only a small part of the paint creasing costs and causing negative im- the idea – applying it not only to actually adheres to the body – often pact on the environment (particularly bumpers. As carmakers struggle to po- as little as 20%. ABB is the inventor solvents, which contain volatile organic sition themselves in a highly competi- of, and world leader in electrostatic compounds, or VOCs, which are a seri- tive global market, offering consumers painting. This technique greatly in- ous source of pollution). Not the most a greater choice in color and features creases the transfer efficiency of the efficient way to produce bumpers – or is one way to set themselves apart. painting process. A negative electrical any other painted product requiring charge is applied to the paint droplets different paint colors. At the same time, the cartridge con- as they emerge from the atomizer; the cept promised to reduce VOC (volatile car body has a positive charge. The The solution came out of an internal organic compounds) emissions and result is that the paint is not simply brainstorming session. ABB thought paint waste, an important considera- sprayed onto the car body, but is ac-

1 ABB’s cartridge bell system (CBS). The proximity of the paint to the 2 A paint robot changing its cartridge in the manipulator. bell cup minimizes paint and solvent loss when the color is changed. The empty cartridge is automatically refilled.

atomizer paint cartridge

bell cup solvent

solvent delivery line piston

cylinder server motor

Special Report Robotics 43 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com More colors, less waste tually attracted to it electrically. The to a cartridge handling unit, where the paint, with both varying by less than major issue raised by this method is paint would be filled into the car- ±10ml during the painting operation. sparking. A spark can easily ignite the tridges. Each cartridge would contain flammable mixture of vaporized paint a piston driven by solvent to force The solution was fairly straightfor- and solvent and air. The developers out the paint as painting progressed. ward, involving the addition of a third had to find the ideal pressure to hold A full cartridge would contain only valve to the solvent control unit and the cartridge in the robot arm. Too paint below the piston, and no sol- modifying the shape of the cylinder much of a vacuum would have led to vent; as solvent was pumped into the head inside the cartridge. The result sparking. cartridge, the paint would be driven was flow of both solvent and paint out, until the piston was fully extend- from stop to full flow in less than As these hurdles were cleared, a ed with only solvent above it. The 0.2 seconds, with flow that varied working concept began to develop. robot required only a solvent-feeling by only ±3ml – far below the target A conventional robot painting systems line; all other lines would be single- figure. This was better than the devel- involves large tanks for the main col- usage and lead only to the cartridge oper team expected, and it really or, smaller tanks for special colors, a station. A surprisingly simple and made the system very attractive for tank for solvent, paint supply lines straightforward idea! At least, as an the market. leading to a Color Change Valve unit initial concept. (CCV), and a Flushable Gear Pump First realized in the late 1990s, the unit (FGP) mounted on the robot to The cartridge change time require- system – now called the Cartridge Bell regulate paint flow. They all have to ment made the supply and the re- System (CBS) – is being applied on be cleaned for paint changes. In the moval of solvent in the cartridge an automotive production lines not only new concept 1 the robot was to be important issue to overcome. What in Japan, but also in Asia, the US and separated from the paint delivery sys- was desired was an almost instanta- Europe. As intended, it is a stream- tem. There would still be paint and neous and constant delivery of solvent lined approach to painting. The ex- solvent tanks, albeit much smaller and to the cartridge, resulting in a similar- change unit can be flexibly adjusted for special colors. These would feed ly constant and smooth delivery of with as many colors as needed 2 , with two cartridges for each color (one being filled while the second is in use). When a cartridge is empty, 3 An ABB technician inspects a CBS installation. the robot arm swings over to pick up a newly filled cartridge 3 , set in place by the cartridge handler and held in place by the robot using negative air pressure.

In the meantime, the first cartridge is being filled. The solvent from above the piston is used to prepare fresh paint. When the time for a color change has come, only the atomizer bell is cleaned with solvent; the robot then simply begins to work using a different pair of cartridges.

Significantly, this approach leads to safer electrostatic painting, because only the cartridge itself needs to be charged and isolated from ground – no small concern with a charge of 90 kV. Up to 90% of all the paint is transferred to the automobile body, hugely cutting paint losses. And small- lot paint runs are far easier to handle, and much more efficient and afford- able.

The results from a major Japanese automaker speak for themselves: A 27-percent reduction in running costs – a savings of ¥3 billion/ US$26 million – over the manufacturer’s annual production of five million vehicles. A 45-percent reduction in VOC emissions during painting, from

44 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com More colors, less waste

4 The pattern control (PC) bell small (left) and large (right).

65 grams to 35 grams per square electrostatic painting with waterborne ting edge of paint transfer technology meters. paints possible. This type of atomizer is the Pattern Control (PC) bell 4 . Improved productivity, with smaller is now used by European automakers, Automobiles and other objects to be runs of greater numbers of colors, where stricter EU environmental laws painted do not only consist of open, and the possibility of paint-to-order significantly increasing the rate of flat surfaces, but have pillars and production. conversion to waterborne paints. other smaller surfaces alternating with wider spaces such as hoods and As environmental regulations have ABB engineers succeed- doors. The PC bell allows for on-the- become more stringent in recent fly changes in paint spray width – years, car manufacturers are obliged ed in fitting the COPES-IV narrow on a pillar and broad for the to switch to waterborne, rather than with external electrodes hood, for example – providing out- solvent-borne, paints. Water, naturally, standing control of the amount of is the ideal solvent, non-polluting and that indirectly charge the paint being applied. Combined with safe to handle. The major problem in paint particles, making ABB robots, this is the future of robot- the use of waterborne paints comes electrostatic painting ized painting guaranteeing maximum from the difficulty in utilizing electro- transfer efficiency with minimum static painting technologies. Water- with waterborne paints paint consumption. borne paints are much more viscous possible. than solvent-based ones, making them ABB Paint Technologies makes it harder to vaporize (yet, on the car much easier to be a bumper manu- body, they also tend to remain wet ABB robotic paint solutions are con- facturer – or an automaker, a white- and run more, since water is not as tinuously evolving to meet market goods manufacturer or any other op- volatile as solvent). Water is also more demands for lower investment, main- eration requiring paint color variation electrically conductive than solvent. tenance and operating costs and and greater response to individual The charged paint supply system must reduced environmental impact. One demands – thanks to ABB Paint Tech- be isolated from the ground, resulting variation of the CBS system is the nologies. in a system that can be hard to main- Flushable Cartridge Bell System tain and is potentially dangerous. The (FCBS), which provides reduced main- result was that electrostatic painting tenance costs. Especially when used with waterborne paints was impossi- with waterborne paints, where the ble for many years. problems associated with cleaning by solvent are eliminated, the system To cope with this, ABB developed the allows the cartridge to be cleaned COPES-IV Bell Atomizer. A bell atom- during operations, cutting on routine izer has a cup shaped part, the bell, overhaul of the cartridges. The FCBS which spins rapidly, flinging the paint has been highly regarded, again par- off and creating a fine mist that pro- ticularly in Europe where waterborne vides superior coating properties. paints are rapidly becoming the norm Compressed air spins the bell and in automobile production. Japanese shapes the paint mist. ABB engineers and Asian auto production has not Osamu Yoshida succeeded in fitting the COPES-IV been as swift to move to waterborne ABB Automation Manufacturing with external electrodes that indirectly paint, but there are plans to remedy Tokyo, Japan charge the paint particles, making this in the coming years. At the cut- [email protected]

Special Report Robotics 45 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Plastics made perfect ABB robots are revolutionizing the manufacturing of plastics Christina Bredin

Automobile construction is increas- The following three examples illus- ingly evolving away from the all- trate the success of ABB robots in metal approach. Progress in the the automotive parts industry. These manufacturing and processing of robots are employed in tasks as di- plastics makes these new materials verse as injection moulding, cutting, suitable for more and more applica- gluing and handling. Whatever the tions previously reserved to metals. application, it is not the cost savings Robotics is adapting to this trend – alone that make them attractive, but robots are finding increased use in also the repeatability and precision plastics manufacturing. with which they tirelessly repeat their tasks.

Teaming up with robots Hemex uses ABB robots to make plastic parts for some of the world’s leading carmakers

Mexico’s car and auto-parts industries are going through a lean spell. The nation’s economy is recovering slowly from a prolonged recession and consumer confidence has yet to gain strength in the United States, to which more than half of the cars made in Mexico are exported.

Yet nobody would guess those diffi- culties from the smile on the face of Rafael Lopez, technical general manager of the Grupo Hemex plant that makes headlamps at Tlanepantla on the outskirts of Mexico City where a cluster of hills puncture the urban landscape of a capital that is home to nearly 20 million people.

“Production has been growing at about 20% a year, and is continuing to do so,” says Lopez as he looks out from his office balcony at the spotless factory floor below. Each worker wears equally spotless white overalls emblazoned with the blue logo of Hella, the Germany-based parent company of Hemex.

46 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Plastics made perfect

The workers form teams of half a have to be scrapped for failing to troduce them when we launch a new dozen or less beneath large signs that meet quality standards. “Besides, with line of production. Since the plant proclaim the models for which they the robots we've achieved a big re- keeps growing and we continue to are making the parts. The signs are a duction in downtime,” says Lopez. hire people, fears of job loss are nev- roll call of auto industry leaders: er a problem.” BMW, General Motors, Volkswagen, Productivity is up by about 10 to 20%. Nissan, Mercedes-Benz and others. But the main reason for getting the Charlie Chaplin’s “Modern Times” film robots was the need to improve quali- classic posed the comic genius as a And just as soccer squads have a star ty. factory worker locked in a losing bat- player, or “libero”, who provides a tle with machines. Not so at Hemex. backbone of quality, so too do the Hemex will be investing It may be going too far to speak of Hemex production teams. The Hemex a love affair, but Lopez emphasises: liberos, however, are protected by some $150 million over “The workers get on well with the glass and steel cages, for these are not the next five years. robots. After all, they save them from humans but robots, supplied by ABB the boredom of meticulous but repeti- Mexico. A substantial slice of that tive work.” is likely to be spent on Why robots in Mexico? Although Mex- robots. The plant, founded 30 years ago, has ican labour costs have risen in recent 1,000 workers, with an additional years, they remain low by the stan- white-collar staff of 500, many of dards of the US and Europe. “That's In deciding on the purchase it helped whom perform corporate duties that not the issue,” says Lopez. “Each ro- that Lopez's boss Eckart Miessner, the cover Hemex’s other factory, which bot costs about $40,000 to $50,000, Hemex general director, is a former makes electronic auto-parts in but we're looking for consistency and senior executive of ABB Mexico. “In Guadalajara, west-central Mexico. quality, and that's what the robots fact, I'm the man who brought the Chief engineer Eric Monroy joined offer.” robots to Mexico”, says Miessner, who Hemex five and a half years ago, adds that Hemex will be investing shortly before the first robots arrived. The robots achieve a precision that no some $150 million over the next five “The plant then was about half the human can match, no matter how years. size it is now,” he says. “The robots skilled she or he is. look just the same as they did when A substantial slice of that is likely to they first came.” Still a young man, he “We use the robots to take pieces out be spent on yet more robots to add to sighs: “I’m the one who's getting of the injection moulder, and for the the 44 already working at the Tlane- older.” application of adhesives. The robot’s plantla plant. Lopez reckons that action never varies the way a human's about 10 or 12 more will be added would. That way you get much better over the next two years. Surely the quality.” workers must be worried about the prospect of losing their jobs? Hence the roll-call of prestige clients that hangs over the Hemex production “Not at all,” says Lopez. “The robots teams. And, of course, far fewer parts never displace workers. We only in-

A quest for perfection

Automated and robotized production The new Opel Astra is characterized by instrument panel, the roof trim and lines manufacture fabric-covered inte- its excellent driving dynamics and pro- the door and pillar trims for the Astra rior components at Johnson Controls. gressive design. But the designers of the interior. new generation of Astras were not only At the Johnson Controls plant in Wup- concerned with the car’s external ap- Pillar trims for the new Astra pertal, Germany, the pillar trims for pearance. Their aim was also to ensure The pillar trims are injection molded the new Opel Astra compact car are that the interior trim would reinforce the using robot-based production lines. manufactured on fully automated, in- high-quality image of the Opel brand. Neureder AG, which specializes in au- jection-molding production lines. The tomated systems for manufacturing fabric covering of the trim components Opel commissioned Johnson Controls, plastic components, was the general is cut using a laser robot supplied by one of the world’s leading automotive contractor for the construction of the Robot-Technology and an ABB IRB interiors companies, to design the in- four highly automated, injection-mold- 4400 robot, which is responsible for terior of the car. Johnson Controls de- ing production lines, which use an the ultrasonic trimming process. veloped the entire seating system, the in-mold fabric backing process.

Special Report Robotics 47 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Plastics made perfect

The production lines produce the trim for the A, B and C pillars of the three- door, five-door and estate models. The three lines, which are already in volume production, are identically equipped, with the exception of the A pillar line, which has no laser. The lines consist of an injection-molding machine, a longitudinal pick-and- place robot to load and unload the machine, an enclosed laser cutting cell with a laser robot, a six-axis robot for material handling, another industrial robot for ultrasonic trimming and a conveyor belt to remove the completed trim components and waste fabric. The fourth production line, which will produce pillar-trims for the Astra also has a laser-cutting cell.

Axes 4 and 5 can rotate through 360 degrees. As a result, the components do not have to be rotated or put down during the cutting process

Fully automated in-line process The injection-molding systems supplied by Krauss-Maffei Kunststofftech- nik GmbH have injection-molding machines with the Decoform package use oversize plates for back-injecting the trim components. The production cells use a fully automated in-line process. A linear system from Wittmann, removes the plastic components from the mold and at the same time brings the textile blanks from a rack for the next molding cycle. After removing the trim components from the mold, the pick-and-place robot takes them to the laser-cutting cell which allows them to be cut at a high visible parts are cut ultrasonically. The and places them on a turntable fix- speed. “The cutting operations follow invisible parts, which make up the ture. the pace of the injection-molding cy- majority of the B and C pillars, are cut cle,” explains Reiner von Prondzinski, with lasers to better fit in with the The turntable moves the components project manager for injection molding production cycle.” into the cell, where they are cut by a at the Wuppertal plant. Other benefits Robocut A 300 laser robot developed of the laser robot include high levels Production-ready precision cutting is by Robot-Technology GmbH. The of component accessibility, high ac- the decisive factor laser robot is based on an ABB celeration and an integrated gas-sup- Johnson Controls has to meet high

IRB 4400 robot. The CO2 laser has an ply process. processing-quality standards. “The inherently stable laser housing with decisive factor is production-ready axes 4 and 5, which replace the stan- The Robocut A 300 cuts the excess precision cutting. The cuts on each dard main axes of the robot. fabric off two components at once component must be of consistently (the left-hand and right-hand pillar high quality,” explains Karsten Spohn, Laser robot results in high process trims are always processed in pairs) project manager at Robot-Technology. speeds and then cuts out the hole for the seat The accuracy of the robots is particu- Axes 4 and 5 can rotate through 360 belt, including the slots that will be larly important in this respect. “The degrees. As a result, the components edge-folded in the following applica- parts are fixed in place. During the do not have to be rotated or put tion. “We have divided up the cutting laser cutting and the ultrasonic cut- down during the cutting process. This jobs,” says von Prondzinski. “All the ting, the robots move the cutting

48 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Plastics made perfect components past the parts,” adds von puts them on the conveyor belt, has the highest level of automation Prondzinski. which transports them to the final currently available for this type of assembly area. application. Once the laser cutting stage is completed, the parts are removed from High level of automation the cutting cell and an ABB IRB 4400 The production-line design allowed robot puts them in an ultrasonic cut- Johnson Controls to produce ready-as- ting machine. The robot has a multi- sembled parts using a fully automated grip, permitting it to remove waste process in a relatively small area of its material while placing the part on the Wuppertal plant and to dispatch them conveyor belt. In the subsequent pro- with minimal buffering. The in-line duction cell, an IRB 4400 with an ul- process guarantees an optimum trasonic cutting head cuts and edge- throughput time and high cutting folds the trim components. The robot quality. According to Krauss-Maffei then removes the finished parts and Kunststofftechnik, the production line

A diversity of variants

Flexible robotics help pump out require a daily production of approxi- Plastal presently uses 18 ABB robots, better bumpers – a new order every mately 2,000 front and rear bumpers. in its Arendal plant 14 of which are 90 seconds. The Production area stretches over paint spray units. At the beginning of 20,000 square meters, has about 300 2004, two additional robots were in- Bumpers have always been an impor- staff and produces some 400 different stalled in a joint cell supplied by Ani- tant part of a car’s character -– from models. The bumpers are injection- mex, the plastics automation produc- the earliest motorized carriages tion specialists. The larger robot through the heavy-metal period to the Every 90 seconds Plastal serves the injection-molding machine current era of light, high-durability and maneuvers the bumpers into posi- structural plastics. Riding this trend to- receives a new set of tions that allow the smaller robot to ward less steel and more plastics, specifications for a partic- reach and trim off excess plastic. Plastal has grown to become a leading supplier of surface-treated, injection- ular car. Eight hours later “Previously we used dedicated single- molded plastic components to the the completed bumper is task fixtures to trim parts after mold- European automotive industry. Its delivered – fully painted ing,” says Emil Arnesson, Plastal’s production plant in Gothenburg, Swe- head of molding production technolo- den, sequence-delivers bumper sys- and ready for mounting. gy. “But now, with these more flexi- tems to Volvo Car’s adjacent factory. ble robots, it’s easy to implement pro- Every 90 seconds Plastal receives a molded, masked, spray-painted, mount- gram changes when a model is altered new set of specifications for a particu- ed and sequence-delivered according or a new version is introduced. Plastal lar car. Eight hours later the complet- to a continuously generated schedule saves both time and money, com- ed bumper is delivered – fully painted provided by an information system. pared to buying a brand new trim- and ready for mounting. ming fixture. Together with Animex, they have Plastal’s first thermoplastic prod- created a team that en- ucts were manufactured as early sures smooth handling as 1940. Since then the company of new versions as they has evolved into a world-class appear. This allows supplier of exterior and interior Plastal to maintain top modules for both trucks and cars. levels of competence The factory in Gothenburg’s and competitiveness.” Arendal area – previously interna- tionally recognized as a state-of- the-art shipyard building 100,000 ton super tankers during the 1960s – was opened in 1998 Christina Bredin when Volvo began manufacturing ABB Automation its S80 model there. Today, Volvo Technologies AB dominates Arendal, and its mod- Sweden els V70, V70XC, S80 and XC90 christina.bredin @se.abb.com

Special Report Robotics 49 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Offline programming, online productivity The offline programming tool RobotStudio is a worldwide success Karin Dunberg

ABB first launched RobotStudio in tivity by performing tasks such as 1998. The offline programming soft- training, programming, and opti- ware rapidly spread across the mization without disturbing produc- world, helping increase productivity tion [1]. and cut costs in a diverse range of industries. ABB asserts that RobotStudio is the ideal software for producing and RobotStudio allows robots to be optimizing robot programs off-line. programmed on a PC in the office. The proficiency and elegance of this Robot programs can be prepared in software is witnessed by the follow- advance, increasing overall producing customer reports:

50 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Offline programming, online productivity

Volvo Construction Equipment (VCE) ripheral equipment at each work sta- “We wanted to move forward to stay Cabs AB – Sweden tion – was a handicap the company ahead of the competition. With offline Volvo Construction Equipment (VCE) could ill afford. programming we saw an opportunity Cabs AB is one of the world’s leading to reduce production costs”. manufacturers of construction machin- RobotStudio enabled Peterson to not ery. The company is now reaping the only program the robots off-line but Before the investment, Polynorm eval- benefits of using RobotStudio and its also plan the set-up and production uated robotics products from around peripherals. VCE produces cabs for flow before the workstations were the globe. For offline programming, construction machines, hydraulic and even built. In fact, RobotStudio three systems were tested: RobotStu- fuel tanks, car bodies and hydraulic slashed setup time by 75% compared dio, Igrip and Robcad. The result of cylinders. For Anders Nilsson 1 , ro- to manual programming. the study showed that RobotStudio bot-welding technician at VCE Cabs, was the best offline-programming tool the picture is clear: for Polynorm. Robot programs can be “Time-consuming online programming “One of the reasons for picking leads to long and costly production prepared in advance, RobotStudio is that it’s designed for stops which we simply cannot afford. increasing overall pro- robot programmers and not for CAD Offline programming of a weld is designers. Another important feature about 20% faster than programming ductivity by performing is that the verification is incorporated the weld online. This may sound like tasks such as training, in RobotStudio, and that is very user- a marginal saving, but considering programming, and friendly. RobotStudio is a praisewor- what a production hour in a weld cell thy product that can be installed on a costs, the investment is recovered optimization without standard computer”, establishes Mario after the first project.” disturbing production Smink.

Anders is an offline-programming veter- Polynorm is a cost-minded company an. “We have been working with offline “Thanks to the fact that RobotStudio and bases all its investments on pay- programming since 1995. RobotStudio employs the VirtualRobot™ Technolo- back time calculations. In the case of is used to program welds on cabs. The gy, incorporating the controller soft- RobotStudio, payback was less than robot then carries out the weld stages ware from the real robot, there’s really six months. on the tack-welded original”. no risk of error in this type of situation because you’re running exactly the “Productivity has risen enormously With the RobotStudio application for same machine offline in the office as since we started to program offline. welding, RobotStudio ArcWeld Power- online on the shop floor”, assures Jeff. We have reduced the commissioning Pac, Anders can control gun angles, time for new products by 90%. This tilt and seam positions with great pre- Polynorm – Holland represents a huge improvement in cision. Polynorm in Holland is a leading tier productivity and the utilization of 1 supplier to the automotive industry. assembly cells. The investment in “RobotStudio runs on ABB’s own con- Polynorm’s main activities are the RobotStudio was really worth the trol system. This means that when I pressing, assembly and coating of money”, concludes Mario Smink. have produced a program that func- bodywork components such as pan- tions in RobotStudio, I can know with els, doors and hoods, both for line 100% certainty that it will function in assembly and after-market service. 1 Anders Nilsson of VCE (Sweden) manufac- reality”. tures construction equipment: The invest- Polynorm supplies a wide range of ment in software was recovered after the Crenlo, LCC – USA spare parts to the automotive industry. first project. Across the North Atlantic in Minneso- The company has an impressive pro- ta, Crenlo, an expanding specialist duction line with 92 robots and is manufacturer of rollover protection continuously increasing this number. cabs for off-road construction equip- With RobotStudio they can switch to a ment, was able to program its robots new product faster because they pre- even before its new plant had been pare the programs in advance and test completed! them offline. This makes them much more flexible. The race began with a contract to manufacture rollover protection cabs “Previously, we had to build one (ROP’s) for Caterpillar. With both of unique robot cell for every new car Crenlo plants in Minnesota at full ca- model to be able to meet our cus- pacity, it was decided to install a new tomers’ requirements. That was ex- line at the planned plant in Florence, pensive and inflexible. Every time we South Carolina. Jeff Peterson 2 , Cren- changed models or parts we had to lo’s robot applications supervisor, un- build up an entire new cell”, explains derstood that waiting for the factory Mario Smink 3 , Manager of the to be completed to then program the Equipment and Infrastructure Design robots online – and then adjust pe- Department.

Special Report Robotics 51 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Offline programming, online productivity

2 Jeff Peterson of Crenlo (USA) makes rollover protection cabs: 3 Mario Smink of Polynorm (Holland) supplys bodywork components The robots could be programmed before the factory to the car industry: RobotStudio helped reduce commissioning time was completed. for new products by 90%.

Foxconn – China cations at Foxconn Network System lot of pressure. With RobotStudio we Foxconn, with its more than 80,000 Group. could shorten our programming time employees, is the biggest industry in and thereby achieve our client’s pro- China. The Shenzhen plant in the Foxconn started using ABB robots in ductivity goals, enabling him to meet south of China manufactures enclo- 2000. Today there are about 110 ABB his market deadlines.” sures, primarily for desktop PCs and robots at the Shenzhen plant. Initially PC servers. The plant’s prestigious all robots had to be programmed on- customers include Dell, Apple, HP, line, requiring a lot of re-positioning. Cisco, Symaco and Nokia. Foxconn recognized the productivity potential of offline programming. “Our management strategy is time to market, time to volume and time to money. With RobotStudio, we can RobotStudio has changed reduce evaluation time and shorten development cycles. This helps us workflow and improved achieve our strategic goal and satisfy productivity. Production our customers”, explains Yuan Xiao Yun 4 , responsible for research and time has been cut down, study of automated technology appli- especially when introducing new products.

4 Yuan Xiao Yun of Foxconn (China) produces enclosures for desktop PCs and servers: Since the introduction of RobotStudio Saving time is the key to survival in a busi- Foxconn doesn’t have to process on- ness of tight schedules and tough deadlines. site debugging and programming when introducing new products to their production line. Now they simulate and debug the production process, optimize the programming path and reduce cycle time in Robot- Studio before starting production. This has changed workflow and improved productivity. Production time has been cut down, especially when introducing new products. “With RobotStu- dio, new products are introduced on time. This is essential for survival in Karin Dunberg this business”, says Yuan Xiao Yun, ABB Automation Technlogies AB giving an example: Mölndal, Sweden [email protected] “One of our clients needed to mass- manufacture a product in a very short References: time. His requirements put us under a See “Virtual and real” on pp 62–64.

52 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com MultiRobot section Team-mates ABB MultiMove functionality heralds a new era in robot applications Christina Bredin

There is more to robot coordination than avoiding collisions. Operators wish for more precise synchronisation so that robots can team up to complete tasks that are beyond the capability of a single robot. Two robots could, for example, lift an object that is too heavy or too bendy for a single unit. Or a group of robots could simultaneously work on an object while it is moving or rotating.

Such tasks require a very high degree of synchronisation. ABB’s new IRC5 controller makes this possible, permitting robot groups to handle more complex tasks than ever before.

Special Report Robotics 53 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Team-mates

MultiRobot section

The technology step taken by ABB in 1 The MultiMove function, which is embedded into the IRC5 software, allows up to four robots the development of its fifth generation and their work-positioners or other devices to work in full coordination. robot controller, the modular IRC51), is one of the biggest since the launch of its first generation S1 in 1974 and the IRB6 – the world’s first electric drive robot. Of the advances made with the IRC5, it is perhaps the introduction of MultiMove that will have the biggest impact in terms of applications and customer benefits.

MultiMove is a function embedded in- to the IRC5 software that allows up to four robots and their work-positioners or other devices to work in full coordination. This advanced functionality has been made possible by the processing power and modularity of the IRC5 control module that is capable of calculating the paths of up to 36 servo axes.

Such power, however, does not inflate cost as the modular concept of the IRC5 permits a lean solution. Irrespec- tive of whether the cell has single or multiple robots, only one control module is required. Expansion only requires the addition of a drive module per robot up to a maximum of four. This approach significantly reduces the requirement for communi- dinate systems of each of the coordi- ing either the Windows style FlexPen- cation links compared to the more nating devices as relative to the work- dant graphical teaching unit, which common multiple controller solution. object held in the handling device. has been developed as an integral When the work-object moves, the part of the IRC5 controller, or a PC. MultiMove is a function other devices move in symphony. This concept of program separation in the MultiMove function is unique embedded into the IRC5 Even though MultiMove is a complex to ABB. software that allows up to function to implement and requires large processing power (particularly in MultiMove is totally flexible because four robots and their the path planning and synchronisation of its ability to switch between coordi- work-positioners or other of the drive motors of all robots), its nated and independent operation of devices to work in full operation has been kept simple. Feed- the robots in the cell. For instance, all back from customers given early ex- the devices can operate totally inde- coordination. posure to MultiMove has indicated pendently of each other all the time; that anyone familiar with program- or they can be synchronised at certain The principle of MultiMove is an ex- ming an ABB robot, particularly when points in their cycles (semi-coordinat- pansion of that used in coordinating a coordinated with additional axes such ed movement); or they may work in robot with a work-positioner, but this as a work-positioner, should have lit- coordination with fully synchronised older technology can coordinate only tle difficulty in creating MultiMove sequences and movements. Further- two robots or other devices. With applications. more, the robots can operate in MultiMove, the work-handling device, groups with two or three coordinated, which can be a robot or work-posi- A key to the easy implementation of while the other robots in the cell tioner, controls the work object. The MultiMove is that each robot or addi- work independently. other devices are coordinated to move tional device in the cell has its own relative to the work object. This is program. This may be written and In semi-coordinated operation, the achieved by defining the object coor- edited in ABB’s RAPID robot program- robots in the cell work on the same ming language. Each program may be stationary object. This requires some Reference: viewed and executed totally or partly time synchronisation in the sequence 1) www.abb.com/robotcontroller independently of other programs us- of operations but not any coordinated

54 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Team-mates

MultiRobot section

movements. For example, a positioner with the first robot. A single instruc- that their relative position may be ad- moves the work-object while the ro- tion in the work handling robot’s pro- justed and then switched back again bots wait, and the robots only work gram is sufficient to move it from the for the coordinated jogging to contin- on the object while it is stationary. start to the finish of its trajectory ue. This is a powerful tool in fine-tun- This semi-coordinated movement re- along the arc. However, because the ing MultiMove programs and is only quires synchronisation only to “advise” welding robot applies two spots in offered by ABB. the positioner when the workpiece different spatial positions and, there- should be moved and when the ro- fore, requires two instructions in its Recovery from a production stop due bots can work. program, the handling robot must also to equipment or process failure is a have two instructions. Therefore, the potential problem due to the com- An example of this is two robots arc movement must be accomplished plexity of the choreography in Multi- welding the same workpiece in differ- using two move instructions, one to a Move operations. Not only has the ro- ent areas and on two different sides. midpoint and another to the end of bot at “fault” to avoid work and tool- The positioner first moves the work- the arc, which are executed synchro- ing, but it must also coordinate with piece to present its upper side. Then nously with the two move instructions its “partners” during its retraction to a the robots perform their welds while in the welding robot program. safe position as well as on returning the positioner waits. Next, the posi- to its last position. The problem is tioner rotates the work. Finally, the Shorter lead times, in- eased by the IRC5 controller because robots perform their welds on the of its path recording functionality. lower side. creased productivity and This is activated for every robot in a improved quality are some MultiMove operation. Knowing the In fully coordinated movement, several path leading to the error point en- robots operate on the same moving ob- of the generalised poten- ables the faulty robot to retract in syn- ject 1 . The positioner or robot holding tial benefits of multiple chrony with the coordinated robots to the work and the robots operating on robot operation with the a safe point that is identified in its that work, move in synchrony. There- RAPID error recovery routine. The fore, the coordinated robots must start new IRC5 controller. same path data will similarly be used and stop their movements at the same after recovery to return all the coordi- time and must execute the same num- Another feature of MultiMove is the nated robots to the program positions ber of move instructions. ability to jog multiple robots using the at which the error occurred. joystick on the FlexPendant 2 . During An example of fully coordinated “coordinated jogging”, the relative po- Some errors necessitate the re-execu- movement is a spot welding task in sitions of all the devices remain con- tion of a command (otherwise known which the work is continually moved stant and are exactly the same as dur- as a “retry”) rather than returning the along an arc by one robot while two ing the full speed execution. At any robot to its last known position. An spots are applied by a weld gun held point, any of the devices can be example of this is an arc failure dur- by another robot that is coordinated switched to an independent jog so ing arc welding. In this case an arc

2 ABB’s Flexpendant (left) is part of the IRC5 package. It supports robot programmers (right) through its ergonomic design, customized menus and touch screen.

Special Report Robotics 55 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Team-mates

MultiRobot section

3 The “brain” of a synchronised robot cell is the IRC5 controller.

restrike makes more sense than a re- Better product quality is a high poten- more processing robots is the higher traction. Therefore, a “retry” will be tial benefit of MultiMove. This can be relative speeds attainable, for in- specified in the RAPID error recovery achieved, for example, with two or stance, between the weld torch and routine. In MultiMove all devices need more robots working together in order the workpiece, leading to possibly to be coordinated during the retry. to balance the load on the workpiece. better quality welds and/or shorter An illustration of this is simultaneous cycle times. A further benefit is in lift- To make it easier to recover from arc welding to eliminate the risk of ing heavy loads. It may be less costly such errors in arc welding, ABB has distortion due to uneven shrinkage on to employ two smaller robots to lift developed a new “asynchronously cooling. Another is the use of two or the load rather than a larger one, or raised error” function in RAPID. For more robots to handle delicate or the load may be heavier than the instance, in the above example it is flimsy workpieces that may flex or capacity of the largest robot but not most likely that the arc failure will bend under their own weight. of two robots working together. occur along the programmed path It is also possible to expand the “part- after the instruction has been execut- on” concept with MultiMove by coor- The unique functionality that Multi- ed but before the robot has complet- dinating a workpiece-handling robot Move brings to the whole ABB robot ed its movement to the end of the with one or more process robots, range sets new standards in robot path. In this case, it is necessary that helping to simplify and reduce tooling technology and opens up a range of the error recovery routine is executed and fixturing. This can also reduce applications that were previously im- at the point of the arc failure and not cycle time as the time to place the practical or uneconomic. Its develop- at the completion of the instruction. workpiece in the fixture has been ment has been backed-up by the The asynchronously raised error func- eliminated and the process robots knowledge gained from the previous tion allows this to occur in MultiMove may be able to start their operations four generations of ABB robot con- as well as in single robot routines. as soon as the part is picked up. trollers and aided by the expertise Moreover, the 6-axis robot has more generated from over 125,000 ABB ro- Shorter lead times, increased produc- dexterity in manipulating the work- bots installed worldwide. MultiMove tivity and improved quality are just piece as compared to a rigid fixture or further strengthens ABB’s lead in some of the generalised potential ben- even a servo-controlled positioner. advanced robot systems. efits of multiple robot operation with This could mean, for instance, that the the new IRC5 controller 3 . Even in process robots are able to access all The article was first published in totally independent robot operations, areas of the work, allowing the opera- ABB Review 1/2005 pp 26–29. time and costs are reduced due to the tion to be completed in one handling For more information see www.abb.com/robotics efficient internal communications and with no intermediate stops for reori- minimal handshaking of the single enting the work. This is called one- controller. When some degree of syn- stop or one hit processing. Christina Bredin chronisation is introduced, waiting ABB Automation Technologies AB times can be minimised leading to fur- Another advantage of coordinating a Sweden ther reductions in cycle times. work-handling robot with two or christina.bredin @se.abb.com

56 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com MultiRobot section Welding double MultiArc – the perfect welding team Sofie Kallgren

There are many reasons for coordinating welding robots. Two robots working simultaneously on the same workpiece save time and space. But besides producing more for less, robot coordination is also about quality. For example if a seam is welded from both sides simultaneously it will cool more evenly leading to a better join.

The obstacle has long been master- ing the precise coordination required. This is even more an issue where besides the two welding robots, a positioner must also be integrated in the coordination. ABB’s new IRC5 robot controller simplifies all of this. The controller provides perfect coordination and is, at the same time, no more difficult to program than a single robot. Suddenly, teamwork in robot welding is a gras- pable reality.

Special Report Robotics 57 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Welding double

MultiRobot section

MultiArc is a new concept for arc rations include two IRB 140, 1400 or ble product, the new MultiArc concept welding where more than one weld- 2400 robots combined with one IRBP is ideal for handling a wide range of ing robot can be coordinated with a positioner, type R, K, D or L. complex parts. single positioner using ABB’s new IRC5 controller. The combination of These standard configurations cover MultiArc – ABB sets a new standard a brilliant brain and diligent hands the majority of industrial arc welding Multi-robot solutions are becoming makes MultiArc the perfect combina- applications but they do not exclude more and more common. ABB has tion for arc welding. the possibility of non-standard combi- made these systems simpler to use. nations; solutions can be tailored to in- Programming is as easy as for a single MultiArc was developed by arc weld- dividual customer needs. Different ro- robot system, so reducing program- ing specialists in close co-operation bot types can be integrated, including ming time significantly. MultiArc weld- with experienced and demanding cus- for example, one for material handling. ing cells are built from ABB standard tomers in the car industry. components, ensuring reliability and a The MultiArc features and benefits long life. ABB MultiArc increases pro- The new robot controller, IRC5, can One controller co-coordinating two ductivity but not complexity! integrate up to four robots. For most welding processes means powerful industrial arc welding applications, motion control and the elimination MultiArc – a new concept for however, the optimal solution is a of synchronization times; this, to- arc welding combination of two robots working gether with superior path accuracy Integrates more than one robot with with one positioner. Two welding and perfect repetition, leads to one positioner using the new ABB processes active simultaneously on shorter cycle times. controller IRC5. the same positioner lead to superior Two simultaneous welding process- Developed in close co-operation accuracy, increased quality, shorter es result in better and more even with experienced customers in the cycle times and reduced floor space. heat distribution. This minimizes automotive industry. the risk of deformation or cracking, Standard configurations for the Advanced welding process know-how thus safeguarding quality. majority of industrial arc welding MultiArc was developed in close co- Two welding processes on the applications. operation with experienced and de- same positioner mean reduced floor Superior accuracy, increased quali- manding customers in the automotive space, increased flexibility and low- ty, faster cycle times, reduced need industry. Based on deep and advanced er fixed production costs. of floor space. arc welding process know-how, Multi- Using two integrated welding Simple use, high up-time, versatili- Arc is a mirror in which operators and processes is about 70 % more effi- ty, flexibility welding engineers will recognize their cient than a single robot solution skills. They will also recognize the which means a substantial increase MultiArc is the perfect tool for arc ease of use, high up-time, versatility in production output. welding. and flexibility that are distinctive features of ABB robotics products. ABB’s paramount principle for robot For more information see www.abb.com/robotics welding is to get the best possible MultiArc – a concept for different needs weld at the lowest possible cost. De- Sofie Kallgren Big or small – but always fast! To meet signed on the basis of using the opti- ABB Automation Technologies AB a wide range of different customer re- mal combination of proven compo- Laxå, Sweden quirements, MultiArc standard configu- nents to obtain an efficient and flexi- [email protected]

58 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com MultiRobot section

Within factory automation and especially arc welding, there is a clear trend towards systems with two or Multiple robots, more robots connected to a single controller. This development is not primarily driven by robot product costs but by performance, quality and single solution time-cycle issues. The market expects robot system The Gordian knot of programming multiple robots manufacturers to offer multiple robot Jonas Anselmby solutions. This is especially important in the automotive sub-supplier sector where such advantages can define the Robots have a well-established place in manufacturing. They are flexible, ability to remain competitive. The precise, cost-effective and will endlessly repeat complex task sequences main application process is arc weld- with unwavering accuracy. But there are still many jobs that are too coming, especially in exhaust pipe, axle plex for a single robot. Just as an artisan may sometimes wish he had a and seat production. Multi-robot sys- third hand, so robot programmers desire extra robots for more flexible tems offer advantages in terms of positioning or to work in tandem. product quality, production rate and total system cost. Putting additional robots into a cell does not solve all problems. If these Why should multiple robot systems be are to move simultaneously, care must be taken to make sure movements especially suitable for arc welding? are coordinated and paths do not collide. If one robot is difficult enough to The following typical multi-robot program, then programming and coordinating several must be even more welding applications require precise daunting. But not when using ABB’s RobotStudio and the MultiMove robot coordination: PowerPac! Two robots weld in coordination with respect to a moving workpiece positioner 1 . This setup is called Twin Robots and is used where welding must be performed from both sides simultaneously to avoid material distortion.

Special Report Robotics 59 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Multiple robots, single solution

MultiRobot section

Two or more robots can work with The first VirtualRobot technology gen- 1 Robots welding in tandem in the Twin one workpiece simultaneously and eration was implemented in products Robot configuration. Thermal effects may so reduce the equipment necessary such as QuickTeach, ProgramMaker, require both welds to be made simultane- for transporting material between and RobotStudio for S4. It was based ously. Perfect synchronization is a must. cells. This not only cuts cycle time, on the fourth generation of ABB robot but also reduces the cost of the controllers, S4, S4C, S4C+. complete system 3 . Now, ten years later, ABB has re- IRC5 leased the second-generation Virtual- IRC5 is ABB’s fifth generation robot Robot technology. This new genera- controller. It is a product of ABB’s tion is faster, handles multiple robots, trendsetting motion technology and and offers far more capabilities thanks uses an expandable modular concept. to the strengths of the IRC5 controller. The IRC5 can synchronize up to PowerPac four robots through the MultiMove™ function. It has a completely novel portable and ergonomic interface unit, the FlexPendant (see textbox). FlexPendant 2 A smooth and perfect weld seam is obtained by the positioning and welding MultiMove™ The FlexPendant is a hand-held ro- robot working hand in hand in the MultiMove, allows several robots to be bot-user interface for use with the FlexPositioner setup. coordinated with just one controller. IRC5 controller. It is used for man- These robots can operate independ- ually controlling or programming a ently or in coordination. This ability robot, or for making modifications cuts cycle time and costs while im- or changing settings during opera- proving quality and productivity. tion. The FlexPendant can jog a ro- MultiMove’s precise coordination bot through its program, or jog any makes manipulations possible that of its axes to drive the robot to a were previously considered impossi- desired position, and save and re- ble for robots. call learnt positions and actions.

RobotStudio™ The ergonomically designed unit ABB’s simulation and offline program- weighs less than 1.3 kg. It has a ming software, RobotStudio, allows large color touch-screen, eight 3 When two robots can work on the same robot programs to be created in the keys, a joystick and an emergency workpiece simultaneously, the need for an office without production having to stop button. additional transport mechanism is saved. be shut down. Programs can be prepared in advance, increasing overall The user-friendly interface is based productivity. on Microsoft’s CE.NET system. It can display information in 12 lan- 2nd generation VirtualRobot™ guages of which three can be technology made active simultaneously, mean- ABB’s state-of-the-art VirtualRobot™ ing languages can be changed dur- lets users run the actual controller ing operation which is useful when code on their PC. This technology has staff from different countries work driven competitors to follow ABB’s in the same factory. The display lead. can be flipped by 180 degrees to make the FlexPendant suitable for The main paradigm of VirtualRobot left or right-handed operators. The technology is: If it works on the Virtu- options can be customized to suit The workpiece is manipulated so alRobot on the PC, it will also work the robot application. that the welding bead is continu- on the factory floor. The VirtualRobot ously oriented horizontally. One can be used as a training, pre-sales robot must position the work piece and prototyping tool. It is ideal for while a second robot handles the concept studies, application develop- process equipment 2 . This setup ment, test, and full simulations in is called FlexPositioner. RobotStudio. VirtualRobot is also a cornerstone in the strategy to provide Multi-robot systems enable better pro- customers with the highest value duction rates and lower total system products for programming and inte- cost: grating ABB robots.

60 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Multiple robots, single solution

MultiRobot section

PowerPacs are plug-ins for RobotStu- 5 The MultiMove PowerPac of RobotStudio simplifies programming, testing and visualization of dio supporting specific applications multiple robot situations. such as welding, painting and cutting. These modules dramatically reduce preparation and setup time because this can be performed offline without disturbing production.

MultiMove PowerPac MultiMove PowerPac is the new RobotStudio plug-in that cuts the Gordian knot of programming multiple robots. ABB is the first and only supplier to offer an offline planning, programming and simulation tool for a MultiMove system.

RobotStudio and the MultiMove PowerPac make multi-robot systems easy to plan, easy to program and easy to use 4 . One of the principle benefits is simplified programming by focussing on technical production constraints only.

A common application of RobotStudio with MultiMove PowerPac is in defining a virtual robot cell 5 . A path is reducing mechanical stress on the Thanks to MultiMove PowerPac, users created along the geometry of a part. complete system or individual axes. can evaluate different cell layouts and This path can, for example, be associ- production concepts in a very short ated with the geometry of the work- After constraints have been defined, time. MultiMove PowerPac makes a piece to be arc welded. The process MultiMove PowerPac automatically MultiMove system as easy to program parameters can then be defined as generates the robot paths. and as flexible to modify as a single constraints to be considered in the robot system. control of the robots in the cell. Pre- ABB is the first and only determined constraints can include, With MultiMove PowerPac, ABB offers among others, tool orientation, cycle supplier to offer an offline the best MultiMove offline-program- time and robot orientation. Optimiza- planning, programming ming tool in the industry. There is, at tion can be based on quality criteria present, no other working solution on such as: use of maximum speed and simulation tool for a the market. through reducing the load on the MultiMove system. limiting axis, minimizing cycle times, RobotStudio™, VirtualRobot™, MultiMove™, PowerPac™, IRC5™, FlexPositioner™ are trade- In the following, the example of a marks of ABB. two-robot arc-welding cell is considered. The process of automatically 4 Programming with MultiMove offers great generating robot paths defines which time savings. tasks each of the two robots should execute, and defines the relationship 30 between the two independently con-

obot 25 25 trollable robots. One of the robots can hold an object in a desired orientation 20 while the second robot performs the

ogramming a r 15 arc weld along the specified path. 10

ed for pr 10 When paths have been decided, the ed to MultiMove PowerPac

equir robots’ motion is automatically gener- 5

compar ated. Their interaction can then be Jonas Anselmby ime r 1 T 0 verified in a simulation and subse- ABB Automation Technologies MultiMove FlexPendant Competitor quently downloaded to the controller Mölndal, Sweden PowerPac average of the real robots. [email protected]

Special Report Robotics 61 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Product and tools Virtual and real RobotStudio puts you in control of your robots – now both offline and online Bertil Thorvaldsson

How do you teach a robot? Until re- ABB’s RobotStudio offers an alter- downloaded to the real robot and cently, programmers had a robot at native. Instead of using a real robot, this will behave exactly as its virtual their disposal and took it through the programmer uses a virtual one. counterpart. the cycle of instruction, test and cor- The robot is replaced by a desktop rection until everything worked as PC running the RobotStudio soft- desired. Under today’s drive for ware. The software models the robot higher productivity and competitive- and all associated tooling and work- ness however, this method has one pieces – the programmer can set up great drawback: The costly robot and test programs from the comfort and all associated equipment have of his office. But this is more than a to be removed from the production mere simulation tool. The program process during programming. that runs on the virtual robot can be

62 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Virtual and real

Product and tools

At last programmers can test variants ming takes place at the expense of gramming tools for robots will con- and perfection their programs without production. sign “teach-pendant” programming 1 having to worry about the line manag- to the history books. ABB is leading er getting on their heels because of Programming versus production this development with a software the downtime they are causing. They By using the robot, and worse still, all product called RobotStudio. can be confident that the robot is associated manufacturing equipment doing exactly what they think it is as a programming environment; the RobotStudio is based on the innova- doing. Production planners don’t have cost of programming includes the cost tive concept, VirtualRobotTM technolo- to spend sleepless nights over the of the productivity that could have gy. This was pioneered by ABB some productivity lost while programmers been derived had the equipment been ten years ago and has now been per- take possession of their robots. producing. In the 1970s, when the use fected into a second generation in of a robot in itself created a competi- conjunction with the development of Teach-pendant tive advantage, this inefficiency could the IRC5 robot controller. Using Virtu- Industrial robots have been around often be tolerated. Today however, alRobot technology means that the since the early 1970s. ABB delivered with everybody using robots in pro- entire software that runs on the robot its first robot to a customer in 1974. duction, it is the companies that use controller and on the operator unit This robot had to be programmed them most efficiently that will prevail has been converted to run on a regu- using a hand-held device called a in the highly competitive market. This lar Windows PC 2 . Thus, unlike soft- teach-pendant. The robot was driven is driving a paradigm shift in the in- ware products for robot simulation through the desired motion sequence dustry that, over a period of time, will that have been around for a long time using this pendant, and the robot-con- revolutionize the way robots are pro- without making much impact on mod- troller stored the sequence as a programmed. This development is com- ernizing robot programming, Robot- gram that could be executed as often parable to CAD software making draft- Studio is true virtual reality. In Robot- as required. ing-board based mechanical design Studio real robot programs run on real obsolete. The spread of offline pro- robot controllers. The only part that is In the 1970s, when the use of a robot in itself 1 Online programming is becoming cost-prohibitive as competition intensifies. created a competitive This picture shows the programming of the first ABB robot. advantage, programming inefficiency could be tolerated. Today however, with everybody using robots in production, it is the companies that use them most efficiently that will prevail in the highly competitive market.

Technology may have made great advances in the 30 years that have since passed, and new and more efficient methods have been created for accomplishing many tasks, but surprisingly the 1970s procedure for programming robots is still widespread. Teach-pen- dants have, of course, evolved. Where- as the first unit was made of cast iron, had a very small alphanumeric display, and a large number of buttons, the new hand-held operator unit for the IRC5 is an ergonomic lightweight plastic unit with a large color touch-screen, a joystick, and very few buttons. But the basic principle of shop-floor programming remains unchanged and still has the same disadvantage; program-

Special Report Robotics 63 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Virtual and real

Product and tools

3 RobotStudio puts high productivity at the fingertips of all users 4 With RobotStudio, editing of configuration parameters is swift of ABB robots. and simple.

simulated is the mechanical unit ing and fixtures, RobotStudio can re- of the part are introduced, reprogram- where the steel has been replaced duce the risk of unexpected costs and ming is possible while the system con- with a 3D model of it. Thus, what you delays by verifying designs before tinues to produce. see in RobotStudio is what you will they are manufactured. And, above all, see on the shop floor. by programming the system while the With the second generation of Virtual- real robots are still hard at work on Robot technology, differences be- RobotStudio – lower costs and higher the previous job, production can start tween real and virtual robots have quality earlier and time-to-market is reduced. been eliminated to the extent that Ro- RobotStudio can be used to reduce Product quality will also increase as botStudio can run with real robots. cost and increase productivity in every robot positions are taken directly from RobotStudio can connect to real ro- step of the life cycle of a robot system the CAD-model of the part, without in- bots on the shop floor using a net- 3 . In concept studies, it can improve fluence of the online programmers work connection and can modify pro- the quality of the system: Proposed varying skill with the joystick. Once grams and parameters in these robots. solutions are visualized to ensure that the system is producing, it is possible This is particularly useful when setting all people involved are talking about to fine-tune it without sacrificing pro- up new robot systems. Previously, the same thing. When designing tool- duction time. Finally, as new variants technicians on the shop floor had to make do with hand-held operator units to define or modify parameters in robot controllers. The lack of a 2 With VirtualRobot technology, a robot can be put keyboard and a high-resolution dis- onto every robot user’s desktop. play made this tedious and time-consuming. Now, they can simply connect a portable PC to the robot and use RobotStudio to make adjustments quickly and easily 4 . The leap in efficiency is so great that ABB includes a small subset of RobotStudio with every robot shipped so that no customer has to settle for the configuration methods of the past.

Bertil Thorvaldsson ABB Automation Technologies AB Mölndal, Sweden [email protected]

References: IndustrialIT for robotic applications, Off-line programming is just like having the robot on your PC! Ulrika Sallsten, ABB Review 3/2001 pp28–30.

64 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Product and tools

WebWare from ABB changes all of this. Even the most minute of changes is recorded. The exact conditions under which every individual part was manufactured can be reconstructed long after that part left the factory. If a problem occurs, all parts that may have the same problem can quickly be tracked and the parts recalled. This cuts down on uncertainty and on the costs and disturbance of unnecessarily recalling good parts. Imagine the dis- ruption, for example, if a drinks company must recall all bottles filled dur- Traced ing a certain period because it cannot trace the problem more precisely, or of a pharmaceutical company recalling all its pills because it doesn’t know which ones are dangerous. to the source Waste is no longer a question of bad luck but can be managed. That’s one WebWare takes the headache out of catching errors headache less for production person- in discrete manufacturing nel and one bonus for quality! Anders Ekblad The need for control of discrete manufacturing processes To reach best in class in discrete manufacturing is half the battle, remaining Many production lines will sporadi- If only the manufacturer could re- at the top is the other half. The chal- cally churn out suboptimal parts. construct exactly what it was that lenges of shortening product life-cy- Some such defective parts are de- went wrong when the faulty part cles and constant price pressure are tected before they leave the factory. was made. Was there an incorrect some of the threats that must be Others are returned by the customer, welding setting? Did somebody faced; only companies that manufac- or worse still, fail in use causing make the wrong adjustment to the ture world-class products with world- class efficiency will win. considerable costs and damage. robot? Reducing the count of such bad World-class manufacturing requires parts represents a considerable Unfortunately, such details are often world-class control of the production potential for improving quality and recorded only in the heads of pro- assets. ABB’s WebWare product gives cutting costs in practically any duction personnel and forgotten customers that control. Being in con- branch of manufacturing. before they can be analyzed. trol allows customers to make quicker and better business, technology and operating decisions.

WebWare gives customers the opportunity to look deep into their robotics process and develop solutions to questions such as: How can I shorten cycle time by 25%? How can I increase quality and reduce the potential for costly product recalls?

Special Report Robotics 65 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Traced to the source

Product and tools

How can I increase overall equip- and makes it available in an action- abling it to communicate with a very ment effectiveness by 10%? able form. large number of robot controllers. How can I reduce downtime due to unplanned service needs by 30%? WebWare has been carefully designed The information stored in the Web- How can I eliminate downtimes using industry standard tools to offer Ware Server is accessible from any caused by loss of data on the facto- both a standard ‘out of the box’ solu- client with Internet Explorer through ry floor? tion, as well as the ability to cus- ASP .NET pages. Hence, the informa- tomize packages to meet individual tion is available anywhere and any- Actionable Information Creates Control requirements and work with legacy time, putting customers in control. In today’s information society, it is systems. In this way, ABB protects the easy to gain access to enormous investments of its customers. Add-in modules give customers the quantities of data. But data alone puts needed functionality. When change is nobody in control. The key to suc- WebWare is built with a modular needed, it’s simply a question of ceeding in today’s business environ- framework based on proven technolo- adding a module. ment is “actionable information”: the gies and ABB’s knowledge of process right information at the right time for and robot technology. WebWare tech- The following modules are currently the right people. This is the vision be- nology is scalable, and can serve from available for WebWare: BACKUP and hind WebWare. large companies with more than 1000 REPORT. robots down to small operations with In a nutshell, WebWare transforms fac- less than ten robots. BACKUP tory floor data into actionable informa- This module safeguards robot data by tion and enables business excellence. To achieve this scalability, WebWare scheduling automatic backup and per- uses the concept of data collectors. manent archiving of robot programs, Being in control means knowing the Data collectors manage the communi- configuration files, and other produc- status of production assets at any time cation to and from a group of robot tion files from the robot or any other and foreseeing where problems may controllers (typically around 30). Each automation device with an FTP inter- arise. data collector feeds this information face. to the WebWare Server where the in- WebWare – A flexible solution formation is stored. An unlimited BACKUP also includes a connection to WebWare is an IT based system that number of data collectors can be con- Microsoft Visual Source Safe, allowing collects and records all necessary data nected to the WebWare Server, en- users to review program changes

1 Typical WebWare setup permitting traceability.

WebWare Client WebWare Client WebWare Server office computer office computer SQL Server DB Optional installed software • Microsoft Visual Source Safe • Microsoft SQL Server Visual Source Safe DB Windows2000 Server

Ethernet

Switch/Hub Switch/Hub Switch/Hub Switch/Hub Switch/Hub

DataCollector DataCollector DataCollector DataCollector DataCollector Windows2000 Prof Windows2000 Prof Windows2000 Prof Windows2000 Prof Windows2000 Prof

10 Robots 10 Robots 10 Robots 10 Robots 10 Robots

66 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Traced to the source

Product and tools

when investigating unin- quick search on the data- 2 Reporting structure. tended variations in produc- base will pinpoint all parts tion quality or performance. afflicted by this problem. Up-to-date file archives are Report These are then recalled. Easy- key to rapid recovery in the Easy-Easy- A blanket recall of all parts Report Teachpendant event of equipment substi- ReporReportt and the associated costs and Backups for operator tution, failure, or rebooting. BackupsBackups disruptions are avoided. WebWare Client As a minimum, every cus- What Can WebWare do for tomer needs this inexpen- the customer today? sive “insurance” against un- WebWare is easy to install foreseen data loss on the and operate. A typical instal- Data factory floor. DB lation takes less than a Part ID Number week. Once installed, Web- WebWare Server REPORT Arc-Welding Process Information Ware helps customers gain The REPORT module offers control of their production extensive visual and person- and provides them with ac- alized information that is tionable information. This actionable and “appropri- information helps them an- ate” to the user. The con- swer important questions cept of “appropriateness” is such as: a key factor in making information result as parts are refined. A typical How can the production line be actionable. REPORT makes it easy for traceability solution includes the com- continuously optimized against everyone, from shop floor workers to ponents shown in 1 . downtime and/or bottlenecks? business managers, to monitor the How can data in robots best be metrics that matter most for their par- The robot controller is pivotal. It gath- safeguarded and how fast can one ticular needs and responsibilities. ers information from the arc-welding robot or the whole line be restored? process, collects the ID of the part pro- This option is especially significant REPORT puts key performance indica- duced and actions taken by the opera- in view of the real costs of down- tors at the user’s fingertips, making tor. For each robot controller, all this time. proactive and predictive business information is constantly fed to the Production data is often captured management a reality. This allows WebWare server database 2 . Once in and stored in a database. Can it be personnel at all levels to keep track of the WebWare database, quality informa- quickly accessed for critical deci- the relevant metrics in real time. tion for every part produced is made sions, or is the data trapped in in- Everybody can now manage expecta- available either as reports in the Web- formation islands where the format tions, monitor trends, and make intel- Ware client, or alternatively forwarded is hard to read or even inaccessible? ligent decisions based on actionable to business systems such as SAP. How can the quality of parts pro- information. duced be traced and proven to cus- As a result, the company gets a “birth tomers? Several other add-in modules are cur- certificate” for each part. This certifi- rently under development and will be cate can be tailored to include relevant For anybody involved in discrete man- announced during 2005 and onwards. and appropriate information such as: ufacturing, having the answers to any Serial number of the part. of these questions will surely take the Traceability Which operator was responsible headache out of operations. Being in control is not only about and whether any changes were control of production equipment, but made to program or process param- WebWare is part of the overall Indus- also having control over the quality of eters. trial IT strategy from ABB. Today more parts produced. Many customers ask Result from every welding operation than 1000 companies benefit from the themselves: performed on the part and any strengths of their Industrial IT solu- How can production quality be process errors that occurred. If ap- tions. WebWare has been carefully de- optimized? propriate these include deviations signed to meet the needs of robotized How can zero-error-delivery be from nominal voltage, current and discrete manufacturing solutions. achieved? stick-out, and the exact position on How can errors be prevented? the seam where these occurred. Such data is valuable for debugging. Since the ABB robot is involved in many of the processes, such as arc Being able to track the exact condi- welding, the robot controller is impor- tions under which every individual Anders Ekblad tant in obtaining quality data from the part was manufactured simplifies the ABB Automation Technologies AB welding process. This opens the pos- recalling of faulty parts. If a problem- Sweden sibility of monitoring and tracing the atic production setting is discovered, a [email protected]

Special Report Robotics 67 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Product and tools Painting the future of robotics Future technologies for interactive robot programming John Pretlove, Charlotte Skourup, Thomas Pettersen

Robot programming has made huge strides during the last 30 years. The concept of a robot programmer hacking cryptic commands into a dumb terminal has long ago given way to ergonomic tools such as the Flexpendant and RobotStudio. Now, another leap is coming. Program- mers will move away from their computer screens and enter a virtual world with which they will interact in three dimensions.

When teaching a robot to paint, they will use a virtual paint gun to specify the robot path together with process related information while getting direct real-time visual feedback of the simulated process through a head-worn display.

This new approach creates a tool for making robot programs in a fast and intuitive way, enabling a craftsman on the shop floor to program an advanced and complex robot system without having to be a computer expert. This has the advantages of being easy to use and cheap, but most of all can capitalise on the process expert’s knowledge.

68 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Painting the future of robotics

Product and tools

Traditionally there are two methods Both of these traditional methods tion to the object during execution. In for programming robots: Manual robot have advantages and disadvantages, addition the width and colour of the programming systems using the actual but both are, in general, time-consum- paint-strokes, the orientation of the robot and CAD-based systems for pro- ing, error prone and often require paint-gun along the path and other gramming away from the robot. several iterations before the program process properties are presented 1 . is acceptable. Generating a new robot The system allows for real-time simu- Manual robot programming systems program is an extremely complex and lation of the tool along the pro- guide the robot through a series of demanding process, often requiring grammed path by “playing” the ac- waypoints by hand or through interac- the participation of more than one tions of the tool along the robot path. tion with a teach pendant wired to the person. Depending on the quality re- By utilizing this wearable program- robot. A teach pendant typically con- quirements, complexity of the object, ming system the operator can freely sists of a display, a keyboard and of- complexity of the process, cycle time, move around the object and visualize ten a joystick. In order to specify a ro- skill level and experience of the robot the simulated result of the paint bot program, the operator works di- programmer, it may take from under process before the actual painting is rectly with the robot using the teach an hour to several weeks to make a performed by the robot. This ad- pendant to move the end-effector robot program. vanced visualization enables the oper- around the object to record position, ator to focus on the process rather orientation and process-specific infor- than having to generate his own men- mation. By utilizing this wearable tal model of the program. Teach pendant solutions are cumber- programming system the The composite augmented reality some and time-consuming. Additional- operator can freely move view is most conveniently displayed ly, the programmer has no direct visual feedback of the result; he sees the around the object and manipulator and how it moves in rela- visualize the simulated tion to the object, but has to remem- result of the paint process 1 The composite Augmented Reality view as ber and mentally visualize where he seen by the operator. This figure shows a has recorded previous robot way- before the actual painting car wing with six unique markers attached points. Secondly, using a joystick with is performed by the robot. to it for location purposes. The yellow strip is three degrees-of-freedom to steer a virtual paint that has been applied by the op- manipulator with at least six is incon- erator and is overlaid in the operators view. venient and not exactly intuitive. This article presents a new approach Thirdly, the task of specifying path that delivers an easy to use AR (aug- and process related information often mented reality) -based robot program- takes at least two separate iterations, ming tool taking advantage of the op- making it difficult for the process ex- erator’s implicit process & domain pert to utilize his knowledge in an ef- knowledge and generating high quali- fective manner. ty programs in one single iteration. It combines the advantages of both CAD-based programming, on the CAD-based programming (simulation other hand, is traditionally performed and visualization of the final result) on a computer workstation where 3D and manual robot programming (di- CAD models replace the real robot rect specification of the process on and the object. The robot program the real object). can be simulated and edited before 2 The operator specifies target points using a being downloaded to the robot. artVIS – augmented reality for task hand-held device directly in relation to the visualisation object to be painted. The simulated result is These systems tend to be expensive This new robot programming system displayed as a composite image on and are often complex with a large provides real-time visual feedback for headworn displays 1 . number of functions that require a the robot programmer. The system long training period before they can be utilises augmented reality, a technique used efficiently and effectively. Neither that overlays computer-generated (vir- is it trivial for the operator to interact tual) information with the real world with a complete virtual 3D environ- scene, presenting this to the program- ment using standard workstation I/O mer on a head-worn display [1]. The devices. In addition, a full 3D model of programmer looks at the real object the object, the work cell and the robot and sees dynamically updated graph- is required. Perhaps the biggest draw- ics as if they were physically attached back, however, is that programming is to the object. For example in paint moved away from the hands of the applications, the virtual information craftsman on the shop floor. represents the path of the tool in rela-

Special Report Robotics 69 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Painting the future of robotics

Product and tools

on a head-worn display with an inte- information directly in relation to the new position. The virtual graphics are grated camera 2 . object. The pointing device has a continuously updated in such a way number of interaction buttons through that the changes made to the program In addition to capturing the real world which the operator can easily specify are visualized instantly. For example scene, the camera system also com- or change program properties; the op- by changing the width of a paint- prises a vision-based tracking system erator simply pushes a button to spec- stroke, the process quality related to that enables correct registration of the ify or delete a waypoint. paint coverage can be inspected. simulated process result. The tracking is made possible by attaching auto- Programming and editing After the robot program has been matically configurable visual markers specified, robot instructions are gener- to the object. is done through a wireless ated automatically and downloaded to pointing device mimicking the robot controller for execution. Programming and editing is done through a wireless pointing device the real process paint Prototype testing mimicking the real process paint gun. gun. Initial benchmarking tests showed that The device is tracked with six degrees robot programming using this novel of freedom enabling the specifications Editing of the manipulator path is sim- robot programming prototype system of path waypoints and process related ply done by dragging a waypoint to a achieved the goal of being at least

70 Special Report Robotics ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Product and tools ABB Review Special Report Robotics March 2005 twice as fast as conventional pro- gy will revolutionize other applica- gramming methods. tions - not just within robot program- Editorial board ming, but also for other applications Markus Bayegan Today’s prototype makes up a com- such as service and maintenance. AR Group R&D and Technology plete system with full functionality for represents a paradigm shift for ‘Ease- Niklas Stake generating a new robot program in- of-use’ of technical systems. Corporate ABB Automation Technologies cluding set-up and configuration, cre- Research Center, Norway, has intro- Staffan Erenmalm ating the robot program, real-time duced a totally new but very powerful ABB Automation Technologies Management Ltd. reachability check, editing and gener- technology. Nils Leffler ation of robot programming code. Chief Editor, ABB Review The prototype system fulfils all the requirements regarding set-up and Publisher and copyright © 2005 configuration (less than 1 day) and ABB Ltd training of (new) users in less than Zurich/Switzerland 3 days. The prototype system also fulfils the requirement of accuracy (x, y Publisher’s office and z deviation below 5 mm). ABB Schweiz AG Corporate Research ABB Review / RD.REV The possibilities demon- CH-5405 Baden-Dättwil strated here are only the [email protected] beginning of the possibili- Printers ties offered by AR. Be- Vorarlberger Verlagsanstalt AG sides simplifying robot AT-6850 Dornbirn/Austria programming, the tech- Design nology will revolutionize DAVILLA Werbeagentur GmbH other applications – not AT-6900 Bregenz/Austria just within robot program- Partial reprints or reproductions are per- ming, but also for other mitted subject to full acknowledgement. applications such as serv- Complete reprints require the publisher’s ice and maintenance written consent. Disclaimer: The information contained By utilizing the benefits from both herein reflects the views of the authors and CAD-based and manual robot pro- is for informational purposes only. Readers gramming methods, process experts should not act upon the information con- are able to generate high quality robot tained herein without seeking professional programs in an efficient manner with- advice. We make publications available with out extensive training. The new the understanding that the authors are not method is therefore attractive across rendering technical or other professional the market segments but particularly advice or opinions on specific facts or mat- for smaller sized process or produc- ters and assume no liability whatsoever in tion enterprises which have previous- connection with their use. The companies ly not seen industrial robots as cost- of the ABB Group do not make any warranty effective tools because of the difficul- or guarantee, or promise, expressed or im- ties of using and programming them. plied, concerning the content or accuracy John Pretlove of the views expressed herein. Feedback from operators indicates that Charlotte Skourup ISSN: 1013-3119 this combination of virtual paint applied Thomas Pettersen to a real object is very effective and ABB AS www.abb.com/abbreview convincing- and the operator quickly Norway forgets that the paint is only virtual. [email protected] [email protected] An exciting future [email protected] The possibilities demonstrated here are only the beginning of the possibil- References: ities offered by AR. Besides simplify- [1] Pretlove J., Skourup C., Pettersen T. ing robot programming, the technolo- Industrial IT meets The Matrix. ABB Review 2/2004

Special Report Robotics 71 ABB Review Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com The heart of Robotics

RobotStudio allows robot programming to be done on a PC in the office without shutting down production. It also enables robot programs to be prepared while a new system is built, allowing production to start carlier.

www.abb.com/robotics a

Artisan Technology Group - Quality Instrumentation ... Guaranteed | (888) 88-SOURCE | www.artisantg.com Artisan Technology Group is an independent supplier of quality pre-owned equipment

Gold-standard solutions We buy equipment Learn more! Extend the life of your critical industrial, Planning to upgrade your current Visit us at artisantg.com for more info commercial, and military systems with our equipment? Have surplus equipment taking on price quotes, drivers, technical superior service and support. up shelf space? We'll give it a new home. specifications, manuals, and documentation.

Artisan Scientific Corporation dba Artisan Technology Group is not an affiliate, representative, or authorized distributor for any manufacturer listed herein.

We're here to make your life easier. How can we help you today? (217) 352-9330 I [email protected] I artisantg.com