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Rain Concert The mobile manipulator "Little Helper"
Word cloud
Application example
The mobile robot "Little Helper" is serving a 3D metrology machine from Zeiss.
Contents
- Introduction
- Flexible Automation
- Interaction technology; "Mobile Robotics"
- The underlying concept
- Current potential
- Increased competitiveness
Introduction
The Mobile Robot section focuses on the development, maturation, integration and utilization of mobile robots in an industrial context. The main focus is on an ongoing development and research project at Department of Production at Aalborg University dealing with the autonomous, flexible and robust mobile robot "Little Helper".
Flexible Automation
"Who would not like to have a little helper as Gyro Gearloose? A helper that does not require anything other than a little power, but can solve a number of different tasks, that would otherwise have to be resolved by yourself or other people ".
There are constantly increasing demands on production, which means that adjustment and responsiveness play an increasingly important role in the industry, which should be prioritized on equal terms with; lead times, waste, storage capabilities, etcetera. Thus is created an industrial need for innovative and flexible automation solutions, based on new technologies, which seek greater; autonomy, versatility and robustness.
Interaction technology; "Mobile Robotics"
The mobile robot "Little Helper" addresses the above, since it possesses the following flexibility parameters:
- Versatility, which provides general conversion and adaptation options
- Mobility, which allows production related movements
- Autonomy, which enables intelligent and fully automated production
- Robustness, resulting in reduced sensitivity to environmental and/or product related changes
None of the above constitutes, in itself, revolutionary aspects in industrial context, but the composition and integration create an innovative foundation in manufacturing and business technology. In particular the mobility aspect, as the new factor, is able to add an unprecedented, and thereby unutilized, flexibility parameter.
The underlying concept
The mobile robot acts as a flexible little helper, which can be easily and rapidly integrated into various applications in existing production environments, as it is able to serve usual production equipment and carry out versatile work related operations - either depending on machine-to-machine (via wireless communications) or man-to-machine (through customized work cycles) communication – making “Little Helper” an adaptive and advantageous automation solution.
"Little helper" is intuitive and simple to use - in the form of the supplied GUI-based program “FlexRob Studio”, which enables the operator to use the mobile robot, just by simple entries from a touch panel– thereby keeping the entry barriers as low as possible. Furthermore, a setup where the user interaction only takes place in the learning phase is used, which means that the mobile robot can act autonomously and unattended - and thereby fully automatic - during the operational phase.
The Mobile Robot is developed on the basis of a design concept containing the key factors; modularity, scalability and configurability. This means that the mobile robot systems may be replaced and/or changed after each company's requirements and desires, which also ensures that future technologies can be integrated in connection therewith.
Current potential
"Little Helper" performs - in principle – the following diverse industrial tasks:
- Transportation
- Pick-and-place
- Quality control
- Classification
- Process control
- Dangerous and/or inaccessible processes and tasks
However, the mobile robot’s real application potential is significantly larger.
Increased competitiveness
The automation domain requires, at this stage, a technology boost, so the area can experience renewed growth, which means that companies can increase their competitiveness.
Mobile robots represent an interaction technology, which moves the boundaries of what is possible within automation, thereby providing unique opportunities in industrial context. The immediate results for companies are:
- Resource release
- Capacity increase
- Effectiveness
- Competence development
In short, "Little Helper" is qualified as an essential part of the solution of both current and
future automation problems, whereby companies achieve greater competitiveness – through an innovative technology boost.
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