Methodology for choosing the best suitable strategy of robot trajectory adjustment

Abstract:
The adjustment of trajectories is necessary for almost every robot based processing or machining application. Each time the workpiece to be processed differs from the previous one, either because of a product change or due to tolerances in the production process, the trajectory needs to be adapted to the new situation. A very diverse product range is typical for small and medium enterprises (SMEs), which form the backbone of the European industries. Big shares of the production time are thus needed for setting up the process, decreasing the productivity of the production line. Additionally for the frequent changes and adjustments in the robot cells specialists are needed for programming and setting up the robot programs. This altogether hinders the use of industrial robots in SMEs. As an aid to overcome this issue, an overview of the possible adjustment procedures is given and a guideline for identifying the most relevant deviations, along with the best suitable adjustment strategies, is presented.