Praxis: An Editorial Statement

Praxis: An Editorial Statemen

An Iterative Approach for Collision Feee Routing and Scheduling in Multirobot Stations

This work is inspired by the problem of planning sequences of operations, as welding, in car manufacturing stations where multiple industrial robots cooperate. The goal is to minimize the station cycle time, \emph{i.e.} the time it takes for the last robot to finish its cycle. This is done by dispatching the tasks among the robots, and by routing and scheduling the robots in a collision-free way, such that they perform all predefined tasks. We propose an iterative and decoupled approach in order to cope with the high complexity of the problem. First, collisions among robots are neglected, leading to a min-max Multiple Generalized Traveling Salesman Problem (MGTSP). Then, when the sets of robot loads have been obtained and fixed, we sequence and schedule their tasks, with the aim to avoid conflicts. The first problem (min-max MGTSP) is solved by an exact branch and bound method, where different lower bounds are presented by combining the solutions of a min-max set partitioning problem and of a Generalized Traveling Salesman Problem (GTSP). The second problem is approached by assuming that robots move synchronously: a novel transformation of this synchronous problem into a GTSP is presented. Eventually, in order to provide complete robot solutions, we include path planning functionalities, allowing the robots to avoid collisions with the static environment and among themselves. These steps are iterated until a satisfying solution is obtained. Experimental results are shown for both problems and for their combination. We even show the results of the iterative method, applied to an industrial test case adapted from a stud welding station in a car manufacturing line

The Kyushu/US Experimental Satellite Tether (QUEST) Mission, a Small Satellite to Test and Validate Spacecraft Tether Deployment and Operations

In recent years, an increased effort to design, build, and operate small satellites has taken place in universities and laboratories all over the world. These microsatellites provide numerous flight opportunities for science experiments at a fraction of the cost of larger traditional missions. In addition, there has been an increasing trend towards international cooperation on space projects. From the International Space Station to joint commercial ventures, the future of space progress will be shared by countries around the world. Tomorrow’s engineers must prepare for this challenge. This paper provides an overview of the Kyushu/US Experimental Satellite Tether (QUEST) mission, a joint project between Kyushu University (KU), Arizona State University (ASU), and Santa Clara University (SCU). This mission will develop and test new technologies related to space tether deployment and operation. In particular, it will attempt to show very small space platforms can be used for significant tether deployments. If successful, it will provide valuable data for tether designers as well as cost and weight savings on future missions. In addition, progress on system design, ground station development, orbital simulations and related testing are reviewed

Optimal Robot Placement for Tasks Execution

AbstractAutomotive assembly cells are cluttered environments, including robots, workpieces, and fixtures. Due to high volumes and several product variants assembled in the same cell, robot placement is crucial to increase flexibility and throughput. In this paper, we propose a novel method to optimize the base position of an industrial robot with the objective to reach all predefined tasks and minimize cycle time: robot inverse kinematics and collision avoidance are integrated together with a derivative-free optimization algorithm. This approach is successfully used to find feasible solutions on industrial test cases, showing up to 20% cycle time improvement

Combined physical and statistical modeling of laser induced ultrasound signals from thin light absorbing films

This paper presents a method for predicting the ultrasound pulses generated by thin semi-transparent polymer films, excited by a short laser pulse. The acoustic pressure is first modeled based on the physical properties of the polymer. Partial Least-Squares Regression is then used to link the model pressure to the ultrasound pulses measured by an ultrasound transducer. The uncertainty of the regression is also simulated, showing that the method is robust to noise in the measurementsGodkänd; 2013; 20130611 (johanc

Generating Optimized Trajectories for Robotic Spray Painting

In the manufacturing industry, spray painting is often an important part of the manufacturing process. Especially in the automotive industry, the perceived quality of the final product is closely linked to the exactness and smoothness of the painting process. For complex products or low batch size production, manual spray painting is often used. But in large scale production with a high degree of automation, the painting is usually performed by industrial robots. There is a need to improve and simplify the generation of robot trajectories used in industrial paint booths. A novel method for spray paint optimization is presented, which can be used to smooth out a generated initial trajectory and minimize paint thickness deviations from a target thickness. The smoothed out trajectory is found by solving, using an interior point solver, a continuous non-linear optimization problem. A two-dimensional reference function of the applied paint thickness is selected by fitting a spline function to experimental data. This applicator footprint profile is then projected to the geometry and used as a paint deposition model. After generating an initial trajectory, the position and duration of each trajectory segment are used as optimization variables. The primary goal of the optimization is to obtain a paint applicator trajectory, which would closely match a target paint thickness when executed. The algorithm has been shown to produce satisfactory results on both a simple 2-dimensional test example, and a non-trivial industrial case of painting a tractor fender. The resulting trajectory is also proven feasible to be executed by an industrial robot